Soul Blade & Soul Calibur
These fighting games each have a character based on Bruce Lee. "Soul Blade" features a man named Li Long who uses the "Fighting Dragon" style of kung fu along with nunchakus and some of Bruce Lee's trademark moves like the jumping chest crush.
The sequel, "Soul Calibur," features basically the same character, except that this time he's called Maxi.
Ivy's unique weapon -- a sword and whip all in one -- was inspired by the Jimmy Wang Yu movie The Desperate Chase.
The SOUL CALIBUR Movie
Martial arts master Sammo Hung looks to be in plans to direct and star in a movie based off this game. Here's the scoop from sammohung.com.
Everyone is still waiting for positive word on the Soul Calibur movie, even us. We do know that the producers of Soul Calibur signed a deal with Namco; so far, the movie is a go. Sammo expects to be formally signed on soon as director and possibly to play a role.
On Thursday, April 12, 2001, the producers (Alan Noel Vega, Michael Cerenzie, Dr. Sam Kute and Joseph Jones) signed a formal letter of intent with Namco vice-chairman Ryuji Hashiguchi to commence development on the movie version of Soul Calibur. Soul Calibur is a Namco-owned video game for the Sega Dreamcast game console that enjoys a global, ensemble cast.
Sammo Hung has also signed a letter of intent to direct Soul Calibur and the producers should officially attach Sammo soon.
The budget for Soul Calibur will depend on the stars and may go up to $50 million [editor's note: I'm assuming this is US dollars]. If all goes well, principal photography could commence late Summer/early Fall 2001. Locations may include Eastern Europe (Prague) and parts of China. The planned release date is Summer 2002. Given Namco's relationship with award winning computer special effects house Rhythym and Hues, they are the first choice to do special fx on Soul Calibur.
We invite fans to recommend casting for the characters of Soul Calibur: The Movie.
An interactive movie website is planned that will feature up to date movie information and a contest wherein the winning male and female contestants will get cameos in the movie.
June 2001 update:
Before leaving for Hong Kong...Sammo had a meeting with all four producers of the upcoming Soul Calibur movie project. Once again he was assured that the project is a "go". Hopefully as soon as Sammo finishes work on the big budgeted film "Highbinders", he can start doing his directorial duties on Soul Calibur.
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Left to right: Nobuaki Hosoda (Namco USA Rep), Joseph Jones (Producer), Alan Noel Vega (Producer), Ryuji Hashiguchi (Namco Vice-Chairman), Dr. Sam Kute (Producer), Joyce Godenzi (Sammo's wife), Rueben Langdon (Associate Producer) |
July 2001 update:
As far as the Soul Calibur movie goes, it seems production will be delayed until next year. From what we understand, the producers are trying to work with Jackie Chan and he seems to have a busy schedule (he is doing "Tuxedo" for Dreamworks after "Highbinders", which Hung also directed). More on this as we hear it. The Soul Calibur film is currently on schedule to be released in summer 2003 and carries a preliminary budget of $50 million.
November 2001 update:
Here's the latest word: "In checking in with the Soul Calibur movie project, word is that the finishing touches on the contract between Namco (video game owner) and the producers is finally getting done. All should go well, shooting may happen sometime next year."
Feburary 2002 update:
On the Soul Calibur front, producer Alan Noel Vega signed the movie rights agreement with Namco vice-chairman Ryuji Hashiguchi in Hawaii last January 30th, 2002. This clears the way for Soul Calibur to be made into a movie which our man Sammo will direct and play an acting part in. With the rights secured, the producers will now work to attach talent and, hopefully, succeed in reuniting the 3 brothers (Jackie Chan, Yuen Biao and Sammo Hung) in a big budget movie. Word has it that Germany-based Senator Entertainment is interested in funding the project. More on this exciting story as we get the news.
March 2002 update:
As far as Soul Calibur goes, negotiations are underway for Sammo to direct and Jackie Chan to play a starring role. Given that negotiations are ongoing, we expect filming to happen early next year.
[editor's note: where the hell is Jackie going to find the time to do this? I'm all up for it, but it seems unlikely given his full plate. It has also been rumored that Jackie will be involved in the "real" movie version of Tekken.]
As a side note, the newly-redesigned sammohung.com has a link to the official Soul Calibur site.
May 2004 update:
In case you haven't noticed, the Sammo Hung-directed version of Soul Calibur is not going to be made. The rights were sold off to a US company.
