Imperial football team/Shaolin Kung-Fu

Shaolin Soccer
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Shaolin Soccer

Promotional Poster (for Japanese market)
Directed by Stephen Chow
Produced by Kwok-fai Yeung
Starring Stephen Chow
Zhao Wei
Ng Man Tat
Patrick Tse
Wong Yat-fei
Music by Jackie Chan
Lowell Lo
Raymond Wong
Cinematography Pak-huen Kwen
Ting Wo Kwong
Editing by Kit-Wai Kai
Release date(s) Hong Kong July 12, 2001
USA April 2, 2004
UK November 12
Running time 95 min.
Country Hong Kong
Language Cantonese
All Movie Guide profile
IMDb profile

Shaolin Soccer is a 2001 Hong Kong comedy film directed by acclaimed Hong Kong comedian, actor and director, Stephen Chow. It is about a former Shaolin monk who reunites his classmates, years after their master's death, to apply their superhuman martial art skills to play soccer and bring Shaolin kung fu to the masses.
Contents
[hide]

* 1 Synopsis
* 2 Cast
* 3 Characters
* 4 Awards
* 5 Trivia
* 6 See also
* 7 External links
* 8 References

[edit] Synopsis
Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

Shaolin Soccer tells the story of Sing (Stephen Chow), a master of Shaolinquan Kung Fu whose goal in life is to let the world know about the benefits of the ancient art. He experiments with various methods to mainstream the art, including comedic song and dance routines, all of which bear no positive results. He meets an old man called Fung (Ng Man Tat), who was a soccer star in his days until his teammate Hung, now a rich businessman, paid him to shave his points. After missing the game-winning penalty kick, Fung's “golden leg” was broken by angry baseball bat-wielding fans (hired by Hung) and had not been able to play ever since. Sing tries to explain his desire to promote the modern uses of kungfu. Fung is initially unconvinced with Sing's idea and brushes off Sing's pleas. The latter kicks a beer can thrown at him by Fung, which vanishes into the sky, but the old man remains adamant. Later, Fung sees a huge crack in a wall some miles away, only to discover that it was caused by the very same tin can which Sing kicked earlier and is astounded. He also witnesses a fight between Sing and a group of local thugs who often ridicule the Shaolin master. After Sing humbles the rogues in a one-sided fight, nearly destroying a brick wall just by kicking a soccer ball, Fung is hit with an idea and asks if Sing could use Kung Fu to play Soccer. Sing likes the idea and agrees for Fung to become his coach.

Sing meets Mui (Vicki Zhao), a baker with severe acne who uses Tai Chi to make Chinese steamed buns. Despite her appearance, Sing regularly visits her throughout the film and even takes Mui to look at very expensive dresses at a high end department store (where he works as a janitor) after hours. She soon forms an attachment to Sing and even gets a make-over. However, this backfires when the excessive amount of make-up used gives her an almost clown-like appearance, leading everyone to jump and call her a ghost. When Mui reveals her feelings to Sing, he tells her he only wants to be her friend. This revelation, coupled with the constant bullying from her overbearing boss, leads Mui to disappear until later in the film.
The captain of Team Evil prepares for his most powerful attack.
The captain of Team Evil prepares for his most powerful attack.

Reuniting with his fellow Shaolin brother students (who have since led separate and busy lives), Sing and Fung attempt to put together an unbeatable soccer team albeit after much persuasion and initial rejection by the other brothers. However, Fung is keen on proving his skills, and in order to turn Sing and his players into real soccer athletes, he invites a vicious team consisting of local thugs (some of whom were beaten up by Sing not long ago) to play against them in a friendly (which turns out to be anything but) match; rather than scoring points, the thugs proceed to give the Shaolin team a brutal gang beating. When all seems to be lost, the Shaolin boys' powers reawaken and they win. A few of the defeated thugs even beg Sing to be allowed to join their team, meaning that the squad would have enough players to compete professionally.

Soon, Team Shaolin enters the professional soccer league in China where they chalk up successive (and often ridiculously one-sided) victories over teams who are, on paper, superior to Team Shaolin. Their next goal is to win the China Super Cup and to beat the notorious Team Evil helmed by none other than Fung's old nemesis Hung. It turns out that Hung plans to win the Cup by assembling a squad of players who have been injected with a serum which grants them superhuman strength and speed, making them practically invincible. Predictably, Team Shaolin, which steamrolled their earlier opponents, are brought back to reality when Team Evil's amazing capabilities prove more than a match for them. At a critical moment, when Team Shaolin's goalkeeper 'Empty Hand' and his replacement 'Iron Shirt' are also severely injured during the match, Mui reappears to keep goal for Team Shaolin. Using her Tai Chi technique (which reversed Captain Evil's final kick with no loss of energy), combined with Sing's kick, the soccer ball is rocketed down field with so much force that it creates a horizontal tornado that splays the ground and sucks up anything in its path. The ball plows through the goal post (completely stripping naked Team Evil's goalkeeper) and destroys half of the stadium, winning the tournament for Team Shaolin. This successfully brings Kung Fu into the mainstream, fulfilling Sing's dream.

[edit] Cast
Empty Hand uses his super speed to catch a soccer ball and all of the shoes kicked at him.
Empty Hand uses his super speed to catch a soccer ball and all of the shoes kicked at him.

* Stephen Chow - Steel Leg Sing (Ng Sihing 五師兄, Brother #5)
* Zhao Wei - T'ai Chi Kung Fu master Mui
* Ng Man Tat - Golden Leg Fung
* Patrick Tse - Hung
* Wong Yut Fei - Iron Head (Dai Sihing 大師兄, Big Brother #1)
* Tin Kai Man - Iron Shirt (Sam Sihing 三師兄, Brother #3)
* Lam Chi Chung - Weight Vest (Sidai 師弟, Little Brother #6)
* Chan Kwok Kuen - Empty Hand (Say Sihing 四師兄, Brother #4)
* Lam Chi-Sing - Hooking Leg (Yi Sihing 二師兄, Brother #2)
* Sik Chi Wan - FF of Team Evil
* Cecilia Cheung - Team Dragons player (with facial hair) (cameo)
* Karen Mok - Team Dragons player (with facial hair) (cameo)

[edit] Characters

* Steel Leg - The hero of Team Shaolin, 5th Brother "Steel Leg" Sing is a master of the Shaolin technique of kicking. His leg is powerful enough to kick a refrigerator hurling to a tall platform. Sing remains dedicated to Shaolin kung fu, and despite ending up working as a street cleaner years later, he still believes in Shaolin spirit deep down inside. He is keen on showing others how Shaolin kung-fu can improve a daily basis in numerous ways. As for his brothers, they lost their faith. Thinking he cannot follow his dreams, Sing feels hopeless - until he meets a girl with extraordinary Tai Chi skills. Eventually he meets Fung and leads him to think of the possibility of combining elements of his martial arts with soccer, which they succeed beyond their dreams.
* Fung - In the 1980s, Fung was a respected soccer player and it earned him the nickname "Golden Leg". However, accepting a bribe to throw a penalty shot results in a tragic end to his career, his leg is brutally broken by a mob of 'disgruntled' supporters, who were in fact paid by another player, Hung, to cripple him. Fung ended up, two decades later, working as a lackey for Hung, who is now a tycoon as well as a president of China's soccer operations. One day, Fung willingly leaves Hung's care to become a street wanderer, all hopes gone, until he meets Sing. Subsequently he becomes the coach/manager of Team Shaolin.
* Mui - A self-conscious and lonely girl who works at a food stand making steamed buns. Her secret into making the dough tasty is her expert procedure of Tai Chi, which she uses to twist the dough. She is constantly bullied by her foul-tempered boss. Despite her severe facial skin damage, Sing seems to like and admire Mui, and she eventually falls in love with him. Because Sing does not return her romantic feelings, she cries while making dough, and her tears make the dough salty and bitter and it results in having her fired. In the end she assists Team Shaolin, shaving her head (to resemble a Shaolin monk) to pose as a male soccer goalkeeper. She uses her flexible Tai Chi powers to stop the drug-enhanced brutal power of Team Evil.
* Iron Head - 1st Brother "Iron Head" spent much effort gaining the kung-fu style that makes his head as tough as iron. After the death of his kung-fu master and the splitting-up of the brothers, he drifted, becoming a janitor at a night club. After an absurd plan of Sing's involving kung-fu and a humiliating music performance, Iron Head loses his job. However, through a bit more difficulties along the way, he would soon become a valuable player in Team Shaolin, with his unstoppably powerful header.
* Hooking Leg - 2nd Brother "Hooking Leg"'s Shaolin powers resemble tae kwan do and Capoeira. Following his training of Shaolin kung-fu, he found himself washing dishes. When Sing and Fung approach him to insist his joining the soccer league, he reacts violently and even threatens to kill them, all because they still have full heads of hair, whereas his has fallen out. Then he joins after the wonderful idea of being family again.
* Iron Shirt - Despite the strange name, 3rd Brother "Iron Shirt" actually has a practical technique, in which he can absorb all kinds of blows without considerable damage, as well as syphoning and shooting the ball with his abdomen. When his kung fu master passed away, he went on to become a busy businessman. Later, the thought of reuniting with his brothers overshadows his business, and he leaves to be a part of Team Shaolin. During the final game against Team Evil, he bravely volunteers to be the replacement goalie for the critically wounded Empty Hand, but is also injured by the brutal shots taken at him by Team Evil.
* Empty Hand - The 4th Brother's resemblance to Bruce Lee and bullet-fast hands makes him the first goalkeeper for Team Shaolin. He was unemployed for a stretch of time after his master's death, and he was rather eager to play soccer.
* Weight Vest - The 6th Brother is obese and gluttonous (due to a viral pituitary infection that resulted in uncontrollable appetite). However, he is empowered to lighten his weight and fly through the sky for short periods of time. Unfortunately, since his master died, he lost faith and motivation. He works at a grocery store but spends all his time munching on junk food. He refuses the offer from Sing and Fung to play soccer at first but later accepts soon along with the others.
* Team Evil coach Hung - Being the antagonist of Shaolin Soccer, he was the one who paid Fung, a long time ago, to throw an important game. Unbeknownst to Fung, Hung paid angry fans to break his leg to ensure his bleak future. Now the coach of Team Evil, he had led his team to five championships already, but they face Fung's Team Shaolin in defense of the championship title.

[edit] Awards
The asphalt crumbles beneath Steel Leg’s foot as he prepares to kick the soccer ball.
The asphalt crumbles beneath Steel Leg’s foot as he prepares to kick the soccer ball.

21st Annual Hong Kong Film Awards

* Winner - Best Picture
* Winner - Best Director (Stephen Chow)
* Winner - Best Actor (Stephen Chow)
* Winner - Best Supporting Actor (Wong Yat-Fei)
* Winner - Best Sound Effect
* Winner - Best Visual Effect
* Winner - Outstanding Young Director (Stephen Chow)
* Nomination - Best Action Choreography
* Nomination - Best Cinematography
* Nomination - Best Costume Design
* Nomination - Best Editing
* Nomination - Best Screenplay
* Nomination - Best Original Film Score
* Nomination - Best Original Song

7th Golden Bauhinia Awards

* Winner - Best Picture
* Winner - Best Actor (Stephen Chow)
* Winner - Best Supporting Actor (Wong Yat-Fei)

[edit] Trivia
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* The humour in Shaolin Soccer involves Mo lei tau; Chinese wordplay, gross-out gags, musical references to Bollywood films and American Western films, parodies of popular films (including The Matrix, Saving Private Ryan , Jurassic Park and Lion King), and many over-the-top action scenes mimicking the wuxia genre and reminiscent of those found in the manga/anime Captain Tsubasa.
* With a gross of slightly over HK$60M, Shaolin Soccer became the highest grossing local film in Hong Kong history, to be surpassed by Stephen Chow's next film, Kung Fu Hustle.
* Miramax released an edited version of Shaolin Soccer in the US market on April 2, 2004. Missing over 20 minutes of footage, and featuring English dubbing, the Miramax release came under heavy criticism from Hong Kong film fans (not to mention box office because people had bought the imported DVDs three years earlier), leading the studio to reinstate both the excised footage and the original Chinese language audio as a viewer option for the US DVD release.
* Puma apparel is featured prominently in almost every scene. Every opposing team wears Puma, and the Shaolin team itself has Puma shoes. "The Cat" is also used in a special effects shot, where the soccer ball morphs into a flaming comet and then into a fiery puma.
* Shaolin Soccer was referenced in Chow's next film, Kung Fu Hustle. During his first appearance in the film, Chow encounters a few boys playing a game of soccer. He stomps on a soccer ball after doing a few tricks, deflating it, and yells "Still playing soccer?!" in a sarcastic manner.
* In the 1994 Stephen Chow movie, Love on Delivery, Ng Man Tat plays a cripple who is a has-been martial artist. In one scene he is hit in the face by a stray soccer ball. When asked by Stephen Chow's character whether he is fine, Ng Man Tat's character replies: "I'm all right. I have practiced kung fu."
* The Cantonese dialect is spoken throughout Shaolin Soccer except by Mui's character who speaks Mandarin, although it is filmed in mainland Shanghai, where the common dialect is Shanghainese. Also, traditional Chinese is being used throughout the film, instead of simplified.
* Some scenes that were considered insignificant to the plot were removed from the English-dubbed version but can still be view in the deleted scenes, one example is when Sing's team quarrels over who should clean Hung's shoe and carry their fight outside while throwing the shoe in the air.
* Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko, the co-creators of Avatar: The Last Airbender, stated in an interview that "Asian cinema is really good at action comedy. Shaolin Soccer is one of our favorite movies. It has tons of fantastic action and lots of funny moments. Some of the effects provided inspiration for how bending moves might look on the show."[1]
* Tin Kai Man (Iron Shirt), Chan Kwok Kuen (Empty Hand), and Lam Chi Chung (Weight Vest) are in Stephen Chow's Kung Fu Hustle.