(Variety) The Donnie Yen-starring action thriller “Raging Fire” will open in North American theaters on Aug. 13, its distributor Well Go USA Entertainment announced Friday.
The film is the final project of the late iconic Hong Kong film director Benny Chan, who passed away last summer. Chan was beloved for action films like “The White Storm” and Jackie Chan pictures like “New Police Story.”
“Raging Fire” will screen ahead of its broader theatrical outing on Aug. 9 as the Centerpiece film selection of the New York Asian Film Festival (NYAFF). Later this year, it will land on the martial arts streaming channel Hi-YAH!, prior to its physical and digital release.
“We have been long-time champions of both the late director Benny Chan’s work and Donnie Yen,” said NYAFF executive director Samuel Jamier. “The Centerpiece presentation is the keystone event of NYAFF, representing the tone and unique spirit of our festival, which continues to celebrate popular movies alongside the best of international cinema.”
The festival awarded Chan its Daniel A. Craft Award for Excellence in Action Cinema in 2014, and Yen earned the Variety Star Asia Award in 2012.
“Raging Fire” is produced by Emperor Film Production, Tencent Pictures and Super Bullet Pictures. Texas-headquartered Well Go acquired the rights from Emperor.
Yen is known for his roles in Disney’s live-action “Mulan” and the “Ip Man” franchise, among many others. Here, he will star as the respected but hardline cop Shan, who has tackled a long string of dangerous cases. His past unexpectedly comes back to haunt him when a sting operation is attacked by a mysterious group of criminals led by Ngo (Nicholas Tse), an ex-cop and his former protege. Ngo landed in prison three years prior due to a terrible mistake, and he emerges with a desire to get back at everyone who has ever wronged him — including the man who once mentored him.
Yen and Tse (“New Police Story”) will lead a cast that also includes Patrick Tan (“Ip Man 3”), Jeana Ho (“The Grandmaster”) and Ray Liu (“Flash Point”). The movie features work from action directors Huen Chiu Ku (“Kill Bill: Vol. 1,” “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon,” “Kung Fu Hustle”), Kenji Tanigaki (“Enter the Fat Dragon”) and Chirs Collins (“Ip Man 4”), as well as action choreographer Kang Yu (“Chasing the Dragon”).
Source: Variety by Rebecca Davis