Can This Damsel Save The Movie?

31 Dec

FIRST SNEAK
Can this damsel save the movie?
December 31, 2009
 
 

SAVE me, pleeease.

SAVING GRACE: Lin Chiling plays a helpless damsel, but she may help boost The Treasure Hunter’s box-office takings. TNP PICTURE: GAVIN FOO

That’s how Lin Chiling’s character, Lan Ting, seems to cry out throughout adventure flick The Treasure Hunter.

And looking at the pretty face of this 35-year-old model-actress and the way she clings on to Jay Chou, who plays a butt-kicking archaeologist, which male audience member wouldn’t want to do that?

Throw in artificial sandstorms and hideous baddies on horseback, and the male fantasy of saving a damsel in distress is indeed complete.

But if not for the hot chick factor, this $21 million movie directed by Kevin Chu will probably end up a complete flop, we think.

No wonder Kevin, who also directed Island Of Fire and Kung Fu Dunk, is confident about the box office success of The Treasure Hunter – despite his actors’ lacklustre performances.

Said Kevin: ‘With a handsome dude, a ravishing beauty and a mesmerising desert location, plus epic fighting scenes, who wouldn’t want to watch the film?’

And when we asked the 57-year-old film-maker whether he finds his latest showcase similar to Hollywood adventure flicks, he couldn’t seem to recall the likes of Lara Croft: Tomb Raider, The Mummy and its two sequels or even all the Indiana Jones films.

But with Chinese actor Chen Daoming and Hong Kong veteran Eric Tsang also in the cast, there are some gems buried in The Treasure Hunter.

But will we dig out praises or even more criticism?

For more on this film, don’t miss our FiRST section, only in The New Paper tomorrow.

In addition, look out for details on how you can win Eddie Peng-autographed posters for his latest movie Hear Me.

There are also movie freebies up for grabs, including Old Dogs movie hampers, The Fourth Kind movie passes, The Treasure Hunter movie merchandise and preview tickets to It’s Complicated, starring Meryl Streep, Alec Baldwin and Steve Martin.

 

The NewPaper

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