''The Rescue'' ( zh, 紧急救援) is a 2020 Chinese

action film Action film is a film genre in which the protagonist is thrust into a series of events that typically involve violence and physical feats. The genre tends to feature a mostly resourceful hero struggling against incredible odds, which include life ...

directed by

Dante Lam Dante Lam Chiu-Yin () is a Hong Kong film director, writer and actor who is a major figure in Chinese action cinema. Background He was trained in the tradition of John Woo as an assistant director and worked as an actor and producer. He often writ ...

. The film follows the personal and professional lives of members from the China Rescue & Salvage, which is under the Chinese Ministry of Transport. The film stars

Eddie Peng Eddie Peng Yu-Yan (; born 24 March 1982) is a Taiwanese actor, singer and model. Personal life Peng was born in Penghu, Taiwan. He moved to Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada at the age of thirteen. In 2000, he graduated from Sir Winston Church ...

Wang Yanlin Wang Yanlin (, born 28 July 1989), also known as Ian Wang, is a Chinese actor. He is best known for his works in '' Wu Xin: The Monster Killer'' (2015), ''The Starry Night, The Starry Sea'' (2017). He also starred in the film ''Operation Red S ...

Xin Zhilei Xin Zhilei () is a Chinese actress. She is best known for her roles in films ''Bunshinsaba 2 ''Bunshinsaba 2'' () is a 2013 Chinese horror film directed by Ahn Byeong-ki. Plot A group of six: Song Qian, Nana, You Feng, Yufei, Yang Zheng, and ...

Lan Yingying Lan Yingying (born 16 April 1990), also known as Lyric Lan, is a Chinese actress. She is known for her roles as Huanbi in '' Empresses in the Palace'' (2011). Career Lan made her movie debut playing the role of Haitang in ''Mural'' in 2011. She ...

, Wang Yutian, and Xu Yang. The film was initially scheduled to the released in China on 25 January 2020, but was delayed due to

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

. ''The Rescue'' is the third film in a series of films directed by Dante Lam that pays tribute to Chinese public personnel, including 2016's ''

Operation Mekong ''Operation Mekong'' () is a 2016 Chinese-Hong Kong crime action film directed by Dante Lam and starring Zhang Hanyu and Eddie Peng. The film is based on the 2011 Mekong River massacre. It was released in China on 30 September 2016 and became on ...

'' (the police) and 2018's ''

Operation Red Sea ''Operation Red Sea'' () is a 2018 Chinese-Hong Kong action war film directed by Dante Lam and starring Zhang Yi, Huang Jingyu, Hai Qing and Du Jiang. The film is loosely based on the evacuation of foreign nationals and almost 600 Chinese citi ...

'' (the navy). The film has received financial and production backing and assistance from the Chinese Ministry of Transport. Released on 18 December 2020, the film received generally positive reviews from critics but grossed just $74 million against a budget of $90 million.

Plot

Cast

as Gao Qian *

as Zhao Cheng *

as Fang Yuling *

as Wen Shan *Wang Yutian as An Peng *Xu Yang as Bai Yang *Li Mincheng as Liu Bin *Carlos Chan as Lin Weiquan *

Zhang Guoqiang Zhang Guoqiang ( Chinese: 张国强; Pinyin: Zhang Guoqiáng; born September 30, 1969) is a Chinese actor. Childhood Zhang was born to a family of entertainers. His mother's grandfather was a famous Pingju (a kind of Chinese folk opera) perform ...

as Pan Zhengjun *Guo Xiaodong (cameo appearance) as Ding Yi *

Wei Daxun Wei Daxun (; born 12 April 1989), born in Jilin Province, China, is a Chinese actor, singer, and host. Wei ranked 85th on ''Forbes'' China Celebrity 100 list in 2019, and 56th in 2020. He graduated from the 07-level undergraduate class of act ...

(cameo appearance) as Huo Da

Production

Music

Elliot Leung Elliot Ho Yat Leung () is the first and only composer from Hong Kong to break into Hollywood. He is best known for his work on Operation Red Sea, The Battle at Lake Changjin and The Rescue. He has composed the score for 3 of the top 10 highest-g ...

was invited to return after composing the score to

. The score was recorded in Synchron Stage. On December 18,

Sony Classical Sony Classical is an American record label founded in 1924 as Columbia Masterworks Records, a subsidiary of Columbia Records. In 1980, the Columbia Masterworks label was renamed as CBS Masterworks Records. The CBS Records Group was acquired by ...

and

Milan Records Milan Records is a record label located in Los Angeles, California specializing in film scores and soundtrack albums. In addition, Milan boasts an extensive electronic catalog which features down-tempo, chillout, and eclectic electronic releases ...

released a soundtrack album consisting of 27 tracks.

Release

The film was originally scheduled to be released on 25 January 2020 in both China and the United States, but was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It was later released on 18 December 2020.

Reception

Box office

''The Rescue'' grossed $8.9 million in its first day of release. Chinese audiences gave the film 9.2/10 on

Maoyan Tianjin Maoyan Culture Media () is a Chinese company that owns the largest online movie ticketing website in China, maoyan.com, with 30% share of the market in 2015. In 2016, Wang Changtian of Beijing Enlight Media offered to buy a controlling stak ...

, 9/10 on

Taopiaopiao Tao Piao Piao (, lit: 'hunting for tickets'), or Taopiaopiao , is an online movie ticket distributor and film promotion service. Together, Taopiaopiao and its main rival Maoyan control approximately 80 percent of movie ticket sales in China. Form ...

, and 6.6/10 on Douban. It went on to debut to $36.1 million, finishing first at the box office. ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'' wrote that the total was "far below projections and could mean the film will lose money." In the United States and Canada, the film had a limited release and ranked 25th in its opening weekend, grossing $9,674 from 65 theaters with an average of $148 per theater

Critical response

On review aggregator

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...

, the film has an approval rating of based on reviews, with an average rating of .

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Rescue, The (2020 film) Films postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic Polybona Films films Chinese action films Films directed by Dante Lam Films shot in Fujian 2020 films 2020 action films Tencent Pictures films IMAX films 2020s Mandarin-language films