''The Resistance'' () is a Chinese

martial arts Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defense; military and law enforcement applications; combat sport, competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; a ...

action Action may refer to: * Action (narrative), a literary mode * Action fiction, a type of genre fiction * Action game, a genre of video game Film * Action film, a genre of film * ''Action'' (1921 film), a film by John Ford * ''Action'' (1980 fil ...

film set during World War II, directed by Peng Zhang Li. The Resistance is inspired by the beginning of the

Japanese invasion of China The Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945) or War of Resistance (Chinese term) was a military conflict that was primarily waged between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. The war made up the Chinese theater of the wider Pacific Thea ...

where over 300,000 people in the capital of

Nanjing Nanjing (; , Mandarin pronunciation: ), alternately romanized as Nanking, is the capital of Jiangsu province of the People's Republic of China. It is a sub-provincial city, a megacity, and the second largest city in the East China region. T ...

were massacred. The movie mixes an epic tale of revenge with elements of

martial art Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defense; military and law enforcement applications; competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; and the preserv ...

ninja A or was a covert agent or mercenary in feudal Japan. The functions of a ninja included reconnaissance In military operations, reconnaissance or scouting is the exploration of an area by military forces to obtain information about enem ...

adventure An adventure is an exciting experience or undertaking that is typically bold, sometimes risky. Adventures may be activities with danger such as traveling, exploring, skydiving, mountain climbing, scuba diving, river rafting, or other extreme spo ...

, and

war War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regular o ...

movies.

Plot

In 1940 during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, a city named Shichen is controlled ruthlessly by general Takeshi and his imperial Japanese army. A masked murderer known as " The Black Dress Killer" is systematically killing Japanese soldiers, working his way to the top Japanese general, who is responsible for many deaths of men and women, including Xiaoyun's family. Xiaoyun is a peasant girl who joined the Chinese resistance to avenge her family. Meanwhile, an American reporter is sent to

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

to uncover the truth about the unrest between China and Japan. What he finds threatens his own life and later forces him to join the Chinese Resistance.

Cast

Hu Sang Hu Sang (; born 10 November 1988) is a Chinese actress best known for her roles in the films ''Fatal Invitation'' and '' The Resistance''. Career In 2000 Hu Sang was admitted to the Beijing Dance Academy High School. In 2012 she graduated from ...

as Xiaoyun * Jeremy Marr Williams as Steven * Peng Zhang Li as Takeshi * Zhang Xiao Hua as Xiaolin * Zhao Jiuyi as Chen Xi *

Johan Karlberg Johan Karlberg (born 19 March 1984) is a Swedish born Chinese actor and is the first actor from Öland that had a career in Asia. He is known from Last Kung Fu Monk, The Resistance, and Marriage Cuisine. Biography In early 2000s he went to F ...

as Schultz * Qiu Wu Tong as Ming Ming * Li Yin as Feng Qing * Zhang Ming Fang as Bangsu * Li Zhong He as Laozhou * Ma Hong Jing as Killer

Geisha {{Culture of Japan, Traditions, Geisha {{nihongo, Geisha, 芸者 ({{IPAc-en, ˈ, ɡ, eɪ, ʃ, ə; {{IPA-ja, ɡeːɕa, lang), also known as {{nihongo, , 芸子, geiko (in Kyoto and Kanazawa) or {{nihongo, , 芸妓, geigi, are a class of female ...

* Yin Wang as Akita

Location

''The Resistance'' was shot over seven months from October 2010 to April 2011 at Ningxia Film Studio, some scenes were shot at

Zhejiang Province Zhejiang ( or , ; , also romanized as Chekiang) is an eastern, coastal province of the People's Republic of China. Its capital and largest city is Hangzhou, and other notable cities include Ningbo and Wenzhou. Zhejiang is bordered by Jiangs ...

and Taohua Island, it was the first film shot there.

Released

The Resistance was released on November 10, 2011. It screened at the

2012 Cannes Film Festival The 65th Cannes Film Festival was held from 16 to 27 May 2012. Italian film director Nanni Moretti was the President of the Jury for the main competition and British actor Tim Roth was the President of the Jury for the Un Certain Regard section. ...

on May 17, 2012. After a limited run in theaters in September, 2012, its DVD was released on February 12, 2013 in North America, 17 June 2013 in The UK & Ireland, 3 October 2013 in Netherlands & Belgium, and 3 April 2014 in Indonesia.

References

Andrew Skeates Movie Review Far East FilmsCity On Fire - The Resistance News article1905 News article (Chinese)

External links

* * *
Official site
created by

Xenon Pictures Xenon Pictures is an American film production and distribution company which releases titles produced by African-American filmmakers for African-American audiences. The label has distribution deals with numerous prominent filmmakers, such as Melv ...

2011 films 2010s war films Films set in China Films shot in China Films set in 1940 Films about World War II alternate histories Japan in non-Japanese culture Chinese war films {{2010s-China-film-stub