''Warriors of Virtue'' is a 1997

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 ...

fantasy film Fantasy films are films that belong to the fantasy genre with fantastic themes, usually magic, supernatural events, mythology, folklore, or exotic fantasy worlds. The genre is considered a form of speculative fiction alongside science fiction f ...

directed by Hong Kong filmmaker

Ronny Yu Ronny is a given name, sometimes a short form (hypocorism) of Ryan. It may refer to: * Ronny (footballer, born 1986), Brazilian footballer Ronny Heberson Furtado de Araújo * Ronny (footballer, born 1991), Brazilian footballer Ronieri da Silva P ...

in his American English-language directorial debut, written by Michael Vickerman and Hugh Kelley, and starring

Angus Macfadyen Angus Macfadyen (born 21 September 1963) is a Scottish actor. His roles include Robert the Bruce, both in ''Braveheart'' and ''Robert the Bruce'', Komodo in ''Warriors of Virtue'', Vice-Counsel Dupont in '' Equilibrium'', Jeff Denlon in the '' ...

, Mario Yedidia, and

Marley Shelton Marley Eve Shelton (born April 12, 1974) is an American actress. She is best known for her roles as Wendy Peffercorn in David Mickey Evans's coming-of-age comedy '' The Sandlot'' (1993), the Customer in Frank Miller and Robert Rodriguez's neo-noi ...

. The film was an international co-production between the United States, China, Hong Kong, and Canada. The film was based on a series of characters created by the Chinese-American Law brothers, four siblings who worked as

physician A physician (American English), medical practitioner (Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through th ...

s and had no prior filmmaking experience. The story follows a young boy who stumbles into a mystical world based on the

Tao Te Ching The ''Tao Te Ching'' (, ; ) is a Chinese classic text written around 400 BC and traditionally credited to the sage Laozi, though the text's authorship, date of composition and date of compilation are debated. The oldest excavated portion d ...

, where he meets the titular Warriors of Virtue—anthropomorphic

kangaroos Kangaroos are four marsupials from the family Macropodidae (macropods, meaning "large foot"). In common use the term is used to describe the largest species from this family, the red kangaroo, as well as the antilopine kangaroo, eastern gre ...

who wield the powers of Tao and battle an evil warlord. The Irish band

Clannad Clannad () is an Irish band formed in 1970 in Gweedore, County Donegal by siblings Ciarán, Pól, and Moya Brennan and their twin uncles Noel and Pádraig Duggan. They have adopted various musical styles throughout their history, including f ...

provided the original song "Forces of Nature". The film was a critical and commercial failure. It was followed by a direct-to-video sequel, '' Warriors of Virtue: The Return to Tao'', in 2002.

Plot

Middle school student Ryan Jeffers suffers a disability to his leg preventing him from trying out for sports and fitting in. He is currently the

waterboy In the United States, a water boy or water girl (sometimes spelled waterboy or watergirl) was someone who worked in the field, providing water to farm workers in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Today, the name is given to those who work on the ...

of his school's football team and has a crush on quarterback Brad's girlfriend. He often seeks escape through

comic book A comic book, also called comicbook, comic magazine or (in the United Kingdom and Ireland) simply comic, is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are of ...

s and dreams of adventure, hiding the depression of his disability from his mother. One day, the owner of his favorite restaurant, his friend Ming, gives him a

manuscript A manuscript (abbreviated MS for singular and MSS for plural) was, traditionally, any document written by hand – or, once practical typewriters became available, typewritten – as opposed to mechanically printing, printed or repr ...

Tao ''Tao'' or ''Dao'' is the natural order of the universe, whose character one's intuition must discern to realize the potential for individual wisdom, as conceived in the context of East Asian philosophy, East Asian religions, or any other phil ...

representing the five elements:

Earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. While large volumes of water can be found throughout the Solar System, only Earth sustains liquid surface water. About 71% of Earth's surfa ...

Fire Fire is the rapid oxidation of a material (the fuel) in the exothermic chemical process of combustion, releasing heat, light, and various reaction Product (chemistry), products. At a certain point in the combustion reaction, called the ignition ...

Water Water (chemical formula ) is an inorganic, transparent, tasteless, odorless, and nearly colorless chemical substance, which is the main constituent of Earth's hydrosphere and the fluids of all known living organisms (in which it acts as a ...

Wood Wood is a porous and fibrous structural tissue found in the stems and roots of trees and other woody plants. It is an organic materiala natural composite of cellulose fibers that are strong in tension and embedded in a matrix of lignin th ...

and

Metal A metal (from Greek μέταλλον ''métallon'', "mine, quarry, metal") is a material that, when freshly prepared, polished, or fractured, shows a lustrous appearance, and conducts electricity and heat relatively well. Metals are typicall ...

. He advises Ryan to live his life no matter his physical limits. That night, Ryan and his best friend Chucky are approached by Brad and his friends who suggest an

initiation Initiation is a rite of passage marking entrance or acceptance into a group or society. It could also be a formal admission to adulthood in a community or one of its formal components. In an extended sense, it can also signify a transformation ...

for their group. Leading them to a

water plant Aquatic plants are plants that have adapted to living in aquatic environments (saltwater or freshwater). They are also referred to as hydrophytes or macrophytes to distinguish them from algae and other microphytes. A macrophyte is a plant that ...

, Ryan is told he needs to cross a narrow pipe to sign his name on a wall of

graffiti Graffiti (plural; singular ''graffiti'' or ''graffito'', the latter rarely used except in archeology) is art that is written, painted or drawn on a wall or other surface, usually without permission and within public view. Graffiti ranges from s ...

. Ignoring Chucky's protests, Ryan attempts to cross, but a water pipe opens up and throws Ryan into the water. Ryan wakes in a strange forest and is attacked by assailants who are drawn off by a creature from the lake. As he escapes, he realizes his leg works. He meets a dwarf-like man named Mudlap before a beautiful girl named Elysia drives him off. She tells Ryan that he is in Tao. Ryan tells her about the manuscript, which had been lost with his backpack. Believing it to be the Manuscript of Legend, Elysia takes Ryan to Master Chung and he meets four of the five warriors,

anthropomorphic Anthropomorphism is the attribution of human traits, emotions, or intentions to non-human entities. It is considered to be an innate tendency of human psychology. Personification is the related attribution of human form and characteristics t ...

each representing an element: Lai, Warrior of Wood; Chi, Warrior of Fire; Tsun, Warrior of Earth; and Yee, Warrior of Metal. He is told that Yun, the Warrior of Water, had left them following an earlier conflict, and that the manuscript would be sought by Komodo, a

warlord A warlord is a person who exercises military, economic, and political control over a region in a country without a strong national government; largely because of coercive control over the armed forces. Warlords have existed throughout much of h ...

who betrayed the Warriors and is stealing from the Lifesprings of Tao to stay young forever. Ryan is captured by Komodo's henchmen Mantose, Barbarocious, and Dullard, but is saved by Yun. Ryan convinces Yun to return to the Lifespring. Ryan flees, wanting to return home, but Mudlap leads him into General Grillo's arms and he is saved by Chung. Yun, Yee and Chi go after the manuscript and fall into a trap after being betrayed by Elysia, who joined Komodo as vengeance against Yun for killing her brother by accident. They are nearly killed in a trap, but narrowly escape using their skills and they return to the Lifespring to prevent Komodo from ambushing the others. Komodo fights Chung and ultimately kills him, then makes off with Ryan. When Ryan awakens at Komodo's palace, Elysia begs him to read from the book so that Komodo could possibly invade his world for more Lifesprings. Ryan realizes he can't read the book and this upsets Komodo, who tries to strike Ryan down. Elysia interferes and is struck down by Barbarocious. Komodo kills Barbarocious in rage as Ryan escapes. Komodo returns to the Lifespring and challenges the Warriors to one-on-one combat, splitting into five versions of himself. He taunts and defeats the warriors while Ryan, after getting an apology from Mudlap for his betrayal, finds an inscription in the manuscript. Ryan tricks Komodo into overusing his power, weakening him so that the warriors can purify his spirit, reforming him to a kind man and purifying his army. Ryan, mortally wounded, is surrounded by his friends and Yee astonishes his comrades by thanking Ryan, speaking for the first time in years. Suddenly, Ryan is back at the water plant before crossing the pipe. Realizing his desperation to fit in led to his accident, this time he refuses to cross it. The water pipe opens like it did before, trapping Brad on the other side. His insults to his friends only prompt them to leave him behind for the police to find. That night, Ryan apologizes to his mother for an earlier argument. When he goes to bed, he offers to tell his dog about Tao.

Cast

* Mario Yedidia as Ryan Jeffers, a young boy with a disabled leg. *

as Komodo, an evil warlord and sorcerer that seeks to conquer Tao and then Earth. *

as Elysia, a young woman who lives in Tao. *

Chao-Li Chi Chao-Li Chi (; April 5, 1927 – October 16, 2010) was a Chinese-born American actor and dancer who worked extensively in American television, including his best known role as Chao-Li, the faithful majordomo and chauffeur of Jane Wyman's char ...

as Master Chung, the master of the Warriors *

Michael J. Anderson Michael J. Anderson (born October 31, 1953) is a retired American actor known for his roles as The Man from Another Place in David Lynch's television series ''Twin Peaks'', the prequel film for the series, ''Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me'', and a ...

as Mudlap, a dwarf-like creature. *

Tom Towles Tom Towles (March 20, 1950 – April 2, 2015) was an American character actor of film, theatre, and television, known for his portraying villains and intimidating supporting characters. His breakthrough role as Otis in '' Henry: Portrait of a Ser ...

as General Grillo, one of Komodo's henchmen. *

Lee Arenberg Lee Arenberg (born July 18, 1962) is an American actor. He is best known for his role as Pintel, one of Captain Barbossa's crew, in the '' Pirates of the Caribbean film series''. He also had a recurring role as the dwarf Grumpy in the televisio ...

as Mantose, one of Komodo's henchmen. *

Dennis Dun Dennis Dun (born April 19, 1952) is an American actor. Early life and education Dun is from Stockton, California. He is of Chinese descent. Film and TV Dun has had prominent roles in several films, notably '' Year of the Dragon'' (1985), ''Bi ...

as Ming, the owner of Ryan's favorite restaurant. * Don W. Lewis as Mayor Keena, the mayor of the village where Master Chung lives. *

Teryl Rothery Teryl Rothery is a Canadian actress of stage, television, and film. She is best known for portraying Janet Fraiser in the TV series ''Stargate SG-1''. She co-starred as Grace Sherman in ''Cedar Cove (TV series), Cedar Cove'', and has had major ...

as Kathryn Jeffers, Ryan's mom. *

Rickey D'Shon Collins Rickey D'Shon Collins (born January 17, 1983) is an American actor, most notable for providing the voice of Vince LaSalle in Disney's '' Recess''. He also voiced Tucker Foley in the Nickelodeon show '' Danny Phantom''. Career He has done voic ...

as Chucky, Ryan's best friend. * Michael Dubrow as Brad, a quarterback at Ryan's school. * Ying Qu as Barbarotious, a female follower of Komodo. * Stuart Kingston as Dullard, one of Komodo's henchmen. * Gill Butler and Victoria Schoenke as Villagers * Michael Vickerman as Dragoon Commander, a full-armored minion of Komodo that leads his Dragoons. * Adam Mills as Toby

In-suit performers

* Jack Tate as Yun, the Warrior of Water and Virtue of Benevolence * Doug Jones as Yee, the Warrior of Metal and Virtue of Righteousness * Don W. Lewis as Lai, the Warrior of Wood and Virtue of Order * J. Todd Adams as Chi, the Warrior of Fire and Virtue of Wisdom * Adrienne Corcoran as Tsun, the Warrior of Earth and Virtue of Loyalty * Roy Cebellos as Willy Beest, a humanoid cape buffalo. * Jason Hamer as Mosely, a humanoid

rhinoceros A rhinoceros (; ; ), commonly abbreviated to rhino, is a member of any of the five extant species (or numerous extinct species) of odd-toed ungulates in the family Rhinocerotidae. (It can also refer to a member of any of the extinct species o ...

Voices

* Mina E. Mina as Master Chung *

Scott McNeil Scott McNeil is an Australian-born Canadian actor. He currently resides in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. One of the best-known Canadian voice actors of all time, McNeil has provided voices to many characters in animated shows, most notabl ...

as Yun *

Doug Parker William Douglas Parker (b. October 31, 1961) is an American businessman who was the Chairman of American Airlines Group, Inc., the parent company of American Airlines. Early life and education Parker grew up in Michigan and received a BA in ...

as Yee, Chi * Dale Wilson as Lai *

Kathleen Barr Kathleen Barr is a Canadian voice actress. She is best known for voicing Marie Kanker and Kevin in ''Ed, Edd n Eddy'' and Trixie Lulamoon and Queen Chrysalis in '' My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic''. She also voiced Henri Richard Maurice Du ...

as Tsun *

Jay Brazeau Jay Brazeau is a Canadian actor, best known for his role as Sam Fisher in ''Cold Squad'', as Harlan in ''Stargate SG-1'' (1997–2007), and for voicing Uncle Quigley in '' Sabrina: The Animated Series''. He is also known for his role as Bobby in ...

as Willy Beest *

Garry Chalk Garry Chalk is a British-born Canadian actor. He has provided the voices for Optimus Primal of '' Beast Wars: Transformers'' and '' Beast Machines'', as well as Optimus Prime in the anime English dubs of '' Transformers: Armada'', '' Transform ...

as Mosely *

Ian James Corlett Ian James Corlett (born August 29, 1962) is a Canadian voice actor, animator, and author. He is the creator of Studio B Productions' animated series ''Being Ian'' and ''Yvon of the Yukon''. One of his best-known animation roles was the first En ...

as Mayor Keena *

Venus Terzo Venus Terzo is a Canadian actress who played Detective Angela Kosmo in ''Da Vinci's Inquest'' and its spinoff, ''Da Vinci's City Hall''. She was nominated in 2002 for the Gemini Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Continuing Leading Dra ...

as Barbarotious * Drew Reichelt as Dullard * Colin Murdock as Dragoon Commander *

Ward Perry Ward Perry (born March 20, 1970) is a Canadian voice actor and ADR script writer who has voiced characters for a number of anime dubbed in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. He is mostly known as the voice actor of ''Dragon Ball Z'' villain Dr. ...

as Villager *

Shane Meier Shane may refer to: People * Shane (actress) (born 1969), American pornographic actress * Shane (New Zealand singer) (born 1946) * iamnotshane (born 1995), formerly known as Shane, American singer * Shane (name), a masculine given name and a su ...

as Toby

Production

''Warriors'' cost $56 million to produce. The film's producers, brothers Ron, Dennis, Christopher and Jeremy Law, were surgeons by trade and had never produced a film before. Their father, Joseph Law, was a wealthy toy manufacturer in China, who put up most of the reported $36 million shooting budget, though reportedly other investors were also involved. MGM distributed the film and sunk a reported $20 million on prints and advertising. The movie began shooting January 15, 1996 and completed shooting May 9, 1996. The 8 animatronic kangaroos used to bring to life the titular Warriors were designed and created by

Tony Gardner Tony Gardner (born 10 January 1964) is an English actor and doctor. He sits on the national governing body of the actors' trade union Equity. Career Gardner qualified as a physician at Guy's Hospital in 1987, then as a general practitioner in ...

. Gardner spent the first half of 1996 in China, working on shots for the film and creating seven animatronic characters. “When I came back, I realized the problem of ‘disappearing’ like that for a long time: People in the industry tend to forget who you are. But in talking to people, to remind them what we did, I thought: There’s no reason we couldn’t do all a film’s visual effects work under one roof.” The costumes for the creatures, the makeup, and the animatronic character effects were provided by

and his company

Alterian, Inc. Alterian, Inc is a makeup and special effects company owned by makeup and special effects designer Tony Gardner Tony Gardner (born 10 January 1964) is an English actor and doctor. He sits on the national governing body of the actors' trade u ...

Reception

''Warriors of Virtue'' received negative reviews from critics. Film critic Kale Klein of the Carlsbad Current-Argus was so physically distressed by the film that he actually vomited during the initial screenings. On an episode of Siskel and Ebert,

Gene Siskel Eugene Kal Siskel (January 26, 1946 – February 20, 1999) was an American film critic and journalist for the ''Chicago Tribune''. Along with colleague Roger Ebert, he hosted a series of movie review programs on television from 1975 until his d ...

voted thumbs down and described ''Warriors of Virtue'' as "Generic junk made for the international action market, a cheap hybrid of

Power Rangers ''Power Rangers'' is an entertainment and merchandising franchise built around a live-action superhero television series, based on the Japanese tokusatsu franchise ''Super Sentai''. Produced first by Saban Entertainment, second by BVS Entert ...

and Ninja Turtles."

Roger Ebert Roger Joseph Ebert (; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American film critic, film historian, journalist, screenwriter, and author. He was a film critic for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. In 1975, Ebert beca ...

also voted thumbs down, however he praised the set design by

Eugenio Zanetti Eugenio Zanetti (born October 19, 1949) is an Argentine dramatist, painter, film set designer, and theater and opera director. He won an Academy Award for Best Art Direction in 1995, for the film ''Restoration''. Biography Zanetti was born in ...

and said in his review "he made a great setting for a stupid story". Wade Major of

Boxoffice Magazine ''Boxoffice Pro'' is a film industry magazine dedicated to the movie theatre business published by BoxOffice Media LP. History It started in 1920 as ''The Reel Journal'', taking the name ''Boxoffice'' in 1931 and still publishes today, with ...

thought it "could be the most impressive Hollywood debut yet for a Hong Kong director, although lackluster writing and a needlessly muddled storyline somewhat tarnish the effort." It currently has an 18% rating on

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 ...

based on 11 reviews.

Home video reception

The film did not do much better when it hit video, earning $7.69 million from the date of its release in September 1997 through mid-December of that year.

Other media

Toys

A line of action figures based on the film was manufactured and released by Play 'Em LLC.

Sequel

A second film titled '' Warriors of Virtue: The Return to Tao'' was released on October 22, 2002. It was directed by the first film's co-writer Michael Vickerman with Nathan Phillips replacing Yedidia as Ryan Jeffers along with

Nina Liu Nina Liu (born 15 June 1977) is an Australian actress of Chinese descent. Her most prominent role was as Chloe in the television series ''The Secret Life of Us''. She also starred in TV series, the first season of '' Spellbinder'', fifth seas ...

as Amythis, Shedrack Anderson III as Chucky and

Kevin Smith Kevin Patrick Smith (born August 2, 1970) is an American filmmaker, actor, comedian, comic book writer, author, YouTuber, and podcaster. He came to prominence with the low-budget comedy buddy film ''Clerks'' (1994), which he wrote, directed, co ...

(his final role) as Dogon, a villain bent on taking over our world and Tao.

References

External links

The Doug Jones Experience
- Doug Jones as 'Yee' * * *

at

Box Office Mojo Box Office Mojo is an American website that tracks box-office revenue in a systematic, algorithmic way. The site was founded in 1998 by Brandon Gray, and was bought in 2008 by IMDb, which itself is owned by Amazon. History Brandon Gray began ...

{{Ronny Yu 1997 films 1990s fantasy adventure films 1997 martial arts films American fantasy adventure films American children's adventure films American children's fantasy films Chinese fantasy adventure films 1990s children's fantasy films Films scored by Don Davis (composer) Films about animals Films about kangaroos and wallabies Films directed by Ronny Yu Films set in the United States Films set in China Films shot in Beijing Films shot in Vancouver Martial arts fantasy films Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer films 1990s English-language films 1990s American films