TRAILERS

First Trailer for Zhang Yimou's New Korean War Film About a Sniper

by Alex Billington
January 3, 2022
Source: YouTube

China is kicking off 2022 with an official trailer for the latest Zhang Yimou film, another jingoistic thriller about the Korean War. They've been making more and more of these recently (also see The Battle at Lake Changjin), as what seems like anti-American propaganda. Sharpshooter, one of the many official English titles for this film, is yet another Zhang Yimou war film - but he's also listed as a co-director on this one. The film tells the story of sharpshooter Zhang Taofang, a young army recruit who at age 22 sets a record during the Korean War by reportedly killing or wounding 214 American soldiers with 435 shots in just 32 days. It's being released during the 70th anniversary of the Korean War, and includes the tagline: "Send them all back to hell!" Starring Chen Yongsheng, Zhang Yu, and Zhang Yi. There's no English subtitles yet, but you'll get a sense of the intense sniper-on-sniper action from this trailer anyway. It reminds me a bit of Enemy at the Gates, one of the other good sniper vs sniper films before this. Who knows if it will actually be any good?

Here's the first international trailer for Zhang Yimou's Sharpshooter, direct from YouTube (via TFS):

Starring Chen Yongsheng, Zhang Yu, Zhang Yi, the film follows the real-life story of a 22-year-old sniper named Zhang Dagong, who battled U.S. troops during the Korean War, killing or injuring a record 214 American soldiers in 32 days. With a release timed for the 70th anniversary of the Korean War, producer Tan Fei said, "With historical facts, the film is going to make audiences once again realize that although the U.S. is strong, it is not unbeatable." Sharpshooter, otherwise known as The Coldest Gun or Sniper or Snipers, also known as Ju ji shou in Chinese, is directed by acclaimed Chinese filmmaker Zhang Yimou, of films including Raise the Red Lantern, The Road Home, Hero, House of Flying Daggers, Curse of the Golden Flower, A Woman a Gun and a Noodle Shop, The Flowers of War, Coming Home, The Great Wall, Shadow, Cliff Walkers, and One Second previously. Co-directed by Mo Zhang. The script is by Yu Chen. The film is set to open on February 1st, 2022 in China, but no international dates are set yet. Intrigued?

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