Michael Fleming at Reuters/Variety reported that "MGM has paid a high six figure advance to turn the cult comic BULLETPROOF MONK into a live-action film that will star Chow Yun-Fat (ANNA AND THE KING) as the title character. The adventure follows an immortal Tibetan martial arts master who becomes a mentor to a young urban street kid. Director John Woo and Terence Chang's MGM-based Lion Rock Prods. will produce the picture. [...] MGM bought the MONK project on the basis of a pitch delivered by writers Cy Voris and Ethan Reiff, and Michael Yanover, publisher and controller of the rights to the comic. Yanover will executive produce. If the film is made, the value of the deal could rise to the seven figure range."

The official website of CYF's next film, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, is now online. At the moment, it has the teaser trailer in quicktime format and a single gorgeous image. Look for more as the release date nears. Click here to go there now!

From BBC Online:

Fans Desert Jackie Chan

Anna and the King star Chow Yun-Fat has been named Hong King's favourite film star - ousting the legendary Jackie Chan.

In a poll of popular screen stars, conducted by a marketing company in Hong Kong, Yun-Fat grabbed the most public support with 18% of the votes.

However action hero Chan, 45, who took the lead in the same poll last year, was pushed into second position after securing only a 7% share.

Hong Kong born Chan, a veteran of more than 80 films including First Strike and Rush Hour, topped the survey last year with 17%. He is thought to have been sidelined this time - despite his long-standing popularity with film audiences - because he recently confessed to having fathered an illegitimate child.

He admitted to having been unfaithful to his wife with former Miss Asia, Elaine Ng - who later bore him a daughter.

"The drop in Jackie Chan's ranking may or may not be related to his recent scandal," said Anthony Lau, chairman of the Hong Kong Advertisers' Association which sponsored the survey.

"It shows the risk of a celebrity's endorsement. Their popularity can change unexpectedly," he told the South China Morning Post.

Chow Yun-Fat, 44, was also born in Hong Kong and has appeared in more than 70 films. But, it is his role as the 19th century King of Siam that has thrown him into the limelight.

He stars alongside acclaimed actress Jodie Foster in the epic Anna and the King, which was nominated for an Oscar at this year's Academy Awards.

However, the movie has also stirred up controversy. A remake of the 1946 feature starring Rex Harrison and Irene Dunne, it tells the story of an English governess in the court of King Rama IV.

But censors in Thailand have banned the film after branding it an insult to the monarchy and a distortion of Thai history.

Let's hope CYF won't just be presenting Oscar awards... :)

HOLLYWOOD (Variety) - Chow Yun-Fat has been added to the presenter list for the Oscar 2000 kudocast.

Best known for toplining a slew of Hong Kong action films, Chow currently stars opposite Jodie Foster in 20th Century Fox's ``Anna and the King.'' He'll next appear in the Ang Lee-helmed ``Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.''

The 72nd annual Academy Awards, produced by Richard D. and Lili Fini Zanuck, will be telecast from the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles March 26 on ABC.

Looks like genius director John Woo (Face/Off, Hard-Boiled) has regained his will to make movies despite his experiences with Tom Cruise on Mission Impossible 2. His next movie will film in Hawaii, so to my readers from Hawaii - keep your eyes open! Check out these articles: January 26, 2000: John Woo Lands Film Deal at MGM

By Claude Brodesser and Jonathan Bing

HOLLYWOOD (Variety) - After a frustrating tenure on the lot at Sony Pictures, action director John Woo has signed a three-year film production deal with MGM.

The Hong Kong native did not direct a single film for Sony during his two years there, and instead focused on shooting ''Mission: Impossible 2'' for Paramount and developing two MGM projects.

``Woo and the studio have enjoyed a wonderful relationship thus far,'' said Michael Nathanson, MGM's president and chief operating officer. ``It will expand from movies that John will direct here to ones that he and Terence (Chang, Woo's partner in Lion Rock Prods.) will also produce here.''

Woo is currently committed to directing MGM's Nicolas Cage starrer ``Wind Talkers'' and, according to Nathanson, is already in advanced talks to helm and produce a second MGM picture that Nathanson declined to name.

And just as netting Woo is clearly a coup for MGM, it's a loss for Columbia Pictures.

Woo's career exploded as loudly as a car in one of his hard-boiled action pictures after hits like ``Broken Arrow'' (1996) and ``Face/Off'' (1997). Together, those pics produced well over half a billion dollars at the worldwide box office.

In January 1998, he signed a two-year, first-look deal with Sony. But after Sony underwent a change in the executive suites, Woo found the new management was largely unreceptive to many of his picture plans.

Instead, Woo inked a deal to helm the sequel to ``Mission: Impossible'' at Paramount and, after Sony passed on the project, set up the WWII espionage thriller ``Wind Talkers'' at MGM.

Asked how soon Woo and Chang could be on the lot, Nathanson responded, ``We've already ordered the trucks.'' He hastened to call the new deal ``a continued step for MGM to be in the mainstream and attract first class talent.''

And fron Cinescape:
"According to the Honolulu Star-Bulletin, locations are currently being scouted for Windtalkers on Oahu. The paper also reports that 100 of the 110 days set aside to film the movie will take place on the islands. The locations will also double for Saipan as well as featuring a major battle that will use 10,000 extras. Furthermore, Woo is expected to arrive there just as soon as he can wrap up Mission: Impossible 2."

The Anna and the King sneak previews shown during the USA Thanksgiving weekend have generated much Internet reaction. Collected here is a small sampling. Be aware that some of these reviews contain spoilers, though none are particularly major.

• Hollywood Reporter's AATK review
• ReelView's advance review
• Variety's look at AATK
• Various reaction to AATK collected from newsgroups and websites

CHUD, one of the best up-and-coming movie websites, has put out this advance review of Anna And The King. It's clear that he absolutely LOVES the film! And if you check out their previous reviews, CHUD obviously does not have a history of raving about every film. So for them to call AATK a "classic" must truly mean something. My anticipation for this film has suddenly gone up ten-fold. :)

Click here for the review.