Over the weekend, the new trailer for Wiro Sableng: Pendekar Kapak Maut Naga Geni 212 (Wiro Sableng: Fire Dragon Warrior 212), the much anticipated action movie based on the legendary Indonesian martial arts fantasy series, finally hit the Internet. Produced by local filmmakers Lifelike Studios in partnership with Fox International Pictures, it’s being marketed as the first collaborative film production between an Indonesian production house and a major Hollywood studio.
You can definitely see some of that Hollywood money in the new trailer, which features impressive production values for an Indonesian action movie. The costumes, sets and special effects look amazing and really capture the designs and feel of the original Wiro Sableng series.
The fact that the trailer begins with a focus on the villainous Mahesa Birawa (played by Yayan Ruhian, who not only starred as the bad-ass superthug Mad Dog in The Raid but also did the action choreography for this movie), is also a great sign. The only aspect of the trailer we’re a little worried about is how darn goofy Vino G Bastian’s portrayal of the titular Fire Dragon Warrior seems.
To be fair, Wiro Sableng could also be remarkably silly in the original series. And Vino gets additional credibility due to the fact that he’s actually the son of the character’s creator, Bastian Tito, so we’d imagine his portrayal is quite faithful to his father’s vision of the the hero.
But one definitely gets a sort-of Jackie Chan vibe from Vino’s version of the martial arts hero (part of Wiro’s persona is acting silly to get his opponents to underestimate him). Although he’s shown great comedy chops in films such as Warkop DKI Reborn, the real test will be Vino’s fight scenes, which are glimpsed only briefly in the trailer, and whether they can live up to the jaw-dropping fight sequences of Yayan Ruhian’s past films.
https://youtu.be/wkmB-cSs72w
Created in 1967 by author Bastian Tito, Wiro Sableng has appeared in a long-running series of novels and had his tales adapted to TV and film numerous times before.
The legendary master of pencak silat is often referred to as Wiro Sableng 212 due to the number 212 being tattooed on his chest (no, he has no connection to that other famous Indonesian 212, though they’d like to think so). Known for his “crazy” personality that caused his opponents to underestimate him throughout the epic series of 185 novels that detailed his adventures, Wiro battled his enemies using a deadly ax and incredible supernatural powers he gained over years of training.
Production on this new movie was first announced way back in 2015 while the news that Fox International Studios, a division of Hollywood giant 20th Century Fox, would be co-producing the movie with Lifelike Pictures came out in Feb 2017.
In addition to Vino and Yayan, the film also stars Sherina Munaf, Marsha Timothy, Lukman Sardi, Rifnu Wikana, Dwi Sasono, Marcella Zalianty, Marcell Siahaan, Happy Salma and Cecep Arief Rahman. It was directed by Angga D Sasongko, who also directed 2015’s hit Filosofi Kopi. Wiro Sableng is set to hit Indonesian theaters on August 30.
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