Written by Phineas Upham
Every martial arts movie connoisseur knows the Once Upon a Time in China series. The trilogy, starring Jet Li as the Chinese folk hero Wong Fei-hung, is just one of many Chinese films released by the UK distribution house, Hong Kong Legends.
Much of the story begins in 2004, when Contender Entertainment Group bought Medusa Communications, a company that included the Hong Kong Legends brand. Legends was started with the goal of reviving classic Chinese cinema.
Legends had some of the biggest names in Hong Kong cinema working beneath it. The famous film critic Bey Logan worked with Legends, contributing important commentary to releases. Brian White was acting as brand manager, developing intriguing extras along with memorable DVD packaging. The two had the goal of restoring film, not just the genre. They bought up the most iconic films of Chinese cinema, scouring the vaults of companies like Golden Harvest for the best prints they could find.
The DVD distributor had films by Bruce Lee, Jet Li, Chow Yun-Fat, John Woo, and Michelle Yeoh in its collection. Unfortunately, when Bey and White left they took the soul of the company with them. Hong Kong Legends had to cancel many releases due to the loss of Logan’s popular commentary, and the lack of extras brought by White.
The label was discontinued in 2007, after Bey and White went to work for the Weinstein company “Dragon Dynasty.” Though Hong Kong film lives on in reproductions of popular films, there are only a handful of companies like Hong Kong Legends willing to restore the classics.
Phineas Upham is an investor from NYC and SF. You may contact Phineas on his Phineas Upham website