Man of Tai
Chi is a 2013 Chinese-American martial arts film directed by and starring Keanu
Reeves. The film is Reeves' first in a directing role. Man of Tai Chi is a
multilingual narrative, partly inspired by the life of Reeves' friend, stuntman
Tiger Chen.
Pre-production
began in 2008 with years-long script refinements. During Man of Tai Chi's five
years of scripting and production, Reeves acted in several B movies with lead
roles as Henry in 2010's Henry's Crime and John in 2012's Generation Um....
When the project eventually moved into the production phase, filming occurred
on mainland China and Hong Kong. The film premiered in 2013 with showings at
the Beijing Film Festival and Cannes Film Festival.The work was awarded in
Beijing and praised by recognized director of action genre films, John Woo.