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Gatao 2: Rise of the King
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A dynamic, operatic, and extremely bloody gangster saga out of Taiwan—get ready for street brawls!—tracking the rocky rise of a small-town gang leader and the opposing forces who will stop at nothing to end his reign.
Tuesday, May 21, 2019
- Purchased Tickets
- Limited Availability
- On Standby
- Matinee
Tuesday, May 28, 2019
- Purchased Tickets
- Limited Availability
- On Standby
- Matinee
In the land of action movies from time to time you need a movie like Gatao 2: Rise of the King. Why? Mainly because of its shameless sense that a muscular action flick, one that craves a midnight screening audience, can be poetic, sadistic, energetic, melancholic, and of course a living proof of what movies can do when they decide to ignore rules and embrace all their instincts. Gatao 2 is everything you didn't know you wanted to see in a gangster movie from Taiwan. Born as an intentional exploitation flick based on the original Gatao (hint: Only a few secondary characters create a connection between the two films), this "sequel" is a visual feast, one that uses street-level gangsters in Taipei as the perfect excuse to celebrate the nonsense and sensibility in the works of people like Takeshi Kitano, Johnnie To, and Takashi Miike. An all-out war on the streets, an old-school one, becomes a large-scale cinematic party: For a few moments, Gatao 2 manages to go crazy and big (a fantastic and massive fight) and in others it goes full sentimental. That mix between spectacular and heartfelt action is what makes Gatao 2: Rise of the King a unique experience.
— Juan Manuel Dominguez
Director Biography
After starring in 2015's Gatao , Yen Cheng-Kuo took over directing duties for this sequel. A busy child actor, he returned to film after a decade in prison after being convicted on a kidnapping charge in 2001.
Sponsored by Taiwan Academy in Los Angeles, Ministry of Culture, Taiwan, Cathay Pacific Airways Limited, Dexter Hayes Apartments, Taiwan Studies Program at UW
- Director: Yen Cheng-Kuo
- Principal Cast: Collin Chou, Cheng Jen-Shuo, Wang Shih-Hsien, Peggy Tseng, Jack Kao
- Country: Taiwan
- Year: 2018
- Running Time: 127 minutes
- Producer: Chou Yi-huan, Red Chang
- Screenplay: Red Chang, Jerry Sun
- Cinematographers: Yao Hung-I
- Editors: Yao Hung-I
- Music: Armo Huang
- Filmography: Debut Feature Film
- Language: Taiwanese, Mandarin
- Has Subtitles: Yes
- Format: DCP
- International Sales: Swallow Wings