Written, produced, directed by and starring Jackie Chan, CZ12 or Chinese Zodiac (2012) is full of kung-fu action, comedy and intrigue. The problem of antiquities smuggling seems to be something meaningful to Chan, as several of his films deal with the subject. The story concerns a relic hunter and art thief, skilled in ninja-precision heists, who seeks 12 immensely valuable bronze heads of Chinese zodiac animals that were stolen from the Old Summer Palace in the 19th Century. A fast-paced treasure quest ensues. The fight scenes in which Chan uses art objects and equipment as weapons (tripods, ornate gilded frames, etc.) can be a bit hair-raising. The locales, karate and art theft scenes mix well with CGI effects culminating in an epic climax involving a volcano skydive. Jackie Chan is great in the lead role. The supporting cast is good as well, including Kwon Sang-woo, Liao Fan, Helen Yao, Zhang Lanxin and Laura Weissbecker.
Accidentally unearthed in 1974 while digging a well, the now-famous 2,000-year-old ancient Chinese Terracotta Warriors have yielded much information in the past 40 years regarding their purpose of guarding China's first Emperor in the afterlife. Nevertheless, exactly how the 8,000 larger-than-life clay figures were constructed in a relatively short 11-year time period has remained a mystery. Produced in 2011 for PBS, Secrets of the Dead: China's Terracotta Warriors takes an in depth look at the study of the creative process involved in making the statues. Created between 221 and 210 B.C., the terra-cotta soldiers were commissioned by and buried with Qin Shi Huang, the ruler credited with unifying China. The thousands of clay soldiers constitute all military ranks from officers to infantry, and were designed to accompany the emperor in his great journey beyond… a humane approach, given that 300 years prior, human sacrifice of chosen court members was the prevalent norm. Highly individualized, no two clay figures are alike, and stand at over six feet tall and weigh 600 pounds each. Modern technology, including facial recognition software called NeoFace, has proven just how unique the faces are. It has not been determined, given the astute level of individualization, whether they were meant to be portraits of actual soldiers or if they were the diverse product of the artists' imaginations. Made of strong clay, using the traditional coiling method, each figure would've taken a month to make. Each warrior is signed by it's craftsman and there are 87 different signature stamps in all. Every lead craftsmen would have had multitudes of laborers working on their team, with each of the 87 teams producing up to 12 statues a year. However, sculpting the figures was just one step in the process, as traces of pigment indicate that the terra-cotta warriors were originally brightly painted and lacquered. This particular aspect has proven to be especially problematic for conservators, who have a limited time to preserve the paint after excavation. One particular color, Chinese Purple, was one of the oldest man-made hues, and has proven fascinating to physicists for it's unique chemical properties. Much is presented in this informative 50-minute program, but plenty of mysteries still remain hidden in these ancient masterpieces.
