Bleeding Steel
| Company type | Film |
|---|---|
| Industry | Motion picture |
| Founded | 2017 |
| Founder | Leo Zhang (director and writer) |
| Products | Sci-fi cyberpunk action film |
| Parent | Village Roadshow Pictures Asia, Heyi Pictures |
Bleeding Steel is a 2017 Chinese sci-fi cyberpunk action film directed and penned by Leo Zhang, featuring Jackie Chan in the lead role.
The movie premiered in China on 22 December 2017. In the United States, it was released both theatrically and via VOD through Lionsgate Premiere starting 6 July 2018. Although it received mixed critical reception, Bleeding Steel earned US$48.8 million worldwide but fell short of recouping its $65 million production costs, categorizing it as a box office bomb.
Plot
Hong Kong Special Agent Lin Dong rushes to the hospital to visit his daughter Xixi, who is critically ill with leukemia. Before reaching her, his colleague Xiao Su warns him that Dr. James, a crucial witness, is under threat. Lin pauses briefly outside the hospital but soon diverts to rendezvous with Xiao Su and their team.
Prior to their arrival, Dr. James injects himself with a mysterious chemical and carries a mechanical heart. As the team escorts him, they are ambushed by black-armored assailants led by Andre, a terrifying figure who kills most team members and severely wounds Lin and Xiao Su. Lin uses his car to pin Andre against an oil tank; when Andre recovers, Lin shoots the tank, triggering an explosion. Despite grave injuries, Lin learns via phone that Xixi has passed away. Both he and Andre survive the encounter, though Andre is transformed into a cyborg.
Thirteen years later in Sydney, Australia, author Rick Rogers publishes Bleeding Steel, a novel about a US Marine equipped with a mechanical heart. Li Sen, disguised as a prostitute, drugs Rogers to extract information about the book. Meanwhile, a mysterious woman dressed in black tortures Rogers for his inspiration source. Lin Dong arrives to investigate but Rogers is killed as police arrive on the scene.
The Woman in Black reports the failed mission to Andre. After identifying Lin and Li Sen through CCTV footage, Andre dispatches the Woman to pursue Li Sen, who manages to evade capture. Using data obtained from Rogers, Li Sen tracks down Nancy, a young woman haunted by nightmares involving a laboratory where bizarre experiments took place. Nancy visits a spiritualist who had previously informed Rogers about her visions. The Woman in Black chases Nancy but Lin Dong and Li Sen intervene to rescue her.
It is revealed that Nancy is actually Xixi, revived by Dr. James through genetic enhancements designed to create immortal bioroid soldiers. James implanted her with a mechanical heart and infused her with the same biogenetic blood substitute he used on himself, granting her regenerative powers. Xixi’s temporary death caused amnesia; she was placed in an orphanage under covert surveillance by Lin Dong’s unit. Her nightmares are derived from James’ memories embedded within the blood substitute. Andre, once a special forces soldier and test subject himself, worked for a Korean arms dealer seeking James’ research for profit. The procedure failed on Andre; his cells deteriorated internally, driving him to murder the arms dealer’s family in revenge. James died shortly after treating Xixi, making her the only successful subject.
Lin Dong brings Xixi and Li Sen back to his residence, locking Li Sen in a secure vault before discovering the spiritualist has been murdered. Xixi escapes to James’ abandoned home where she regains memories and finds a bank vault key left by James. Lin reunites with Xiao Su but before they can reach Xixi, she is abducted by the Woman in Black and taken aboard Andre’s airborne laboratory. Li Sen frees himself and joins Lin and Xiao Su at the bank vault where they capture the Woman attempting to access its contents: a video camera containing footage of Andre’s failed bioroid transformation. They conclude that Andre requires Xixi’s blood for survival.
On Andre’s airship laboratory, he draws Xixi’s blood to rejuvenate himself while Lin, Xiao Su, and Li Sen infiltrate but face an impenetrable security barrier. They battle Andre’s henchmen until he arrives; this delays the transfusion long enough for Xixi to fully regenerate and assist them. They cast Andre into the reactor core which overloads and destroys the facility; Li Sen is caught in an explosion while Xiao Su and Xixi escape via parachute. Lin is attacked by Andre but gains strength after accidentally receiving enhanced blood injection and kills him by tearing out his heart. Without a parachute, Lin jumps before the airship explodes; Xiao Su and Xixi catch him midair.
Afterwards, Lin discovers that Li Sen is the son of the arms dealer seeking vengeance on Andre for murdering his family but had genuine feelings for Nancy/Xixi from their orphanage days. In Norway, Li Sen survives and offers James’ research tape to a buyer but declines their proposal.
Cast
- Jackie Chan portrays Lin Dong
- Ouyang Nana appears as Nancy/Xixi
- Show Lo takes on the role of Li Sen
- Erica Xia-hou plays Xiao Su (Susan)
- Callan Mulvey features as Andre
- Tess Haubrich acts as the Woman in Black
- Kym Gyngell is cast as Dr James
- Damien Garvey appears as Rick Rogers
- Gillian Jones portrays the Witch
- Cosentino appears as himself
Production
The sci-fi thriller Bleeding Steel was jointly produced and financed by Village Roadshow Pictures Asia and Heyi Pictures. The film stars Jackie Chan and was directed by Leo Zhang, who also wrote the screenplay. Alongside Chan, the ensemble includes Tess Haubrich, Callan Mulvey, Nana Ou-Yang, Erica Xia-Hou, and Show Lo.
Filming commenced on 20 July 2016 in Sydney, Australia, with further shoots conducted in both Taipei and Beijing. Principal photography concluded in September 2016.
Release
Bleeding Steel had its Australian debut on 15 December 2017 through Perfect Village Entertainment. It was subsequently released in China on 22 December by United Entertainment Partners (UEP). The Philippines saw the film's premiere on 21 February 2018 via Viva International Pictures and MVP Entertainment. In the United States, UEP distributed the movie with English subtitles starting December 2017, followed by an English dubbed version released by Lionsgate Premiere on 6 July 2018, available both in theaters and through video-on-demand platforms.
While not officially linked to the Police Story franchise, the movie was marketed in Japan under the title ポリス・ストーリー REBORN (Police Story Reborn). Additionally, it featured a refreshed Mandarin rendition of the original Police Story theme song performed by Jackie Chan during the closing credits.
Reception
On Rotten Tomatoes, Bleeding Steel holds a 22% approval rating based on 18 critic reviews, with an average rating of 3.6 out of 10. The South China Morning Post described the film as a low point in Jackie Chan’s career, criticizing its lack of action sequences, humor, and narrative coherence. The review labeled it "filled with laughable English dialogue and subpar performances," branding it a "lazy and disrespectful cash grab." Meanwhile, Variety characterized the film as a "corny cyberpunk pastiche" that would primarily attract a younger audience.