John Woo is going to Beijing to shoot a neo-noir thriller.

The untitled, English-language project involves an American visiting China who becomes entangled in a clash between the communist government and the underworld that is fueling the underground economy.

The film is being financed by "Ray" producer Bristol Bay Prods., the sister company to Denver billionaire Philip Anschutz's Walden Media.

Woo is prepping The War of the Red Cliff, which will be his first movie shot in China and in the Chinese language since the Hong Kong action director broke into Hollywood in 1993 with Hard Target. His US oeuvre includes Broken Arrow, Face/Off, Mission: Impossible 2, Paycheck and Windtalkers.
 
(CRI June 16, 2005)