|
DOA: Dead or Alive is a 2006 martial arts film based on the Tecmo/Team Ninja fighting game series Dead or Alive. The film is directed by Corey Yuen and was released on September 7, 2006 in Australia and will be released on December 8, 2006 in North America. The film has various appearances from characters of the game series, which include: Tina Armstrong (Jaime Pressly), Christie Allen (Holly Valance), Kasumi (Devon Aoki), Ayane (Natassia Malthe) and Helena Douglas (Sarah Carter). A number of fighters are invited to DOA, an invitational martial arts contest. They travel to the tournament island by plane, until they have to jump out mid-flight with parachutes, and then have until sundown to reach the main island to be entered into the tournament. Fighters are then pooled against one another in a knock-out style tournament, with the loser of a battle sent home, and the winner progressing to the subsequent round. The plot revolves around four female fighters who begin as rivals, but subsequently find themselves teaming up against another force.
Production The film began production on May 4 and concluded on July 19, 2005. Filming locations include Bangkok, Gullin, Heng Dian and Hong Kong. The production budget is estimated to be $30,000,000.• La Mariposa (Lisa), Kokoro, Tengu, Raidou, Hitomi, and Genra are only a few of the original DOA cast mates that didn't make it into the movie, while most of the others appear in the movie. Plus there are 2 new characters entering in the movie, Maximillian "Max" Marsh (who helps Christie on her mission to steal the money), and another person, which is matched up against Christie. In an interview, producer Mark Altman stated that the movie is being marketed with a special focus on its female characters in relation to the game's popularity and notoriety *. Plot The film opens at Kasumi's Temple, where she is arguing with Hayabusa about her brother's death. She understands that if she leaves to seek out his brother, her army will kill her. Ayane confronts her before she flees, jumping the temple wall. A shuriken is thrown at her when she is falling - an invitation to DOA. Out at sea, Tina is arguing with her father about professional wrestling on her yacht. A gang of pirates underestimate her, and try to take her boat. Tina comprehensively defeats them, and a DOA shuriken pierces the side of her boat. In a hotel, Christie is being investigated by a number of policemen. Only in a towel, she manages to disarm and defeat all of them, and then leaves the building, driving off on a motorcycle, receiving her own shuriken. The three girls are amongst a number of invited fighters on a plane going to DOA island. Maximillian Marsh, who left Christie at the hotel is also on the plane, as is Hayabusa, as well as Tina's father (Bass) and Zack, who is hitting on Tina. On an in-flight screen, Helena welcomes them all, telling them they now must parachute the rest of the way, and whoever fails to make to the main area by sundown will be disqualified. Tina, Christie and Kasumi all land well off target, and after realising they may not make it in time, combine their efforts to climb up. The fighters go onto meet Donovan, who explains that their bracelets will alert them as to who they are fighting and when. Each fighter is analyzed in a lab to show their strength, and are all injected with nanobots which record their abilities. Weatherby, who operates all the technical equipment, oversees all this. The fights soon begin, and Tina, Christie, Leon, Hayabusa, Helena, Bayman, Max, Zack and Tina's father all progress to round two. One of the next fights is between Kasumi and Leon, who apparently was the last fighter that her brother faced. A volleyball tournament goes down on the beach, Kasumi and Tina against Helena and Christie. However the game abruptly ends when the ball is struck down, and Kasumi runs off to find Ayane. They fight each other in the bamboo treetops, but Ayane flees when the other girls catch up to Kasumi. Max is found out to be a fraud by Weatherby, and is set up against Bayman, and surprisingly (and accidentally) defeats him. Tina defeats her father out on the rafts in the lake. Christie then defeats Helena on the rain-soaked beach. Tina then defeats Zack. Christie and Max start to plot a robbery, once they decode Helena's tattoo. Kasumi is supposed to fight Hayabusa, but he has gone missing. Tina, Christie and Kasumi go looking for him, finding him in the DOA building, but then get themselves locked in. It turns out that Donovan is planning a terrible scheme, to which Weatherby does not agree with. Weatherby tells Helena the truth about it all, including what happened to her father. Tina, Christie, Kasumi and Hayabusa are all trapped in pods, while Helena and Weatherby work to get them out before Donovan's plan comes to fruition. Cast Release Though the film is slated for release in North America on December 8, the film is being released first in a number of other markets during September including United Kingdom, Australia, and the Philippines. Many users debated that the rating of the movie would be R (Restricted). This is likely due to the video game series with a Mature rating for the near-sexual depiction of its female characters. The movie has been officially rated PG-13, similar to Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children, although the games were also rated T for Teen, the equivalent of the PG-13 movie rating. It is said to have partial nudity, though actress Holly Valance denies this. The ratings are - BBFC - 15, IFCO - 15A, OFLC - M (unrestricted, unlike the MA-15+ rating), and MPAA - PG-13 Trivia | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
|
| |