Boxer Rebellion - Film, Stage, and Television

Film, Stage, and Television

• The 1937 movie Alarm in Peking was a German adventure film with the Boxer rebellion as background. Starring Gustav Fröhlich, it was shot in Berlin and internationally released in Portugal, Norway, the Netherlands, and in Japan, in 1937 and 1938.
• The 1963 film 55 Days at Peking was a dramatization of the Boxer rebellion starring Charlton Heston, Ava Gardner and David Niven. Shot in Spain, it needed thousands of Chinese extras, and the company sent scouts throughout Spain to hire as many as they could find.
• In 1975 Hong Kong's Shaw Brothers studio produced the film Boxer Rebellion (八國聯軍, Pa kuo lien chun) under director Chang Cheh with one of the highest budgets to tell a sweeping story of disillusionment and revenge. It depicted followers of the Boxer clan being duped into believing they were impervious to attacks by firearms. The film starred Alexander Fu Sheng, Chi Kuan Chun, Wang Lung-Wei and Richard Harrison.
• In 1981, Hong Kong's Shaw Brothers released Legendary Weapons of China under director Lau Kar Leung, this one more of a comedy starring Hsiao Ho (Hsiao Hou) as a disillusioned boxer of the Magic Clan who is sent to assassinate the former leader of a powerful boxer clan who refuses to dupe his students into believing they are impervious to firearms.
• In the Buffy the Vampire Slayer episode "Fool for Love" (2001) Spike recounts his killing of a Slayer at the Boxer Rebellion, and the following Angel episode "Darla" shows the same events from Darla's point of view.
• The 2003 movie, Shanghai Knights, starring Jackie Chan and Owen Wilson, shows that the Boxers still exist, working for Lord Rathbone, who wants to assassinate many members of the British Royal Family.
• The movie Fearless / Huo Yuan Jia (Original title) (2006), by "Ronny Yu", featuring Jet Li as "Huo Yuan Jia" is a biopic of master Huo's life from 1869–1910 and describes the creation of the "Chin Woo Athletic Association". In the movie Huo defeats enemies from different imperialistic nations of the time in a competition that was meant to ridicule China. Based on historical events, the movie alludes to the creation of The Association of Heavenly Fists and one can infer that the boxer rebellion occurred after these events because Huo's actions inspired the Chinese people to rise in defiance. After his death, Huo became a national hero and is remembered to this day as a symbol of national pride and unity.
• In the Dad's Army episode Museum Piece Jones and Walker find a rocket-artillery launcher used against the Boxers (to which Jones replies "the poor creatures!"). Back at the Church Hall Jones and Walker show the weapon to the rest of the Platoon but Mainwaring says they'll take it back to the museum as it's too antiquated, claiming something like "warfare has progressed a bit since the rocket".
• In Torchwood: Miracle Day episode, "The Blood Line", Jack Harkness tells Gwen Cooper and Oswald Danes that he was in China for the Boxer Rebellion.