'Man from Macau III' rolling the dice

The action-comedy The Man from Macau III features a star-studded cast, including Chow Yun-fat (left) and Jacky Cheung. [Photo provided to China Daily]

Mainland pop singer and actress Li Yuchun, who shot to fame with the reality TV show Super Girl, is also highlighted in the film's promotional materials to draw younger fans to the cinemas.

Beginning in the 1980s, Hong Kong blockbusters made for the weeklong Spring Festival holiday were usually packed with action and slapstick humor.

In the genre's golden era, locals would line up for long times outside cinemas to watch such films. The stars who dominated the Hong Kong box office back then were Chow, Stephen Chow and Jackie Chan, film researcher Wei Haijun writes in his book The Chronicle of Hong Kong Movies.

When the Hong Kong film industry's lack of luster became somewhat noticeable around 2000, the big stars and filmmakers started to move toward mainland products.

"Most middle-aged Chinese have grown up with the collective memory of the Hong Kong classics, despite the fact that big-screen titles could be seen only through video tapes on the mainland in the 1990s," Yu Dong, president and founder of Bona Film Group, said at a promotional event in Beijing on Jan 25.

With close connections to Hong Kong's cinematic circles, Yu's company is the main producer and distributor of the casino-themed The Man from Macau series.

He hopes the nostalgia and the appeal of the big stars will give the genre a fresh lease on life on the mainland.