It seems that if a retelling of Pocahontas with a hoard of 10-foot tall blue extraterrestrial beings is enough to spawn masses of people trying to “avatar-me” (not to mention nine Oscar nominations), then surely a 3D Monkey King epic is bound to be truly mind-blowing. You heard me, Monkey King in all his furry detail is coming to a fake DVD cart near you soon. more ›

China has outright banned using "literary works" to promote tourist sites under a new decree. As if that wasn't bizarre enough, they also extended the ban to "negative historical figures." That means that both The Tomb of Cao Cao and The Birthplace of the Monkey King are now no longer allowed to market themselves as such because "rival claims to be the birthplace of characters from fiction or legend can become unseemly." Oh no, what will this mean for Avatar Mountain in Hunan? more ›

Yes, yes, we all know about the eclipse. Aside from that monumentous occasion, it's an international culture-fest this week in Shanghai, with lots of options to increase your worldliness: watch a Chinese documentary about an Italian filmmaker, catch a Finnish comedy at the German consulate, celebrate Belgian National Day, and enjoy some classical scores by a young Japanese violinist. more ›

One of China's most popular folktale heroes, the Monkey King, may be preparing for an epic battle with Mickey Mouse's empire. Shanghai officials have suggested that it might be building a new theme park in Shanghai based on the classic Chinese novel “Journey to the West,” which recounts the exploits of the mischievous Sun Wukong, or Monkey King. more ›

More photos on the Shanghaiist Contribute page. To see your photos on our Contribute page, use Flickr and tag your photos “shanghaiist”. Or you can email your photos to photos@shanghaiist.com and they will automatically appear on our site (and here). more ›

Jamie Hewlett and Damon Albarn, mad professors behind the virtual band Gorillaz, have produced their own take on the Chinese epic "Journey to the East West." The animation was to promote the BBC's coverage of the Olympics, and in our book it's as awesome as the rest of their oeuvre. Oddly enough, we kept getting bounced from the Youtube clips, so we thought it was banned, but here it is on Youku. Oh well, enjoy. more ›

At the closing ceremony at Jiangwan Stadium last night, Kenny G played a rendition of “Butterfly Lovers” (梁祝) as women in butterfly costumes descended from cables strung to the stadium lights. When they reached the stage, they claimed a Special Olympian and escorted her back to the lights as the announcer declared in a monotone voice, “Now she has made it.” And that was just the beginning. more ›

Imagine Superman, Monkey King, time travel, martial arts and state-of-the-art technology all rolled into one. Sorry for that mental image, but this is what Mohuan Shouji (魔幻手机 or "Magic Cellphone") promises when it hits the small screen in November. This "modern" fantasy television drama series brings up a concept that human beings can actually be transported through SMS (we have heard rumors that Shanghai officials and mobile phone service providers are actually planning on launching this functionality ... by 2010, the magical year when all of our dreams will come true). more ›

We know some of you actually hope that Disneyland comes to Shanghai, but if you see Donald Duck around town these days, don't get too excited: it's just the Shanghai Police: more ›

From a reader we learned that all flights leaving and arriving at Pudong airport after 2 pm were canceled or rerouted. They sent us a link to the only new story on this so far, which is from the AP: more ›

Shanghaiist noticed that the Chinese press was running something about Steven Spielberg making a movie adaptation of the classic Chinese novel Journey to the West (西游记). Now you don't get much more classic than this: This novel and its characters (Xuanzang a.ka.Tangseng the monk, Sunwukong a.k.a. the Monkey King, Friar Sand a.ka. Sandy, and Pigsy a.k.a Pig) are known to just about every Chinese person alive since the late Ming dynasty, when the novel was published (okay, well it might have taken awhile to catch on). The story received a new lease on life when, in 1986, CCTV put on the live action show, and while some of the effects are complete cheese to us now, back then they were considered something of a milestone in TV. It also proved that people in China could be and were quite willing to be enthralled by this medium. Even today, theme songs and music live in such places as Shanghaiist's girlfriend's mobile phone ring, where quite appropriately, Pigsy's song plays (but don't tell her we said that). more ›

This unhealthy obsession with movies is going to stop soon ... but first, we just have to tell you what we just heard. more ›

With 999 days to go, the Beijing Olympics' official mascots have been chosen. There was much debate over who should be the mascot. Hot favourites were the Tibetan Antelope and the Monkey King, with the King finally being cast aside, and the Antelope finally joining the bunch of five. more ›

In the mid-16th century, scholar Wu Cheng'en (1500-1582) brought to life the story of a Tang Dynasty monk named Xuanzang who set out to bring sacred Buddhist scriptures back from the West. On his journeys, Xuanzang encountered many perils, only to be saved time and again by the strength, cunning and magical powers of a certain princely primate. Now, nearly 500 years later, a new chapter is beginning in the story of Xuanzang and his super-simian compadre. more ›

In the latest chapter in the game of oneupsmanship between Hong Kong and Shanghai, the Walt Disney Company officially announced their intention to build a theme park in our fair city, scheduled to open in 2012. Thrill Network reports: more ›