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Stunt 'Spider Man' lands as Old Street chef
By Lu Xiaofeng and Xu Wei |
June 28, 2010, Monday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
IN a Western-style restaurant in Anting Old Street, Michal Hnetkovsky was quietly surfing the Internet. When the guest came in he would get up and make a pizza or some hash browns. No one would believe that this graceful Czech is a car stuntman who used to be the chief stand-in for "Spider Man."
Let us review the crazy performance of Hnetkovsky at Shanghai International Circuit last May. Though it was a 35 degrees Celsius day, Hnetkovsky still appeared with an airtight Spider Man outfit. At the beginning, he crouched on a sports car that ran on one side of its wheels, a classical Spider Man pose, which won a thunder of applause from the audience.
The friction coefficient between the steel-made side and the glass of the sports car and the sleek Spider Man outfit is very low. Moreover, Hnetkovsky did not adopt any protection measures. Running on one side of the wheels was a great challenge to his stunt skills.
However, that would not daunt Hnetkovsky. Not only did he salute the audience repeatedly, he also did a more challenging movement. When another sports car which also running on one side of its wheels paralleled the car on which Hnetkovsky was crouching, he slightly adjusted himself, stood up and threw himself onto that car. After landing safely, he kept the squat pose again to maintain balance. Perfect actions! It's also a classical scene in "Spider Man."
This kind of stunt can only be seen usually in a movie. Seeing Hnetkovsky's performance live and up close was really an eye-opener. "As I started stunt training from childhood, such a performance is only a small thing for me. The stunts for 'Spider Man' are much more complicated," he said.
To Hnetkovsky who has practiced motorcycling since he was four, car stunts and various difficult climbing, jumping and other movements are his interests. Though he crashed eight cars on his first drive at eight, it did not stop him from becoming a popular stunt star. Besides playing the stuntman for Peter Park in the "Spider Man" series, he has also done amazing things in "Batman," "Doom," "Van Helsing," "Blade II," "Battle of Hart," "XXX" and dozens of other movies.
Injury is a haunting nightmare for a stuntman. In fact, Hnetkovsky has had countless injuries. But a big accident is more dreadful. Not long ago, a colleague of Hnetkovsky died from an accident during a performance. "Hearing such news, I'm certainly very sad. But as long as we are working as stunt actors, such accidents are unavoidable and risks exist all the time," said Hnetkovsky.
As a native Czech, what attracts him to settle down at a small town in Jiading? The answer should be given by Hnetkovsky's girlfriend, Bennie.
Bennie is a girl from Beijing. She joined her parents living in Czech at the age of nine, and has lived there for more than 10 years.
In 2006, Bennie's mother, a show business agent, was planning a car stunt show in China. At that time, Hnetkovsky was already quite famous in a special effects company in Czech Republic. Eventually, he became one of the 18 people who came to China, accompanied by Bennie as the interpreter.
In March 2006, Hnetkovsky and his colleagues set their feet for the first time in China and performed a superb car stunt show at Shanghai International Circuit.
It was also the first live performance for Hnetkovsky away from the screen. After that, they performed in Beijing, Yunnan, Hunan and 27 other provinces and cities and started a car stunt trend in China.
The first time Hnetkovsky and Bennie met was in a press conference before a show. "I was not familiar with any particular stuntman before but his humorous talk greatly impressed me," said Bennie, smiling at Hnetkovsky. They eventually became closer lovers.
Due to the great demand for performances in China, the company rented several houses for performers and Anting became the base camp. With fewer performances, many stuntmen went home but Hnetkovsky and Bennie chose to settle here. "With a fine blend of ancient and modern elements, it is quiet and homely. There are also many foreigners from different countries," said Hnetkovsky.
The couple rented a store in Anting Old Street and sell Czech food, with Hnetkovsky as the chef. Gradually, their restaurant has become famous among many foreigners in Shanghai.
Let us review the crazy performance of Hnetkovsky at Shanghai International Circuit last May. Though it was a 35 degrees Celsius day, Hnetkovsky still appeared with an airtight Spider Man outfit. At the beginning, he crouched on a sports car that ran on one side of its wheels, a classical Spider Man pose, which won a thunder of applause from the audience.
The friction coefficient between the steel-made side and the glass of the sports car and the sleek Spider Man outfit is very low. Moreover, Hnetkovsky did not adopt any protection measures. Running on one side of the wheels was a great challenge to his stunt skills.
However, that would not daunt Hnetkovsky. Not only did he salute the audience repeatedly, he also did a more challenging movement. When another sports car which also running on one side of its wheels paralleled the car on which Hnetkovsky was crouching, he slightly adjusted himself, stood up and threw himself onto that car. After landing safely, he kept the squat pose again to maintain balance. Perfect actions! It's also a classical scene in "Spider Man."
This kind of stunt can only be seen usually in a movie. Seeing Hnetkovsky's performance live and up close was really an eye-opener. "As I started stunt training from childhood, such a performance is only a small thing for me. The stunts for 'Spider Man' are much more complicated," he said.
To Hnetkovsky who has practiced motorcycling since he was four, car stunts and various difficult climbing, jumping and other movements are his interests. Though he crashed eight cars on his first drive at eight, it did not stop him from becoming a popular stunt star. Besides playing the stuntman for Peter Park in the "Spider Man" series, he has also done amazing things in "Batman," "Doom," "Van Helsing," "Blade II," "Battle of Hart," "XXX" and dozens of other movies.
Injury is a haunting nightmare for a stuntman. In fact, Hnetkovsky has had countless injuries. But a big accident is more dreadful. Not long ago, a colleague of Hnetkovsky died from an accident during a performance. "Hearing such news, I'm certainly very sad. But as long as we are working as stunt actors, such accidents are unavoidable and risks exist all the time," said Hnetkovsky.
As a native Czech, what attracts him to settle down at a small town in Jiading? The answer should be given by Hnetkovsky's girlfriend, Bennie.
Bennie is a girl from Beijing. She joined her parents living in Czech at the age of nine, and has lived there for more than 10 years.
In 2006, Bennie's mother, a show business agent, was planning a car stunt show in China. At that time, Hnetkovsky was already quite famous in a special effects company in Czech Republic. Eventually, he became one of the 18 people who came to China, accompanied by Bennie as the interpreter.
In March 2006, Hnetkovsky and his colleagues set their feet for the first time in China and performed a superb car stunt show at Shanghai International Circuit.
It was also the first live performance for Hnetkovsky away from the screen. After that, they performed in Beijing, Yunnan, Hunan and 27 other provinces and cities and started a car stunt trend in China.
The first time Hnetkovsky and Bennie met was in a press conference before a show. "I was not familiar with any particular stuntman before but his humorous talk greatly impressed me," said Bennie, smiling at Hnetkovsky. They eventually became closer lovers.
Due to the great demand for performances in China, the company rented several houses for performers and Anting became the base camp. With fewer performances, many stuntmen went home but Hnetkovsky and Bennie chose to settle here. "With a fine blend of ancient and modern elements, it is quiet and homely. There are also many foreigners from different countries," said Hnetkovsky.
The couple rented a store in Anting Old Street and sell Czech food, with Hnetkovsky as the chef. Gradually, their restaurant has become famous among many foreigners in Shanghai.
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