New stills of Xia Yu and Charlie Young have been released for the upcoming Chinese film "Wind Blast". The cast also includes Duan Yihong, Francis Ng, Wu Jing, Yu Nan, Ni Dahong and Zhang Li.

Xia Yu and Charlie Young in the film "Wind Blast" directed by Gao Qunshu [Sina.com.cn]

Xia Yu plays Zhang Ning, who is hired to kill a gangster, thus becoming a target for bounty hunters. He is then forced to flee to the desert with his girlfriend Sun Jing, played by Charlie Young.

Director Gao Qunshu said Xia Yu's role was the most tragic "bad guy" in Chinese gangster films.

Gao views Zhang Ning as a rogue who has principle and faith. "First, he will do anything to survive and second, he wants to protect his girlfriend and would sacrifice all his principles for her," said the director. "Xia Yu's character is not the most important one in the film, but it is the most tragic one."

Xia Yu admitted that the action scenes had been difficult to handle. "I am almost beaten every day in the movie," he said. The actor described his character as a tough man. "He is always tolerant, from the start to the end. He undertakes everything by himself and does not surrender to anything. I think he is a real man. His bones are too strong to smash."

The film is set for release later this year.