From left to right: Ge You, Chow Yun-Fat and Jiang Wen [CRI]

Jiang Wen's gangster movie Let the Bullets Fly is making a splash before it has even been completed.

The film, with an all-star cast led by Chow Yun-Fat, Ge You and the director himself, has attracted floods of earnest film distributors at the 34th Hong Kong International Film Festival opening Sunday.

The section dedicated to promoting "Bullets" at the festival was jam-packed with distributors and reporters, although none of the film's cast members was present.

Aside from onsite inquiries, the report said a number of film buyers had made appointments to meet "Bullets" producers before the film festival opened. Such passion has rarely been seen for other Chinese films, the report said.

Producers attribute the film's popularity to its cast, which includes some of China's biggest stars such as Chow Yun-Fat, Ge You, Carina Lau, Hu Jun, and Chen Kun.

The film, with its story set in 1920s China, has 11 major characters who form what director Jiang Wen calls a Chinese version of Ocean's Eleven.

Japanese musician Joe Hisaishi is in charge of the soundtrack.

The film is currently in post-production. Release dates are to be announced.