[Photo provided to China Daily]

Separately, the publicity division of Alibaba says that the complete version of Gong Shou Dao will be streamed on Youku, the online video provider affiliated to Alibaba, besides being screened in movie theaters.

As for the cinema screenings, an Alibaba statement says: "As the movie aims to popularize and spread Chinese culture, the theater screenings will not have tickets. Instead, people will be invited to watch the film for free."

Giving details of Ma's commitment to the film, Li says that Ma spent 12 hours each day for 12 days on the film. During this time span, Ma only excused himself once for Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto's visit to the Alibaba headquarters in September.

"I appreciate Ma for devoting his time to the film and also providing a wonderful platform (the Double 11 gala) to demonstrate Chinese martial arts to the world," says Li.

Last year, up to 200 million viewers, domestic and foreign, watched the gala, with Alibaba's online sales reaching 80.7 billion yuan ($11.85 billion) on Nov 11.

As for the movie critics, most of them see the short movie as more of a promotion stunt for this year's forthcoming Double 11 shopping day.

Jiang Yong, a Beijing-based critic, says that a 20-minute film is too short to evaluate, and the release date makes it more like a marketing ploy for Double 11.

But Fei Yuliang, the vice-president of the Netherlands-based International Health Qigong Association, says the movie can help raise the profile of martial arts in the West thanks to Ma's reputation and the cast's star power.