At the end of July, the box office of "Once Upon a Time in China" unexpectedly reached HK$28.12 million, setting a new record for the highest box office of a mainland film in Hong Kong, which was the 16 million held by "Shaolin Temple", and breaking the previous box office record of Hong Kong Kung Fu films. record.
With about 2 million more, it will be close to the first "Summer Lucky Star" in Hong Kong to break through 30 million box office.
For a time, not only the Hong Kong media, but also the entertainment and martial arts circles were calling "the wolf is coming".
Although "Once Upon a Time in Hong Kong" is a big superhero IP in Hong Kong, we absolutely cannot tolerate mainland co-productions showing off their power in Hong Kong.
As a result, many people placed their hopes on Cheng Long's "The Great and Powerful", but the result was shocking.
I thought that this masterpiece, known as Cheng Long's second impact on Hollywood, would severely suppress the arrogance of Jet Li, "Once Upon a Time" and the new martial arts wave. However, I did not expect that the quality of the film could not be said to be shoddy and unsightly, but At least it is tasteless to eat and a pity to throw away.
Seeing that the "Cheng Lung vs. Jet Li" drama ended in an anticlimactic manner, the Hong Kong media, unable to continue the hype, immediately turned their guns and used "Once Upon a Time" to criticize "The Great and Powerful". The outstanding He is just a "step on one and hold one on", saying that Cheng Long is "exhausted of talents".
It was in this public opinion situation that the opening ceremony of "Police Story" took place in front of a slum.
On the table where the statue of Guan Gong is enshrined, there are offerings one after another, and in the center is an incense burner for placing incense.
On the right side is a camera covered with a red cloth, while on the left side, there are loud gongs and drums, firecrackers blasting, and a sea of people. It is very lively.
Fang Yan stood in the front row with He Guanchang, Cheng Long, Lin Qingxia, Wang Zuxian and others. After worshiping the gods, they went to place incense one by one.
"Jiahe is indeed Jiahe, this scene is much bigger than that at Shaw Brothers."
Fang Yan said in a joking tone.
"Don't get me wrong, Fang Sheng. We are not doing this to deliberately suppress the Shaw Brothers. We mainly want to get rid of bad luck."
He Guanchang waved his hand.
"To remove bad luck?"
The dialect is not without surprise.
Cheng Long smiled bitterly and said, "Yes, Fang Sheng, "The Great and Powerful" was just like what you said. It failed miserably both in terms of reputation and box office."
"You don't have to be too nervous Please take it to heart, the failure of this film is not your fault."
Fang Yan said a few words of comfort, "As the saying goes, where you fall, you stand up. I think starting with "Police Story". .”
Cheng Long nodded solemnly, his eyes seemed to be full of unwillingness and anger, vowing to avenge his shame and wash away the defeat caused by "Mighty Dragon Detective".
As soon as the opening ceremony ended, the crew, especially the Cheng family class, began to get busy and prepare for the car chase scene.
He Guanchang watched quietly and said with kind eyes:
"Fang Sheng, Boss Zou asked me to congratulate you on his behalf. Congratulations on the huge success of the movie "Once Upon a Time" . ”
“No, it’s just a fluke.”
Seeing Fang Yan shaking his head and laughing, Lin Qingxia pursed her lips, then looked at each other and whispered.
"Fang Sheng is really too humble."
He Guanchang said that in a big way, "Once Upon a Time in China" has opened up a new situation for kung fu movies in Hong Kong. , found a new production direction, and to a lesser extent, reshaped Huang Feihong's IP, allowing Jet Li to completely tear off the label of "Shaolin boy".
"There is no need to envy Mr. He."
Fang Yan said: ""Police Story" will break the stereotype of Cheng Long among movie fans and allow Cheng Long to truly transform into a police hero. .”
He Guanchang burst out laughing, "I hope it's like what Fang Sheng said."
The two were chatting when suddenly there were waves of ambulance sirens. The stretcher came out of the car.
"Is this?"
Both Lin Qingxia and Wang Zuxian starred in Cheng Long's film for the first time. Seeing this scene, their faces were full of doubts.
He Guanchang explained that Cheng Long’s movies all require realism. Whether it is action scenes or chase scenes, they are all quite dangerous. Therefore, if life safety is in danger, ambulances can be sent to the ambulance immediately. Sent to hospital for rescue.
"Hiss~"
Wang Zuxian took a breath of air. When Fang Yan asked, he found out that the first scene was not a transitional scene like in "Baby Stars", but a hard meal.
It is also the scene at the beginning of "Police Story" where Chen Jiaju drives and chases the drug lord and flies through the slums.
In sight, workers are laying tracks to allow cars to run along the designated routes. However, these tracks are actually made of wood. If you are not careful, it is very likely that high-speed cars will It will lose control and even cause a car accident.
"There is no way, the budget is only so much."
Cheng Long, who was called over, spread his hands and said helplessly: "Otherwise, I wouldn't arrange it in the slums. I would definitely shoot on the road."
He Guanchang asked curiously, "Fang Sheng, if it were in Hollywood, this speeding scene would How will they shoot?”
“If we are pursuing a real scene, we will set up a street and clear the scene for shooting.”
Fang Yan said: “But if it is a very dangerous explosion scene, it may be possible. Using computer special effects, the most expensive one can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars per second.”
"Wow, hundreds of thousands of dollars?!"
Cheng Long was shocked. This is almost one-third or even half of the cost of "Police Story".
The movies in Xiangjiang cannot afford this kind of money, but there are also low-profile ways to play. Just like when Hollywood shoots jumping scenes, they use life-saving air mattresses, while in Xiangjiang they use quilts and cardboard boxes for fruit. , the main theme is two words, "fight hard".
After all, this is the money that stuntmen in Xiangjiang earn, jumping off buildings in the morning, catching fire at noon, and crashing cars at night.
"Police Story" has officially started filming the thrilling flying scenes under this concept of "risking your life".
"Bang!"
"Bang bang!"
"Bang bang bang!"
A conspicuous car was rampaging through the slum, and the shack was hit instantly Collapse, explosions occurred one after another.
With sparks and lightning all the way, the house was completely destroyed. Such a car chase and explosion scene really didn't cost a lot of money compared to Hollywood.
The only cost was to injure four or five special divisions, one of whom was even seriously injured and was immediately carried into an ambulance for emergency treatment.
Seeing this scene, Wang Zuxian and Lin Qingxia were so frightened that they could not speak. Their eyes widened, showing panic.
“It’s really all over the top, it’s all crazy.”
Fang Yan couldn’t help but sigh. It was precisely because of this that Xiangjiang movies could be regarded as “Oriental films” in the 1980s and 1990s. Hollywood".
A small place with a mere seven to eight million people was able to radiate film culture across Asia and into Europe and the United States, rivaling Hollywood at the time.
"Fang Sheng's evaluation can be said to be to the point, concise and to the point, and it suddenly penetrates the essence of Xiangjiang movies."
He Guanchang's eyes suddenly lit up.
“I am also speaking out of emotion.”
Fang Yan said: “With this kind of momentum, it will definitely not be a problem for me to break into Hollywood with Die Hard.”
"If it goes as Fang Sheng said, Aaron and Jiahe will definitely not forget this relationship!" He Guanshang vowed.
Fang Yan turned around with a smile and looked at Lin Qingxia and Wang Zuxian, "How are you, are you afraid?"
Lin Qingxia grabbed Wang Zuxian's hand, looked at each other, encouraged each other, and then said in unison: "We are not afraid!"
“Okay, it seems we have not misjudged the person!”
He Guanchang showed a satisfied smile, especially when he heard that they refused to act as stuntmen and were willing to challenge the danger like Cheng Long. time.
Fang Yan also gave enough affirmation. In fact, in Cheng Long's movie, Cheng Long is the only hero and the only focus. If the heroine doesn't want to be a vase, she can either be as good at fighting as Yang Ziqiong, or If you can work as hard as Cheng Long, otherwise, the audience will only remember Cheng Long.
Just like "Journey to the West", there are obviously queens, princesses, fairies, banshees, and female ghosts, but they only focus on watching monkeys... (End of this chapter)