Chapter 311 Daughter = Wu Dalang?
In a teahouse in Kowloon, Zhang Chen met Johnnie To in real life.
"Director Zhang, nice to meet you~"
"Director Du, hello~"
Both of them have been well-known for a long time and need no introduction. After shaking hands, the two of them started talking one after another. Take a seat.
Johnnie To himself is very energetic and has bright eyes.
"Director Du, we meet again~" After the two met and exchanged greetings, Zhong Liti said hello with a smile.
“Long time no see, Christy~” Johnnie To also replied.
Christy is Zhong Liti’s English name. Hong Kong is a colony after all, and many people have the habit of calling people by their English names.
"Everyone has tea first~" Boss Yang rolled around for a while, served tea to everyone, and then asked for tea. Then he casually asked: "Christy, did you go to the movies with Director Zhang this afternoon?"
It was the first time that Zhang Chen and Du Qifeng met, and they were not very familiar with each other.
In this case, it must be Boss Yang, the middleman, who is looking for a topic.
"Boss Yang, you won't send someone to follow us, will you?" Zhongliti pretended to be exaggerated.
It would be nice to have a woman by the side to adjust the atmosphere. Boss Yang chuckled and said, "I'm not a paparazzi, so I can still send people to follow you? If you want to blame, you can only blame yourselves. It's all on the news..."
“Oh, I forgot, we were caught by reporters when we finished watching, and we did an interview. Director Zhang Chen praised Director Du’s "Underworld" very much..."
Zhang Chen said from the side: "That's not a compliment, it's all from the bottom of my heart. Director Du's "Underworld" is indeed very good. I'd say the same in front of you. It's the best gangster movie I've ever seen, bar none. ..."
Lao Du was obviously very happy when he heard Zhang Chen's compliment. This was a compliment from a billionaire director. He said with a smile: "Director Zhang has won the award. Although "Underworld" is indeed a success, I am very satisfied with it. It’s a work by Zhang, but it’s not up to what Director Zhang said. It’s an award, it’s an award...
It’s Director Zhang’s "Hurricane Rescue". I also watched it once in the past two days, and I was surprised. For heaven and man..."
Boss Yang invited tea again. Several people stopped talking, picked up the small tea cup and put it into their mouths, and their lips and teeth were immediately fragrant.
Putting down the tea cup, Zhang Chen thought that what the other party just said was just polite words. After all, they had just met and it was customary for them to exchange business compliments.
Unexpectedly, Johnnie To suddenly said: "Actually, I was already full of curiosity before watching it. The media were talking about the six-and-a-half-minute long shot in "The Rescue". To be honest, I was very curious. After watching it, I was so curious." I know that Director Zhang is amazing and talented..."
Du Qifeng suddenly said this. Zhang Chen couldn't figure out for a moment whether the other party's words were a compliment or a sarcasm, and he didn't dare to answer.
To Qifeng continued: "I can see that the long shots are spliced together, but even so, I still admire Director Zhang's scheduling ability, especially the sequence in the slums. It was so smooth, in many places You can’t even tell it’s spliced together...”
As an insider and an expert at playing with lenses, it’s not surprising that he can tell the secret at a glance.
What Zhang Chen was really surprised about was his attitude.
By now, what Du Qifeng said should not be sarcastic, but it was a little different from what Zhang Chen expected.
“Many directors in the industry have expressed their disapproval of my pseudo-long shot. Doesn’t Director Du think this long shot is a step backwards in film art?”
“Haha, those bugs , they don’t understand movies at all, they are just a bunch of guys who can only follow the script..."
Zhang Chen did not expect Du Qifeng to say this, so he heard Du Qifeng continue: "Those guys just know how to do it every day. Shouting art, expression, style...
In fact, they don’t understand anything.
What a lens is is nothing more than a tool for expression.
What is the difference between a real long shot and a fake long shot? For the audience, the expression is the same, but for the director, as long as the audience gets what you want to express, this is That's enough. As for whether it's a real long shot or a pseudo-long shot, does it matter? "
The message expressed by Du Qifeng's words coincided with Zhang Chen's. Zhang Chen did not expect that Lao Du was such a pragmatic person, and his favorable impression immediately increased.
"Du Director, that’s what I think~”
The two talked about long shots, and even compared Lao Du’s really long shot in “The Big Event” to confirm each other.
"When I was shooting, I found the main photographer of "Lord of the Rings", but after he came over, he studied for three days, told me that he couldn't shoot this shot, and then left, and other photographers were even more afraid to take it. Later, I I shot it after lowering the difficulty level..."
When it comes to their professional fields, both of them talk endlessly and seem to have endless things to say.
Boss Yang and Zhongliti next to me were a little bored.
Especially Zhongliti.
Originally, she didn’t want to come since she knew it was the director’s party, but Zhang Chen was unfamiliar with the place, his Cantonese was not good enough, and he couldn’t get a taxi, so she had to accompany him.
Boss Yang couldn't get a word in, so he could only keep asking for tea. Zhong Liti didn't feel bored, and her big eyes were fixed on Zhang Chen. She liked listening to Zhang Chen's words very much. She didn't understand, but she just thought it was very powerful.
While chatting, the two of them were no longer limited to movies, but the entire movie environment.
“One thing I admire very much about Hong Kong filmmakers is your spirit in making films. You dare to fight hard, dare to be real, and don’t care about anything for the sake of the movie. To be honest, the mainland is far worse than you in this aspect. Much more.”
This is not to belittle oneself, Hong Kong filmmakers really outperform the world in this regard.
Boss Yang and Du Qifeng are also very proud.
"Actually, what I admire more is the creativity of Hong Kong filmmakers. Starting from the 1980s, in the past 20 years, a hundred flowers have blossomed, talents have emerged in large numbers, and a large number of classic movies have been produced..."
Zhang Chen was a child. Growing up watching these Hong Kong movies, I was deeply affected.
It can be said that his later application for the directing department had something to do with the influence he received as a child.
"A film like "The Three Heroes of the East" was actually made by Director Du in 1993. I really admire your imagination..."
Speaking of this, Johnnie To said embarrassedly Waving his hand: ""The Three Heroes" was a hit. The Hong Kong audience didn't buy it at all at that time. The total box office was only 1.93 million Hong Kong dollars..."
It was full of tears when I talked about it.
Zhang Chen was very impressed by this film.
To Qifeng invented a post-apocalyptic background, and then stitched Batman and the New Dragon Gate Inn together to create a new world.
Just this idea alone is way ahead of others.
The only Hong Kong film in future generations that can rival "The Three Heroes" is "City Alert".
"Eastern Heroes", just by looking at the tone of the scene and Anita Mui's character, it is easy to remind people of Tim Burton's version of "Batman". The three women joining forces to fight against the father-in-law are replicating the "New Dragon Inn" a year ago. .
But even so, Zhang Chen still found it wonderful and the whole film was full of imagination.
Anita Mui's Green Hornet mask, Michelle Yeoh's one-piece thermal red underwear, Maggie Cheung's afro and fishnet stockings...
Ordinary directors simply cannot control such settings and looks, but Johnnie To's shots are pretty good.
The subject matter is very avant-garde, and the costumes, shapes, and designs are also very bold, although some props and special effects are a bit rough from today's perspective, especially the ubiquitous wire mesh. But the strong cult flavor exuded by the film itself is so unique.
I wonder if the Skeleton on Fire episode was influenced by the Hollywood science fiction blockbusters of the 1980s and 1990s.
The three heroines each represent different personalities and destinies. Maggie Cheung plays the perverse Chen Qi. On the surface, he pursues excitement for money, but in fact, his heart is burning with the desire for justice.
She is the cute and funny person in the trio, and the other two are the heroic eldest sisters.
In addition, the music of this film is really good, a typical superhero BGM. When the music comes together, you know that a superhero is about to appear.
"I like "The Heroes of the East" very much, especially your pioneering use of women as the protagonists. This is actually very similar to my "Dark Invasion" and "Shark Beach". Women are generally weak in the traditional sense. When we give her some masculine elements, the contrast will be very eye-catching..."
"Yes, yes, so I gave the three heroines a bromance-like friendship in the movie~"
Du Qifeng felt that Zhang Chen really understood him.
After "The Three Heroes" came out, he suffered endless infamy. Everyone could not understand such an alternative action movie.
The style is different, the background is different, the protagonist is also different, and there is also a different kind of romance...
Now there is finally someone who can understand him. He can really understand "The Three Heroes of the East".
Du Qifeng was very excited, a little excited to find out the news. There were no three sticks of incense at the scene. If there were any, he might have become a Hongmen brother.
“There were indeed many good movies back then, but why are they gone now?”
The one who feels this the most is probably Boss Yang.
Ten years ago, making movies was just like picking up money.
It doesn't cost much to make a movie, but the box office is huge.
Looking back now, the investment in the films he has handled is not low, but the box office is worse than the last one. Even Cheng Long, who earns double-digit revenue every two weeks, has trouble with it. He invested 140 million Hong Kong dollars in "The Myth". It has been almost a month since its release, and the box office has not even exceeded 100 million, so I have to pay it to my grandma’s house.
He didn't expect to get the answer, he just complained, but Zhang Chen actually said: "The reason why classics were produced in the past was because the market had a high error tolerance rate and the cost of trial and error was low.
Think At that time, the audience wanted to be entertained in four ways: watching TV, reading books and magazines, going to the movies, and singing and dancing in entertainment venues.
So when new movies were released, everyone would watch them. He has low ability and a high tolerance for bad movies. Even bad movies cannot get a good reputation.
Things are different now, times have changed.
As long as someone sees it and thinks it is a bad movie, he will say that people will not watch it after seeing bad reviews from the Internet.
And now people have many ways to entertain themselves, and movies are no longer the only one.
Furthermore, I think the most important thing is that the previous period was a period of high creative productivity for filmmakers. The entire environment was relaxed, and filmmakers had many fantastic ideas, so it was easy to produce high-quality products.
Nowadays, there are basically no new people coming forward, which means that there are no new ideas to impact the market. In addition, the cost of making movies is getting higher and higher, and the cost of trial and error has greatly increased. People who make movies without hesitation will naturally It’s hard to come up with quality products. ”
This topic was a bit boring, and everyone was less interested in talking about it, so Zhang Chen simply changed the topic.
“Do you know what I like most about your movie?”
“I’d love to hear more about it.”
“Composition~
“Gunfire” The scene behind the pillars, the positioning is really amazing, it can be used as a teaching material in film schools..."
Hearing Zhang Chen praising himself, Lao Du waved his hands mockingly: "I can't do action scenes, so I can only work more on these aspects. I envy you. The action scenes in "Hurricane Rescue" are really groundbreaking. I’m sure that Hollywood will learn from you in the future..."
Lao Du always felt that the shootout scene in "The Big Deal" was not filmed well enough.
Others commented that his "Big Event" was useless except for the seven-minute long shot.
Lao Du does have some problems.
His personal style is strong, but his strengths and weaknesses are as obvious.
He was barely interested in filming emotional scenes, and the action scenes were just average.
“If I were to film "Taken", I would have arranged for my daughter to die in the ending. I think this would enhance the style of the entire film and make it easier for the audience to resonate..."
After everyone got acquainted, Johnnie To finally spoke his mind.
Zhang Chen is not surprised at all when Lao Du said this.
In fact, this guy really likes to do this. He always likes to come to people suddenly.
In "Underworld", Le Shao was in a good mood and suddenly hit Big D on the head with a rock because he didn't wear a safety helmet.
In "Underworld 2", too, Dumbledore's death was so sudden.
This is simply Johnnie To's bad taste. Everyone has guessed that Big D and Dumbledore will definitely have a bad end, but when and how they will die, you can't think of it even if you think about it.
Finally hearing a familiar topic, Zhongliti immediately interrupted: "Yeah, I'm also curious, what will happen if Jin Mi dies?"
Zhang Chen looked at two Everyone looked at the two of them and shook their heads: "I thought about it too, but I didn't dare?"
"?"
"According to the character logic, if Jin Mi dies, I don't know how the protagonist will end up?"
The two still don't understand, Zhang Chen explained in detail: "The role of Liang Jiahui I actually wrote it according to Wu Song...
You all know the story of Wu Dalang and Pan Jinlian, right?”
Seeing everyone nodding, Zhang Chen continued: “Actually, no matter who slept with Pan Jinlian, Wu Song Even if Ximen Qing slept with Pan Jinlian and injured Wu Da, as long as Wu Dalang was not dead, Wu Song would not go on a killing spree
But they happened to kill Wu Dalang. You must know that the parents of the two brothers died early. Wu Dalang was selling cooking cakes on a pole, with cooking cakes on one end and Wu Song in the basket on the other end. When he met someone who could breastfeed, the cooking cakes were free of charge. My brother just needs some milk.
Is this my brother?
This is the father!
As long as Wu Da is alive, Pan Jinlian will not be so irritable even if she cheats on Wu Song.
For Wu Song, Wu Dalang’s survival means that he still has a family. When Wu Dalang dies, it’s not that Wu Song lost a brother, but that Wu Song’s entire family was wiped out.
Do you understand, for the agent dad, Kimmy’s character is his Wu Dalang..."
...
Just one today
(This chapter End)