China Entertainment's whatever you want

With the development of the domestic film market, the total box office of the May Day period, which is the second or even third smallest period of the year, has also been increasing year by year.

2016年五一档的总票房为6.5亿元，2017年为7.84亿，2018年10.06亿，2019年15.27亿。

In 2021, due to the release of popular movies such as "Your Wedding" and "On the Cliff", the total box office of the May Day period that year exceeded 16.82 billion, setting a new record for the highest box office, number of attendees, and number of screenings in the history of the May Day period, with nearly 4445 million people watching movies.

There are many factors that determine whether a schedule is popular or not, and whether it can get high box office.

The length of the holiday and whether the audience has money and free time are one aspect, but whether there are popular movies released is also very important.

More than a decade ago, when Hollywood blockbusters were popular in China, they were basically released in non-popular periods in order to protect domestic films. But that didn't stop them from selling tens or even hundreds of billions and setting box office records.

This year's May Day movies such as "Miracle: Stupid Kid" and "Hello, Brother" were very popular.

Especially for "Miracle", the preview before its release made the word of mouth of the movie spread, and the box office exceeded 6824 million on the May Day day, surpassing "Hello, Brother" with million to become the number one in the national box office that day.

In the following four days of holiday, "Miracle: The Stupid Kid" won the championship for five consecutive days with its good reputation, and the total box office during the May Day period reached 4.89 million, making it the biggest winner of this year's May Day period.

“This movie is really good, just like you said, it’s a good movie!
Director Wen Muye really did not disappoint.”

Coming out of the cinema in the evening, Liu Yifei chatted with Gu Wei about the movie "Miracle: Stupid Kid" they had just watched.

“Does this movie feel familiar to you?”

"Deja vu?" Liu Yifei didn't understand.

Gu Wei smiled and explained, "A poor man at the bottom of society with a child needs a lot of money.

At this time, he happened to get an opportunity to make a lot of money, so he bought a lot of goods and formed a team to sell these goods.

Among them are a single mother who works hard, an honest old man with special skills, a hot-tempered man with a strong self-esteem, and a good-tempered peacemaker.

We all worked hard for a common goal, experienced a lot during the process, and became like a family."

"【I am not the God of Medicine】?"

I didn't notice it when watching the movie, but after Gu Wei said this, Liu Yifei realized that this setting is almost the same as the "Dying to Survive" a few years ago.

Gu Wei nodded.

“[Miracle] was written by Wen Muye himself, and he was somewhat influenced by [Dying to Survive] when he was writing the script.

The film’s narrative structure and character relationships are very similar to “Dying to Survive.”

"If you hadn't told me, I wouldn't have noticed that he looked so similar to Medicine God."

“This is where Wen Muye’s brilliance lies.

Although [Miracle] follows a template, a lot of effort was put into the storytelling.

Twists and turns, conflicts, humor, and sensationalism are all included here, and the techniques and routines are very complete.

The storyline is touching and not clichéd or boring. From this perspective, "Miracle" is definitely a good movie above the standard."

Liu Yifei thought for a moment and said, "I also think that Miracle is very good, and Peng Yuchang's performance is also very good, but I always feel that there is still a big gap between it and Dying to Survive."

“This is normal.

The script of "Miracle" is far inferior to that of "Dying to Survive". Although Wen Mu has made great progress in directing skills over the years, he still cannot make up for the essential gap between the two films."

Liu Yifei blinked her big eyes and said, "Please tell me more about it."

Gu Wei thought for a moment and said, "Let's talk about the most important protagonists of the two movies first.

The leading actor played by Peng Yuchang in [Miracle] was exceptionally good from the very beginning, without any flaws.

He is an almost perfect person from the beginning: stubborn, forbearing, doting on his sister, and working hard, and these labels run through the whole story.

This kind of character setting seems to be fine, but being too perfect means a lack of growth, lack of character brilliance and tension, making it difficult for the audience to empathize with the character.

And [Dying to Survive] did a very good job in this regard.

The character of Xiao Yang is a profit-seeking small businessman from the beginning, and he sells medicine just to make money in the first half of the movie.

Later, after seeing the suffering of patients and the death of friends, I was greatly shocked and underwent a complete change.

He gave up his personal interests, helped patients regardless of gains and losses, and finally became a civilian hero.

This kind of character growth is what touches the audience the most and is also the charm of the character.

Now let's talk about the plot.

The plot design of "Dying to Survive" is very natural. The story progression, twists and turns, and character selection are all very reasonable, and it is easy for the audience to immerse themselves in it.

In this regard, the arrangement of "Miracle" seems a bit artificial.

For example, the setting where a single mother sues her former factory because of a work-related injury is to give the protagonist a chance to show her sense of justice.

When thugs came to harass them, the factory manager took the lead in fighting to protect the employees in order to show that they were a loving family.

These are the essential differences between the two films.

So [Dying to Survive] has a Douban score of 9, while [Miracle: Stupid Kid] currently only has a score of 8.”

Liu Yifei nodded in agreement, then smiled and said, "Although it is not as good as 'Dying to Survive', it is still a good movie."

"That's for sure, compared to other movies, [Miracle] is miles ahead of them.

I said that "Miracle" was more artificial than "Dying to Survive", but in fact, this movie can definitely be regarded as an example of a successful commercial film.

Some movies not only have unclear stories, but also have illogical logic."

Liu Yifei tilted her head slightly and looked at Gu Wei: "Why do I feel like there's something else behind your words?"

Gu Wei shrugged: "I'm talking about the same movie [Hello, Brother]."

“Is that movie so bad?
I remember that "Hello Brother" has earned more than 2 million yuan at the box office so far, which is the highest-grossing movie during the May Day holiday except for "Miracle". "

"[Hello, Brother] is basically a low-profile version of [Hello, Li Huanying], and it starts to piggyback on the other party's popularity right from the name.

But in terms of quality, it is several steps behind "Hi, Mom"."

After the May Day holiday, the domestic film market has become increasingly sluggish.

The box office of many released films plummeted after the release date. "Miracle: The Silly Little Kid" had the smallest drop among all the movies due to its good reputation, but the total box office only barely exceeded 8 million three weeks after its release, and it seems hopeless to break 10 billion.

"Hello, Brother", which received rave reviews online, basically collapsed at the box office after the working day, earning 5 million in 2.4 days and only 7 million in more than two weeks thereafter.

Although there is a big gap between it and Wen Muye’s other movies, Gu Wei is very satisfied with the box office of "Miracle".

Even though some of the current blockbuster movies have box office revenues of billions, the combined revenue of the two parts of "Changjin Lake" even exceeded 110 billion.

But in fact, for an ordinary movie, any box office of 300 to 500 million is considered a good result, and over 500 million is considered a big hit.

The investment in [Miracle·Stupid Kid] was only 1 million yuan, and the total cost including other expenses such as publicity and promotion was 1.5 million yuan.

Now with a box office of over 8 million, the profit has nearly doubled.

"Congratulations on the huge sales of [Miracle]. You must have worked hard on the roadshow with the crew during this period!" Gu Wei also called Wen Mu.

“There is still about a week left before the film is released, but judging by the current box office trend, it is unlikely to reach 9 million.

The box office of over 8 million is not bad, I was relieved that I didn’t ruin my reputation.”

“Hahaha, Lao Wen, you are too modest.

If the reputation and box office of "Miracle" is just okay, then more than 90% of the movies in the industry are garbage."

"I dare not say that." Although Wen Mu has produced many excellent works in recent years, he has always been very low-key, and he did not say much even when promoting his movies.

"Boss Yang said that he will hold a celebration party for the "Miracle" crew in a few days. Will you come back to attend it then?"

"I definitely have to go back. I also want to meet you to talk about [Extreme Rescue]."

When Gu Wei mentioned this, Wen Mu couldn't help but complain, "We clearly agreed to take a break, but in the end, I was asked to be the producer of Manslaughter 2, and then I was involved in the film promotion for half a month.

I’ve finally finished all my work and now I have to start preparing for your new movie.”

“The more capable you are, the more work you should do. After the filming of [Extreme Rescue] is finished, you can take as much time off as you want.

Let's have a couple of drinks at the celebration party in a few days!"

After comforting Wen Mu and saying a few words, Gu Wei hung up the phone.

"Are you going to take a few days off?"

Liu Yifei, who was sitting next to him, asked.

"Yes, the company is holding a celebration party for the crew of Miracle Stupid Kid. I'm going back. In addition to attending the party, I'm also going back to take care of some company matters."

Gu Wei put his phone aside and reached out to hug Liu Yifei in his arms.

"I just heard you mention that movie with the same worldview as Wolf Warrior 2. Will it start filming in the second half of the year?"

“Yes, [Extreme Rescue].

Not only does it share the same world view as "Wolf Warrior 2", it is also related to "John Wick 4" that I filmed at the beginning of the year.

I plan to give this film to Wen Muye. I gave him the script a few months ago and it is still in the early stages of preparation."

Liu Yifei raised her head slightly: "Is there a role suitable for me?"

Gu Wei shook his head: "In addition to the male protagonist, the main character of [Extreme Rescue] is the rescued sister. That role must be played by Yang Chaoyue, just like in [John Wick].

Most of the other supporting roles are villains, or fraudsters coerced by villains, such as beautiful croupiers, etc. You are definitely not suitable."

"Okay~"

Liu Yifei's expression showed a hint of regret.

"When will the movie John Wick 4, which you and Keanu Reeves are working on, be released?"

"It was originally scheduled for around August or September, which is a good time slot both in China and North America."

"So fast?" Liu Yifei was a little surprised. She knew that Gu Wei's movie was only finished in March.

"well enough.

[John Wick 4] is an action movie with few special effects shots and relatively simple post-production.

The finished film has already been released, and Lionsgate has been arranging the release date and preparing for publicity.

I expect it to be released in August, in the second half of the summer season."

"I look forward to your first Hollywood blockbuster. I hope it won't be as bad at the box office as my Mulan."

At this point, Liu Yifei shook her head and said, "Definitely not. With your current box office appeal, you have a base of at least 20 billion in the domestic market.

The John Wick series has always had a very good reputation, so it will definitely be a big hit at the box office!"

"I hope it's as you said~"

Gu Wei was not worried at all that the Hollywood blockbuster he was involved in would not do well at the box office.

His decision to choose Lionsgate's John Wick project was a well-thought-out decision.

Usually the first movie in a series is the most exciting, and then each one gets worse and worse, but the "John Wick" series is just the opposite.

Since the first film, the sequels have been better than the previous ones in terms of box office and word of mouth. The fourth film sold more than 4 million US dollars worldwide, and the Rotten Tomatoes freshness reached 93%, setting a record for this series.

Even on Douban in China, it has a high score of 8.1.

You have to know that this is just a pure gun battle action movie with a relatively simple plot.

This also shows how exciting the action scenes in this movie are.

Gu Wei replaced Zhen Zidan's role in the film, and then increased his role a lot, thus forming a dual male lead structure.

His version retains the original's exciting action scenes while improving the film's story, and is definitely better than the original.

So no matter from which aspect, "John Wick 4" will definitely be a success.

A week passed quickly, and Gu Wei asked for leave from the director and boarded a plane back to Beijing.

"Boss, Huanxi Media has sent you a script and would like to invite you to star in it."

On the plane, Gu Wei was looking at his mailbox when Yang Dan came over.

“【Huanxi Media】?
What movie?

[Huanxi Media] is Xu Zheng and Ning Hao’s company.

Gu Wei had worked with Xu Zheng before when filming "Time Raiders". When filming "The Wandering Earth", he always had dinner with Ning Hao from the crew of "Crazy Alien" next door. They all have a good relationship.

He thought these two people had a new project to look for him, but Gu Wei didn't remember what movies Xu Zheng had filmed at that time, so he thought it was a new film that Ning Hao was preparing.

"It's a movie directed by Zhang Yimou, called "Red River", a suspense comedy."

Only when Yang Dan placed the script in front of Gu Wei did he understand.

Needless to say, I would definitely be the one to play "Sun Jun".

Zhang Yimou and Gu Wei are also familiar with each other, as they first knew each other when they were filming "The Great Wall".

The two had talked about it at the Golden Rooster Awards ceremony last year. At that time, Zhang Yimou said that he would definitely find him if there was a suitable opportunity. Gu Wei just thought that the other party was being polite and didn't take it seriously.

"When will Director Zhang's film start shooting?"

“The plan is to start filming in July.

It is said that the shooting period is very short, and it is expected to take more than a month."

Gu Wei laughed. How could it not be enough? There was only one scene with a few people running around acting, just like a sitcom.

Gu Wei was thinking while flipping through the script.

“Forget it, I’ve already made plans to film [Extreme Rescue] with Wen Mu in July, and after this film, there’s [Girl in Disappearance] that our company is producing, so I definitely won’t be able to spare the time.

Let’s talk to Huanxi Media about the promotion.”

Yang Dan nodded, hesitated for a moment and said, "Boss, this is the third time you have rejected Director Zhang Yimou.

And this time I'm the main character, isn't that a bit bad?"

Yang Dan has been following Gu Wei since shortly after the company was founded, from being an assistant in the beginning to being an executive agent now, and knows him very well.

When "The Great Wall" was being prepared, Director Zhang invited Gu Wei to play the role of Lu Han, but he turned it down. He only went back to play a cameo role because of his relationship with China Film Corporation.

In 2020, Zhang Yimou filmed "On the Cliff" and invited Gu Wei to play "Wang Chuliang", who is also the lover of Liu Haocun's character, but was rejected again.

This is the third time that [Man Jiang Hong] has performed.

"I know. Please reply to Huanxi Media normally. I will call Director Zhang to explain it to him later." (End of this chapter)