Hong Kong Entertainment: The King of Kung Fu

When Yang Ye started to grab movies, he was very generous and did not let go of any superstars of Chinese-language films, showing his true nature as a scumbag.

Jet Li was forced to star in "Shaolin Temple", "Fist of Fury" and "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon".

Chen Long and Yang Ye have different styles, but they were both co-starred in "The Myth".

"The Myth" is the least Chen Long movie, and he was too old when he filmed it. It would be more appropriate to let Yang Ye film it now.

Chow Yun-fat suffered the most, as he was ripped off by "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon", "A Better Tomorrow" and "God of Gamblers".

Even in movies like "Autumn Fairy Tale" and "Hard Boiled", Yang Ye did not act in them himself, but gave them to Liang Jiahui and Zhang Guorong to act in.

Originally, Chow Yun-fat could have won several Hong Kong Film Awards, but so far, he has not won any, only one Golden Horse Award.

When people in the future talk about the history of Hong Kong films, although there is a person like Chow Yun-fat, he will basically be mentioned in passing and will not become a symbolic figure.

Speaking of Zhou Xingchi, the king of comedy, Yang Ye's style is too far away from his, and Yang Ye's image is not very suitable for making exaggerated expressions to amuse the audience, so he has never been in Zhou Xingchi's movies.

However, Yang Ye once starred in a movie called "Diary of a Real Man" for the purpose of self-reflection and picking up girls.

In that movie, he also acted cute and naughty to amuse the audience, and was beaten badly by two beauties, Wang Zuxian and Nakamori Akina.

Although the final box office was so-so, it was not a failure.

When filming "Diary of a Real Man", director Chu Yuan praised Yang Ye for his comedic talent.

Yang Ye boasted at the time that if "Diary of a Real Man" was a hit, he would try to combine kung fu and comedy and make a kung fu comedy film.

Chu Yuan was very interested and asked if he was like Chen Long.

Yang Ye said it was a little different, more exaggerated and nonsensical.

Chu Yuan, Wang Zuxian and others expressed their anticipation on the spot.

The kung fu comedy film Yang Ye was talking about was Stephen Chow's "Kung Fu".

Throughout Zhou Xingchi's acting career, his performance style has gone through a process from normal, to crazy, and finally to increasingly restrained.

When filming "Kung Fu", he was no longer funny, it was the other people in the movie who were funny.

When filming "CJ7", he directly became a tragic character.

Like "The Myth", "Kung Fu" was badly criticized when it was first released.

One was scolded for not being like Chen Long at all, the other was scolded for not being like Zhou Xingchi at all.

Fortunately, as time goes by, they have gradually received fair evaluation.

"The Myth" is considered a good movie, and "Kung Fu" is regarded as a classic of the generation.

Yang Ye has watched many movies in his two lifetimes. There are a vast number of Chinese-language films, but there are four that he has watched repeatedly.

These four films appeared in a cluster, namely "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" in 2000, "Shu Mountain" in 2001, "Hero" in 2002, and "Kung Fu" in 2004.

Yang Ye watched these four movies repeatedly, not because of how exciting their plots were or how cool the action was, but because they together created a Chinese aesthetic that was different from Western movies.

Film is the "art of light and shadow", and these four films have one thing in common: they convey to the world a unique oriental visual effect.

In fact, if I have to mention one, I would have to add one, The Promise from 2005.

"The Promise" is certainly a bad movie engraved on the pillar of shame. It is much worse than the previous four films, but its aesthetic expression is consistent.

The best part of "The Promise" is the spoof version "A Murder Case over a Bun" edited by Hu Ge, and the second best part is the three-minute trailer released before the movie was released.

Just watching the trailer, some of the shots are very good, especially the shot where Zhang Baizhi falls from the roof and his reflection on the golden mask is very creative and beautiful.

However, after watching the feature film, there is only one word: fuck!

Regardless of success or failure, at that time, Chinese directors seemed to want to collectively create a Chinese blockbuster that was different from Western films.

Hollywood film producers also seemed to be very interested in this. After the global success of "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon", "Hero", "Kung Fu" and "The Promise" were released on a large scale around the world one after another.

It’s a pity that the box office performance is getting worse and worse, with each film being worse than the previous one.

Although "Kung Fu" achieved a global box office of $100 million, its distribution costs were too high, causing Hollywood film producers to lose money.

By the time of "The Promise", Miramax lost all its money, and Harvey Weinstein angrily called Kaizi a liar.

No matter how much they curse, the film has already been sold, the Chinese and Korean producers have made money, and Hollywood has made a lot of money.

Chen Kexin, who got on board last, was in a miserable situation. He saw big directors like Ang Lee, Zhang Yimou, Kaizi Ge, and Zhou Xingchi doing very well, and thought to himself, I can do it too.

So he also made a blockbuster movie "The Warlords", invited Jet Li to star in it, and planned to release it globally.

In the end, the film was completed and it was great, but no one paid for it, so it was a waste of money. What a tragedy!
All in all, this exploration of Chinese blockbusters ultimately failed, and the pace of global distribution of Chinese-language films also came to an abrupt halt.

……

During the meal, two major events were confirmed: one was to invest in the construction of Chedun Film and Television City, and the other was to come to Shanghai to shoot an action blockbuster. The female lead was also decided on the spot.

Both the host and the guests had a great time and couldn't help but drink a little more. When they came out of the restaurant, everyone was a little staggering.

At this time, the lights were on and everyone waved goodbye. Director Zhong said to Chen Hong, "Comrade Chen Hong, Director Yang is a little drunk. You are responsible for sending him back."

Chen Hong was pretty, and there were people who urged her to drink during the meal, but after Yang Ye calmly blocked them for her twice, everyone tactfully stopped, so she didn't drink much.

Chen Hong was chosen by Yang Ye as the heroine of the new film. She was very excited. When she saw Yang Ye helping her block the wine, her affection for him increased even more.

Seeing that Yang Ye was drunk, Director Zhong took the initiative to support Yang Ye without saying anything.

The two got in the car, which started and headed for the Peace Hotel where Yang Ye was staying.

Yang Ye sat crookedly on the seat, and as soon as Chen Hong got in the car, he naturally leaned on Chen Hong's shoulder.

Chen Hong knew that Yang Ye had drunk quite a bit of wine, so she didn't dodge and let him lean on her.

A faint fragrance of a young girl came, and Yang Ye suddenly sobered up. He sat up straight and said, "Open the window, I want some fresh air!"

Chen Hong quickly rolled up the window, and a cool breeze blew in. Yang Ye shook his head, rubbed his face, and smiled at Chen Hong: "Sorry, I just felt a little dizzy."

Chen Hong smiled sweetly: "It's okay, this is what happens when you drink."

At this time, the car drove into Nanjing Road and saw the famous Waibaidu Bridge in the distance. Yang Ye said, "I have been to Shanghai twice, and each time I was in a hurry. Can you accompany me for a walk?"

"Okay, but you drank a lot..."

"Just in time to sober up!"

"That's right!" Yang Ye stopped the car near the Waibaidu Bridge, got out of the car with Chen Hong, walked slowly towards the Waibaidu Bridge.

Halfway through their walk, the two stopped. In those days, there was no Oriental Pearl Tower, nor was there a three-piece set of "bottle opener", "syringe" and "egg beater"!

But it is also very pleasant to feel the wind along the Huangpu River, watch the people on the ferry, and listen to the sound of the whistle.

Yang Ye leaned against the railing, admiring the river view, and said with a smile: "Shanghai looks quite prosperous, not much worse than Hong Kong!"

Chen Hong has never been to Hong Kong, but in the eyes of Chinese people these days, Hong Kong is very high-end. She said, "It's still incomparable, right?"

It was unnecessary to talk about this topic with a woman. Yang Ye stopped talking and turned to the topic of movies. He said, "Are you confused about what I said at the table before?"

Chen Hong said: "Yeah, how come the male and female protagonists don't even have names?"

Chen Hong couldn't understand this. She wanted to make a movie and play the leading female role without any preparation. Moreover, the leading female role didn't even have a name. How was this possible?

It’s bad enough that the heroine doesn’t have a name, even the hero doesn’t have a name. How can this movie be made?
Yang Ye smiled and said, “In fact, the heroine of this movie is a mute girl. When she was very young, she was bullied by gangsters, and the hero helped her.

She always kept this benefactor in her heart, and when she grew up, the two met again.

The male protagonist has become a gangster and no longer recognizes her. He bullies her and steals her money.

However, she is pure and kind, and always believes that the hero is a good person. In the end, she inspires the hero's kindness and grows into a peerless master."

"Since the two never officially spoke to each other, the audience doesn't know the name of the heroine. If she must have a name, then she should be called... Hong'er!"

Chen Hong suddenly realized: "So that's how it is!"

When Chen Hong heard that she was going to play a pure and kind girl, she immediately thought that this role was good. And when she heard that Yang Ye named the girl Hong'er, she couldn't help feeling a little strange.

"For this role, the image must be pure and beautiful, preferably with some classical beauty. To be honest, it's quite hard to find someone like that. When I saw you today, I didn't think so at first, but later at the table, everyone was noisy and you were sitting alone eating quietly. Your cool and independent temperament instantly touched me. You are the heroine I'm looking for!"

Chen Hong blushed a little when Yang Ye praised her. Fortunately, it was night time and it was not noticeable. She touched her fair face and said shyly, "How can I be so beautiful? You are praising me too much!"

Yang Ye shook his head: "I'm not complimenting you, I'm just telling you the truth!"

Yang Ye said as he walked forward. Chen Hong quickly followed him and the two walked side by side.

Chen Hong asked, "We've been talking for so long, but I still don't know what our movie is called?"

""effort"!"

"No wonder you said this is an autobiographical movie. I saw in the newspapers that you are the world's number one kung fu master and invincible. Is that true?"

"I don't know. Anyway, I've never seen anyone better than me!"

"That's awesome!"

Chen Hong admires him very much. She admires heroes.

"So this movie tells the story before your official debut?"

"How should I put it? The place where this story takes place is very similar to the environment where I grew up. I was born in the Kowloon Walled City, where good and bad people mixed together. There were many strange people living there. Have you seen "Ghost Blows Out the Light: Mojin: The Lost Tomb"? "

"Of course I have!"

"The story of the tomb raider was told to me by an old man named Chen in the fortress."

Yang Ye casually told some stories about Kowloon Walled City, which left Chen Hong stunned.

She didn't expect that there was a place in the world where even the government didn't dare to interfere, and Yang Ye was actually the little bully of that place. This was really incredible.

The two walked and talked along Nanjing Road, and soon became familiar with each other. Before they knew it, Yang Ye was talking and Chen Hong was talking instead.

Chen Hong did not tell Yang Ye about her prominent family background, but only talked about many interesting childhood events, which Yang Ye listened to with great interest.

Soon, we turned from Nanjing Road to Huanghe Road. Looking around, we saw dense crowds of people and taxis lined up all the way along the street.

There are restaurants on both sides of the road, and neon light boxes are everywhere on the street. Each sign is bigger than the other, filling up the "top" of the street.

In those days, business was just starting out in the country and everyone had been poor for a long time. If they wanted to discuss business, they had to do it at the dinner table because they wanted to take this opportunity to have a meal.

Huanghe Road has become the face of Shanghai people. If you don't come to Huanghe Road to do business, it means you are not sincere.

The street, which is only a few hundred meters long, is crowded with restaurants, offering cuisines from all over the country. Whenever a new restaurant opens, they even invite Hong Kong stars to cut the ribbon.

The two of them walked slowly along the street following the flow of people.

Yang Ye had long discovered that the more bustling and prosperous the place was, the more he could wander around without worrying about being recognized.

Even if he was recognized, he could deny it. Of course, it had to be at night, not during the day.

“It’s really lively here!”

"Of course, Shanghai people come here to do business. Also, the audiences from the theaters on Nanjing Road and Zhejiang Road, as well as the Majestic Theater and the Lyceum Theater, which are a little further away, come here for supper."

The two had just finished their meal and were not hungry, so they bought a portion of butterfly cakes and ate while walking around. Soon they arrived at the Heping Cinema.

Chen Hong looked at the large poster in front of the cinema and said, "Your movie will be released soon!"

"Like you?"

"Like You" was released in Hong Kong last Christmas, and was released in mainland China after the Spring Festival. It has not been taken off the screen yet.

The film grossed over 20 million Hong Kong dollars in Hong Kong, which was not very good for Yang Ye's reputation.

However, this is a romance film, not Yang Ye's signature movie, so it is understandable. After being released overseas, it can still make a lot of money.

Most importantly, Yau Shu-chen was nominated for the Best Actress at the Academy Awards for her performance in this film.

Regardless of whether she wins the award or not, this will make her even more famous!

"Yeah, I just like you!"

After Chen Hong finished speaking, she suddenly felt a little ambiguous and stuck out her tongue mischievously.

"Have you seen?"

"Not yet. I've been filming a lot lately and don't have the time at all!"

"In that case, why don't we go watch this movie? I haven't really seen it!"

"No way? You haven't even seen the movie you made?"

"I saw the rough cut, but I didn't see it after it was released. I was too busy!" (End of this chapter)