The world begins with Hong Kong movies

Chapter 438 To become a kung fu superstar, you also need to consider the circumstances! (Seeking monthly votes)

The feuds and grudges of a stockbroker family have nothing to do with the so-called 'great era', right?
Upon closer analysis, the storyline is still the same old one.

It's just a modern makeover, old wine in new bottles.

It's still the same pattern: the protagonist suffers family misfortunes, his family members die one by one, which motivates him to work hard and eventually avenge his family.

What's novel is the addition of a stock market theme, along with a touch of mystical elements.

This is what makes Hong Kong films classics!

The film industry is also very lively!

With the huge success of "Once Upon a Time in China" starring Li Lianjie, it signifies that action films set in normal time in Hong Kong are about to reach their peak.

Of course, the current situation is more complex and better than in normal time and space.

Fengrui Films initially produced a large number of kung fu films set in the late Qing Dynasty and early Republic of China period.

Compared to traditional kung fu films, these kung fu films from the late Qing Dynasty and early Republic of China mainly feature realistic fighting and crisp, straightforward plots.

Instead of the traditional kung fu films that Cheng Shilong made when he first started out, where a fight lasted for ten minutes or so in a structured manner.

Because these kung fu films from the late Qing Dynasty and early Republican era were adapted from arcade games, their production quality was quite high.

During this period, numerous masters and grandmasters of traditional martial arts emerged in mainland China, including several grandmasters who created their own techniques.

There's no need to fabricate anything; their life experiences are legendary.

By selecting the most exciting parts and adding a little artistic embellishment, you can create a high-quality film with a substantial script and engaging content.

Thanks to the tireless promotion by Fengrui Films, audiences in Hong Kong now know that Huo Yuanjia, in an era teeming with masters, could not even be considered a grandmaster.

A large number of kung fu movies with a documentary feel have emerged, and due to their excellent production quality, they have achieved good box office results.

Moreover, in that era, if a traditional martial arts master hadn't taught a lesson to a foreign expert, then he was considered unworthy of his reputation.

The Hong Kong film and television industry is particularly adept at producing related films and television dramas.

If the timing is right, a high-quality kung fu movie could break the 30 million mark at the box office.

Even at a normal level, it would still exceed HK$15 million!

The key point is that this type of film is quite popular in other regions.

It was a box office hit in Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, and Southeast Asia, and its box office figures in Taiwan and mainland China were also quite impressive.

In Europe and America, if a film can be shown in mainstream theaters, its box office revenue can generally be guaranteed to be around 15 million dollars.

If it can't get into mainstream theaters, maintaining box office figures of five to eight million dollars is still a pretty good result.

The key point is that videotape rentals are extremely popular!
Bruce Lee's kung fu craze has cultivated a considerable number of kung fu movie fans.

The box office revenue alone will easily exceed 30 million.

The real big profits come from the arcade games and cartridge games of the same name, which often generate tens of millions of Hong Kong dollars in revenue.

Whether it's a side-scrolling beat 'em up or a single-player fighting game, these games always find fans willing to buy them as soon as they hit the market. Especially noteworthy is the accompanying storytelling, available in print novels and comics, as well as promotional videos and DVDs – a level of marketing that completely outclasses other similar games.

The best part is that most of these traditional martial arts masters and grandmasters, even great grandmasters, were born in the same era, which makes comparisons possible.

Whether in the present or the future, any ranking system that involves leaderboards is a natural vortex of online traffic.

Putting aside everything else, just the ranking of the strength of the generals in the Three Kingdoms has produced countless different lists, each of which causes a huge uproar on the forums.

Wu Feng had long ago instructed his film company to make arrangements in advance with the planning and screenwriting departments when preparing to produce the relevant films.

Whenever a film series featuring martial arts masters from the late Qing Dynasty and early Republic of China achieves good results and reaches a certain level of viewership, it starts featuring multiple main characters appearing together and interacting with each other.

In short, there is so much material that can be developed from it!
Martial arts champions and traditional martial arts masters in mainland China have all benefited from this wave of sustained traffic.

Anyone who meets the skill requirements, regardless of their appearance, will have suitable roles waiting for them, giving them the opportunity to appear in movies.

This is also because there were too many famous martial arts masters in the late Qing Dynasty and early Republic of China, so it was impossible to have the same actor play so many famous masters.

It's important to know that each style of boxing has different fighting techniques, and the temperament of each boxer also varies considerably.

If an actor can truly capture the essence of different martial arts masters, that actor is undoubtedly the king of kung fu films, someone even Li Lianjie and Cheng Shilong would have to step aside. Such a genius is practically nonexistent.

Unless, of course, the opponent's traditional martial arts skills have reached a level of unparalleled mastery, or even a more terrifying level of profound understanding.

Similarly, the outstanding performances of many kung fu film actors have actually diminished their star power, and none of them have reached the level of Li Lianjie's meteoric rise when he filmed "Shaolin Temple".

To create a kung fu superstar, the right timing, location, and people are all indispensable.

Wu Feng does have the resources and ability to create several kung fu superstars, but he feels it's unnecessary right now.

In fact, he believes that the "momentum" of the film and television industry is closely related to the strongest supporting forces behind it, as well as the situation and circumstances.

To put it bluntly, the filmmaking trends in Hong Kong's film industry are closely related to the situation in mainland China.

At least for now, it's not the right time to produce a kung fu superstar.

Bruce Lee's meteoric rise to fame was not only due to his exceptional abilities, but also to the international environment at the time.

The year "Enter the Dragon" was released was 1972.

Then, Bruce Lee collaborated with Hollywood to produce "Enter the Dragon"!
Considering what the United States wanted to do during this period, it's not hard to understand why Hollywood, which was quite unfriendly to Chinese people at the time, gave Bruce Lee the opportunity to become a world superstar.

In fact, the 1980s and 1990s were also a pretty good time, at least Hollywood wouldn't openly make things difficult for Chinese actors.

It's a pity that Cheng Shilong was in the process of transitioning his style, and coupled with the lack of support from his parent company Golden Harvest, he missed the opportunity to become a world superstar.

By 1994, the United States had solidified its global hegemony, and was making great strides in conquering the world in economics, culture, and film.

At this time, Hollywood in the United States did not mind absorbing Chinese kung fu stars into Hollywood.

However, by this time, Cheng Shilong was merely a kung fu superstar within the Hollywood system. In terms of influence and other aspects, he still lagged far behind Bruce Lee, a global superstar who rose to prominence almost in line with the times.

At this time, the American people were riding high, how could they possibly allow a kung fu star who stood out in a movie by punching foreigners to rise to the top?
(End of this chapter)