Hong Kong 1990: From stuntman to King of Kung Fu

Chapter 102 Another New Project Expansion

"You really know how to seize every opportunity; you're flirting with girls again."

"There's no way around it, the charm is too strong. Just sitting there is like a bright light in the darkness, attracting moths to flock to it."

Xu Ke laughed at Tang Long's shameless words: "How come I never noticed before that you have such a thick skin?"

"Director Xu, what brings you here specifically?"

Let me introduce you to someone.

As they were talking, Xu Ke led Tang Long to a bar, where two people were already sitting.

"This is Wang Jing, you should know him." Xu Ke then pointed to another person, "Huang Zhiqiang, also a director."

Tang Long smiled and nodded at Wang Jing, then looked at Huang Zhiqiang.

He must be the person Xu Ke wanted to introduce to her.

"Director Huang, I've long admired your name."

"Oh? Mr. Tang really knows me?"

"I naturally recognize you. I really like your film 'The Ballroom,' which is violent and realistic but not exaggerated, and uses multi-line cross-cutting editing."

Few directors in Hong Kong use montage, and even fewer use it well. Director Wong used it exceptionally well in "The Ballroom."

"The Ballroom" is Wong Chi-keung's directorial debut and is widely regarded in the industry as his best film, and it was selected as one of Hong Kong's 100 Greatest Films.

"Haha, it seems Mr. Tang isn't just being polite; he really knows me."

Not only Tang Long knew it, but many people in later generations also knew it.

The moment he saw Wong Chi-keung, the classic line between Andy Lau and Wong Chi-keung from the movie "God of Gamblers" immediately came to mind: "I've never seen such an arrogant person in my life."

"Hey, you've met him today."

However, acting is just a side job for him; directing is his main profession.

Having been in this world for nearly three years, Tang Long naturally knew Huang Zhiqiang, a director with a very distinctive personal style.

He is a representative of the New Wave directors, known for his hardcore, intense, sharp and brutal police and gangster films.

Unlike Ringo Lam's "Storm Riders" series, which depicts everyday violence, Wong Chi-keung's films are more realistic, with hard-edged shots, realistic close-quarters combat, and no shying away from bloody scenes.

His works mostly delve into the darkness within the police force and the dark side of human nature in gangsters, making him a benchmark creator of hardcore police and gangster films in the 1980s and 90s.

Of course, his works in the 1980s did not perform well at the box office, being critically acclaimed but not commercially successful.

He is best known for two films he made in the 1990s.

Both of Jackie Chan's films, "Crime Story" and "High Risk," have close ties to him.

After a brief chat, Huang Zhiqiang finally got down to business: "Mr. Tang, have you heard of the Wang Dehui kidnapping case?"

"Of course I've heard about this hot news. It's not that the case has been solved, but that it was done by a retired police chief."

As everyone knows, the most notorious kidnapper and extortionist is Brother Qiang, one of the four most notorious bandits.

However, his approach was rather straightforward and crude, while in terms of meticulousness, it had to be retired police sergeant Chung Wai-ching, who kidnapped Wong Tak-fai.

Wang Dehui was a well-known Hong Kong real estate tycoon. In 1960, he and his childhood sweetheart, Nina Wang, jointly founded Chinachem Group.

By the 1970s, Chinachem Group had developed into one of the largest Chinese-owned real estate developers in Hong Kong.

In 1983, Wang Dehui and his wife, Gong Ruxin, were kidnapped on their way to work.

Nina Wang was released to raise money, and after paying an $1100 million ransom, Wang Dehui was rescued.

Inspector Chung, who is about to retire, accidentally came across the files of the 1983 kidnapping case of Wong Tak-fai and thought the case was ingeniously designed.

If we could do it again, we only need to fix a few loopholes, and we would definitely succeed again.

So in 1990, as the chief planner, he kidnapped Wang Dehui again.

However, even though Nina Wang paid a ransom of $60 million, Wang Dehui was not released.

This kidnapping case remained unsolved for a time.

Later, one of the kidnappers, fearing that it would implicate his family, surrendered to the police and named the other three accomplices.

But they were just following orders and didn't know who the mastermind was.

Just when hope of solving the case was dashed, Taiwanese police cracked a major money laundering case earlier this year, implicating more than 20 suspects, including Chung Wai-ching, a retired Hong Kong police sergeant who was the mastermind behind the kidnapping of Wong Tak-fai.

This incident caused a huge uproar in Hong Kong, severely damaging the credibility of the Hong Kong Police Force.

"I've written a script called 'Beast Cop' based on the Wang Dehui kidnapping case, and I'd like to collaborate with Mr. Tang. Would you be interested?"

He originally wanted to invite Jet Li to play the male lead in this film.

I was chatting with Wang Jing and Xu Ke about this script earlier. After hearing about the style of "Beast Cops", Xu Ke strongly recommended Tang Long.

A few days ago, Xu Kegang, Wu Siyuan, and others watched the finished film of "SPL: Sha Po Lang" and felt that Tang Long was very suitable for Huang Zhiqiang's style in this film.

Although Huang Zhiqiang hadn't seen "SPL: Sha Po Lang," he trusted Tsui Hark's judgment.

Thinking about Tang Long's past films, the movie "The Blade" immediately came to mind.

This is one of his favorite movies.

Although the box office of "The Blade" cannot compare with Tang Long's subsequent films, he believes that "The Blade" is Tang Long's best film.

Thinking about it that way, Tang Long is indeed more suitable.

The main reason he chose Jet Li as the male lead was that he wanted to take the script to Golden Harvest for collaboration.

He doesn't necessarily need Jet Li.

Moreover, considering all the mess Li Lianjie has made, cooperating with Tang Long seems safer.

After some consideration, Huang Zhiqiang immediately made a decision.

That's why Xu Ke was able to invite Tang Long over.

"Of course I'm interested, and I'm really looking forward to working with Director Huang."

Tang Long understood that the so-called "Beast Cops" was actually the movie "Crime Squad".

Historically, he approached Jet Li, but later, because Jet Li had a falling out with Golden Harvest, Golden Harvest brought in Jackie Chan to save the day.

However, Huang Zhiqiang's style is seriously incompatible with Cheng Long's.

Huang Zhiqiang pursues realistic violence, focusing on the true restoration of cases and the battle of wits between the police and criminals.

The hope is to make this a serious crime drama.

Jackie Chan, on the other hand, takes market and audience habits into consideration, preferring fast-paced entertainment blockbusters that incorporate his signature thrilling action scenes.

Moreover, both of them have strong personalities, and in addition to differences in their ideologies, they also have conflicts over actual control of the film.

The final result was no surprise; no one could compete with Cheng Long within the Golden Harvest system.

Without informing Huang Zhiqiang, Cheng Long re-edited the film and reshot some scenes.

Therefore, the film ultimately presents a unique hybrid:

It features both the realistic and oppressive atmosphere sought by Wong Chi-keung and Jackie Chan's signature death-defying action scenes.

Among all of Jackie Chan's films, "Crime Story" seems somewhat out of place, lacking any kung fu comedy style.

However, this film helped Jackie Chan win the Golden Horse Award for Best Actor for the second consecutive year.

Huang Zhiqiang was naturally very unhappy with Cheng Long's actions, which led to a falling out between the two.

Then in 1995, Wong Chi-keung teamed up with Wong Jing, who also had a feud with Jackie Chan, to film the movie "High Risk".

In the film, Zhang Xueyou plays Long Wei, a kung fu superstar who is cowardly, lecherous, and vain, and claims to never use a stunt double.

This setting directly satirizes Jackie Chan's proud persona of not using a stunt double.

This caused quite a stir in public opinion at the time, forcing Jackie Chan to respond publicly.

Now that Huang Zhiqiang has approached Tang Long for cooperation, there shouldn't be so many problems later on.

However, Tang Long felt that Jackie Chan's adaptation of "Crime Story" was not entirely without merit.

If it were made entirely according to Huang Zhiqiang's ideas, "Serious Crime Squad" would be too depressing.

Despite its satirical tone, it lacks commercial appeal and its box office performance is unlikely to be high.

As an action actor, Tang Long definitely wanted to increase the amount of action scenes rather than constantly delving into the character's inner world.

Like in the end of the movie, Jackie Chan directly blew up a building in Kowloon Walled City.

Such a striking shot can undoubtedly be preserved and replicated.

Of course, these can be discussed later. Tang Long is no longer an unknown figure and has a certain amount of influence.

He was quite willing to star in "Crime Story," with box office success being secondary; he hoped to bring back a Golden Horse Award for Best Actor from Taiwan.

Seeing that Tang Long had agreed, Huang Zhiqiang smiled and said, "Then I'll bring the script to your company tomorrow to discuss it in detail?"

"no problem."

"Zhiqiang, have you secured the film investment?" Wang Jing suddenly interjected.

"Not yet. I originally wanted to invest in Golden Harvest, but now that Ah Long is the male lead, I don't know if Golden Harvest will invest."

There is still a strong sense of division among major film companies.

Once an artist signs with a film company, they generally only act in films produced by that company and rarely take on roles outside of it, as the company would not allow it.

"If not, you can go to Yong Sheng. Xiao Xiang Sheng has always hoped to cooperate with Tang Sheng."

If Tang Sheng were to star in the movie, he would definitely be willing to invest.

"Why go to such lengths when Ah Long owns a film company?"

If you're worried about the risks of investing alone, you can also invest in film studios.

Tsui Hark has confidence in Tang Long; the script for "Beast Cops" is good, and the movie will likely be profitable.

"Ah Long, what are your plans?"

As soon as Xu Ke finished speaking, the three of them turned to look at Tang Long.

"Then let Tangde Pictures and Director Xu's film studio jointly invest in it."

Tang Long would naturally not turn away movies that are clearly profitable; he would even accept exclusive investment from Tangde Pictures.

Moreover, he needed the identity of an investor to suppress Huang Zhiqiang's burgeoning creative desires.

However, Tsui Hark had just earned him over ten million from "Swordsman II," and Huang Zhiqiang was introduced to him by Tsui Hark.

Since Xu Ke is interested, he naturally can't leave others out and enjoy it all by himself.

Huang Zhiqiang had no objection upon hearing this. He didn't care who invested, as long as he was the director and the funding was in place.

Wang Jing felt uneasy watching them finalize the investment for a film with just a few words.

It wasn't that Huang Zhiqiang was upset or annoyed that he hadn't listened to his advice to go to Win's Entertainment, but rather that he was somewhat envious of Xu Ke and Tang Long for having their own film companies.

Xu Ke said that even Tang Long, a rising star, has become an industry capital.

Although he had access to far more resources than Tang Long, he was still just an employee.

He suddenly felt a strong urge to start his own company.

After finishing their business, the group didn't stay together chatting for long; they sat for a while before going off to socialize.

Tang Long is no exception; in the entertainment industry, a place of fame and fortune, it's impossible to be unconventional.

As the banquet drew to a close, Tang Long left first and then booked a presidential suite.

He left a room key at the front desk and went straight upstairs.

As Hong Kong's most prestigious and luxurious five-star hotel, The Peninsula Hotel's Presidential Suite boasts an unparalleled view, offering a panoramic vista of the entire Victoria Harbour at night.

After taking a shower, Tang Long poured himself a glass of red wine and sat down in front of the French windows.

Two films were finalized for Tangde Film & Television tonight, which to some extent reminded Tang Long that it's time for Tangde Film & Television to expand.

He took over Tangde Film Industry from Tang Jia to invest in films that he initiated or starred in.

However, with the success of films such as "The Blade," "New Dragon Gate Inn," "Reign of Assassins," and "Swordsman II," which were either controlled or invested in by Tangde, Tangde Film & Television has become a well-known film company in the industry.

Tang Long is also a celebrity, and companies founded by celebrities always attract more attention.

When Andy Lau first founded Teamwork Motion Pictures, everyone inside and outside the industry was watching him.

Their later debut film, "Saviour of the Soul," was a box office hit, which propelled Sky Films to fame.

However, Tianmu's "Saviour of the Soul" filmed this year while the momentum was still strong flopped at the box office.

The film had an investment of 20 million yuan, but only grossed over 9 million yuan at the box office, and didn't sell well overseas either, causing Skyfilm to lose nearly 10 million yuan.

However, Andy Lau was not willing to give up and once again spent HK$30 million to continue producing the martial arts film "Legend of the Warrior".

He invited Sammo Hung to be the director, and also invited Anita Mui and Cheung Man-yuk, two top Hong Kong actresses, to star in the film. The location shooting spanned Inner Mongolia and Yunnan.

Sammo Hung, who just finished filming "SPL: Sha Po Lang," is currently traveling in mainland China with Andy Lau and his entourage.

This movie caused Skyfilm to suffer even greater losses, to the point that its partners all ran away.

Apart from their debut film, "Saviour of the Soul," almost none of the films invested in by Sky Films have been profitable.

By 1994, Teamwork Entertainment had accumulated losses of over 40 million, forcing Andy Lau to frantically take on film roles to pay off the debts.

Sky Films gained fame with just one blockbuster film, not to mention Tangde Film & Television.

Unbeknownst to many, Tangde Film & Television has become a star company in the industry.

After more than two years of hard work, Tang Long is no longer the young martial arts master he once was.

He has built a solid network of connections and firmly established himself in the Hong Kong film industry.

Tangde Film & Television has been operating for a year and has laid a solid foundation.

Now that the South is pacified and our military strength is sufficient, it's time to begin expansionary development.

Moreover, the golden age of Hong Kong cinema only lasts for two or three years. If they don't take advantage of this time to make more movies and earn more money, it will be difficult later.

Not only the company, but he himself is the same.

Stephen Chow released seven movies this year, and Jet Li will film five movies next year.

Chow Yun-fat, needless to say, has made at least four or five films every year since "A Better Tomorrow" became a huge hit.

Perhaps only Jackie Chan has maintained a pace of releasing one film per year.

But his ability to make money overseas is far ahead; he earns more from one film than others earn from several.

It's a bit low for Tang Long to only make two or three movies a year.

He became famous late, so he needs to seize this last golden period to make more movies and solidify his popularity.

A sudden knock on the door interrupted Tang Long's thoughts.

He wasn't annoyed. He put the wine glass on the small table, got up, and walked towards the door.

Upon opening the door, one could see Lam Kit-ying standing gracefully at the entrance, looking slightly nervous and reserved.

"Jieying, you've finally arrived."

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