"The Grandmaster" is naturally not a horror movie, nor does it intend to scare the audience with its eerie atmosphere.
It just uses Zhou Yang's captivating acting skills and atmosphere to render a world of ignorance and insensitivity.
The script of "The Grandmaster" was roughly written by Zhou Yang based on his memory of "Once Upon a Time in the World", and the main line is consistent. However, Zhou Yang did not have a system, and it was impossible to completely make all the contents in the movie the same as those in the original world.
In that movie, Wong Ka-shing was not the martial arts geek director Tsui Hark, he focused on the dazzling visual feast of the movie...
He prefers the extreme and the exaggeration of the movie atmosphere, because he knows martial arts, has been holding a knife since he was a child, and experienced some "ganghu years" during the years when Hong Kong Island was ruled by "foreigners".
The people's joys, sorrows and joys are vividly depicted, and vaguely, you can see in the movie that the past is used to satirize the present.
After film critic Ba Liming was frightened by the little girl's smile for a while, he felt an inexplicable sadness in his heart.
That's superstition!
But……
When Zhou Yang performed with such expressive acting skills, it felt like he was possessed by something crazy through the screen, let alone the people at the scene.
Ba Liming suddenly thought of the news on Hong Kong Island during the filming of "The Grandmaster".
[Invite God on site, mainland boy may be possessed by an evil spirit]
[A strange incident occurred on the set of "The Grandmaster", Lu Lu went crazy and twitched, and the fight failed due to suspicion!]
[At the entrance of Kowloon Church, many old ladies knelt down and worshiped devoutly, muttering something to each other.]
【……】
When I think about it now, those news headlines are still vivid in my mind.
"So sad!"
After coming out of the memory, and watching the rampant White Lotus cultists on the screen riding horses and shouting "White Lotus saves the world" everywhere, the sadness in Ba Liming's heart became even stronger.
Even though we are in the 21st century, there are still so many people immersed in pretending to be superstitious, not to mention the era when the people were not enlightened and the world was in chaos.
Foreign guns and artillery not only broke the backbone of that era, but also broke the backbone of many people's hearts.
……………………
The background of "The Grandmaster" is depressing.
In order to prevent this kind of depression from becoming the tone of the entire movie, Huang Jiacheng deliberately went ruthless with the character, even more ruthlessly than Zhou Yang wrote in the script.
Some of the plots of the protagonist Huang Feihong in "The Grandmaster" are humorous, especially the interaction with the heroine Aunt Thirteen.
The heroine of "The Grandmaster" is played by Yao Xue. Zhou Yang is not familiar with Yao Xue and has no opposite roles. He only knows that she is a heroine forced by investors.
The interaction between Huang Feihong played by Huo Yuanjie and Thirteenth Aunt played by Yao Xue in the movie is very humorous.
Huang Jiacheng has mastered the contrast between characters to the extreme. Huang Feihong, who has always been "grandmaster style", serious and even a little pedantic, feels strange when he encounters some Western artifacts, but he cannot show that he has never seen the world in front of his disciples.
Therefore, many operations are very similar to "Uncle Nine Drinks Coffee", like a country bumpkin who insists on seeing the world. The open and bold Aunt Thirteen seems to be open and generous, but she always fantasizes about dancing scenes with Huang Feihong.
, after meeting the serious Huang Feihong, there will always be embarrassing scenes where reality and fantasy deviate...
In the screening room, many viewers were amused by the two people's characters and laughed.
Tang Xiao was also amused so much that he couldn't help laughing. After laughing, he instinctively glanced at An Zhibin.
An Zhibin next to An Xiao did not smile, his expression was always serious, and he sat upright with his back as straight as a pine. It seemed that he was not here to watch a movie, but for a meeting.
The movie has been playing for twenty minutes.
He kept staring at the screen. Tang Xiao looked at his serious look and suddenly felt that he fit the role of Huang Feihong very well.
"How is it?" Tang Xiao touched his arm with his arm.
"General." He replied calmly.
"Will you leave halfway?" Tang Xiao continued to ask.
An Zhibin remained silent, just looking at the screen expressionlessly.
Huang Jiacheng's scroll-style shooting became more and more in-depth. After slowly unfolding, although he tried his best to portray the perspective of the protagonist, every scene made An Zhibin feel a picture of a building about to collapse in a violent storm...
…
The ignorant people smoke opium indifferently, the current situation is chaotic, the forces are complicated, the feudal trend is deeply rooted, the country is without a country, and the family is without a home.
Some people live in a muddle-headed way, with no connection between country and family...
And some people try to be the supporting wooden pillar in the crumbling building.
On the screen, the character Nalan Yuanshu played by Donnie Yen appeared. As a warrior, he was born with an upright spirit, but he seemed to be a tragic figure.
On the one hand, he understood that the imperial court was rotten and could not survive alone. On the other hand, the deep-rooted loyalty to the emperor and patriotism was vividly demonstrated in him. He knew that the country was like this, but he still had to shoulder that responsibility...
in front of the screen.
When he saw Nalan Yuanshu emphasizing that this was China in front of foreigners and acting neither humble nor arrogant, An Zhibin felt a little sigh in his heart.
He had to admit that the movie "The Grandmaster" was indeed different from other martial arts movies. It had a very high intention, rising to the level of the country, nation and history...
In particular, fictional characters and historical figures appear one by one and collide with each other. Against the background of this dark era, the spirit of stumbling forward in a pool of blood and still exploring the light is particularly moving.
"Come on, come on, it's about to start!"
"What's going to start?"
"For the scene in "Nine Palaces on Fire", I heard that in order to make the movie more realistic, Huang Jiacheng spent nearly five million to build a real nine palaces, but during the filming, a real nine palaces were played on the scene.
Turn on the fire, many actors were filming in the fire!"
"Holy shit, is it true or not?"
"Have you forgotten the news during the filming of "The Grandmaster"? According to gossip, many actors were burned, and many photography equipment were burned out..."
"this……"
An Zhibin heard the discussion.
He frowned slightly unconsciously, and then stared at the screen.
……………………
on the screen.
The flames burned fiercely in the wind.
Under the camera, bamboo tables and chairs were engulfed by flames, and crackling sounds were heard constantly amid the black smoke.
In the light of the sky, the surrounding air generated layers of heat waves like water, and you could feel the heat through the screen.
When they learned that this scene was filmed in a real fire, the audience felt that director Huang Jia was like a madman, but their strong curiosity drove them to stare at the screen closely.
"Xiao Xiao is so superstitious that he only dares to pretend to be a ghost and go out to die!"
On the screen, they saw Nalan Yuanshu, wearing a flower-feathered hat and long-sleeved official uniform, holding a long stick in his hand, chasing a White Lotus cultist into the blazing fire, facing the endless flames, holding a long stick in his hand,
Roaring to the sky!
In the fierce fire, the stick shadows were thick and whirring!
Around the stick shadow, bodies that were illuminated red rushed out of the flames holding long knives and attacked Nalan Yuanshu.
They were wearing white clothes and white hats, but they were walking in the fire. In the hot flames, every figure was like a ghost, attacking from all directions without any blind spots. However, Nalan Yuanshu's long stick seemed to have eyes, not only blocking the waves.
The light of the sword even lifted the figure under the light of the sword several meters away, causing it to fall into the sea of fire and turn into ashes!
"This is the stick method derived from Wulang Bagua stick."
"Sweeping the body with a stick, the ultimate stick technique can be achieved, holding a bucket and splashing, but the water will not splash in!"
In the screening room!
One audience member couldn't help but exclaimed.
In the midst of exclaiming, everyone saw Zhen Ziwu on the screen stepping forward with his feet and his stick skills, and countless figures fell down in response.
The audience's eyes were wide open, and many people clung to the armrests of their chairs with excitement!
In reality, they have never seen such an amazing stick technique!
Sweeping, slashing, stabbing and shaking, it is simply a visual feast without special effects.
"My magical power protects my body, and I am invincible in the world. My magic power protects my body, and I am invincible in the world!"
Zhen Zi's martial arts skills are outstanding, but in the sea of fire, the roars from all directions become louder and louder, as if they are chanting sutras, and the demonic sound penetrates his ears.
In the light of the fire, the audience saw believers in white clothes pouring in from all directions from the west. Their faces were pious, but their movements were like ferocious beasts. They rushed towards Nalan Yuanshu. Those who were close to him actually opened their hands and exerted their muscles.
He actually wanted to pick up Nalan Yuanshu by the waist and drag him down into the sea of fire.
The camera gave a close-up of these believers. Their eyes were fanatical, their bodies were burned by the flames but they did not hurt, their eyes were bloodshot, as if they were guarding some belief, and they were mumbling endless words...
Seeing the close-ups of these believers, many viewers shuddered. What methods did these "White Lotus Sect" use to brainwash them into this?
but……
Although these believers are crazy, they are only supporting roles in this scene.
Nalan Yuanshu used one to block ten, put his feet on the ground and rose into the air. The fire burned his eyes, and the stick swept in all directions. Many people came and died, but no one could even get close to them. During his breathing, countless figures were buried in the sea of fire and turned into ashes!
The essence of Wulang Bagua stick was vividly interpreted by him.
"Donnie Yen definitely has real kung fu!"
"Those believers were all picked off by others!"
"How can ordinary people have such amazing power under such circumstances!"
"Moreover, looking at his endless breathing, and looking at the long shot of this scene, it was almost shot in one go, with no editing at all..."
"What a fool!"
"The big scene is coming!"
The audience was shocked to see it.
Some knowledgeable film critics also had their eyes widened, and the more they watched, the more frightened they became!
The next scene made their hearts tremble!
"boom!"
There was a loud noise!
The wooden pillars on the other side of the Nine Palaces could not withstand the blazing flames and broke in the middle, collapsing instantly.
Everyone saw the white figures being smashed into the sea of fire on the spot, letting out bursts of screams, but the muttered roars still came from all directions and never stopped!
They even saw a White Lotus cultist with flames all over his body writhing in the sea of fire, singing the song "The Jade Emperor in the sky, the King of Hell on the ground", and then he was swallowed by the sea of fire.
The audience who saw this scene immediately covered their mouths and were shocked. It was obvious that the movie was burning with fire, but they were even more chilled!