The movie "Dragon and Tiger Fight", which took 45 days to shoot and 15 days to post-production, will be officially screened at midnight at Bi Fang Cinema, the Shanhai Cinema Line's leading theater, today.
In today's film world where there is no such thing as a premiere, midnight screenings are an important benchmark for testing whether a movie is a hit or not.
Although it is called a midnight show, it actually does not show at midnight, but at 11:30 at night!
The main audience at this time is definitely not the white-collar workers who have to go to work the next day, but the lower class people, mostly young and Dangerous people.
Although these people may not have a high level of education, they have read countless films and their judgments on commercial films are quite accurate. Moreover, these people are not as "civilized" as those white-collar workers. Their feedback on movies is very direct. If they are good, they will applaud and praise them. No.
If it looks good, he will curse on the spot, throw things on the stage, and even have the chairs in the theater smashed.
So when there is a super bad movie, the next day the theater managers will ask each other how many chairs were smashed last night.
It is precisely because of this that the bosses of the film company and the main creators of the movie will come to watch the midnight show. Even after the movie is over, the main creators of the movie will go on stage to be reviewed by the audience.
If the audience doesn't like your film, it will be a disaster. They know that the main creator is present, and they will criticize you even more vigorously. There are too many examples of this kind of disgrace.
Later, Wu Siyuan, a big shot in the Hong Kong film industry, said that he personally saw several directors sitting there dumbfounded. When the show was over, the directors couldn't stand up and kept saying, "How could this happen? How could this happen?"
so.
The same thing happened in Wang Sunglasses' "Days of Being Wild" in 1990. The audience yelled that they couldn't understand. The investor Deng Guangrong almost died of anger after watching the midnight show and was sent directly to the hospital for an intravenous drip.
Originally, there was going to be a sequel to "Days of Being Wild", but due to the poor response from the audience, the sequel was canceled. Due to the unsatisfactory box office, Deng Guangrong's film company "Shadow Heroes" also closed its doors.
It is precisely because of this that when Mr. Xu debuted, he did not dare to go to the midnight show. Once, several people carried him in, but he still broke free and ran out.
He sat and waited in a restaurant next to the cinema. After his colleagues finished watching it, he asked: What was the audience's reaction? After making sure no one scolded him, he dared to sneak in and watch it the next day.
The same is true for Yuan Baye, who has collaborated with Mr. Xu many times. He is also afraid of being scolded.
"Dragon and Tiger Fight" was the first black-and-white film, so Chu Huan naturally wanted to watch it. However, Chu Huan was such a thief that he did not sit with Hong Jinbao and others, but chose a remote location.
Sitting next to Chu Huan was naturally her confidante Cao Yunshang.
As for Miao Kexiu, her injury has recovered now, so she chose to sit with Hong Jinbao and others today.
"Why do I feel that Fatty Fang's body is shaking slightly?"
The movie hadn't started yet. Cao Yunshang was sitting next to Chu Huan, but his eyes fell on Fang Jianhui, Hong Jinbao, Cheng Long and others who were sitting in prime seats.
"I guess I'm afraid of getting beaten!" Chu Huan said with a smile.
Cao Yunshang gave Chu Huan a funny shove and said, "It's not all because of you. During the film test, you scared them."
The movie "Dragon and Tiger Fight" has been previewed internally in black and white video.
How to put it this way, before starting the filming of the movie, Chu Huan told Hung Kam-bao to let his brothers try kung fu comedy, but the influence of Li Xiaolong's action movies was really too great.
During the filming process of Hung Kam-bao, although he deliberately tried to approach comedy, he still subconsciously designed the action in a hard bridge and hard horse style.
There is still a big gap between the humorous fighting they did in later generations.
But if you want to say that the movie is not good to watch, that is not true. At least based on the current level of appreciation, this is a movie that is above the passing mark.
But if you want this movie to be amazing, this is impossible.
So after watching the preview meeting, Fang Jianhui secretly approached Chu Huan to ask what he thought of the movie.
"What do you think?" Chu Huan asked instead of answering Fang Jianhui immediately.
"I think it's pretty good. Look at how hard Cheng Long, Hong Jinbao and the others fought!" Fang Jianhui said carefully.
If there is anything praiseworthy about this movie, it is the desperate performances by Hung Kam-bao and Cheng Long.
Although the two have not yet accurately found the style of humorous action comedy, their desperate performance style has already emerged.
This is also one of the main selling points of the movie "Dragon and Tiger Fight".
Even the huge poster outside the theater has the words "The most desperate martial arts action drama since the opening of Hong Kong!"
When Chu Huan saw Fang Jianhui's appearance, he said jokingly: "That's because you didn't watch this movie as an ordinary audience, but you watched this movie as the producer of this movie.
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Under such circumstances, even if you find a scene in the movie that does not suit your aesthetics, you will use some excuses to excuse yourself."
This is actually similar to the writing of Internet articles in later generations. Many Internet article writers have a common problem before starting a book, that is, they are very confident and obsessed with their beginning, thinking that their beginning is definitely good.
Even if you find something that the reader doesn't like, you will hint to yourself in your heart that this is your own foreshadowing. As long as the reader sees the back, he will be able to understand your thoughts.
Little do you know that this idea is actually a joke. The reader is not your father, so how can I have the patience to read the subsequent plots? If you don’t like the previous plots, just abandon them.
Therefore, most of this kind of problem comes from some arrogant authors, such as a later arrogant author who likes to name it after Mount Huang.
"Then you mean that this movie might be a hit?" Fang Jianhui's face became increasingly pale. This was the first movie released by the company after he became the general manager of Black and White Video.
Although Chu Huan made the decision to shoot this movie, it’s still not a good idea for his first movie after becoming the general manager to be a hit!
Chu Huan did not answer Fang Jianhui's question directly, but said: "Manager Fang, after this period of observation, I feel that your ability to respond to major events is still not enough, so I decided, "
When "Dragon Tiger Fight" is released, you will represent the company's senior management and attend the midnight screening."
After saying that, he left with a proud smile.
Fang Jianhui was left standing there alone, tutting and shaking.
Fang Jianhui knows very well what the midnight scenes in Xiangjiang are like.
“Is this movie really going to go wrong?”
After laughing, Cao Yunshang asked Chu Huan worriedly.
As the first film with black and white images, the film "Dragon and Tiger Fight" has more significance to black and white images than just box office.
If the film fails to get off to a good start, public opinion will put a lot of pressure on the black-and-white film, and it will also damage morale within the company.
The most important thing is that Black and White Video has been spending money externally since its establishment. If "Dragon and Tiger Fight" hits the market, it will be really difficult for Black and White Video.
Chu Huan shook his head and said: "I can't represent the vast majority of the audience, but this movie may not lose a lot of money. It should be able to make a small profit, but if you want it to have any influence, it will probably be difficult.
!”
Cao Yunshang then nodded with confidence and said: "As long as you can make money, it's good. At least the company has been open for such a long time so that you can see the money back."
After finishing speaking, he looked at Chu Huan suspiciously and asked, "Why aren't you worried at all?"
Worrying about whether it would be useful, Chu Huan promised that the black and white image would not be released in a movie. He had been worried for a while, "There is nothing to worry about. This movie is originally an experimental movie.
If the people in the company lose their morale because of this movie, it means they are unable to fight a tough battle.
But I still have full confidence in them.
The most important thing is, I hope to use this movie to bring out Hong Jinbao and Cheng Long!"
Cao Yunshang rolled her eyes at Chu Huan and said, "Did you miss Miao Kexiu?"
Cao Yunchang finally found out about Miao Kexiu's injury. She also knew that Chu Huan had been personally taking care of Miao Kexiu during that time. Although she didn't show it, she would occasionally bring it up with Chu Huan.
Calculate the aftermath.
"Do you still think that this is the Huangmei Tiao period in the 1960s? The era of female stars supporting the movie box office has passed. From now on, the Hong Kong film industry will become a world of male stars. The only ones who can really support the box office are
He's a male star.
As for female celebrities, Dangdang Vase is pretty good!"
Chu Huan preached nonchalantly.
After Cao Yunshang settled his account, he stopped mentioning it, but asked curiously: "Do you think so highly of Hong Jinbao and Cheng Long?"
"Why don't I find anything special about the two of them? One is fat and the other has a big nose. They don't look like people who can become superstars."
Chu Huan laughed and said: "That's the good thing about Xiangjiang Movies. They are very inclusive. As long as they have their own characteristics, it will be a matter of time before they become famous. Don't worry!"
"Okay!" Cao Yunshang nodded and said nonchalantly: "Anyway, the film company belongs to you, you can make the decision yourself."
Then Cao Yunshang continued to ask curiously: "I remember, didn't you write a screenwriter for Li Xiaolong's movie before? Why don't you write a story for your own film company?"
If you think of me as a Hong Kong entertainment rebirth writer, I did like Xiangjiang movies for a while when Chu Huan was young, but most of them were concentrated in the bi-weekly period in the 1980s and 1990s, as well as some classic series of movies.
Take Cheng Long as an example. If Chu Huan came up with the script of "Police Story" now, it would not necessarily be in line with the preferences of the audience in this era.
More importantly, Chu Huan has no way to write the script of "Police Story". If you don't believe it, ask yourself at this time and see if you can think of the content of "Police Story" completely and without changing one scene.
come out?
Not to mention the content, even the names of the main movie characters may not be recallable.
What Chu Huan can do now is actually to win over the big stars and directors that he knows will cause a bloody storm in Hong Kong in the future to his company one by one, and by the way, give them some inspiration to ensure that they can continue to lead in their own way.
If you were already on the road, that would be fine.
"I was working as a screenwriter for Li Xiaolong. I just helped him come up with a few ideas. The real screenwriter is not like me."
...
The movie starts!
The background, scenes, and dialogue of the late Qing Dynasty and early Republic of China are all in line with the film characteristics of this era.
Chu Huan also terminated the discussion with Cao Yunshang at this time.
Instead, he carefully observed the reactions of the audience.
The audience at the scene came to see the movie, and Chu Huan came to see them.
Although Chu Huan still knows the development route of Xiangjiang Film in later generations and can ensure that the company will not take detours in the overall long-term development plan, if Chu Huan wants to become a qualified film company boss, he must know the preferences of the audience of this era.
The midnight show is the best place to observe.
The boss of the film company must know what the audience likes to watch and how they respond to each segment, so that they can plan a series of blockbuster movies.
The movie "Dragon and Tiger Fight" lasts 90 minutes. It is a standard Hong Kong movie, with applause, laughter and occasional curses from the audience in the middle.
Luckily no one picked up the stuff and started cursing.
This situation actually shows that this movie is still within the acceptance range of the audience.
Simply put, this movie will not lose money.
Chu Huan is watching the audience's reaction, and Fang Jianhui, Hong Jinbao, Cheng Long, Miao Kexiu and others are also watching the audience's reaction.
call!
Fang Jianhui finally breathed a sigh of relief and comforted himself softly: "Finally, I don't have to be beaten anymore."
Cheng Long was sitting next to Fang Jianhui. He couldn't hear what Fang Jianhui said for a while, and asked curiously: "Mr. Fang, what did you just say?"
Fang Jianhui immediately showed his majesty as the general manager of Black and White Video, and said with a calm smile: "It's nothing, I just think the audience's response is pretty good. Brother Sanmao, Aaron, you two can also be in the company this time
Feeling proud."
Cheng Long was just an eighteen-year-old young man at this time and had no scheming ideas. Hearing Fang Jianhui's compliment, a smile immediately appeared on his face.
"This is all because Young Master Huan is willing to give me a chance."
Fang Jianhui felt a pain in his teeth when he thought of how Chu Huan had lied to him before, but he still said: "The chairman is still very discerning. He can choose you, Aaron, among so many martial arts masters. This shows that Ah Long
Long, you must be outstanding, work hard, and the company will definitely not treat you badly in the future!"
Cheng Long nodded seriously and said: "I understand, I will definitely work harder in the future to satisfy Young Master Huan."
Listening to the conversation between Cheng Long and Fang Jianhui, Hong Jinbao sighed silently. He knew the film industry better than the two of them. Although the feedback from the audience was pretty good, it was far from the possibility of making this movie a hit.
.
In other words, in the eyes of the audience, this is an above-average movie.
At the same time, he was also carefully observing the reaction of the audience. What surprised him was that although the audience was surprised by their desperate fighting, the more feedback was from the funny clips.
In other words, those scenes are what the audience prefers.
Especially for a fight sequence that was obviously more akin to a sideshow in the eyes of Hung Kam-po, the audience's feedback was the most enthusiastic and the applause was also the loudest.
"It seems that what Mr. Huan said is right. The audience has their own scale in their hearts. For ordinary fighting scenes, Li Xiaolong's movies are the best. It is really difficult for others to surpass him.
On the contrary, the funny fights that went against the grain made the audience like it even more."
At this time, Hong Jinbao was also silently absorbing the feedback from the audience, and then integrated these things into his own bones, slowly forming his own style.
The ninety-minute movie ends quickly when you are immersed in the movie.
As the last scene came to an end and letters of thanks appeared on the big screen, the audience did not stand up and leave when the subtitles were playing like the movie audiences of later generations. They waited for a while to shake hands with the creator.
Of course, there are also some viewers who have no interest in the movie and are preparing to leave.
But at this time, they discovered that the movie "Dragon and Tiger Fight" actually had small easter eggs.
At this time, the big screen was divided into two, with one half showing the thank you screen and the other half showing the behind-the-scenes of the movie.
Fang Jianhui and others also laughed bitterly when they saw this scene. This scene was proposed by Chu Huan when the movie was released.
Hong Jinbao, Cheng Long and others were not very understanding of Chu Huan's request. After all, there was no such precedent in Xiangjiang before.
But who makes Chu Huan the boss?
Even if the boss has privileges, Fang Jianhui, Hong Jinbao, Cheng Long and others can only obey him honestly.
"I really don't see what this thing is for the audience to see. Is it just to see how you made mistakes?" Fang Jianhui said aloud.
Hong Jinbao laughed on the other side and said: "Maybe Huan Shao doesn't have his ideas."
Cheng Long had a different opinion: "Although I don't know why, I know there must be a reason why Huan Shao did this."
Seeing both of them speaking for Chu Huan, Fang Jianhui didn't know what to say.
He just said: "Okay, everyone is ready. Let's go on stage to thank the audience later!"
After finishing speaking, everyone was about to go on stage to thank the audience, but they heard exclamations from the audience.
It turns out that among the highlights, the one being shown happened to be the scene where Miao Kexiu was injured. When the audience saw the scene of Miao Kexiu's head covered in blood and the scene of the on-site staff rushing to rescue, they all exclaimed in surprise.
What followed was thundering applause and cheers.
Audiences in this era are still very cute. Regardless of the storyline, everyone still agrees with this life-fighting method alone.
In the past, everyone thought that making movies was all fake, so how could someone get hurt?
Even if there are some injuries, it is nothing more than making a fuss.
But it's different now. When they saw the filming scene, they sincerely admired the actors' professionalism.
These applause are dedicated to the professionalism of these movie actors.
To be honest, Hong Jinbao and others were shocked by the applause at the scene. They did not expect that the biggest applause at the scene came from behind-the-scenes footage.
Several people looked at each other with surprised expressions.
Hong Jinbao pointed to the situation at the scene and said: "I am convinced. Just this applause can bring 200,000 box office to this movie!"
"Mr. Fang, I remember you said before that this tidbit is a waste of time?"
Miao Kexiu, who had been silent all this time, spoke proudly.
Obviously, when Fang Jianhui complained about Chu Huan just now, Miao Kexiu secretly remembered it for him.
Fang Jianhui's old face turned red instantly.
"Okay, it's almost time, let's go on stage!"
After the speech, Fang Jianhui took the lead on the stage, and the main creative staff such as Hong Jinbao, Cheng Long, Miao Kexiu also came on stage.
There is no need to host, if people like Fang Jianhui come on stage, the audience will know who they are.
There was no chaotic scene at the scene. Audience members who were interested in communicating with Hong Jinbao and others had already lined up to shake hands with them.
In later generations, some people always say that the celebrities in Xiangjiang are the least celebrity-like, such as Mr. Liu, a citizen of the vegetable market, and Mr. Zhou, an ordinary citizen.
Think about these people. As movie actors, they have all participated in midnight shows. The audience in Hong Kong is familiar with them. They have shaken hands and had conversations with them. Stars like them have even been scolded or even beaten by the audience who were unhappy on the spot.
experience.
Now you can understand why these people have no airs.
Chow Yun-fat later left TVB and entered the film industry, becoming a veritable box office poison. During that time, when Chow was attending a midnight show, he was even scolded in public by the audience. At that time, Chow could only smile and say sorry.
Fang Jianhui gave up the C position to Hong Jinbao, and he just stood at the edge.
At this time, an audience member passed by his place and glanced at Fang Jianhui suspiciously: "You are that one? Why didn't I see you in the movie just now?"
At this time, Fang Jianhui had already extended his hand and was ready to shake hands with the other party. "I am Fang Jianhui, the general manager of Black and White Video. Welcome to join me."
In the end, the audience just looked at him indifferently and said, "I said I didn't see you in the movie just now."
After saying that, he ignored Fang Jianhui who held out his hand and walked straight to Cheng Long next to Fang Jianhui, leaving Fang Jianhui with an embarrassed look on his face.
The man patted Cheng Long's shoulder encouragingly, and then said: "The filming was good, but it's far behind Brother Long. Keep working hard on the next film!"
Then the man left.
Cheng Long stood there blankly, not knowing what to say.
I'm the lead actor, okay?
Can you have some respect for the leading actor?
Cheng Long shouted loudly in his heart.
But it is undeniable that Cheng Long's performance in the movie was indeed deliberately imitating some of Li Xiaolong's actions. Maybe he didn't even notice it, but things really happened.
Before he had time to think too much, another audience came to talk to him.
The man before had already arrived in front of Hong Jinbao. With the experience of Fang Jianhui and Cheng Long, Hong Jinbao did not take the initiative to reach out at the first time, but looked at the man with some confusion.
The man didn't think too much, and took the initiative to shake hands with Hong Jinbao and said: "The movie was well shot and the acting was also very good. I have seen your movies before and I like your style very much. I believe you will definitely become a hit in the future!"
"
At this time, Hong Jinbao actually felt flattered. He quickly stretched out his hand and said with a smile: "Thank you for the encouragement. We will definitely continue to work hard."
Finally, the man came to Miao Kexiu. He changed his slightly arrogant attitude and looked at Miao Kexiu enthusiastically but with worry on his face.
"Miss Miao, your performance in the movie is really great. I like it so much. I will be your loyal fan from now on. By the way, I saw your injured look in the behind-the-scenes. You are feeling better now.
Are there any scars? I know a good doctor. Do you want him to give you a good check-up?"
Fang Jianhui: "..."
Cheng Long: "......"
Hong Jinbao: "..."
Miao Kexiu hurriedly smiled and said: "It's nothing, just a few stitches. Now I'm fine. Thank you for your concern!"
The man breathed a sigh of relief, took out a pen from somewhere, and nervously said to Miao Kexiu: "Miss Miao, can you sign your name for me?"
"Ok, no problem!"
Miao Kexiu smiled and took the pen from the other party's hand, and signed on the notebook that the other party had prepared.
Except for this person, most of the other viewers' reactions were similar to his, and they all focused their attention on Miao Kexiu.
To be precise, Miao Kexiu's role in the movie is actually not outstanding. She is just a perfect vase character. Without that episode, the audience would not be able to perform as they do now.
Although there are scenes of Cheng Long and Hong Jinbao being injured in the extras, the scenes of their injuries are really incomparable to the scenes of a beautiful girl like Miao Kexiu being injured.
In addition, this kind of tidbits appeared for the first time in the history of Hong Kong films, and the impression on these people was really profound.
Fang Jianhui took Hong Jinbao and others to be baptized by the audience in the theater.
At the same time, outside, Zhao Jiahao, the manager of the Black and White Video Promotion Department, has begun leading the company's employees outside to collect feedback from the audience.
This was the first black-and-white film, and everyone in the company took it very seriously, so the manager personally led the team.
"Hello, sir, we are employees of Black and White Video. We give this small gift to you. We hope to ask you some questions."
Zhao Zihao stopped an audience member who had just come out of the cinema and asked with a smile on his face.
As for the small gifts, they are just the most common figures, costing a few dollars, but they can show the sincerity of the black and white images.
Sure enough, after receiving the gift, the other party said politely: "Okay, ask!"
"Well, what's your overall impression of this movie?"
...
"So which part of this movie attracted you the most?"
...
"Also, I would like to ask what you think of the performance of the actors in the movie."
Zhao Jiahao asked questions one by one, and the other party answered them patiently.
When all the questions were over and the other party left, Zhao Jiahao breathed a sigh of relief. There was both appreciation and criticism, but fortunately there were more appreciations.
Seeing other employees doing the same work that he had figured out, Zhao Jiahao simply breathed a sigh of relief and continued to look for the next audience member to ask.