was released for 12 days, and the number of films dropped to 4.6%; the box office just exceeded 20 million, ranking 9th in a single day. This is the box office result achieved by " wolves ". This military action movie starring Zhang Jin , Li Zhiting , and Jiang Luxia was created by Lv Jianmin , the producer of the "Wolf Warriors" series, and it failed to kill the Quartet as expected, but was coldly received in the market.
talked about the sluggish film schedule during the road show, Zhang Jin couldn't hide his disappointment, lamented the decline of action movies, "I really hope that the movies made by action actors can be seen by more people, and I don't want Chinese action movies to become more and more popular. The less."
At the same time, another starring Jiang Luxia broke her brow bone on the set and still insisted on shooting a video that also became popular on the Internet. The domineering declaration of "Just leave your life to me" even moved many netizens.
On the one hand, it is the hard work of action actors, on the other hand, it is the demise of action stars and the "demise" of pure action films. Where should action filmmakers go?
"Wolf Pack" box office is cold
Domestic action movies are declining? The poor box office performance of
"Wolf Pack" is the result of a combination of factors, such as the lack of the leading actor's appeal, the mediocre quality of the film, the audience's aesthetic fatigue on the subject matter, and the improper selection of schedules and publicity strategies. Therefore, it is inevitably unfair to rise from the failure of "Wolf Pack" to the failure of domestic action movies.
As we all know, military action films are one of the best-selling genres in recent years. Especially in 2017, "Wolf Warrior 2" won the box office champion of film history with 5.69 billion, and it set off a wave of "military fever" in the market. In the Spring Festival file of the following year, " Red Sea Operation " directed by Lin Chaoxian and also won a big victory again, taking 3.65 billion box office.
The " Changjin Lake " series of military war action films with the theme of Resist U.S. Aggression and Aid Korea has created a number of film history records.
But looking at these films, it is not difficult to find that it is not easy for a military action film to sell well. First of all, it requires a lot of investment, and it needs to conquer the audience with grand war scenes; secondly, it is necessary to identify the theme and arouse the audience's patriotic sentiment and emotional resonance.
This is exactly what "Wolf Pack" lacks. From the production point of view, the film is closer to the level of online movies. The story is rough and sensational is more blunt, which cannot fully meet the audience's demand for big-screen military action films.
At the same time, a large number of gunfight scenes and realistic action design also made Zhang Jin, Jiang Luxia and other martial arts-trained action actors a little "strong enough".
In addition to the close hand-to-hand combat at the end, there are not many bridges that really show the charm of Zhang Jin's actions. The audience who walk into the theater with the desire to watch the wonderful moves in " Kill the Wolf 2" will inevitably have a lot of psychology. Gap.
Zhang Jin's "action film decline" should also refer to the gradual decline of such traditional action films.
Once upon a time, it was represented by kung fu films, martial arts films, and fashion action films in the golden age of Hong Kong, emphasizing real shooting, and the "Chinese action films" that were punched to the flesh were popular all over the world, not only became popular Jackie Chan , Jet Li , Sammo Hung and many other world-renowned kung fu superstars have also cultivated a large number of dragon and tiger martial artists who are daring and dedicated.
Jackie Chan " Who am I "
However, in recent years, with the development of special effects technology and changes in audience aesthetic preferences, the number of such action films has indeed shown a clear downward trend.
the only remaining fruitThe representative works also include the "Ip Man" series starring Donnie Yen . The total box office of the four films exceeds 2 billion. The combination of mixed martial arts and traditional Wing Chun has produced the personal characteristics of " Zhen Kung Fu ".
But after the conclusion of " Ip Man 4", Donnie Yen also announced that he would no longer shoot kung fu movies, so kung fu movies on the big screen almost disappeared.
Donnie Yen is also one of the few leading figures in fashion action films in recent years. He and Wu Jing , Zhang Jin, Wu Yue , etc. starred in turns in the "Slaying the Wolf" series, which is regarded as a classic, and many signature action scenes have been talked about by the audience.
" Fury · Serious Crime ", in which he personally serves as the action director, also contributed a lot of highlight moments of action scenes.
In addition, Jackie Chan's "Long's Action Comedy" is also not to be missed, " Jedi Escape ", " Kung Fu Yoga ", " England Showdown ", etc. are still good at the box office. The intensity of the action design will inevitably become less and less.
It can be seen that due to various factors, the number of action movies focusing on "real kung fu" is indeed decreasing in number. But at the same time, action genres have not declined, but are increasingly combined with crime, suspense, comedy and other genres, supplemented by advanced shooting methods and post-production techniques, showing more possibilities.
Injuries and Degeneration
The two major pain points of action actors
The reduction in production of action movies and the degeneration of action stars are interrelated. The 68-year-old Jackie Chan is still active in the front line, and Donnie Yen, who seems to be in the "year of fighting", is also in his sixties. Successors such as Zhang Jin, Zhao Wenzhuo, , and Wu Yue still lack the box-office appeal of their own. Wu Jing switched to shooting war movies early. , Kung Fu star's generation has become an indisputable fact.
This aspect is due to advances in special effects and filming techniques. Many action scenes that needed to be shot in the past can now be completed through special effects and editing technology, which makes many producers prefer stars with stronger traffic and appeal, rather than action actors with real skills. When
accepted an exclusive interview with 1905 movie network , Zhao Wenzhuo sighed, "It turns out that you can't move, you can't be called an action actor, the machine is there, you must clearly see that this action is done by yourself, now With computer stunts and various editing skills, you can change a shot in a second, so there are fewer and fewer action actors in the new generation." On the other hand, he also mentioned that most of the kung fu stars in their early years experienced It has been a long and arduous practice process, and now stars are more dependent on packaging and traffic. Many people can become famous overnight. The difference in market rules is destined that fewer and fewer young actors are willing to dive in and practice "real kung fu".
The famous action director and actor Qian Jiale also expressed a similar view. Today's young people lack the spirit of being a warrior who can bear hardships and stand hard work. In the last minute, ten years of off-stage performance cannot be achieved overnight."
"Slaying the Wolf"
In addition to "no successor", another major problem that plagues action actors is unavoidable injuries.
In the conversation with 1905 Movie Network, Zhang Jin admitted frankly that his wrists, shoulders, knees, and his whole body are injured, which is a "common problem" for all action actors. "Each play will have different injuries. No one can be filmed without any injury."
A picture of Wu Jing's whole body injury made by a netizen has also been on the hot search. He himself said unabashedly: Audiences who know me know that I have more than 100 stitches on my body., There is no good place, the whole body is full of "patches".
The year before last, a documentary "Dragon Tiger Warrior" brought Hong Kong action stunt performers to the front of the stage after decades of hard work.
In the era of no special effects and lack of protection, the dragon and tiger warriors really used "life" to exchange one after another beyond the limit, stunning the world's action scenes.
recalled the shooting state of that year, Jackie Chan couldn't help but be afraid, "broken foot in the morning, start work in the afternoon... If one makes a mistake, (life) is gone, and I don't know why God takes care of me so much."
The action actor paid a lot Their efforts bear the highest risk, but in the end they are often only unsung heroes hidden behind the scenes, and they undoubtedly deserve more attention and applause.
In the promotion of "Wolf Pack", Zhang Jin once said worriedly on Douyin : "Now many people say that Chinese action movies are declining, I am very sad. Back then Bruce Lee kicked the plaque of 'Sick Man of East Asia', the action Movies and kung fu movies have become the pride of the Chinese people. We will work harder, and please support Chinese action movies!”
Indeed, Chinese Kung Fu was once the most shining business card for Chinese movies to go to the world. "Real Kung Fu" will always have a real texture unmatched by any special effects.
But at the same time, Chinese action filmmakers should also keep pace with the times, combine advanced film technology, and create more action scenes that go down in history. Polished to meet the audience's increasing aesthetic needs.
Chinese action movies never lack audiences, just waiting for the next "good show".
