2023 is a year of frustration for Hong Kong films in the mainland. " Golden Finger " with the strongest lineup of Andy Lau and Tony Leung has not yet exceeded 500 million at the box office.
You must know that some of the top-grossing Hong Kong commercial films in the mainland in the past few years, "Fury", "Bomb Disposal Expert 2" and "Anti-Drug 2" , all exceeded 1.3 billion in box office.
In 2023, in addition to "Goldfinger", "stealth" produced by Andy Lau will only exceed 300 million, "Anti-Drug 3" directed by Qiu Litao will have 284 million, and Lin Chaoxian's "Breaking Point" will only exceed 100 million.
Other "Assassination Storm", "Disconnected", "When the Wind Rises Again", "Don't Call Me "The God of Gamblers"", "Trapped Beast", etc., are all terrible.
The reasons why Hong Kong films have been ignored are commonplace. One is that they rely too much on the police and gangster genre, while still relies on fighting and killing, going around in gunfire, car chases, and explosions. .
In terms of actors, they are basically permutations and combinations of Louis Koo, Lau Ching-wan, Ng Chun-yu, Aaron Kwok, Nick Cheung, etc., which caused a certain degree of aesthetic fatigue.
2023 is over. Unexpectedly, there will be a surprise Hong Kong film in 2024, which to some extent breaks the traditional Hong Kong film model.
" Temporary Heist " currently has a box office of over 100 million, and the total box office is expected to be 215 million. This achievement is not easy in the cold season. Aaron Kwok can be regarded as a comeback for Hong Kong films.
01. Breaking the tradition, breaking without establishing.
Summarize "Temporary Robbery" in one sentence: "Hong Kong Ning Hao" filmed a crazy "gangster" story in parallel time and space. It can be said to be a low-end version of "Crazy Stone".
is not that good, but it is surprising enough, because it is not the same as the previous Hong Kong films, it has actually changed its style of play.
First, the multi-line narrative wrapped in comedy makes an ordinary robbery story feel absurd, a bit like Ning Hao's "Crazy" series.
But director Mai Qiguang is not Ning Hao after all. Multi-line narrative can create contrast and joy, but it can also easily lead to logical confusion.
There is no exquisite design, and many plots become a bit deliberate, such as the scene where two people in a car repair shop steal things in a bathing center, which can easily cause confusion during the viewing process.
Secondly, Aaron Kwok broke through the styling . This time he acted ugly and was very successful. His buck-toothed appearance stole a lot of limelight.
The buck-toothed gangster is not only accurate with his marksmanship, but also very polite, making people "say thank you" at every turn, "just shoot whoever gets hit, don't suffer, brother" .
It is said that Aaron Kwok's appearance this time was added at his own request, which makes it more joyful.
Moreover, the deformed ears were specially made up to show the wrestling, which is also a highlight.
In the past, the image of gangsters in Hong Kong movies was based on the depictions of major thief kings, including McDonald's and Johnnie To's movies. They were either extremely vicious or ruthless.
There are few characters like Mei Lantian played by Aaron Kwok, who are full of joy and love, and never kill innocent people indiscriminately.
Third, empathic characters . In many Hong Kong films in the past, they were either gangsters or police officers from the Independent Commission Against Corruption, and there were relatively few portrayals of small characters.
Lin Jiadong and Ren Xianqi, who were the two famous thieves back then, have become little people with a hint of kindness in "Temporary Robbery".
Lin Jiadong plays a coward. His family is in a mess. His mother and wife are quarreling. His father is sent to a nursing home. Occasionally, he meets Feixue who rides in the car without paying.
The poverty of his family forced him to defraud his brothers, and every family had its own problems.
Good brother "Wu Yonghui" is a kind and timid person. As a social worker, he has to consider maintaining the nursing home, but even if he wants to do something bad, he can't do it well.
In addition, some traditional items of Hong Kong movies have also been added: high housing prices. All of these are actually mid-life crises, which are easy for people to relate to.
The image of the police in Hong Kong movies in the past was either the desperate Chan Ka Kui in "Police Story", Zhou Xingxing who went undercover in school in "The Dragon", or the image of a tortured undercover.
But here, the policeman played by Zhang Keyi relies entirely on guesswork in handling cases, and is brave and foolhardy. He was even complained about in the movie: "If you don't appear, there will be no role."
Fourth, some familiar golden supporting roles.
The first is David Jiang. He bluntly said that this time it destroyed his image for decades.
His previous image as a hero was handsome and unrestrained, but in the movie he became a "profiteer" who dared to rob ruthless gangsters, which contributed a lot of laughter.
The reason why David Jiang participated in this film was, firstly, because his younger brother Er Dongsheng supervised the production, and secondly because the story was good and he found it humorous.
The third one is more important. His son Jiang Zhuowen also participated in the film, playing the role of Anan who robbed 2 million.
Jiang Zhuowen also expressed that he was very happy working with his father, and even joked: It's a pity that the director didn't arrange for him to beat his father to death.
Needless to say, Lin Xue, Johnnie To's supporting role back then, is now getting fatter and fatter.
Lu Haipeng and Bao Qijing are veteran actors and have witnessed the ups and downs of Hong Kong films.
tvb actor Wu Dingxin plays the tragic boss Wang Minde and the female driver Sun Jiajun who is held hostage by Aaron Kwok.
02, full of traces of the Milky Way image
Director Mak Kai-kwong is an old man in Hong Kong movies. When he was an assistant director, he worked with Johnnie To on films such as "The Big Brother", "The King" and "Drug War".
Screenwriter Chen Weibin has also created scripts such as "Drug War" and "Blind Detective" for Johnnie To's Galaxy Image, and also worked on Wei Jiahui's "The Great Detective".
So in "Temporary Heist", you can see some imprints of the Milky Way image everywhere.
First, Aaron Kwok's setting. He is a wrestler who beats one of the thieves in the car repair shop to death.
At that moment, did you think of "Judo Dragon and Tiger List", in which he plays a brave and fierce judo champion who wants to challenge Situ Bao played by Louis Koo all day long.
"Judo Dragon and Tiger List" is not Johnnie To's best movie, but it is the one in which Johnnie To is most satisfied with himself.
Secondly, the first scene in the movie is Lin Xue kicking Lin Jiadong. This grudge actually dates back to 2005's "Underworld".
In the past, in order to grab the leading stick, Lin Jiadong, a Dongguan boy, beat Lin Xue all over the floor for a realistic effect, leaving a psychological shadow.
After more than ten years, Lin Xue finally got her revenge.
Third, in "PTU", Lin Xue lost his pistol. In "Temporary Robbery", not only the gun was lost, but the money was also lost.
Fourth, the character is full of fatalism. Mei Lantian only wants to return to Vietnam, and even persuades others to go to Vietnam for development. She misses home so much and misses her dead children.
But he is destined to never go back. He is not ruthless enough in his actions. The gangsters cannot be as polite as him, let alone the police chasing him.
If the book "Temporary Robbery" was shot by Ning Hao, the effect would definitely be different.
Of course, this movie is also worthy of encouragement. At least it dares to go beyond the traditional police movies.
In fact, there are also excellent local Hong Kong films, such as Huang Zihua's "The Vengeful Lawyer" and "I Still Think You're the Best", both of which have received good responses.
Er Dongsheng serves as the producer. He also participated in "Under the Day" and "Diary of a Youth", both of which are rare masterpieces.
It is worth mentioning that "Under the Day" will be introduced to the mainland for release, and I look forward to seeing some new faces in the Hong Kong film industry. (Written by: Eleven)
