's currently most popular " eliminates three evils in one week " has carved a bloody trail. Despite the plagiarism controversy and the launch of streaming media,
counterattacked and continued to increase its film schedule. It defeated Zhang Yimou's "Article 20" and won the Japanese championship. On the 6th day after
was launched, the box office exceeded 200 million, and the total box office is predicted to be 505 million, making it a dark horse.
The counterattack of "The Three Evils" is naturally gratifying, but the other movie did not have such good luck.
The martial arts film "Stranger Knife" starring Zhang Jin only received 167,000 box office on the first day it was released. Now on the sixth day, it only received more than 400,000. How can it be called miserable?
01, Zhang Yimou's royal team created
The team behind "Stranger Knife" has a good lineup. Producer Lu Guoqiang is well-known in the circle. He was a partner of and Feng Xiaogang , and has been featured in films such as " Party A and Party B " and "Big Shot". There is his presence.
Director Li Wei is Zhang Yimou's first assistant director. He has participated in "One Second", "Above the Cliff" and "Solid as a Rock", and independently directed the online movie "Evil: Speeder Party".
screenwriter Li Meng just finished "Article 20" with Zhang Yimou during the Spring Festival. The behind-the-scenes team of
is rich in experience, and the actors in front of the stage should not be underestimated.
Zhang Jin and Jiang Luxia, two martial arts-level athletes, both have their own representative works in the field of action movies. They have previously collaborated on " Wolf Pack ", and they have a perfect partnership again.
Although Geng Le is a novice in martial arts, after training and guidance from teachers, he can keep up with everyone's rhythm. He was also praised by Zhang Jin and can join the ranks of martial arts actors.
also has young actors Xia Meng, veteran actors Zhu Shimao, Feng Lei, Liu Ye and others joining the cast.
This time Zhu Shimao, who has thick eyebrows and big eyes, rebelled and played a villain.
02, a test of online movies
"The Defiant 2" starring Xie Miao, after the first part achieved good results, it was announced that the second part will be released in theaters.
But before it was released, the creative team analyzed the current market for martial arts films and decided to wait a little longer and continue to broadcast it online.
Now seeing the disastrous box office failure of "Stranger Knife", it also makes people see the sobriety of the creator of "Defiant 2". In the current theatrical movie market, martial arts movies are still relatively weak.
"Strange Knife" did what "Defiant 2" did not dare to do, and this attempt is worthy of praise.
"Stranger Knife" is essentially an online movie. This time it went to theaters to test the waters, and its disastrous box office failure is not a bad thing. Although the
theater chain has failed, the movie will be released on "Peach Factory" on March 8, so there should be no problem in recovering the cost.
"Peach Factory" cooperated with different teams this year to create the "Action Master Season", and launched "Stand in the Horse to Seize the Knife", "Defiant 2", " Anti-Evil " , all of which have achieved good results.
This move can actually be regarded as a "curve to save the country". It will first cultivate an audience for online movies and allow martial arts films to slowly return to the market.
When Tsui Hark's "The Legend of the Condor Heroes: The Greatest Hero", Yuen Woo-Ping's "The Bodyguard" and Wu Jing's "Knife" series are all released, the next wave of martial arts movies may be coming. .
03, Mo Dao Kills Three Thousand, Sharp Blade Kills the God of Death
The investment in the film is only tens of millions. With limited funds, we try our best to make it perfect.
is first of all convincing, the details are in place, and each character has a different shape.
Then the action design is brilliant. Mo Dao, also known as the horse-killing sword, is known as the king of cold weapons. The crew made reference to historical documents for the design. In Zhang Jin's hands, it danced like a tiger with great wind, which was extremely shocking.
Finally, the story has a new idea. On the surface, it is the same as "New Dragon Gate Inn", the scene of escorting out of the city.
But there is another hidden line, which leads to the truth of the past that Zhang Jin does not want to recall, the sacrifice of the people in Liangcheng and his father's innocence.
Of course, the movie also has shortcomings, such as the lack of character motivations, the destruction of Mo Dao Army and the massacre of Liangzhou, which are not clear enough.
04, "Suited Thug" Zhang Jin
"Stranger Knife" failed at the box office, once again proving that Zhang Jin cannot handle the box office alone.
Zhang Jin has been practicing martial arts since he was a child, and has won many national championships and the title of martial arts elite athlete. After
retired, he was fortunate enough to join the team of eighth master Yuan Heping and start his career as a dragon and tiger martial artist.
served as the stand-in for Jiao Enjun and the actress in the film "The Flying Knife". When filming " Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon", he served as the stand-in for Michelle Yeoh and Zhang Ziyi, and taught Chow Yun-fat Tai Chi.
A few years later, he switched from behind the scenes to performing in front of the stage, and participated in Zhouyi Film and Television's "A History of the Martial Arts", "Xiao Shiyilang", "Water Moon Cave" and other dramas.
These dramas were very popular back then, but Zhang Jin didn’t get much attention. He has always been dubbed Cai Shaofen’s husband.
It was not until 2013 that he won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role as Ma San in "", and he was gradually recognized.
Then he collaborated with Wu Jing in "Slaying the Wolf 2", which made him famous and was dubbed the "suited thug".
was also able to stage a Wing Chun battle with Donnie Yen in "Ip Man 3". You must know that when filming "Hero", he also served as Donnie Yen's replacement.
At that time, Zhang Jin was like the next kung fu superstar waiting to break out, and many directors began to create tailor-made works for him.
For example, Yuen Woo-Ping opened a movie "Ip Man: Cheung Tin Chi" for him alone, and also invited Michelle Yeoh and Tony Jaa to help out, but it only sold 130 million at the box office.
There are also movies such as "Beast", "Invincible Nine Dragons" and "Wolves", which are also box office and word-of-mouth crashes.
A series of works hit the market, failed to hold the box office, and were not recognized by the market. Zhang Jin's road to becoming a kung fu superstar was cut off.
05. Kung Fu superstars must have a clear positioning
Anyone who can become a Kung Fu superstar must have his own characteristics.
Bruce Lee single-handedly saved Jiahe. In addition to his famous "Li Sanjiao" and "Lying Quan", he also revolutionized action movies.
Before him, Shaw Brothers produced mostly martial arts films, in which actors mostly used swords, guns, and halberds, while Bruce Lee's bare-handed, free-fighting style, coupled with his exaggerated shouts, all stimulated the audience.
After Bruce Lee passed away, many action actors imitated him, and Jackie Chan was no exception, but he only ended up being laughed at.
Jackie Chan was very smart. He combined comedy and juggling to create his own unique self. He created an era of action movies after Bruce Lee and became famous internationally.
Jet Li not only looks handsome, but also performs moves that are pleasing to the eye. With the help of Tsui Hark, Yuan Heping and others, he has become a great master.
Although Donnie Yen debuted early, he was always suppressed by Jackie Chan and Jet Li until he met Wilson Yip and found the market for fashion action films.
made a name for itself with "Slaying the Wolf" and "The Fuse", and established its status as a kung fu superstar with the "Ip Man" series.
According to Yuan Heping and Zhang Xinyan's vision, Wu Jing may become the second Jet Li, but it backfires.
Costume films were unavailable, so Wu Jing chose to make a career in Hong Kong, where he played many impressive villains in Hong Kong films.
After learning the experience of Hong Kong filmmakers, Wu Jing began to transform and think about what route he should take. After
starred in "I Am a Special Forces Soldier: Knife Unsheathed", he opened his mind and decided to take military action, so he produced "Wolf Warrior" and "Wolf Warrior 2", becoming the Kung Fu superstar with the most box office appeal at the moment.
Action movies have been on the decline in the past few years. Jet Li stopped fighting, Jackie Chan began to take the stairs, and Donnie Yen and Wong Jing's collaboration became a hit. Many viewers lamented when another Kung Fu superstar would be born.
Although Zhang Jin was popular a few years ago, he failed to seize the opportunity and find his own position. Now he has lost the opportunity.
At the moment, Xie Miao has the best chance to break through. Currently, he is supported by the "Northeast Police Story" series and the "Defiant" series.
The next film "Rage" with Andy Lau and Nicholas Tse will be seen this year. When Tsui Hark and Yuen Woo-Ping lead a new wave of martial arts films, and Xie Miao makes a few more martial arts films, maybe it will be. (Written by: Eleven)
