Hong Kong movies are not dead yet, there is hope for a revival!
The biggest surprise in this May 1st episode is undoubtedly " Kowloon Walled City: The Siege "!
Not long ago, at the 42nd Hong Kong Film Awards, director Paul Cheng won the Best Director Award again for his movie "Homicide". In addition, this film also won the Best Editing (editing) award.
Now "The Siege of Kowloon Walled City" directed by Cheng Baorui has undoubtedly locked in the Best Action Design Award at the next Academy Awards in advance. Of course, in terms of styling, art, and visual effects, the film is equally stunning and is expected to win the award.
It can be said that "The Siege of Kowloon Walled City" is the most outstanding Hong Kong-style action movie in the past two years.
has performed well at the box office since its release. During the screening period alone, it earned over 80 million yuan. After its official release, the box office easily exceeded 100 million yuan on the first day, and the box office dropped for four consecutive days.
had 50.64 million on the first day, 51.59 million on the second day, 53.79 million on the third day, and 55.82 million on the fourth day.
It is the only May 1st film to have a single-day box office decline for four consecutive days.
On the last day of May Day, although the downward trend did not continue, the box office ranked second for the first time in a single day. This was achieved when only 15% of the films were scheduled.
And this is naturally closely related to its reputation performance.
Douban gave it a rating of 7.5, ranking second only to " Howl's Moving Castle " among the new May 1st films, on the same level as "Spy House Code: White", and ranking first among live-action films.
Because of other new live-action films, none of them have a rating of 7.
Relying on its good reputation, "The Siege of Kowloon Walled City" has just achieved a continuous decline in the box office.
Of course, the most praiseworthy thing about this film is its stunning martial arts action.
punches to the flesh, various difficult, exciting and shocking movements, which make people feel hearty and blood-throated, and it is completely enjoyable to watch.
's highly comic punches, kicks, and flying leaps are inseparable from the original comics, but they are obviously not divorced from reality, achieving a perfect and full integration with the unique terrain features of the Kowloon Walled City. The scheduling of the entire action scene not only gives people a glimpse of the entire style of Kowloon Walled City, but also makes people stand in awe of the actors behind it and the actors in the front.
Because people like Louis Koo, Yan Xianqi, , Raymond Lam, are not action actors. Although they have made many action movies, they are rare with such high difficulty and strong force value.
In addition, as a kung fu master, Sammo Hung is also going from strength to strength, and his fight with Louis Koo in the film is also particularly exciting.
There are also actors who are not well-known to the public, such as Liu Junqian's Xinyi, Hu Tong's Twelve Young Masters, Zhang Wenjie's Fourth Boy, Wu Yunlong's Wang Jiu, etc., all of which left a deep impression on people.
In the last fight scene, Hu Tong even injured his jaw and was hospitalized for 14 stitches.
The dedicated and professional attitude of these martial arts actors is admirable, but it also pays off.
The various martial arts movements and techniques in the film are designed based on culture, scenes, and the characteristics of each person. For example, Wang Jiu's hard Qigong, which is the most shocking, has a strong religious flavor despite his invulnerable physique. But it is not invulnerable. As one of the extras said, "Sooner or later, we will be taken over by God."
did have God’s help in the end. If it weren't for the help of the tornado, Chen Luojun would not have jumped up in the wind, climbed back to the rooftop, and defeated Wang Jiu with his brothers. The tornado here is not only a force of nature, but also an allusion to the mysterious blessing of the deceased eldest brother Tornado.
The topographical features of the Kowloon Walled City not only gave birth to wonderful martial arts action, but also brought the audience back to the sinful city without care, giving this film an extremely rich historical and cultural atmosphere.
Because the real Kowloon Walled City was demolished as early as 1993, and it was mentioned at the end of the film, so in order to shoot this film, the crew spent a lot of money to build the buildings and streets inside the Walled City, and also used a lot of nostalgia The props represent details of the lives of residents inside the walled city at that time.
Therefore, it can give the audience a more realistic and specific look and feel.
The dirty and messy Kowloon Walled City is a refuge for the poor at the bottom. Although the environment here is suffocating, it has the warmth and care from the bottom that is indispensable in the prosperous world outside.
"You help others, others help you." Here, when one person is in trouble, everyone helps.
Therefore, the film’s chivalry is commendable. This is not only a signature element of traditional Hong Kong films, but also a core expression of the film.
Although the Kowloon Walled City is chaotic and filled with filth and dirt, everyone in distress relies on their own efforts to take root and survive here, providing a better survival guarantee for the next generation.
Although the Kowloon Walled City was demolished at the end of the film, it was not sad because the film was not about nostalgia, but about creating hope and beauty for the next generation.
But at the same time, the film says at the end, "No matter what, I believe some things will never change!"
Some of the things here are naturally related to the mutual help and care between people, the morality of the world, etc.
The fighting and killing of the previous generation are all in the past tense after all.
When will retribution happen? ! The true righteousness of
is to put aside past grudges and work together to create a happy and beautiful life for the next generation!
Although the plot and story of "The Siege of Kowloon Walled City" is not new, it is nothing more than the entanglement of gang interests and the difficult survival of the people at the bottom, but it is undoubtedly supported by wonderful action scenes, the expansion of the core, humanistic care, and the world. Morality makes the film particularly eye-catching among Hong Kong films that are in a trough, and it also brings hope for the recovery of Hong Kong films.
