On June 17, 2024, Feng Xiaogang officially announced that he will direct the new movie "Catch the Spy", starring two powerful actors Lei Jiayin and Hu Ge. Soon, "Lei Jiayin Hu Ge Pingfan" became a hot search. Judging from the poster, the film crew wanted to create the illusion that they are "equal", but from the text, although they are both leading actors, Lei Jiayin is the first one and Hu Ge is the second one.
If sorted by the first letter of the last name: Hu Ge should be in front of Lei Jiayin, but the film crew still puts Lei Jiayin first, which shows that the film crew believes that Lei Jiayin is Ichiban. Lei Jiayin was born in 1983 and Hu Ge was born in 1982. They will be "lifelong enemies." Hu Ge became famous earlier and has higher national popularity, but Lei Jiayin has accumulated a lot of experience and has become too popular in the past five years. Both Hu Ge and Lei Jiayin act in both TV series and movies, but Hu Ge's focus is on TV series and Lei Jiayin's focus is on movies.
Hu Ge has a strong social media influence with his many years of accumulation and popularity in the entertainment industry. Although Lei Jiayin is slightly less influential, he has won the recognition of the audience with his strength and professionalism. In terms of awards and honors, Hu Ge has received many recognitions in the field of TV series, while Lei Jiayin has won awards in both movies and TV series and has performed well. Lei Jiayin's performance in the film field is indeed more impressive than Hu Ge's, so there is no problem for him to take on the role of "Catching Spies".
Feng Xiaogang won the two male idols Lei Jiayin and Hu Ge at the same time, which shows that he wants to make a comeback with "Catch a Spy" and return to the ranks of top directors. Feng Xiaogang was once a heavyweight director in the Chinese film industry. With his unique commercial film style and profound insight into the audience's psychology, his works have always attracted much attention. From " Party A and Party B " to " If You Are the One ", from " Tangshan Earthquake " to "1942", Feng Xiaogang's movies not only achieved great box office results, but also left an indelible mark in the hearts of the audience.
But since the "International Fan" incident in 2018, Feng Xiaogang has been unable to recover. The movie "Mobile Phone 2" starring "International Style" was banned from being released, which gave Feng Xiaogang a slap in the face. "Only Yun Knows " released in 2019 had a box office of only 159 million. This is a literary film, so the low box office is understandable. However, " If You Are the One 3", released in 2023, has a box office of only 102 million. This is Feng Xiaogang's best comedy movie, and it is a well-known IP. Feng Xiaogang's vitality is seriously damaged.
Feng Xiaogang even directed two TV series "Northern Directions" and " Echoes of ", but they were not as popular as " Blossoms " directed by Wong Kar-wai. Zhang Yimou, who is as famous as Feng Xiaogang, has " River Red " and " Above the Cliff ". Chen Kaige has "Changjin Lake" and "Volunteer". Feng Xiaogang has nothing. Non-famous entertainment critic Wu Qinggong pointed out: Therefore, "Catch the Spy" is very important to Feng Xiaogang. Lei Jiayin is Zhang Yimou's favorite actor. If it doesn't work, then Feng Xiaogang will not work at all.
In "Catch the Spy", Feng Xiaogang combines his film art with commercial aesthetics, and is expected to present the audience with a movie-watching feast that is both exciting and full of thought. Feng Xiaogang's profound insight into audience psychology and keen grasp of the film market make his works highly competitive at the box office. In addition, Feng Xiaogang also has his own unique insights into the selection and use of actors. He invited first-line stars such as Lei Jiayin and Hu Ge to join in "Catch the Spy", which undoubtedly enhanced the film's market appeal.
