Since the release of " Monster Hunting " in July 2015, which opened up a track exclusively for domestic fantasy films for the summer season, domestic fantasy films have entered a stage of steady development: from early myths and legends, to fairy tales and monsters, From the creative wave to the soft settings of traveling through time and space and identity exchange, to the animated films that achieved both box office and word-of-mouth success...domestic fantasy films have gradually become the repertoire of summer programs every year, forming a localization that is different from Hollywood. style characteristics. This month, three fantasy films have been released, which will once again enrich the genre of domestic fantasy films and take the audience into a "fantasy journey" that transcends reality and is rich in imagination.
Domestic fantasy films with unique local characteristics
War films, science fiction films, and fantasy films are the three types that best reflect the level of film industrialization, especially the latter two, which require rich and reasonable imagination and further test the comprehensive level of the creator. These are also the best types of Western movies - in the minds of most viewers, when they mention foreign science fiction films, a series of commercial masterpieces directed by Hollywood directors such as Nolan, Cameron, and Spielberg pop up in their minds. When we think of foreign fantasy films, we think of series of films adapted from best-selling books by British authors such as "The Lord of the Rings", "Harry Potter" and "The Chronicles of Narnia". Why do when we mention a movie genre, its related masterpieces immediately appear in our minds?
In the West, where the film industry is more developed, especially Hollywood filmmakers, after long-term creative practice, they have summarized some safer creative models. That is, if a type of film is very popular, other films will compete to imitate it, making it a type. In order to make this type of film more commercially safe and obtain a corresponding return on investment, Hollywood is also accustomed to typing various types of films to the extreme: formulaic plots, stereotyped characters, and graphic visual images. etc., are all basic elements of genre movies.
The "Lord of the Rings" trilogy that has been widely praised by movie fans
Since each genre has its own relatively fixed audience group, this kind of shooting method will not only make people feel boring, but also improve efficiency: when we walk into the cinema, we will pass the time. Time, when you want to choose a movie from a wide range of movies, you can find what you want at a glance. Before the movie even starts, we know what the theme of the movie is and what kind of characters will appear. The styles and visual motives we expect, the emotions we need and the expected endings will all appear according to inertial thinking, which will make people feel very satisfied.
American scholar Cha Altman's article "A Brief Discussion on Genre Films" examines the characteristics of American genre films from the perspective of exploring the functional characteristics of "entertainment" activities. Altman concluded that most of Hollywood's works are "a kind of entertainment" "A form of entertainment", so "genre films are both repetitive and cumulative, and naturally have strong predictability": "People go to see genre films to meet old acquaintances on the screen."
Alt. Mann's summary of American genre films is not unreasonable, but in the field of domestic films, the situation is different. Especially for genre films such as science fiction and fantasy films, which test the standards of the film industry, there are films that follow the conventional model to the extreme in genre film style, and there are also more novel and creative creative methods with local characteristics. There are films that have won dozens of awards. There are also many "small but beautiful" small and medium-cost masterpieces among large-scale productions with a box office of 100 million yuan.
Three domestic fantasy films have been released this month.
Take the fantasy genre as an example: Wu Ershan's " Conferred Gods Part 1: Chaoge Fengyun", "Looking for the Dragon", and Lu Yang's " Assassination of Novelists" , Stephen Chow's "Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons" and "The Mermaid", Chen Kaige's "The Promise" and "Legend of the Demon Cat", Xu Chengyi's "Monster Hunt" series, Chen Jiashang's "Painted Skin", etc., are all films born out of traditional culture and supernatural elements. Combining the fantasy genre with other genres such as adventure, action, costume, suspense, etc., with gorgeous visual effects and starring stars, the production cost is higher and it is deeply loved by movie fans."Hello, Li Huanying", which set multiple records, and "Hello, Li Huanying", which is a small-scale drama, and "Back to 20" are comedy stories about family and love, and are composite genre films that combine the fantasy genre. There are also a number of domestic animated films produced through commercial processes such as "Journey to the West: The Return of the Great Sage", "White Snake: The Origin" and "Big Fish and Begonia", which have become the new favorites on the big screen in recent years.
Soon, three domestic fantasy films will be released this month, namely: " Welcome to My Side " starring Yu Shi and Wang Yinglu (released on July 5), "" directed by Tang Jili and starring Jackie Chan and others. " legend " (released on July 12), " Under the Stranger" (released on July 26) directed by Wu Ershan and starring Hu Xianxu and others. Although the three films are all fantasy films, they each present different appearances and have different styles and emphasis. They are not the kind of highly homogeneous assembly line work where "you can think of the ending when you see the beginning". Maybe it can give summer vacation time. A fantastic start.
Fantasy setting and romantic light comedy are combined again
"Welcome to Me", which will be released on July 5 (this Friday), is a composite genre film that combines fantasy, comedy and love. This style of combination Let the film lean towards a lighter narrative. Director Song Haolin has previously participated in the creation of another fantasy costume film "Red Fox Scholar".
The male protagonist Chen Xiaozhou (played by Yu Shi) is a social animal and a patient with a strange disease. Due to a broken love, when Chen Xiaozhou sees anything yellow, everyone around him will turn into a "quacking" yellow duck. A gathering of fantasy worlds. In his eyes: the takeaway boy in yellow overalls looked like a big yellow duck carrying a takeout bag; when giving a speech at the company, because a yellow ppt appeared on the big screen, other employees in the audience became neatly organized A group of big yellow ducks; due to seeing yellow packaging in the supermarket, Chen Xiaozhou lost his hearing after receiving a call from his supervisor, and could only hear a "quacking" duck... And such a "terminal disease" does not have an antidote, as long as Staying with food blogger Feng Jianan (played by Wang Yinglu) will make you magically healed. In order to return to normal, Chen Xiaozhou can only choose to get closer to Feng Jianan, and the two also create new sparks...
The film "Welcome to Me" can be compared to "Cohabitation in Time and Space", the latter tells a story like the title of the film The same fantasy setting: Gu Xiaojiao (played by Tong Liya) who lived in 2018 and Lu Ming (played by Lei Jiayin) who lived in 1999 each had their own troubles. After their rooms accidentally overlapped, the two started living together. journey, and each wants to realize their own plans through the other. The cost of this film is not high. Because it fills the vacancy in the fantasy comedy style track, the film quickly won 900 million yuan at the box office after its release in May 2018. It became a typical example of "using small to make big", which caused a stir in the industry at that time. A certain amount of attention. Fantasy romance films are rare in the film market in recent years. Coupled with Yu Shi's personal charm, "Welcome to Me" may once again enrich this genre and make a good start for the summer season.
"The Stranger" "Under" replaced "Fengshen Part 2"
In comparison, "Legend" released on July 12 and "Under the Stranger" released on July 26 are thicker in style and more extreme in genre. : "Legend" is a large-scale production that combines fantasy, adventure, and action. It is a companion piece to the 2005 hit " myth " and continues its setting of traveling back to ancient times to hunt for treasures; "Under the Stranger" is It is a fantasy film with a youthful feel and a more extreme genre. The story revolves around aliens and superpowers in modern cities.
"Legend" is directed by Tang Jili and stars Jackie Chan, Zhang Yixing, Guli Nazha, Li Zhiting, Li Chen and others. At present, the film has been screened in advance in cities such as Jinan. According to viewers who have watched the film, there are many stars participating in the film and it is a large-scale production with an epic temperament.The film tells the story of Professor Fang (played by Jackie Chan) who unearthed ancient shamanic jade during archaeology, leading Professor Fang and his assistant Wang Jing (played by Zhang Yixing) to return to the Western Han Dynasty in a dream, transform into brave and capable Han generals, and lead the cavalry to fight against the Huns to protect their country. And begins a past life relationship with the Hun princess Mengyun (played by Nazha) that spans thousands of years. In order to find the truth, Professor Fang's friend Lei Zhen (played by Li Chen) went deep into the ten-thousand-year glacier to find the holy land for worshiping heaven, but was blocked by the shaman expert Heber (played by Li Zhiting)...
"Under the Stranger" by Ur Directed by Shan and Xia Peng, starring Hu Xianxu, Li Wanda, Feng Shaofeng, Qiao Zhenyu, Song Ningfeng and others. The film is adapted from the popular Chinese comic "Under One Person". Because of its grand world view, traditional yet extremely novel superpower settings and rich and complex characters, it has become the "peak Chinese comic" in many people's eyes. This is the first time it has was put on the big screen.
Wu Ershan once said that the most attractive thing about comics is that it combines the most traditional and fashionable things in China. "If "Fengshen Trilogy" is our protection and respect for traditional culture, then "Under the Stranger" is how to integrate traditional culture into contemporary life. There are very few comic book movies on our screens, but "Under the Stranger" has supernatural powers and fantasy settings and takes place among young people. The stories around me are even rarer. What I have always been interested in and hope to do is to fill the gaps in different types of Chinese movies. "
Wu Ershan, the director of "Under the Stranger", in addition to the "Feng Shen" series, other Both "Painted Skin 2" and "The Secret of the Dragon" directed by him have triggered a movie-watching craze. In May of this year, Wu Ershan said that "Fengshen Part 2" originally scheduled to be released in the summer could not be released as scheduled, which made many "Fengshen" fans regretful, but also provided opportunities for other films such as "Under the Stranger" Opportunities and space to express yourself.
Source: Jinan Times
