This weekend, for two consecutive days, respectively, watched the movie industry veteran Star Chow's "Journey to the West" and the film and television industry director rookie baby Wang's "The Greatest Show on Earth". As one of the most ordinary moviegoers, I have a bit of an opinion. For the record, I'm not a professional movie critic, nor a water army, just stand in the perspective of the moviegoer to say their feelings.
The story of Journey to the West is familiar to everyone. There are countless adaptations and dramatizations of the Journey to the West, and there are not many that can surpass the classics, but there are quite a few that can spoil them. If "Journey to the West to Subdue the Devil" dares to claim the first place, then "Journey to the West to Fend off the Demons" is not the second place. The same is the frying of the cold rice of the Western Tour, "the big mess in the sky" as if the Western Tour of the road of a clear stream, this cold rice fried incense, this "sky Zhu" is good!
The "Big Trouble in the World" tells the story of Tang Sen and Zhu Tianpeng in the accidental protection of Wu Kong went to India to look for his father's will, but encountered the intention to kidnap him, Wu Jing, and then the four partners in India along the way through all kinds of trials and tribulations, and ultimately to repair the story of the "right fruit".
The film begins with a clear explanation of the purpose of the trip - to get the will. However, the will, the screenwriter has also made a clever and boldly laid out - the demolition. The opening of such a hot topic to use, coupled with Wang Baoqiang's migrant workers identity origin to leave a deep impression on everyone, want not to catch your eyeballs are difficult.
Wukong was originally opposed to Tang Sen, but for the "wait" for his vital hut, as a blackmail to embark on the road to the West, and heartfelt protection Tang Sen. It makes sense that he would be loyal to his employer in order to get what he wants. As for why the hut is important, the film follow-up and the end of the slow are made to explain, so that you watch the realization.
On the way to the west there are nine hundred and eighty-one difficulties, here if there is no antagonist that is not interesting. So, the demons in the west are disguised as a fight for the inheritance of the inheritance of a faction came to assassinate Tang Sen's Luo Luo people. After all, they are all demons with no background, and their failure is doomed, but they also made a lot of laughs and embarrassments along the way.
The positive and negative sides are all there, and they can't stop Zhu Tianpeng and Wu Jing from adding a little spice. If Wu Kong and Tang Sen are responsible for the hilarity, then Zhu Tianpeng and Wu Jing are responsible for the sensationalism and hilarity. The journey is full of crises and dangers, but they always manage to turn them into a success. This story is perfect and interesting, with a lot of padding, commitment, movement, emotion and reasoning. Let people read and laugh.
It has been said that this directorial debut of Wang Baoqiang is a road movie following the series of films such as "Lost in Space" and "Lost in Thailand". It is said that the film's screenwriter used the old team of "Lost in Thailand", no wonder this set of déjà vu, this movie is very "Indian".
So what exactly is a road movie? The movie is a movie about the road, and it's not a movie about the road.
The road movie (English: Road Movie), or road movie, is a type of movie where the theme or background is set on the highway, and the protagonist often embarks on a journey for some reason, and the plot goes deeper into the protagonist's inner world as the journey progresses.
If we go by this definition, then Journey to the West is definitely the granddaddy of Eastern road movies.
The movie "The Greatest Showman", whose idea originated from the Journey to the West, naturally can't escape from this scope either.
Lost in Thailand, set against the backdrop of the Spring Festival, tells the story of the journey to Changsha of toy group boss Li Chenggong and debt-collecting milkman Niu Geng. Lost in Thailand" reached RMB 310 million in its first week of release that year, setting a record for a Chinese-language film's first week at the box office. One is about going home, the other is about treasure hunting, both are on the road, and both use coincidences to present awkwardness to amuse you. The audience is buying from the box office and the word of mouth.
The same routine used for the third time, it is inevitable that some people will spit. On the laughs, the baby a hard work quite a Wukong aura, this protagonist's body teasing needless to say. Yue Yunpeng's golden words constantly, coupled with Liu Yan's sexy cooperation, you want not to laugh is difficult. The director and screenwriter seem to understand the audience's heart, the story takes place in India, that the San body has what terriers, you will know once you see.
If "Lost in Space" is a drum, "Lost in Thailand" is not again and decline, but to ride on the victory. Now this "Big Trouble in the World" with the same formula, put on the robe of the Western tour, telling the story of taking the will is not three and exhaustion, but called the icing on the cake, the fruit of the repair.
Years ago, Feng Xiaogang's movie "I'm not Pan Jinlian" bold and innovative use of circular format quite controversial, mixed reviews. In my opinion, the baby's directorial debut is bold and innovative in the use of color.
Because the film is scheduled for the Spring Festival, it continues the visual style of the Spring Festival Gala, and the entire film is highly saturated with color. For a color-loving audience like me, it was a real treat.
The art of film from the primitive black and white, to today's colorful, dare to make the picture so colorful is not rare. I guess the baby may have some misunderstanding of Indian culture, or what is the reference to the northeastern duo? Anyway, a variety of red, green, blue and purple will fill the screen full, the whole down, as if watching a half-hour picture gorgeous duet version of the Spring Festival Gala. The first time I saw this, it was a very good time for me!
More praiseworthy is that some scenes are also combined with the characteristics of India more exaggerated degree of intensity, such as Liu Yan out of the factory in the sky colorful satin, as well as that I do not know what is the festival of the colorful powder battle. I suspect that because it is not Thailand, with the water festival is not very good, so instead of splashing colored powder. This trick is not derived from a lot of domestic running activities, we do not know, anyway, after seeing the feeling of excitement, the scene déjà vu.
Previously, the baby in a media interview also said: "Many people watched the film, feel that both the costume styling or the environment are quite fly. It's true that these are hard to put elsewhere, but in India it's natural and reasonable." So many directors in recent years have gone to Southeast Asia to set, in India such a magical country, indeed anything can happen.
The adaptation and use of Indian-style music is also a major point of view of The Greatest Showman. From the promotional song "stewed acoustic guitar" to the familiar "Dharma Maiden", familiar rhythms interspersed throughout the scene, a word on the rhythm. I think this is also one of the important reasons why the film is loved by the majority of square dance mothers, right?
"Stewed Acoustic Guitar" is the promotional song for the movie "The Greatest Showman", which is adapted from the Indian song "London Thumakda", with Chinese lyrics adapted by Ding Ding, and sung by the god of comedy, Deng Chao, which is a laugh-out-loud experience! When the rhythm comes together, the familiar figure of Song Xiaobao and his marvelous dance moves appear in front of your eyes. In the middle there are some unknown Indian ditties, which always give you a sense of walking down Wangfujing Street, watching street vendors holding lamb skewers and waving them around.
Overall, the script of "The Greatest Show on Earth" Shuohuan is smooth and complete, with the literary scenes and fights switched around. Just when the succession of large-scene action scenes immediately to see tired, just in time to ring Zhao Yingjun's warm "Waiting", for the overall atmosphere to do a good spice. What I can't forget is the line "Don't fight with the past, we're not rivals", which expresses a lot of heartache and helplessness, and it's very literary. This song also deserves to be the theme song of this movie, which is very nice.
Wang Baoqiang's good relationship in the circle has a reputation. From the "world without thieves" by Feng Xiaogang appreciation to enable, and Andy Lau, Liu Ruoying play stand out, to later break into the entertainment reality show "Run Bar Brothers", Baoqiang along the way to make a lot of friends in the circle.
Rarely has he not forgotten his beginnings, and has always wanted to fulfill his kung fu dream. There is a dream, there is action, the circle of friends natural help. Seeing Chen Pesi, Zhu Shimao, six Xiaolingtong, these rare master seniors, and Deng Chao, Huang Bo, Wang Zulan, Liu Haoran and other guest stars, can also be seen that Wang Baoqiang is really, as he said, put all his past savings are used.
Chen Pesi, Zhu Shimao's beads needless to say, we look forward to their return to the Spring Festival Gala look forward to many years, but some things do not meet the wishes of people. Now the baby borrowed this two-man version of the Spring Festival Gala, but also to fulfill their dream of once again on the same stage. Although it is only a cameo performance, but the old actor's wonderful interpretation, but still for the film to add a lot of color.
I hadn't seen the promo before, so the appearance of Six Little Children at the end really gave me a big surprise. The monkey show found its origin, and the character's appearance accounted for so many ambiguities that had been laid before. I went home and watched the related footage on the Internet and had to admire the dedication of this old artist. The beginning of the Year of the Monkey, about six small children on the Spring Festival Gala or not, there have been some oolong, but the unanimous voice is: the Year of the Monkey has passed, but you have always been the Monkey King in our hearts.
For the participation in the "Big Trouble in the Sky", six small Lingtong said: "In the past and everyone just meet in the TV series, this time I'm very happy to play a role on the big screen." Director Wang Baoqiang, on the other hand, said excitedly, "The theme of this play is related to monkeys, and I also hope that everyone can see the Monkey King in their hearts, and they can't even dare to imagine that he can come to act."
The data show that among all the movies released in this year's Spring Festival, "The Greatest Monkey King" is a movie with the biggest contrast between box office and word of mouth. From the Douban rating, Wang Baoqiang, the director's debut is the lowest rating of all the films in the Spring Festival file, only 3.9 points; but the film since the first day of the New Year release as of the fifth day of the New Year box office has exceeded 500 million, it is said that the box office is close to 700 million, which can be said to be a considerable achievement.
It can be said that a good movie is the dream of every director. But the standard of a good movie in the end who said it? Some people say that the jury has the final say, because they are experts. But is a movie made for those few experts? Some people say that critics have the final say because they are second only to the experts, but they can represent the public. I don't think so. How many critics regard themselves as experts, and how many critics regard themselves as representatives of the public? They know about movies, but how many of the people who actually watch movies consider the screenplay, picture composition, sound effects, post-production, stunts, and other professional factors when they watch a movie?
I think the simplest and most intuitive criterion for the public to judge is ****ing, I can see my own shadow in the movie, he must think it's a good movie. Even if you can't see yourself, you can see the people around you, the reaction is reality, to put it bluntly, it's a reason enough. To summarize, there are three words: understandable.
A lot of big movie production, special effects please foreign team, actors are first-line and even international big names, but you perform that thing I can not understand, not a cow to the head? You say you spend a lot of effort, and I have half a penny to do with it? The reason why so many people praise the small production of "33 days of lost love" is that the public can understand it, and the storytelling is understandable.
Besides, why is there such a huge difference between the box office and the word of mouth for "The Greatest Showman"? I think there must be a reason is the water army in the work. The Chinese movie box office has a lot of water, we do not know, but for 50 cents you let me spray who I sprayed a lot of people. "Journey to the West" was released at that time, we all rushed to the return of Stephen Chow to see, but walked into the theater really disgusted me, next to me a mother with a child to go, the opening shortly after the little girl was scared of the wow cry. Even if the original description of the characters of the Journey to the West was originally that way, but art is not from life above life? I thought "Journey to the West" would be a change of pace, but it still is. I read a movie review that cursed the movie, saying that the one they watched had 70 to 80 people, but in the first ten minutes of the show, a dozen people left. You can see how bad this movie is, but the Douban rating is still so high. The first time I've seen a movie, I've seen a movie, I've seen a movie.
"Journey to the West" and "Big trouble in the sky" have elements of the West, the former drama, the latter insinuation. The former is a parody, the latter an allusion. A good parody is called nonsensical, a good allusion is called a spoof. Compared to the two, I obviously voted in favor of the "Big Trouble in the Sky".
"The Greatest Showman" has been called a new interpretation of the modern version of "Journey to the West", in which many of the characters and the bridge can remind us of the "Journey to the West" in the terrain.
The most obvious are the names of several main characters, Wu Kong = Wukong, Tang Sen = Tang Monk, Zhu Tianpeng = Pig Tianpeng, Wu Jing = Wujing, the pair of killer Matt brothers corresponding to the Golden Horn King and Silver Horn King, as well as the Indian version of the King of the Bull Demons, and their respective personalities also basically correspond to those in Journey to the West.
The plot, the baby played the Wukong is a folk monkey man, no family, all day with the little monkeys, with the stone born in the mountain of flowers and fruits as king of the Great Sage of Qi Tian Da Sheng as free, but lonely; Wukong punched and kicked the demolition team in a scene like the Monkey King in the Palace of Heaven; Wukong in the power (real estate company) under the oppression of the confinement of a small building, the Tang Sen to take away the moment he was like the Monkey King in the five mountains, and regained his freedom; Tang Sen and Wukong, the Monkey King in the five mountains, the Monkey King in the five mountains. The moment Tang Sen comes to take him away is like the Monkey King regaining his freedom under the Mountain of Five Rows; Tang Sen and Wukong also have to go through 981 difficulties to go to the Dharma, only this time what they are taking is not the scriptures, but the will. Sari factory is full of charming dancers, the leader of the Wu Jing fancy Tang Sen, forcibly to be promised to the body, this routine we have seen in the Daughter Kingdom; and, Wu Kong was originally not with Tang Sen, but to protect Tang Sen all the way, why? Why? Isn't it because Tang Sen grabbed Wukong's Xiaolou as a threat? Doesn't it look like the Monk reads the spell and the Monkey King gets a headache? Many details, insinuated just right.
The original idea for "The Greatest Showman" came from Wang Baoqiang, who honored his family and fulfilled his own dream of the Wukong. As Baoqiang has said, watch it and you'll understand why he wanted to put this movie together. It was with this idea that he approached Shuang Huan, the screenwriter of "Lost in Thailand" and "Lost in Hong Kong", and thus came up with this "Lost in India" story, which is still full of exotic scenes and gags, and is also about a duo of enemies who gradually reconcile and build up a friendship while overcoming many difficulties.
There's an impressive line in the movie that pays homage to Soldier's Raid: "What I, for one, hate most is abandonment." This line appears about three times in the movie. On the one hand, it reminds me of Wang Baoqiang's famous line "Don't abandon, don't give up". I'm sure there are some people who support this movie because of Wang Baoqiang's marriage, and there are some people who are preconceived to resist this movie because of this. However, from a martial arts to a mass actor, from one of the best newcomers to a well-known actor, and then as a director, Wang Baoqiang walked out of this road is destined to be unable to replicate, because the ordinary people can not imagine what he himself went through the ninety-nine hundred and eighty-one difficulties.
The "Big Trouble in the Sky" is not purely funny, he made you laugh after recalling the "promise" and "wait". The character of Wukong still continues the straightforwardness of the stupid root, I promise you I will do, you promised me also do not renege on the promise. How rare is this in today's society? But when he encountered betrayal, he still chose to forgive and tolerate. Because in his heart there is always a "waiting", the reason is still that "do not fight with the past, we are not rivals.
I don't understand those who scolded online because they took other people's money, or really you are disappointed in the baby's debut? At least in my opinion, compared to the many low ratings online, this work deserves a high score for a practicing director who is not from a science class. He really does not have what you say so useless, as a China-India co-production of the director's debut, Baoqiang with practical action full of sincerity, full of feelings, justified to hand over an excellent answer sheet.