Chapter 307

Beijing, China Film Red Cinema Wukesong branch.

Famous film critic and screenwriter Shi Hang held the IMAX 3D ticket for "Havoc in Heaven" that he had struggled to snag, looking somewhat bewildered at the queue.

This is too much; looking at this lineup, it seems we might have to wait outside a kilometer.

Fortunately, he managed to snag one ticket from Jiang Wen, then angrily scolded him for not letting others see it before doing a "second viewing", and quickly slipped away.

He left Jiang Wen standing there dumbfounded, who angrily said, "Leave me one ticket, how the hell am I supposed to watch it then?"

Jiang Wen obviously couldn't go to the movies alone; he definitely needed his wife to accompany him!

The adjacent ticket was snatched by Shi Hang, so naturally he couldn't let his wife go by herself.

After thinking, he called Jiang Wu to ask if he had gone to see "Havoc in Heaven"!

Jiang Wu said no, the IMAX tickets are too hard to get, so he's preparing to buy a scalped ticket.

Jiang Wen said, "Hey, don't spend the money, brother will treat you!"

"Two tickets?"

"What are you thinking? You know how hard these tickets are to get now? Just one!"

Jiang Wu thought about it, and said, "One ticket is fine too!"

Coincidentally, his wife has been busy lately, so he'll watch a show first, then later accompany his wife for a second viewing.

He hurriedly drove to Jiang Wen's place, picked up the movie ticket, and didn't mention it.

However, on Shi Hang's side, a person strolled up to the entrance, and a man wearing sunglasses suddenly said, "Hey buddy, got any tickets?"

"Nonsense, of course I have a ticket; those without are lining up over there!"

"What kind of ticket?"

"Obviously it's IMAX 3D; this version has the best visuals, it's the real deal!"

"Are you selling this ticket?"

"I'm using it myself; why would I sell it?"

"Two thousand yuan, think about it?"

"Two thousand?"

Shi Hang was genuinely taken aback; he knew the film was hot and that IMAX 3D tickets were scarce, but spending two thousand yuan on a movie still exceeded his expectations.

"Not selling, not selling, cut the crap!"

"Hey, how about 2,200 yuan, consider it?"

Upon hearing that, Shi Hang quickened his pace and rushed into the cinema like he was escaping.

Looking around, the place was packed with people coming to see "Havoc in Heaven".

The crowd naturally consisted mostly of young people, but there were also many elderly and children.

【30】 After all, kids all love watching "Journey to the West"; it's a must-have summer program every year.

【31】 As for the elderly, they're more likely to come because they can understand it.

【32】 Really, if it were a romance or action film, it wouldn't hold as much appeal for them.

【33】 "Havoc in Heaven" is just fine; the story is easy to follow, and I heard the visual effects are quite novel, so they came to join the fun.

【34】 Shi Hang was extremely bored, mainly because all the seats in the lobby were taken, so he wandered around aimlessly, when he suddenly noticed a person wearing glasses who looked somewhat familiar.

【35】 "Old Zhang?"

【36】 The person's body trembled slightly, and he whispered, "Don't talk nonsense!"

【37】 Shi Hang laughed, "You actually came to watch? I remember you always had a critical attitude before!"

【38】 The one Shi Hang called "Old Zhang" is naturally "Mr. Six" Zhang Jingxiu.

【39】 Even before Jiang Heng filmed "The Lion's Camel Ridge", this person had spoken to the media, criticizing Wu Jing's portrayal of Sun Wukong.

【40】 After that, whenever Jiang Heng released a "Journey to the West"-type film, he would voice his opinion.

【41】 Shi Hang truly hadn't expected to run into him here.

【42】 Seeing Zhang Jingxiu not respond, Shi Hang smiled and said, "You won't deny that you're also drawn here by the 3D effects, wanting to see just how stunning they are, right?"

【43】 Zhang Jingxiu couldn't admit that, saying, "I'm just here to see if they've messed up the adaptation!"

【44】 Shi Hang chuckled, "Exactly, we can't ruin the classics!"

【45】 Although the two know each other, their relationship is really just average.

【46】 Seeing Zhang Jingxiu's standoffish demeanor, Shi Hang just couldn't be bothered to engage.

【47】 He wandered off elsewhere, pondering who might sit beside him during the screening, hoping it wouldn't be a beautiful girl!

【48】 Not long after entering and taking a seat, a big-bearded man walked over.

【49】 "Jiang Wu?"

【50】 "Shi Hang? What are you doing here!" Jiang Wu was quite puzzled.

【51】 Shi Hang laughed heartily, "Did your brother give it to you?"

【52】 "Yeah!"

【53】 Upon hearing that, Shi Hang was overjoyed.

【54】 Because so many people came to watch, the auditorium was noisy; the two exchanged a few pleasantries and then waited quietly.

【55】 When the dragon emblem appeared, they finally put on their 3D glasses.

【56】 "Hiss!"

【57】 "Whoa!"

【58】 When the image of Sun Wukong's dream— the mystical peaks of Lingtai Fangcun Mountain floating in midair—appeared, the audience couldn't help but gasp.

【59】 Indeed, since the birth of cinema, we've never seen such a realistic, shocking image; it truly left everyone dumbfounded.

After all, kids love to watch Journey to the West; it's an essential program every summer vacation.

Really, if it were a romance or action film, it wouldn't have that much appeal for them.

"Havoc in Heaven" is just fine; the story is easy to understand, and I heard the visual effects are quite novel, so they came to join the fun.

Shi Hang was extremely bored, mainly because all the seats in the lobby were taken, so he wandered around aimlessly, when he suddenly noticed a person wearing glasses who looked somewhat familiar.

Shi Hang was extremely bored, mainly because all the seats in the lobby were taken, so he wandered around aimlessly, when he suddenly felt that a person wearing glasses looked somewhat familiar.

That person's body trembled slightly, and he whispered, "Don't talk nonsense!"

Shi Hang laughed, "You actually came to watch? I remember you always had a critical attitude before!"

Shi Hang laughed, 'You actually came to watch too? I remember you always had a critical attitude before!'

Even before Jiang Heng filmed "The Lion's Camel Ridge", this person had spoken to the media, criticizing Wu Jing's portrayal of Sun Wukong.

Even before Jiang Heng filmed Lion Camel Mountain, this person had already spoken out to the media, criticizing Wu Jing's portrayal of Sun Wukong.

Afterwards, whenever a Journey to the West-type film starring Jiang Heng was released, he would always voice his opinion.

Seeing Zhang Jingxiu not respond, Shi Hang smiled and said, "You won't deny that you're also drawn here by the 3D effects, wanting to see just how stunning they are, right?"

Seeing Zhang Jinsi not responding, he smiled and said, 'You won't, you're also drawn here by the 3D effects, wanting to see just how shocking it is, right?'

Zhang Jinsi couldn't admit, 'I just came over to take a look, to see if they've recklessly altered it!'

Shi Hang chuckled, 'Exactly, we can't ruin the classics!'

Shi Hang saw Zhang Jingxiu's standoffish demeanor and just couldn't be bothered to engage.

He wandered off elsewhere, wondering who might sit beside him during the screening, hoping it wouldn't be a beautiful girl!

He wandered elsewhere, wondering who would be sitting next to him during the screening, hoping a pretty girl would end up there.

Not long after entering and taking a seat, he saw a big-bearded man walking over.

"Shi Hang? What are you doing here!" Jiang Wu was quite puzzled.

"Shi Hang? What are you doing here!" Jiang Wu was quite puzzled.

Shi Hang laughed heartily, 'Did your brother give it to you?'

Upon hearing that, Shi Hang was overjoyed.

Because so many people came to watch, the auditorium was noisy; the two exchanged a few pleasantries and then waited quietly.

Because too many people had come to watch, the theater was very noisy; the two exchanged a few pleasantries and then waited quietly.

Only when Long Biao appeared did they put on the 3D glasses.

"Whoa!"

When the image of Sun Wukong's dream— the mystical peaks of Lingtai Fangcun Mountain floating in midair—appeared, the audience couldn't help but gasp.

Indeed, since the birth of cinema, we've never seen such a realistic, shocking image; it truly left everyone dumbfounded.

The entire film runs two and a half hours, leaving the audience spellbound.

Wait line numbers may be off; we need to map correctly. Let's re-index based on provided lines:

The whole film was two and a half hours long, and the audience watching it were entranced and intoxicated.

There were those who forgot to use the toilet before entering and drank cola, yet they held in their urine, unwilling to miss a single frame.

After the movie ended, some audience members clapped, some stood up gazing at the big screen, hoping to see a post-credits scene.

Some people were so excited they told those nearby: "It's shocking, so shocking—this money was well spent; it's not wrong that I queued for hours to buy tickets!"

The girl beside him said in a coquettish voice: "Me, I want to watch it again, okay?"

Upon hearing that, the boy suddenly felt his legs go weak, recalling the hardship of queuing, and instantly regretted it.

But seeing his girlfriend's annoyed yet cute expression, he gritted his teeth and endured the pain, saying: "Okay!"

"Still want to watch the IMAX version!"

"Mm!"

Shi Hang standing nearby took in all this, already beginning to ponder how to write his film review.

He also ignored Jiang Wu beside him and drove home by himself.

He turned on the computer and began clacking away on the keyboard.

The 3D version of *Havoc in Heaven* is absolutely the most important film in the history of Chinese-language cinema, for it pioneered a new trend—Chinese-language films leading the global cinematic trend. More than ten years ago, this would have been unimaginable!

To be precise, before Director Jiang Heng appeared, it was unimaginable.

The film's plot structure does not differ greatly from the original.

Some think it lacks novelty, but in my view, that is precisely the film's strength.

The plot of the 1961 version animated film *Havoc in Heaven* basically follows the novel, and is regarded as the pinnacle of domestic animation.

For the film version, demanding innovation is required, otherwise it's hard to call it a classic; in my opinion, that's somewhat unfair.

Because although the film's main storyline remains unchanged, its core has been re-interpreted and reworked by Director Jiang Heng, convincing the audience.

Because it explains why the Jade Emperor ordered a monkey to guard the Peach Garden, why Sun Wukong, who was looked down upon by the heavenly gods before the Havoc in Heaven, upon embarking on the journey to fetch scriptures had already earned the friendship of the heavenly gods—if you have something to ask, you truly go up there!

Shi Hang wrote several thousand words in a flowing manner, then after finishing carefully revised it once more and submitted it to the Jingcheng Evening News.

Upon publication, it was quickly recognized by a broad readership.

Some netizens directly compiled this review and posted it on Douban, sparking widespread discussion.

"Haha, when I watched it, that was exactly my feeling—Sun Wukong became the 'settling accounts' Great Sage; no wonder the immortals, upon seeing Monkey King on the journey to fetch scriptures, were so polite!"

"Indeed, Monkey King was suppressed under Five Elements Mountain for five hundred years and not utter a single word!"

"Actually, at the ending, Monkey King wanted to say something, but was interrupted by the Buddha!"

"Looking at reality, those who speak the truth never end well!"

(End of chapter)