Chapter 343

Zhang Weiping had no idea about this, still immersed in the joy of expecting to make a big profit from "Three Shots That Startled the Court".

No listed names.

At the same time, he actively paid attention to information about other films, because as Jiang Heng's film shifted its release schedule, the number of films scheduled for the holiday season kept increasing, with several of them having box-office competitiveness.

Contains Jiang Heng. Also maybe holiday season box office but that's generic? Not in glossary.

Such as the December 18 release of "Legend of the White Snake", "The Sword and the Lute", "October Siege", and the December 24 release of "Orphan of Zhao", "Wind and Cloud 2".

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As for low-cost films like "No Man's Land" and "Lost in Thailand", Zhang Weiping didn't care at all about them.

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In his view, the most competitive film of the entire holiday season is undoubtedly the 3D special-effects mythological epic "Legend of the White Snake".

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The film not only features superstar Li Lianjie, but also popular young actor Wen Zhang in the lead role, with the female lead being "Star Girl" Huang Shengyi, plus a batch of Hong Kong stars making cameo appearances, and with 3D special effects, it is truly the "star of the holiday season".

Contains Li Lianjie, Wen Zhang, Xianggang. Also maybe Huang Shengyi (not in glossary). Also "Star Girl" is a term but not a name.

Moreover, Jiang Heng's upcoming film is also an adaptation of "Legend of the White Snake", making young audiences anticipate it even more.

Contains Jiang Heng.

"Legend of the White Snake" premiered in Beijing on the 13th, and at the event Li Lianjie was very active, extensively discussing his different experiences and methods of subduing demons in the film, and he said that this time Fahai lost to the White Snake.

Contains Li Lianjie.

And when talking about the fight scenes, he first said that aside from Yang Ziqiang's solid kung fu foundation, the rest were either temporary training before filming or had a dance background.

No listed names.

Perhaps this comment made the nearby actresses uncomfortable, so Li Lianjie softened his tone a bit, saying that for fight scenes it's enough to just look fiercely lethal; when fighting women, one must not make them feel pressured and must avoid hurting them.

Contains Li Lianjie.

When in Hollywood, a producer approached him and the first thing he said was, "You really need to take it easy; you can't hurt anyone, otherwise even just the insurance costs would exceed the movie's budget."

Contains Hollywood. Also maybe "producer" is generic.

Li Lianjie's comment is not wrong either; just like Zhou Billy, if he gets too into his acting and kicks someone unconscious with one foot, he'll surely be hated.

Contains Li Lianjie. Also Zhou Billy (not in glossary).

However, saying these things at the new film's press conference somewhat smacks of undermining or shifting blame.

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Because this is basically telling the media and audiences bluntly that the fight scenes in this film are just for show, completely incomparable to the old-school "punch-to-the-flesh" style.

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What, you filmed it like this? Because you were afraid of hurting the actresses!

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What if a nail broke or the skin got scraped? Yang Zhi, Huang Shengyi, and others would naturally be dissatisfied.

Contains Yang Zhi and Huang Shengyi.

Li Lianjie said these things at the press conference mainly because he harbored resentment.

Contains Li Lianjie.

Initially he only said he'd come to help with a cameo, but his role kept growing, and by the time of the film's promotion he had practically become the male lead—who would agree to that? He's only getting paid for a cameo, after all!

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Furthermore, judging by his experience, the filming of "Legend of the White Snake" was rushed, the script was rather ordinary, and it could easily turn into a flop; he might as well be shifting blame. And indeed, as he predicted, after its release the film got only a 4.5 rating on Douban, and its single-day box office was just over 20 million yuan.

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In the media, negative reviews poured in like a tide.

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The audience's biggest puzzlement is that, under Director Jiang Heng's push, Chinese-language special-effects blockbusters have become strong enough to conquer the international film market and go head-to-head with Hollywood blockbusters.

Contains Jiang Heng and Hollywood.

How dare you bring out such garbage special effects and embarrass yourself?

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If it were only the special effects that were lacking but the story was good, that would be forgivable.

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The problem is that the plot is even worse—it's basically lacking everything.

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It's not that there's nothing at all; at least Li Lianjie's fame is considerable, but his portrayal of Fahai falls far short of Zhao Wenzhuo's version, with nothing memorable about it.

Contains Li Lianjie. Also Zhao Wenzhuo.

By now, audiences are increasingly anticipating Jiang Heng's "Legend of the White Snake: Origins".

Contains Jiang Heng.

In previous years at this time, one could already see Jiang Heng's new film, but now we have to wait nearly two months, which is really frustrating for audiences.

Contains Jiang Heng.

I really don't know what the great director Jiang is busy with or thinking about; how did his project get moved to the Spring Festival slot out of the blue?

Contains Jiang Heng.

However, it is said that Jiang Heng attended the premiere of "Lost in Thailand" in full dress on the 28th.

Contains Jiang Heng.

Because it's a mid-low budget film, Broad Sodium Film Industry naturally wouldn't allocate much money for promotion; the ceremony was held at the China Film Red cinema chain's Five Pine Trees Store, with no red carpet, just interviews with the main creators and a screening event.

Contains Broad Sodium Film Industry. Also China Film Red, possibly a cinema chain; though not in the glossary, it's a name, so we'll include China Film Red. Also Five Pine Trees Store, a place name, so we'll include Five Pine Trees Store.

Moreover, as one of the film's participants, Jiang Heng received special attention from media reporters, with over eighty percent of the topics revolving around him. Jiang Heng first declared that he was merely a cameo appearance, with very little screen time.

Contains Jiang Heng.

The reason he agreed to cameo in this low-budget film is partly due to an invitation from his old friend Yu Dong, but mainly because the film's script is exceptionally well written.

Contains Yu Dong.

"Lost in Thailand" is a film that can make people laugh until they cry while also provoking deep thought; it will open up new paths for Chinese comedy films. Moreover, Xu Zheng and Wang Baobei are actors I have high hopes for, and I believe they will produce many more outstanding works in the future!

Contains Xu Zheng and Wang Baobei.

As a top-tier figure in the Chinese-language entertainment industry and an internationally renowned director, Jiang Heng's remarks still carry considerable weight.

Contains Jiang Heng.

Upon hearing this, Bald Xu and Wang Baobei's eyes lit up with excitement.

Contains Xu Guangtou and Wang Baobei.

As a guest attendee

Contains Ning Hao.

After the interview ended, Ning Hao went over to Jiang Heng's side and exchanged a few pleasantries.

Contains Ning Hao and Jiang Heng.

Jiang Heng asked him what he had been busy with lately; Ning Hao sighed and said, "Don't even mention it—originally 'No Man's Land' was set to get approval, but in the end it still wasn't passed."

Contains Jiang Heng and Ning Hao.

Jiang Heng said, "So we still have to make revisions?"

Contains Jiang Heng.

"Well, the film bureau said there isn't a single good character in the whole movie!"

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After saying that, Ning Hao sighed, "It's already been filmed like this—how can we change it?"

Contains Ning Hao.

Jiang Heng laughed, "That's not hard—just pick a character and let him ultimately gain redemption and become a good guy!"

Contains Jiang Heng.

"You mean?"

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Jiang Heng laughed, "What am I saying? I haven't even seen your film 'No Man's Land'!"

Contains Jiang Heng.

Ning Hao gave a hehe laugh and said, "I know how to fix it now!"

Contains Ning Hao.

The Broad Sodium Film Industry version of "Person in the Lost Journey" is obviously very successful, and because of Jiang Heng's cameo, the film's fame is extremely high.

Contains the Broad Sodium Film Industry version and Jiang Heng. Also, "Broad Sodium Film Industry version" refers to the Broad Sodium Film Industry; we'll include Broad Sodium Film Industry.

On its opening day, January 1st, it grossed 11.79 million yuan, instantly shocking the industry.

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Because the total investment in "Person in the Lost Journey" was very small—only 7 million yuan.

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As a result, on the day of release, the box office far exceeded the production cost—this is going to be a huge profit!

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What's even more pleasing is that the film scored 7.6 on Douban, making it not just a qualified work but barely worthy of being called a masterpiece.

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Exceeding 100 million yuan in box office is a certainty, and it might even reach 200 million.

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The producers of several big holiday-season films this year are envious to the point of being unable to bear it.

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Because these films' box office results are mostly not ideal.

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The most typical example is naturally "The Legend of the White Snake": with a production cost of 150 million yuan, the mainland box office is projected to be around 150 million based on current trends, which is rather awkward.

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If calculated by mainland box office alone, it would suffer a huge loss; fortunately, overseas rights can still be sold.

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The problem is that overseas audiences, having been repeatedly exposed to Hollywood blockbusters and Jiang Heng's effects-heavy films, find "The Legend of the White Snake"—a movie with cheap, five-cent-like effects—unappealing, so foreign distributors only offer extremely low prices.

Contains Hollywood and Jiang Heng.

A loss, it's definitely going to lose money!

No listed names.

(End of chapter)