r18novel Chapter 7 Script
Chapter 7 Script
Intersection of Nathan Road and Bute Street, Mong Kok, Kowloon.
The Golden Princess Cinemas' Rise Theatre is located here.
The Ritz-Carlton Theatre is a highly renowned top-tier theatre in Hong Kong and the flagship of the Golden Princess Theatres chain.
Back then, Lei Juekun built the Golden Princess Cinema Circuit, which rivaled Shaw Brothers and Golden Harvest, based on the three leading cinemas: Lisheng, Lesheng, and Kaisheng.
In 1987, Golden Princess Cinemas shareholders Chen Rongmei and Feng Bingzhong established their own cinema chain, New Treasure Cinemas, and also introduced the design of North American multiplex cinemas.
To adapt to the market, Golden Princess Cinemas has also modernized its cinemas.
The Lisheng Theatre was the focus of the renovation, with upgrades to its sound system, projection equipment, and seating.
However, Lei Juekun did not transform it into a multiplex cinema, but instead built it into a luxury cinema with only one large screening room.
The original Lisheng Theatre had nearly 700 seats, but after the renovation, it only has 580 seats.
However, with a more reasonable layout, the audience can have a better movie-watching experience.
Since its renovation, the Lisheng Theatre has been a top choice for many film premieres.
Many films, even if they are not shown in Golden Princess theaters, will choose to premiere at Lisheng Theater.
The distributor of "The Smiling, Proud Wanderer" is Golden Princess, so the premiere was naturally held at RTV.
On the evening of April 2nd, the Lisheng Theater was bustling with activity and glittering with stars.
The film stars Xu Guanjie, Ye Tong, Zhang Xueyou, and Zhang Min, and is directed by Xu Ke, Cheng Xiaodong, Ann Hui, and Li Huimin.
The other members of the Seven Wonders of New City were also invited.
The new city is now defunct in name only, and with no more competition for interests, the relationships among the members have actually improved.
With the support of the production company, Longxiang Film Industry, Taiwanese celebrities such as Brigitte Lin, Chin Hsiang-lin, Wong Tsu-hsien, and Hu Hui-chung also came to show their support.
Finally, there were many celebrity guests, well-known film critics in the industry, and senior professional journalists from major media outlets.
Tang Long is nineteen years old this year, and when he stands, he looks like a lackey.
In this setting, Cheng Xiaodong's status wasn't particularly high, let alone his.
If he hadn't been standing next to Cheng Xiaodong, no one would have given him a second glance.
Cheng Xiaodong noticed the change in Tang Long's eyes and smiled:
"Were you provoked?"
"A little."
"I used to think you were good at fighting and handsome, but after filming 'A Chinese Ghost Story 2,' I discovered that your abilities are far more than that."
Work hard! Capable people always succeed, and sooner or later you'll be able to become the center of attention just like them.
The filming of "A Chinese Ghost Story 2" over the past month has greatly elevated Tang Long's status in his mind.
With a solid foundation and hard work, his role as Zuo Qianhu further showcases his talent in film.
Cheng Xiaodong has been in the film industry for over twenty years, and he knows very well that Tang Long can quickly become famous as long as someone promotes him.
As for how famous he can become, that depends on luck and his own destiny.
Cheng Xiaodong was willing to act as a mentor and give him a push; otherwise, he wouldn't have brought him here today to broaden his horizons.
After the interviews with the film's creators, the film began to play.
Swordsman is hailed as the pioneering work of the new martial arts film, and its "newness" lies in its comprehensive innovation of the martial arts genre.
The world of traditional martial arts films is a romantic utopia of chivalry, justice, and love between heroes and heroines.
The martial arts choreography is a realistic style that is hard-hitting and straightforward.
The new martial arts films reveal a sharper and colder theme:
The essence of the martial arts world is power struggles.
The action design has shifted towards a free and unrestrained style, creating a visual spectacle that is more in line with the image of martial arts in everyone's mind.
The new martial arts films have completely broken away from the established patterns of previous martial arts films in terms of core spirit, aesthetic style and production concept.
Both the theme and the aesthetic design of "The Smiling, Proud Wanderer" are completely different from previous martial arts films.
Wong Jim's "A Laughter in the Vast Sea" features bold lyrics, a vast melody, and a profound artistic conception, adding a great touch to the film.
Tang Long watched Xu Guanjie in the movie move with effortless grace, his Dugu Nine Swords imbuing violence with poetry.
He did all of these things.
He couldn't help but touch his right shoulder, where there were still two steel nails.
Sitting here made him understand even more:
Some people live a carefree life, while others risk their lives for that fleeting shadow of a leap into the air.
The heroic spirit on the silver screen is the result of countless stuntmen suffering injuries along the way.
As the movie ended, Tang Long took a deep breath and then slowly exhaled.
Longxiang Pictures is a big company with deep pockets; they even have a premiere party after the movie ends.
Tang Long did not follow them; for him at the moment, this circle was too high a level.
There's no point in him going.
The filming of "A Chinese Ghost Story 2" continued the next day.
Tang Long no longer only focuses on how the actors perform, but also observes how the entire crew operates effectively.
He spent more time with Cheng Xiaodong, watching how he managed the crew, how he instructed the actors, and even how he designed action sequences.
Cheng Xiaodong noticed Tang Long's changes and was pleased to see them.
He would patiently answer any questions Tang Long asked.
Time flew by as Tang Long immersed himself in his studies, and on April 10th, filming for "A Chinese Ghost Story 2" wrapped up.
"Swordsman" has been in theaters for a week and has grossed more than eight million Hong Kong dollars.
The results are not bad, but compared to the film's investment of nearly 40 million Hong Kong dollars, the box office is somewhat lacking.
Xu Ke and King Hu had serious ideological conflicts, which led to the latter's angry withdrawal.
Xu Ke significantly cut out the footage that King Hu had already shot and carried out a large amount of reshoots and retakes.
This is equivalent to filming twice, which directly led to a sharp increase in production costs.
Because of the tight schedule, Tsui Hark invited five directors to co-direct with him.
This resulted in disjointed plot developments, somewhat messy editing, and obvious signs of patchwork, affecting the flow of the story.
Some details are also a bit rough, and although the action design is graceful, it seems a bit simple and monotonous, lacking variety.
Despite being a "new" film, "The Smiling, Proud Wanderer" has received somewhat polarized reviews.
However, despite its unavoidable flaws, the film's artistic charm, intellectual depth, and chivalrous spirit far surpass those of traditional martial arts films.
Film Biweekly gave the most objective review:
A classic work with its flaws.
The film was eventually shown for twenty days, grossing HK$16.05 million.
Even with revenue from other regions, it's still difficult for the producers to recoup their costs.
Of course, this is not something Tang Long needs to worry about; even if they make money, they won't share any with him.
After filming wrapped on "A Chinese Ghost Story 2", he invited Jin Xingxian to give him a lesson.
This time, the training wasn't as rushed as before. He planned to learn how to act systematically, rather than just learning some techniques.
Besides studying, Tang Long began writing his own screenplays.
After filming "A Chinese Ghost Story II" and the release of "Swordsman", he had an even stronger desire to become famous.
He was too eager to improve.
On the last day of April, Tang Long brought the results of his creative work over the past two weeks to Cheng Xiaodong.