Author | Meat floss
Two weeks before the Spring Festival, "The Water gate bridge of Chosin Lake" (hereinafter referred to as "Water gate bridge") was officially announced to join the Spring Festival file as the last film.
On the day of the finalization, some viewers said on the Internet: It is not "Watergate Bridge" that needs the Spring Festival file, but the Spring Festival file that needs "Watergate Bridge". Yu Dong agrees with this statement, "The Spring Festival file needs a super blockbuster, set a new record with other films, and make a good start for 2022 to boost the morale of the industry." ”
There are traces of this expectation and confidence. As of press time, in the five days of release, the box office of "Watergate Bridge" has exceeded 2.2 billion. More confidence comes from last year's "Changjin Lake", 5.77 billion box office broke the record maintained by "Wolf Warrior 2" for many years, becoming the box office champion in the history of Chinese films.
Looking back at the past three years, the birth of these two super blockbusters "tossed" for three winters, starting and stopping shooting in 2019, restarting in 2020, and re-shooting again in 2021, although this answer sheet was not easy to hand over, its influence has proved that it exceeds the significance of ordinary movies: it reflects the creative power and industrial level beyond Hollywood, attracts audiences back to the theater and pulls the market market...
Therefore, there are many topics worth exploring: where is the upgrade of "Watergate Bridge" as a sequel? How does it do it to the extreme? What does this series mean for the market and for Bona? On the eve of the film's release, Entertainment Capital found the answer through a conversation with Yu Dong, the chief producer and chairman of Bona Pictures.
1. Upgrade
Until the official unveiling of "Watergate Bridge", audiences have been curious about the relationship between the two films, and even before that, even its existence was rumored.
Last year, xiao Yu got the answer when he asked Yu Dong for verification: the story of the seven companies is not over, and there are new tasks waiting for them.
Now it seems that the task is to go to the Watergate Bridge for reinforcements. In "Chosin Lake", the seven companies led by company commander Wu Qianli entered Korea together with the large troops of the volunteer army and experienced many rounds of fighting: from the air raids by the US army on the Yalu River and the rocky beach, to the encounters in the mid-levels of people's homes, and then repelled the "Polar Bear Regiment" in Xinxingli.
Arriving at the Watergate Bridge, the U.S. 1st Marine Division continued to evacuate to Xingnan Port, where the Pratunam Bridge was their only way, and the command decided to block its retreat here. At this point, seven are connected to the order: reinforcement of the Ninth Company, blowing up the Watergate Bridge, which is also the core event of the entire film. The creators agreed that the sequel had been upgraded in every way.
First of all, unlike the previous many places, this battle focused on the Watergate Bridge. However, due to the huge disparity in strength, every time it is bombed, the US military will repair the bridge, so the bombing of the bridge has been carried out three times, and each time it is a smart take, and as the soldiers continue to reduce the number of personnel, the strategy adopted is different.
Therefore, whether it is the tactical design of the battle or the presentation of the scene, "Watergate Bridge" has a strong watchability as a war film. Yu Dong told Xiaoyu that in addition to being partly directed by Chen Kaige and Lin Chaoxian, more than 90% of the film's scenes were filmed by Xu Ke. Xu Ke has filmed "Wise Tiger Mountain", which also involves war scenes in ice and snow environments, and its aesthetic and visual style are also reflected in "Watergate Bridge".
In addition to the shock of the battle, another important point of the film is the escalation and progression of emotions.
Yu Dong hinted that the tragic mood and ending were laid out at the beginning, when the Seventh Company met the commander of the artillery battalion played by Geng Le, he made everyone fall silent with one sentence, "What about Old Lei? ”
Then the seven companies came to the Watergate Bridge, although the war continued to escalate, they always showed a tenacious fighting spirit in desperate situations, according to Tanziwei's plan, the seven companies of soldiers bombed the bridge in three ways: sneak attack on the headquarters, control the bridge deck and disperse enemy fire, and wait for the opportunity to explode in the pump room. But inevitably, what happened in parallel with the three-blown Watergate Bridge was a succession of sacrifices. From Pinghe, Yu Congrong, Meisheng to Wu Qianli, in the explosion and combustion again and again, everyone's life is coming to an end in ice and fire, and the emotions revealed in the film have gradually reached a climax.
In the small group of seven companies, the most worthy of the audience's attention are the Wu Qianli and Wu Wanli brothers. From "Chosin Lake" to "Watergate Bridge", the relationship between the two brothers has undergone subtle changes, and Wu Wanli has a complete character arc.
There are two details in the two movies that can form a contrast and echo, Yu Dong directly recited the lines in it, "One can be seen in the trailer of "Watergate Bridge", when the bridge was about to explode, Wu Qianli told his brother, 'Before, I didn't let you run around was afraid that you would cause trouble, today, how you want to run and how to fly, you decide by yourself'. On the train to North Korea, he said to his brother, 'An egg, if it is knocked out from the outside, is destined to be eaten.' If you peck from the inside, it may be an eagle'. ”
After tempering in the battlefield, Wu Wanli was no longer the recruit egg who had been repeatedly told by Lei Gong to follow his brother, and after everything was over, only this eagle flew home.
Second, the extreme
Four years ago, when "Red Sea Action" became the box office crown on the third day of the Chinese New Year, it not only made Yu Dong burst into tears, but also brought an inspiration: as long as the film is done well, no matter what the schedule, the audience will definitely be there and will support it.
So he knows that there is only one way for a big production like "Chosin Lake", that is, to maximize expression, "to achieve the extreme, I don't believe that the audience does not watch." "Behind the extreme expression is a creation that strives to leave no regrets in all aspects.
Yu Dong told Xiaoyu that he once wanted to set "Watergate Bridge" on October 25 last year.
It was the anniversary of the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea, and it was also a crucial stage in the box office climb after the release of "Chosin Lake", only five days away from October 20, when it broke through the 5 billion mark. After watching "Chosin Lake" and then watching "Watergate Bridge", or vice versa, the audience can get a complete viewing experience. From the perspective of distribution, the way the two films are screened consecutively is also very fresh.
It's also completely timely, because the content of both films was filmed before May last year. As for "Watergate Bridge", Yu Dong recalled, "At that time, it was all done, and it was possible to hand over the film." "If I am trying to make quick money, that plan is feasible, but many of the emotions in the previous episode continue to the next episode and regrets, and when the winter is filmed and added, it will be more intense and more moving." ”
Based on these considerations, the decision was made to supplement the shooting. It is understood that this shooting is mainly the junction of the two films, such as the reason why Qilian wants to go to the Watergate Bridge, and how to go. Before the film was finalized, the common saying on the Internet was that the crew remade for 12 days. In this regard, Yu Dong corrected, "This is actually inaccurate, from the time I went to visit the class to the final finishing, it was a total of 12 days, but we had been shooting for a month and a half before that, and it was done at the end of October." ”
It is said that film is the art of regret, and reshoot can reduce regret to a certain extent, but it is also a luxurious and willful act. Yu Dong said with a smile, "In the future, when I give classes to the students of the film school, I will talk about this truth, only when the boss understands movies, he will be willing to take money to make up for it." If there is enough investment in the movie, any little regret will not pass this hurdle in the heart. ”
The reason is very simple, this not only involves the difficulty of specific implementation, such as recalling the main creator and staff, coordinating the schedule, more importantly, as an investment, the film means that the cost is controllable at the moment of shutdown, and the reshoot means that the money has to be taken out, and the same is true for "Watergate Bridge".
Fortunately, in the face of such a movie, every actor is willing to come back, Yu Dong joked, "Everyone is obliged, including Lei Gong wants to come back to see it." "Like before the filming was stopped and started, chased by the epidemic, the crew could not continue to shoot in the previous filming location - Dandong is not OK, Dalian had an epidemic at that time, dispatching thousands of extras will bring pressure to the local epidemic prevention, Hebei can not go back, with the Winter Olympics into the 100-day countdown, Zhangjiakou control is very strict." Finally, after a gap of half a year and another winter, the crew reunited in Hengdian.
In addition to reshooting, the pursuit of the ultimate creative concept is also reflected in other production links.
For example, the reproduction and construction of the main scene of the Watergate Bridge, the real Watergate Bridge is located 5.6 kilometers south of Gutuli, not the traditional sense of the bridge between the two sides, but a dam. The pump house is attached to the cliff, with four long water pipes protruding from the bottom, and the top of the dam doubles as a bridge deck for road transport, which is built between two mountains and is also a passage for the retreat of the US army.
Executive producer Huang Jianxin mentioned in an interview with the media that he could not find the terrain that matched the data record, and could only dig up the mountain on the set, and it took several months to launch the corresponding terrain, and then began to set up the scene. "Now it has become an important tourist attraction in the desert, and it can be seen and photographed again." Yu Dong said.
If there are still any regrets left in the movie, the only thing Yu Dong can think of is the casting of MacArthur, Smith and other US troops.
If you are a more well-known foreign actor, you will be more recognizable to the audience and the performance will be more exquisite. In fact, he has invited qualified people, the cost can be covered, and the other party is willing to participate, but the inconvenience caused by the epidemic has made this plan abandoned.
3. Nodes
It can be said that the "Chosin Lake" series is a minority in the film, and on many levels it has a nodular significance beyond ordinary movies.
Yu Dong stressed many times on different occasions that it set a record for the largest number of Chinese film participants, with more than 12,000 staff in the early and late stages and more than 70,000 group performances, so the rolling of the end credits was as long as 7 and a half minutes, requiring two ending songs. And from 2019 to 2021, its creation took three years, three winters, and it also became a kind of scale for those who are deeply involved.
At the New Year press conference on the eve of the screening, Huang Jianxin wore the crew's overalls jacket, and he told everyone that he also had a thicker cotton jacket, from the inside to the outside, the crew's overalls spanned the four seasons of the year. As a producer, he needs to go back and forth between the crews of the three directors, leaving a lot of freeze-frame pictures on the set in his heart, "What Kaige said to me, turning back and shouting 'Jianxin', I remembered, go to Xu Kena, he stared at me and asked me 'what do you think about this question', I remembered again, Chaoxian is the same, so a lot of pictures are frozen in the heart, which is very important." ”
Yu Dong previously described the filming of the "Chosin Lake" series as "an attempt not to allow failure", and the approach that is more in line with the general environment is actually "shrinking the front", but Bona chose to go all out.
There is also director Xu Ke, who was filmed on the set and personally demonstrated the actions to the actors in the snow, and his working state moved many audiences. This is also the most touching and grateful point for Yu Dong, "He was born in 1950, and in the past three years, he has been filming from the age of 69 to 72 years old. After a long period of investment and creation, such an answer sheet was handed over in this year, and the special significance of the film to Xu Ke is self-evident.
Jumping out of the individual level and placing the "Chosin Lake" series in the current film market and industry has also written a key stroke.
In 2020, the film and television industry was severely impacted by the epidemic, and the overall film market shrank, with the annual box office only 20.3 billion. Last year was the first year of resuming work and resuming production, and at this time, it is necessary to attract audiences back to the theater and boost the morale of the industry, and the role of "Chosin Lake" lies in this. In 2021, the box office exceeded 47.2 billion, recovering to 74% of the pre-epidemic period, and the single film "Chosin Lake" won 5.77 billion and became the first in film history.
This year, "Watergate Bridge" handed over the baton again. Yu Dong said, "In fact, it is okay to go early, but I think the Spring Festival is a bigger period, and a super blockbuster is needed to make a good start this year." On the day of the finalization, I saw a sentence on the Internet that said it very well, 'It's not that "Watergate Bridge" needs the Spring Festival file, it is the Spring Festival file that needs "Watergate Bridge".' ”
Although the latest to join the Spring Festival file, but the official announcement after the pre-sale results led the way, more importantly, "Watergate Bridge" did drive the market, "the number of other films in the same period of the cat's eye want to see, all on the original basis rose three times." The data released by the Maoyan Research Institute confirms this, and since January 13, "Watergate Bridge" has jumped to the top spot, and the trend of other films has shown a significant upward trend.
At the same time, the "Chosin Lake" series is also an all-round embodiment of the creative strength and industrial level of Chinese films. On the one hand, the film gathered three directors Chen Kaige, Lin Chaoxian and Xu Ke, and mobilized a large-scale crew to complete all the shooting after three winters. On the other hand, a total of 86 companies are involved in post-production, and more than 95% of the special effects are done in China. At the beginning of the film's preparation, Yu Dong made it clear that the principle of "not using any information shots" - only the two-minute shot of the Incheon landing was made for 10 months, which in his view is the way to tell the story in the language of modern cinema.
Therefore, to paraphrase the audience's sentence "The Spring Festival file needs "Watergate Bridge"", these can make people conclude that the film market needs the "Chosin Lake" series.
What is more certain is that it is also a critical node for Boehner.
Later, movies such as the box office proved to be worth the risk. He won the "2021 China Economic Person of the Year" New Talent Award last year, he told Xiaoyu that this is an extremely rare honor for entrepreneurs in the cultural industry, and one sentence in the award comment impressed him: he led Bona Pictures to play a turnaround battle in the cold winter of the industry.
This turnaround battle also gave him a lot of confidence, and when looking at this counter-trend breakthrough, he can also broaden his horizons in a longer way. "Chosin Lake" was only released in the mainland, and the 5.77 billion box office was recycled in the single market, excluding Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan and overseas regions. Relatively speaking, the resumption of work and production in Western film countries is much slower.
At this time, can Chinese films, especially the main narrative represented by "Changjin Lake", go to the world? He's also thinking and pushing for it.
So next, "Watergate Bridge" will be released in North America and Australia on February 11; if there is a chance, Bona hopes to launch a 5-hour and 40-minute hardcover version of "Chosin Lake".
Looking back at the birth of "Chosin Lake" and its achievements, Yu Dong sighed, "I am very happy, I think I have crossed a pass and climbed a mountain again. At the same time, he also admitted that it is not easy to create this series, "You can't go anywhere, you have to isolate when you go out and come back, and you can't get sick, otherwise you will be involved in a lot of people who fight with you." Therefore, in addition to the third part of the "China Victory" trilogy, "No Name", there will also be relatively lightweight works to meet the audience in the future, such as "Ordinary Heroes" directed by Chen Guohui.
But there is no doubt that the growth brought about by this process will still attract Yu Dong to continue to move forward, because of the filmmaker's sense of mission, and because of the most universal truth, "Always a mountain is higher than a mountain, so it can't stop." ”
The most universal truth, "Always a mountain is higher than a mountain, so you can't stop." ”