Text | Ling Hu Boguang
As we all know, with the popularity of "The Wandering Earth 2", the extended analysis of this film can be said to be overwhelming, including director Guo Fan. His influence on Chinese science fiction films, China's film and television industry, and Chinese pop culture has been analyzed by Bo Guangjun countless manuscripts.
But when we talk about Guo Fan's position in the Chinese directing industry after "The Wandering Earth 2", there are quite a few differences.
Some netizens on a network platform compared Guo Fan and Nolan, probably because Nolan made the sci-fi blockbuster "Interstellar", and "The Wandering Earth 2" was released, and netizens often compared the two movies, after all, they are surgical fiction blockbusters in this decade.
Some netizens also said that Guo Fan is the successor of Zhang Yimou, because "The Wandering Earth 2" and the same movie "Manjiang Hong" are inseparable, and Zhang Yimou's influence on domestic films is needless to say. Hong Kong director Tsui Hark is the same reason, all of which have an impact on the Chinese film industry.
However, I believe that many netizens have seen Guo Fan's status in the Chinese director's industry, probably the Chinese version of George Lucas, or Cameron's situation? Cameron is also clear to most ordinary people, so who is this George Lucas, didn't he make a "Star Wars" series?
What is the difference between a literary film, a genre film and a commercial blockbuster? Let's look at Nolan
I have always said that if films are divided into three categories, literary films, genre films and commercial blockbusters. Literary films are equivalent to basic science exploring the frontier of film art, genre films are equivalent to applying science to explore the frontier of film use, and commercial blockbusters are commercializing genre films.
This literary film usually has to be excluded, because the big directors listed above are not literary film directors in the strict sense, so what is the difference between genre film directors and commercial genre blockbuster directors?
Strictly speaking, this difference is not too big, the breakthrough of genre film directors for films is usually still breakthroughs in art composition, shot scheduling, narrative structure, and then to light and shadow, service and soundtrack, and then affect the shooting method of similar types of films.
If you want to say that commercial blockbusters cannot live without these things, for ordinary people, it seems that the use of special effects technology is the most obvious, then add special effects technology, and then lead the shooting of similar commercial blockbusters in the world.
Why Hollywood blockbusters in the half century after the 70s are powerful, I think it is that the author-type director of genre films + commercial special effects blockbusters is too strong. Why are Hollywood movies getting worse after 2010? Marvel DC's kind of commercial special effects films that blindly entertain and strongly crowd out author-type movies is one of the main reasons.
Far away, Guo Fan is the least like Nolan, because Nolan is following Spielberg's path. It has its own pursuit in the construction of genre film style art. And use Hollywood's powerful film and television industry to try to make breakthroughs in various types of blockbusters, and deliver their own genre masterpieces every time.
But Nolan's level is not as good as Spielberg's, and his is a commercial blockbuster, not a commercial blockbuster. So far, in addition to the super-British movie "Batman" series, Nolan movies have relatively limited influence on other directors, probably because Superhero has always been only a commercial entertainment film, and it is not deeply constructed in genre blockbusters.
Nolan's "Batman" series was made as a cop film, just as the best Marvel movies on the Internet are often nominated for "Captain America 2", because this film is made according to the agent action type blockbuster such as "Spy".
The peak of simple superhero entertainment films is probably "Iron Man", "Guardians of the Galaxy", "Avengers 34" and the like.
It's really not that I belittle Nolan, Nolan's "Inception" has always been controversial to copy Japanese director Toshi Ima's "Red Hot Chili Peppers". Imamin died too early and only made 4 feature films. But his films' narratives such as the relationship between man and destiny, the use of human nature in society, unique montage techniques, dreams and feminism have influenced many world-class directors.
For example, Darren Aronofsky, the Hollywood director of "Requiem for a Dream" and "Black Swan", is (the director does not admit it yet). The two films copy the multiple storyboards, camera processing, narrative text, and so on of "The Unhemp Buya" intact.
The director of the 2017 Oscar for Best Picture "Moonlight Boy" was deeply influenced by Wong Kar-wai. The text narrative, storyboard composition, lens atmosphere, etc. are simply copied, of course, this belongs to the example of a literary film director influencing a literary film rookie director.
From Star Wars to Avatar? Who is the first person in the Hollywood film and television industry?
Nolan's best film is still the first suspense film "Memory Fragments", and then the super-British movie "Batman Trilogy" deconstructs it with a genre blockbuster method, which can be described as standing out in entertainment-based superhero movies. There are very few superhero movies that can be compared except for Zack Schneider's "Watchmen".
Nolan's other commercial blockbusters, whether it is a breakthrough in the angle of genre films, or the influence of commercial blockbusters are one notch worse, maybe more than one gear.
For example, Nolan has the sci-fi film "Interstellar", Spielberg's "Third Floor Contact", "ET Alien" and "Artificial Intelligence" are all top works in the history of science fiction. I've always felt that "Interstellar" is probably on par with Spielberg's "Minority Report" and "Ready Player One".
"Creed" is similar to "War of the Worlds", and it is a work that is not ranked well.
Nolan has the war film "Dunkirk", Spielberg has "Saving Private Ryan", and the literary war film "Schindler's List". Nolan's "Oppenheimer" awaiting release is a biopic, Spielberg has The Washington Post, Lincoln, and many others.
This one, like Spielberg, challenges a variety of styles of commercial blockbusters, and has a huge influence on another director is Ridley Scott.
Western costume epic blockbusters include "Celestial Dynasty", and costume action films include "Gladiator". Science fiction films include "Silver Killer" and "Alien", and after 2010, there are "Prometheus" and "The Martian".
War films have "Black Hawk Down", suspense crime films have "Hannibal", gangster films have "American Gangsters" and so on, is this director too strong.
Spielberg and Ridley Scott inherited their predecessors Kubrick, and the sci-fi films include "2001: A Space Odyssey", horror films such as "The Shining", war films with "Full Metal Shell", social human science fiction films with "A Clockwork Orange" and so on, so he is known as the closest person to God, you can understand.
There are also two types of Hollywood directors of this period, one is a big director who has a lot of influence in stylized genre films, but has achieved less success in commercial blockbusters (some directors challenge different styles of genre films, and some directors focus on a certain genre).
For example, Coppola's biggest influence is the "Godfather" series, and the war film "Apocalypse Now", Martin Scorsese for gangster movies, police movies and crime films, similar but obviously different directions Coen brothers.
For David Fincher, David Lynch, who influenced suspense and crime films, their predecessor is Hitchcock.
For Tim Burton of gothic movies and Western monster movies, Guillermo del Toro, one of the three masters of Mexico who is similar but has a different direction, there are many big directors of the same genre, such as Quentin and Guy Ritchie with multi-line narratives and so on.
After "The Wandering Earth 2", can Guo Fan's status challenge Cameron? Netizen: It's still a little suspenseful
The second category is pure commercial special effects blockbusters, whose films have a significant impact on the narrative structure, film aesthetics, film text and genre film expression of genre films. At the same time, the influence of the film industry is the same, and even the great success has a profound impact on commercial films around the world.
I don't know if it's a coincidence or doom, these directors are best known for only one genre blockbuster series, challenging other types of blockbusters can not be said to fail, but compared with that genre series of masterpieces, the gap is far away, I think their commercial type blockbuster level is in the middle of the world, but the director's status is slightly inferior.
For example, the Peter Jackson and Wachowski sisters who slightly lost, the former "Lord of the Rings" and "The Hobbit" series are Western epic fantasy eternal masterpieces, and the influence is also very far-reaching, "King Kong" is also good but poor. The latter "Matrix" series is the same, and later there are "Cloud Atlas" and "Super Sense Killer" but still lackluster.
The first American technology flow director is George Lucas of the "Star Wars" series, and Cameron of the "Alien 2", "Terminator" series, "Titanic" and "Avatar" series.
This is not a deliberate promotion of them, Cameron is mainly a long enough career, from the 80s "Terminator" to 2008 "Avatar" has been leading the revolution of film industry technology, other similar big directors have not done, Chinese films only Tsui Hark is similar.
Cameron's previous position is George Lucas of "Star Wars", and he is the best at this series. Why does "Star Wars" have a high status in the United States, you can search for it, not because you like it or not.
PS: I believe that at this time, someone should understand why Spielberg is known as Hollywood, he is a literary film masterpiece, a genre film masterpiece, and "Indiana Jones", "Jaws" and "Jurassic Park" three masterpieces that have led the world commercial blockbusters for decades, all invincible.
PS2: I believe you should also understand why these big directors have successively criticized movies like Marvel.
Tsui Hark Zhang Yimou, Lucas or Cameron? What is Guo Fan's status in the Chinese directorial industry
The most abundant genre style of blockbusters among mainland directors in the early days was Zhang Jin, and Spielberg's generation was still Zhang Yimou, and the literary and art films in the first ten years were led by "Red Sorghum", and after "Heroes" in 2002, they led costume commercial blockbusters, but they have not been popular since then.
The war film "Jinling Thirteen" is still a classic, and "Three Guns" and "The Great Wall" are very failures. Later, "Shadow", "On the Cliff", "Sniper", "Man Jiang Hong", including "Rock Solid" that is not on Yang, is still a bit of a stylized pursuit of commercial genre films, influence is not good.
Hong Kong director is Tsui Hark, he has led commercial blockbusters such as "New Dragon Gate Inn" and "Smiling Rivers and Lakes" series, martial arts films of "Wong Fei Hong" series, fantasy films of "Qiannu Ghost" and "Green Snake", and then to "Shushan" fairy blockbusters. This genre crossover is not as far as Hollywood directors.
After 2010, the "Di Renjie" series, "Dragon Gate Flying Armor" is also a costume film, and the only genre that spans the big is the war film "Outsmart the Tiger Mountain", although Tsui Hark made it as a modern martial arts film.
Hong Kong world-class blockbuster directors at the same time, Hu Jinquan, Zhang Che for early martial arts films, Bruce Lee for kung fu films; John Woo is for gunfight movies, To Qifeng's is for crime movies and gangster movies, Jackie Chan is for action movies, and so on.
The closest Chinese director is Ang Lee, his father's trilogy literary drama film, "Reason and Sensibility", "Brokeback Mountain" romance film, "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" martial arts film, "Color Ring" spy war film, "Youth Pi" fantasy film, "Billy Lynn" war film, etc., the latest movie rumored "Bruce Lee" belongs to biopic.
However, Ang Lee's later films were backed by Hollywood's film and television industry, which was actually discounted at the film industry level.
Finally, through the above analysis, there is no need to talk about what kind of director Guo Fan is most like. His previous youth film "You at the Same Table" and the animated film "The Adventures of Li Xianji" cannot be said to be worth mentioning, but they have limited influence in similar Chinese genre films, and the most successful is the "Wandering Earth" series of Chinese science fiction blockbusters, and the influence on the Chinese film and television industry and the Chinese film industry is really strong.
Guo Fan's "Ball 3" can still break through in all aspects, basically Lucas's "Star Wars" to the United States, "The Wandering Earth" Guo Fan's status to China. Even if it is the "Matrix" series, or the director of the "Lord of the Rings" series is the status of Chinese directors.
Of course, the world is not yet on the list, we must recognize the reality, the film industry China is indeed a lot behind, science fiction film China is also far behind foreign countries, but in the history of Chinese film is certainly a milestone figure, and is the master of the founding school of Chinese science fiction blockbusters.
Finally, Guo Fan is still young, "Ball 3" is sure to be filmed, the latest interview revealed that he and Wu Jing may make a Chinese cyberpunk action film, if the sci-fi genre special effects blockbuster can break through, it is obviously expected to challenge the status of the Chinese version of Cameron.
I think Guo Fan is now only short of qualifications and the number of films, and if Guo Fan can come up with 5 works of the level of "The Wandering Earth 2" in another ten years (3 according to the time), then it is no problem for him to talk and laugh with George Lucas, Cameron, and even Spielberg in the world film industry.
At that time, Guo Fan will be China's top director Guo Fan, not the Chinese version of who who!