The most important domestic blockbuster in the summer, can it be "sealed as a god" this time?
Before I knew it, it was July, and this year's summer theater line finally resumed its liveliness.
Many films have been finalized one after another, today let's talk about the most important domestic blockbuster - "The First Part of Fengsheng".
This film has indeed made fans who pay attention wait for a long time.
From the beginning of script creation in 2014, to the start of filming in 2018 with three consecutive films, the completion of filming in 2020, and now the first film is finally finalized, the whole process spans 10 years, even in industrial blockbusters of the same scale.
Such a long waiting period, coupled with the theme taken from "Romance of the Gods", made the film a lot of topics before it was released.
Some people firmly believe that after ten years of sharpening a sword, this time they can finally see the wonderful interpretation of Chinese mythology on the big screen; Others are skeptical, believing that "skipping tickets" for a long time is an ominous sign.
However, after several waves of trailers were released, this doubt was quickly dispelled.
It is not difficult to see from the trailer that whether it is a grand war scene, a realistic visual effect spectacle, or an aesthetic atmosphere that truly restores the style of the Shang Dynasty, the film is guaranteed at the production level.
Director Wu Ershan's two previous masterpieces, "Painted Skin II" is based on "Liaozhai", and "Finding the Dragon" is adapted from the "Ghost Blowing Lamp" series, which shows that he is familiar with the control of Chinese fantasy themes.
The unique aesthetic style is impressive and very consistent with the story of Fengsheng.
Having said that, let's go back to the main film.
The plot of "The First Part of Fengsheng", if simply summarized, is not much different from the well-known "Romance of Fengsheng", which can be roughly divided into three clues according to the protagonist camp -
Shang King Yin Shou (played by Fei Xiang) colluded with Daji (played by Na Ran), who was possessed by a fox demon, and was unscrupulous and tyrannical, causing heavenly punishment;
Kunlun immortal Jiang Ziya (played by Huang Bo) went down the mountain with the "God Sealing List" to find the co-lord of the world to save Cangsheng;
Xibohou's son Ji Fa (Yu Shi), later King Wu of Zhou, rebelled against the dynasty after recognizing the true face of King Shang, determined to destroy Shang.
Yin Shang is more than 3,000 years old, and "Romance of the Gods" is a long fictional novel written by Xu Zhonglin, a Ming dynasty.
It can be said that this story was based on history when it was written, and it integrated the author's grand imagination to build an ancient mythological world where people, immortals and demons coexisted.
It is so mysterious and fascinating that countless film and television works have competed to perform it.
This reinterpretation in the form of a "trilogy", what new ideas can be filmed?
In my opinion, the most striking feature of the film is that it is not a magical blockbuster that attracts attention only by visual effects, but a strictly mythological epic.
The whole film features Ji Fa as the first-person protagonist, who has stayed by the side of Shang King Yin Shou since he was a child, and fought with him everywhere, and his son Yin Jiao is brother and sister.
In his youth, Ji Fa dreamed of becoming a hero like Yin Shou who had courage and resourcefulness on the battlefield.
However, witnessing the process of Yin Shou colluding with the fox demon and degenerating into a tyrant gradually caused his faith to collapse and fall into pain and confusion.
What exactly is a hero? How should good and evil be decided?
How do people find their identity?
In a series of life and death crises, Ji Fa finally left his "adoptive father" who had been accompanying and adoring for many years because he thought about these problems clearly, and completed his inner position change.
In this character, you can see a passionate person's pursuit of dreams, a person in the gap looking for a sense of belonging, and you can also see the process of a person from hesitation to firmness due to the maturity of values, which is actually a very typical heroic growth path in epic stories.
The film spends a lot of space to describe the protagonist's mental journey, and has serious thoughts on the character's distinction between good and evil, self-awakening and family redemption.
As the director said in the interview, myth is not only the crystallization of wild imagination, but also a metaphorical and symbolic expression of the inner spiritual world of each of us.
Secondly, the film has a mature world view and convincing group portrait shaping.
The world view presented in the film is based on the ancient Chinese mythological system, and at the same time has a natural intimacy for the Chinese audience, and many well-known famous scenes in "Romance of the Gods" are presented.
In terms of characters, in addition to the above-mentioned Ji Fa, many protagonists created in the film have a clear three-dimensional image regardless of good or evil.
In order to become the overlord of the world, Yin Shou did not hesitate to collude with the fox demon to do evil;
In order to save his life, Jiang Ziya was willing to give up the mana of decades of cultivation;
Xibo Hou Ji Chang knew that the road ahead was dangerous, but he was still summoned to go to Chaoge;
In order to awaken Yin Shou and save the great businessman, Bi Gan voluntarily dug out his heart...
It can be said that under the setting of the worldview of strange forces and chaotic gods, the core of "Fengshen " still lies in the depiction of human desires and conduct.
This makes the story of Fengshen a myth, but it can resonate with the thoughts and thoughts of modern people through time.
It is worth mentioning that the story of "Fengshen " is a very local Chinese story, with both real history and fantasy of mythology. It is not only a fairy and demon war with strange forces and chaotic gods, but also tells the ups and downs of personal fate and the social transformation of the Shang dynasty from prosperity to decline.
The film cuts into the perspective of the characters, tells the growth of the hero, and presents the rise and fall of a dynasty with the volume of a trilogy, and the narrative has an epic pattern.
In terms of details, it is also through the aesthetic style rooted in Chinese culture to create a thick sense of history.
During the preparation period, the director led the main creative team to visit cultural sites and museums about Shang Zhou in Henan, Shaanxi, Shanxi and other places for on-site collection, based on Yuanming Taoist land and water paintings, integrating Shang Zhou bronze aesthetic elements and Song Ren landscapes, and applying them to various aspects such as costume modeling and props scenery, establishing a unique aesthetic system for the Fengshen trilogy.
From the construction structure of the palace to the pattern decoration on the bronze, aesthetic elements are extracted from historical records and created in line with the background of the story.
The Longde Hall, where Shang Wang Yin Shou is located, used more than 800 wood carvers to build it in 35,000 hours.
As for the legendary fantasy creatures such as dragon beard tiger and ink unicorn, it combines Chinese aesthetics, Chinese creativity and the world's most advanced film technology, which not only maintains the aesthetic effect of traditional Chinese shapes, but also makes fantasy creatures lifelike, making the audience feel real and credible.
In general, "Fengshen Part 1" combines the vast imagination, heavy historical texture and sincere character emotions of Fengshen stories, and is a unique mythological epic blockbuster in China.
As an ancient cultural country with 5,000 years of civilization, mythological epic blockbusters actually have countless sources in China, but on the screen, this type of film is rarely presented more successfully. The reason is that mythological epic blockbusters have put forward higher requirements for input costs and the industrial base of the film industry.
The emergence of the Fengshen trilogy actually has a certain genre pioneering significance. The sincerity of the film can be seen from the creative process to the final presentation effect, providing experience for creators of similar themes in the future, so it is worth paying attention to.
After years of waiting, the film is finally scheduled to be released on July 20.
I hope that in this hot summer, everyone can see the Fengshen universe in their hearts in the theater.