Today, I want to tell you a story full of legends and twists and turns, a classic that has been forgotten by time but still shines brightly - "The Yellow River Hero". This is not only a commercial failure, but also a bizarre and lingering entertainment legend of talented and beautiful people. Let's travel back in time to discover this once-little-known entertainment epic.
Back in the 80s of the last century, martial arts superstar Jet Li swept the Hong Kong film industry with the "Shaolin Trilogy". But the teasing of fate happened in a bold attempt - Yindu decided to promote Jet Li to director and create the movie "Chinese Heroes". Expectations were high for this decision, and the entire entertainment industry was eagerly awaiting this highly anticipated collaboration.
However, the opportunity for this dream came to an unexpected end. The commercial failure of "Chinese Heroes" became the fuse after five years of cooperation between Yindu and Jet Li. The film, which featured a tragic hero, failed to cater to the tastes of the audience at the time, and the fears of the Yindu institution became a harsh reality. This time, the movie dream was shattered, and the golden age of Jet Li and Yindu came to an abrupt end.
However, the failure did not discourage Jet Li, and he embarked on a new journey alone like a chivalrous man. So, in 1987, in order to fill the vacancy, Yindu decided to return to its old business and invest in director Zhang Xinyan's "Yellow River Hero". This time, they assembled a first-class lineup of Chinese films, but unfortunately lost the dazzling star Jet Li.
In 1988, the long-awaited "Yellow River Hero" finally debuted. However, the tragic storyline did not impress the audience at the time, and the film was dismal at the box office after its release, and was taken off the shelves after only 13 days. This was at odds with the light-hearted and comedy-dominated film market at the time, which made this talented martial arts masterpiece a commercial waterloo.
However, let's not forget that the value of a film is not only in its commercial success. "The Yellow River Hero" may seem out of place in the market at the time, but its artistic value has stood the test of time. Director Zhang Xinyan presents the highest level of martial arts films through profound plots and Yu Chenghui's superb fights. Despite its commercial failure, as a film, it deserves to be a classic.
The story of "Yellow River Hero" has also continued to the subsequent development of the main creators. Jet Li's commercial failures did not discourage him, on the contrary, he made many achievements in the field of film and directing, and even successfully stepped into Hollywood. Director Zhang Xinyan successfully switched to the TV circle many years later, dedicating one classic martial arts drama after another to us.
This legendary story of the entertainment industry tells us that movies are not only commercial figures, but also the products of artists' expressions of the world and deep thinking about human nature. We can't simply measure the value of a film by the box office, the brilliance of art often flickers under the clouds of commerce.