Some time ago, the Hong Kong Film Awards came to an end, and the awards have already been discussed.
Today, Sir wants to talk about the people behind the Academy Awards:
Er Dongsheng.
This is his eighth year as president of the Academy Awards, and his term has also expired.
We've seen how hard he's worked over the years.
In 2020, due to the epidemic, the on-site awards were cancelled, and the awards were announced by Er Dongsheng's online live broadcast;
At the age of 66, he is still busy with the Academy Awards, compiling a workbook and looking for a suitable successor.
He has to support more than just the Academy Awards.
There are also Hong Kong films that have been sung down and faced with reshuffling over the years.
Especially this year, Er Dongsheng's name appears more and more frequently.
Mainland netizens are more impressed by the fact that on variety shows, he boldly fired a cannon and swept away the fresh meat flowers of domestic entertainment.
But what is more important is actually another identity.
"Temporary Robbery", which has been released this year, is 6.2 on Douban. (Sir thinks the rating is too low)
There is also this month's "Under the White Sun", Douban 8.0, and "Youth Diary", Douban 8.5.
For these three movies, you can see the same name on the poster - producer Er Dongsheng.
Therefore, it is absolutely necessary to re-acquaint yourself with Er Dongsheng.
If you say, the Academy Awards are the vane of Hong Kong films.
Then, Er Dongsheng is a fierce wind that is trying to blow this weather vane.
01
Turn back the clock to 30 years ago.
In 1994, the 13th Notification of the Golden Statue 奖颁奖夜.
Chow Yun-fat and Xu Guanwen served as the award presenters for the best director, and as soon as they came on the stage, there was a two-talk comedy, which dissed a large number of directors.
There are also two kinds of directors:
One of the most important is the pursuit of the Academy Awards
It doesn't matter if it sells or not
There is another kind
It doesn't matter if you win the Academy Award or not
The most important thing is to sell out
Winning awards and selling out correspond to the artistry and commerciality of the film.
Which kind does Er Dongsheng belong to?
He had both
This year, it was the first time Er Dongsheng stood on the podium of the Academy Awards.
He could barely have stood up.
Because the subject matter is not pleasing and no boss is willing to invest, the filming plan of "New Love" almost failed.
Er Dongsheng gritted his teeth and paid out of his own pocket and took out his full net worth to give birth to this screen classic, which reached 30 million Hong Kong dollars at the box office after its release.
I didn't expect "New Love" to be so competitive, and also helped Er Dongsheng win the "Best Director".
Er Dongsheng, who was still young and beautiful at that time, was very sincere:
Actually, I want to take it too
is also very humble and attributes the award to popularity:
Actually, I think it myself
Let's compare different types of movies together
It's an embarrassing thing
……
It may be so
Now the popularity is better
There are different types of movies, including Chen Kexin's emotional comedy of "Three Heroes of Wind and Dust", and the strange case thriller of Zha Chuanyi's "The Strange Case of Dissolving the Corpse";
There are crime action films of Huang Zhiqiang's "Serious Crime Unit", as well as the erotic films of Luo Zhuoyao's "Seduction of Monks".
Perhaps no one on or off the stage laughed at that time that 30 years later, the living space of so many different types of movies became narrower and narrower.
Erotic films have long entered the cold winter, and strange case films are either no longer so "strange", or they cannot be seen because of their large scale.
The urban male and female romance films full of Hong Kong flavor, how long has it been before there has been a "Rice Drama Attacking the Heart";
Zha Chuanyi spends most of his time in the ancient puppet and the current puppet, Huang Zhiqiang and Luo Zhuoyao have not moved in the film and television industry for 7 or 8 years.
Chen Kexin is not satisfied with filming the emotional story of Hong Kong City.
He walked out of Hong Kong, from "If Love" to "Dear", from "Winning the Championship" to "Sauce Garden Lane", embracing the mainland and even going out of Asia without hesitation.
What is left for the current Hong Kong movies?
——30 years ago, it was regarded as the choice of "unpopular" and "niche" Er Dongsheng.
02
Although Xu Guanwen said that Er Dongsheng was "both directors", Er Dongsheng chose to take a path that was isolated from the trend of "everything is overdone and crazy" Hong Kong films:
Realism oriented to social issues.
"The True Story of the Crazy Guy" focuses on the mentally ill, the homeless, and the weak on the street who wander in the corners of society.
"Goodbye Wang Lao Wu" has paid attention to the dilemma of starting a family for poor workers who are worried about money and houses.
"New Love", even if it is a love story, he also focuses on the Amin family who are performing on the street on Temple Street, and the market is full of flavor.
"Can't Forget", it is difficult for a single mother to make a living.
"Precocious", the student girl is pregnant before marriage.
How unpopular are these themes?
Qin Pei, who is already famous, invested in Xiaobaoer Dongsheng, and was looked down upon everywhere:
Are you watching martial arts movies and filming neuropathy?
Is there any mistake?
What is the miserable scene of crying and crying......
Don't do it
These films are unpleasant, not sweet, and not exciting, but they are up to the appetite of "gossip" Er Dongsheng:
After becoming a so-called star, I was completely disconnected from my old life, and I was very anxious to return to this society, because that is the real thing. I don't know if it's because of the influence of the Shaw Brothers decade, I prefer to shoot realistic things.
Some people say that I am like a social observer, and you let me say it myself, maybe it's just me gossiping, and I like to pay attention to social problems.
- Character "Er Dongsheng, he doesn't just love gossip"
And when he decided to shoot, he had to shoot realistically.
After doing enough preliminary research, observation, visits, investigations, and face-to-face conversations, Director Er once called himself an "investigative journalist director".
Filming "The True Story of the Crazy Guy", he went to the psychiatric department and asked many people, filming "Disciple", he spent another 8 years to investigate the inside story of drug trafficking, and filming "Shinjuku Incident", he spent 10 years, chatting and chatting with the prototype of the story.
It's so real that it "can't be released".
Sometimes, even the actors feel that Er Dongsheng's pursuit of realism has reached the level of "harsh".
In the tidbits of "Shinjuku Incident", Jackie Chan complained about Er Dongsheng's "stubbornness":
It's good to describe the director as stubborn
It's good to be realistic
He had to shoot in Kabukicho
Kabukicho is not allowed to make movies
The camera cuts over and sees Er Dongsheng with a serious expression instructing the production department how to place the machine and arrange when the actors will be on the stage.
Jackie Chan, who was born in martial arts, is a little unbearable for his way of shooting:
When everyone thought it was impossible
He made things possible
Even the actor himself can't escape Er Dongsheng's requirements for "truth".
In order to adapt to the character setting, Jackie Chan was asked to change his style of play and have movements, but he could not be seen to be good at martial arts.
△ Jackie Chan's inner OS: It's hard for the king to pretend to be bronze
When filming the "horizontal drifting" theme of "I Am a Passerby", Er Dongsheng found the "Passerby A" actors who were really drifting in Hengdian as the leading actors.
Wu Yanzu, Yuan Yuyi, Xu Anhua, Zhuang Wenqiang and other first-line superstar directors really started "group performances".
It's not enough for people to be true, the scenery is true, and the story is really enough, Er Dongsheng's movies must be realistic enough: cold, cruel, and involuntarily.
Interestingly, many of Er Dongsheng's movies that are hovering on the edge of the mainstream of Hong Kong films have been applauded and acclaimed after their release.
(There are also those who can't sell at a loss, like "People's Heroes", which Sir quite likes.) ）
Even the director himself can only explain it with "maybe everyone is tired of watching other genres, so it's just a change of taste".
Originally, Er Dongsheng's choice was to take a road with fewer people.
Unexpectedly, 30 years later, this has become a fire in the Hong Kong movie "Xiao Yangchun".
03
In recent years, there is a saying about Hong Kong movies.
"Hong Kong film Xiaoyangchun", referring to Hong Kong movies that have entered the cold winter, have finally recovered.
The box office broke records.
In 2022, "Rice Drama Attacking the Heart" and "Tomorrow's War" set new records for Hong Kong films at the local box office in Hong Kong.
In 2023, "The Poisonous Tongue" starring Huang Zihua will become the first Hong Kong film to have a box office of over 100 million in Hong Kong.
A new group of directors has sprung up:
Li Junshuo ("Drifting in Turbid Water"), Chen Jianlang ("Rolling Smoke"), Jia Shengfeng ("Falling Flowers"), He Juetian ("The Corridor of Justice"), Zhu Ziyan ("I Wish People Were Long"), Zhuo Yiqian ("Diary of a Youth"), Jian Junjin ("Under the White Sun").
More importantly, these new directors have stirred up a new atmosphere in the Hong Kong film industry, and their eyes are no longer limited to police movies, action movies, crime films, and comedy films.
Instead, it pays more attention to social issues and realistic themes, and uses humanistic care to get close to the lives of marginalized and disadvantaged groups and the underprivileged people in a cold, convergent, and anti-climax form.
"Drifting in Muddy Water" is about the housing problem of the homeless, "Dust on the Narrow Road" is about the plight of the poor during the epidemic, and "Under the Daylight" focuses on the lonely elderly, the disabled, and the dying journalistic idealism.
In fact, this so-called "new and new wave" also reveals an old familiar taste.
Director Er can even say that he "played" the current set when he was young.
Take a look at the VCR:
People who were homeless on the streets in 1986 V.S People who were homeless on the streets in 2021:
△ Caption: "The True Story of the Crazy Guy" in the picture above, "Drifting in Turbid Water" in the picture below
Skepticism of Journalism in 1986 V.S Skepticism in Journalism in 2023:
△ The picture above is "The True Story of the Crazy Guy", and the picture below is "Under the White Sun"
This "similarity" may be intentional.
After all, Er Dongsheng is an important promoter of the "First Feature Film Project", and he also serves as a producer in the works of new directors, so he may have his preferences and opinions.
But more often, under the limitations of the times, the new director inadvertently and helplessly embarked on Er Dongsheng's former choice.
Young directors can best shoot the world they feel, see, and care about.
Lian Er Dongsheng's own debut is also closely related to the social scene he saw:
In 1986, when I moved to the background, I was attracted by some homeless people on the street, and I found some social workers, only to find out that some of these homeless people were mentally ill.
- Character "Er Dongsheng, he doesn't just love gossip"
Imagine being like the peak of Hong Kong films, you can shoot whatever you want?
Please weigh your wallet first.
When Er Dongsheng served as the producer of "Young Diary", he was worried about money:
I don't even know how to start shooting
I can't even make a police movie
Filming a police movie, a bullet costs money, and there is only a budget of 2 or 3 million, so you can't take care of that one end if you take care of that.
Jian Junjin, the director of "Under the White Sun", once half-jokingly said sad things:
"If I had to pick and choose, of course I would like to make Netflix productions. As mentioned earlier, why do new directors shoot this kind of realistic social theme? ”
If you don't have money, you don't have a chance, and even with no experience, you're not even good at action shooting.
If you have money and experience, if you want to open the market, you still have to face invisible shackles.
This is not filmed, that is not filmed, and it is not only Hong Kong movies that are getting farther and farther away from the audience's viewing expectations.
It's just that Hong Kong films, which can be free and casual under the classification system, show the most obvious discomfort with constraints.
In the case of the contraction of the overall industry, "Hong Kong Film Xiaoyangchun" is still facing a chill everywhere.
This reminds Sir of the opening of the Academy Awards 30 years ago, and his brother Leslie Cheung's opening speech:
"1993 was a year of hard business for Hong Kong films, with soaring prices and a relative increase in labor and costs. ”
"But there seem to be fewer and fewer friends who go to the theater to watch Hong Kong films. So some people say that Hong Kong-made films have reached a point where they cannot be turned over. ”
Yes, the argument that "Hong Kong films are dead" existed 30 years ago.
But Hong Kong films have still lasted for 30 years.
By what?
"But there is the indomitable spirit of our classmates. ”
"We are not going to back down. ”
It was also this year that Er Dongsheng's unpopular theme "New Love" was selected, which was not only selected by the audience, but also by the Academy Awards.
This love movie, everywhere, is an unbeatable grassroots atmosphere, as if it was a letter of encouragement from Er Dongsheng to the sluggish Hong Kong film market at that time.
30 years later, he has retreated behind the scenes, still cheering for Hong Kong movies, although it seems "duplicitous".
While saying "It's normal for Hong Kong movies to be gone", he brought newcomers everywhere, helped with checks, and helped with publicity.
When asked why, he didn't give any lofty answers.
"There are seniors in any industry who are teaching you, and in every industry there will be old people who have passed away, and the Mesozoic generation will bring new people, it must be like this. ”
"Personally, I've gone from being an actor to a director, to a producer, and I've worked with young directors because I've gained experience and I'm just using my experience to help them. ”
The old brings the new, so that everyone in the industry has a job and food.
It's as pragmatic and simple as that.
But this is the spirit of Hong Kong filmmakers.
04
Er Dongsheng has been very busy lately.
While busy promoting the producer's film, he ran up and down with the two young directors.
On the other hand, he is busy with acting variety shows, and the tradition of "bringing the old with the new" is also shining in domestic entertainment.
On both sides he wanted to save the city.
On the one hand, Hong Kong films with a shrinking market need box office and need to open the market;
On the other hand, there are actors who have a hot market but worrying business ability, and they need to be guided, corrected, and taught by their predecessors.
But the busier he was, the more he revealed a signal:
Only Er Dongsheng can't save Hong Kong films, and he can't rectify domestic entertainment.
Let's start with the former.
The two movies he supervised were recently released in mainland theaters, and both scored 8 points on Douban, although they both have the immaturity of novice directors, and the overall quality is not bad.
can be opened to see, the mainland box office is not as cold as the Hong Kong market.
"Under the White Sun" opened for 15 days and had a box office of 11.3 million, and "Diary of a Youth" was released for 8 days and had a box office of more than 10 million.
How so?
Yes, it's because it's hard for the audience to see it even if they want to.
Not only is there little film scheduling, but the time is not very friendly, so everyone can only watch and cherish it.
Yes, it is because there is also an emotional distance between seeing it: it is a distant story, and it has no relationship with "me".
But are these phenomena really far away from us? Could it just be that we can't see them?
Take Sir at this moment when he is coding words, what is happening in reality:
And "Diary of a Youth" is aimed at the flowers that have been crushed and broken and withered prematurely.
Let's see if those minors who choose to commit suicide are because they are commonly referred to as "too fragile", "spoiled", and "your life is much happier than ours".
If there is no such a movie that asks the truth.
What else can we see in today's news besides an official bulletin and the portrayal of the official bulletin?
Is the student too unhappy and has any problems at home, school, life and relationships?
I don't know.
Social visibility will affect public sentiment, and public sentiment will affect viewing preferences.
And true realism, no matter how the film restores, tortures, and thinks, still can't ignite the public's emotions, and it can't be widely disseminated.
What separates us from cinema is the visibility of society.
Also, the weight of reality is accompanied by a rejection of deep thinking and an avoidance of facing the pain.
"I finally had time to go to a movie, and I was looking for fun, not for heartbreaking. ”
Although Sir thinks it's a pity and wants a hundred flowers to bloom, he doesn't want to criticize the audience who thinks like this.
For social animals who live under the 996 mountain every day and even watch a movie is a luxury, emo is easy, but happiness is hard.
Watching a movie comfortably and easily is already one of the few "small blessings" in a barren life.
Er Dongsheng also said that don't think of movies as too great, its entertainment function is very important.
But accepting entertainment is not the same as accepting being blinded by bad acting skills, nor is it the same as accepting being cut leeks by bad movies.
So seeing Er Dongsheng come to the domestic entertainment variety show as a mentor, the audience was overjoyed, clapping their hands, and waiting for the big changes in domestic entertainment.
Is it mutable?
No.
Traffic coffee is still traffic coffee, and those with poor acting skills are still poor acting skills.
Some people can still get out of the circle with their poor acting skills, "black and red are also red", and the strange acting skills have become the traffic password.
Even Guo Jingming, who cried before Er Dongsheng, can become popular with "Guo-style aesthetics" and "Guo Jingming is the best medical beauty for male stars".
△ You can see who it is
For some fans, idols can enter Guo Jingming's crew, which is a treasure.
Why?
Because also on the idol drama track, the aesthetics of other directors are more crotch-pulling and more degraded.
Because sugar water idol dramas are becoming more and more "special for fans", beauty is enough, where do you need acting, plot and logic?
When "you scold you, I will not change" has become the norm in the industry environment;
When covering your eyes and ears, it has become a "public choice";
When capital scheduling squeezes the film's survival, the injustice of the film's survival becomes more and more common;
No matter how loud Er Dongsheng scolded and how busy he ran, it was just a drop in the bucket and a mantis arm.
There is only one Er Dongsheng, who can't save Hong Kong films, nor can he save domestic entertainment.
Even so, Sir was very happy to see Er Dongsheng active.
He is using the experience, pragmatism and rigor of the older generation of filmmakers to tell us:
It turns out that we still have such a past.
It turns out that we have had movies like this.
The picture in this article comes from the Internet
Editorial Assistant: Unruly Eight Treasures
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