In 1979, at a filmmaker's party, there was a gentle and polite young man who was depressed and smoking, and he seemed to have a hilarious scene out of place.
Immediately afterward, he habitually placed the cigarette on the ashtray (in his opinion), but what he did not know was that the ashtray was actually a woman's hand.
This depressed young man is Wu Yusen, and the woman is Shi Nansheng.
Because of this woman, Xu Ke exchanged a brother with deep friendship.
And Wu Yusen did not expect that this "ashtray" that was casually put away actually set off a storm of Hong Kong movies.
In 1986, a "Hero's True Colors" came out of nowhere, making Wu Yusen and Xu Ke, but also letting them part ways.
Why did the box office sell well, but let the two big guys part ways, what is the entanglement behind this?
This time, let's talk about Wu Yusen and Xu Ke together, and see their 25 years of enmity and hatred.
01.
In the last century, the Sheraton Hong Kong Hotel was not yet completed, and on the top floor there were often two young people who would gather here every dusk, smoking cheap cigarettes, drinking cheap wine, laughing and talking about the storm, planning common ideals.
However, because it is too noisy, it is often bombed down as a "madman".
Many years later, in recalling this period of youth, Wu Yusen also smiled very happily, squinting his eyes, like a remembrance, more like joy.
They share the dream of film, but they come from different backgrounds.
Wu Yusen, born in the slums, in the era of Hong Kong's underworld, there are also countless ancient puzzle boys around him, because such an environment has also created a great director who is good at shooting gangster chivalry.
However, without any background, he did not have the opportunity to shoot those fantasy scenes.
After going to Taiwan Art School for a few years, he returned to Hong Kong to follow The Shaw Company's director Zhang Che, playing soy sauce and doing small jobs.
On the other hand, Xu Ke, from a wealthy family, spent his childhood in Vietnam, because Vietnam is in the midst of war, and perhaps Xu Ke's martial arts world was born and built in this period.
When he was 10 years old, he showed amazing talent and wanted to make films.
However, his father did not support it, and he also suffered a "lesson", which curbed his thoughts.
It can only be contained for a while, but it cannot be stopped for a lifetime.
16-year-old Xu Ke, with the money his father asked him to study medicine, secretly ran to the United States to learn directing, and turned "studying medicine" into a director with a scientific background.
In 1971, at the recommendation of Qiu Gangjian, Wu Yusen met Zhang Che, the great director of the Shaw clan.
At first, in the face of such a big guide, Wu Yusen trembled and prepared to introduce himself, but Zhang Che said: If you want, come to work tomorrow.
At that time, many big men standing in the Hong Kong film industry were approachable and liked to help and promote some new people, and Zhang Che was no exception, so that it was passed down to the back, and Mui Yanfang, Zhang Guorong and others were also like this.
During the period of following Zhang Che, Jiang David recommended him to Zhang Che to act, and Wu Yusen was very happy, but Zhang Che refused in one sentence: It is better for Wu Yusen to concentrate behind the scenes, and he will be a good director in the future.
Wu Yusen, who looks ordinary, may be able to play the villain, but it seems a little unrealistic to go to the protagonist, after all, he is not as mercurial as Jiang David and Dillon.
Over the years, following Zhang Che in Shaw,he has also accumulated a wealth of experience, and even with the support and encouragement of Zhang Che, he has shot several movies, including comedy and martial arts, but there is no gangster film of his dreams.
And Xu Ke also studied hard in American schools and is ready to show his skills in the film industry.
02.
In 1977, Tsui returned from his studies in the United States and joined TVB.
For an old wireless, the young Xu Ke has not been taken seriously, and it is very difficult to get ahead.
Xu Ke, who is full of infinite vision and confidence in the film circle himself, feels that he is depressed without encountering wireless talents.
The following year, he switched to the newly established TV station Jiashi, which had a place to play and began to shoot martial arts dramas independently.
And Wu Yusen, under the recommendation of his mentor Zhang Che, went to Jiahe and was filming a fiery comedy.
In Shao's, he has accumulated rich experience and is also the proud protégé of the great director Zhang Che, and Wu Yusen is also deeply valued by Zou Wenhuai, the boss of Jiahe.
In 1979, that is, the opening scene, under the introduction of Shi Nansheng, Wu Yusen and Xu Kefengyun met, but at that time, the two, although they saw each other, were in a depressed state.
One day, Wu Yusen saw a picture from the martial arts drama "Golden Knife Lover" on TV:
A warrior, after playing a sword, threw the sword into the snow, and the bright red blood on the blade of the sword threw it on the white snow.
Wu Yusen, who has filmed martial arts works himself, is also deeply touched after seeing it.
He and Xu Ke are friends in themselves, and in this way, they have bold ideas about the direction of Hong Kong movies.
In the face of this friend, Wu Yusen once lobbied Jiahe's senior management to let them sign Xu Ke, but was refused.
At that time, Jiahe was in the shadow of Shao's family, and his strength was weak, and Zou Wenhuai said to Wu Yusen: Please can't afford people, it is enough to have you.
If Jiahe had signed Xu Ke, perhaps "The True Colors of Heroes" would have come out earlier, and they would not have parted ways.
After Jiahe refused, Wu Yusen recommended Xu Ke to Wu Siyuan.
Immediately after, Tsui Ke's debut film "Butterfly Change" was released, and this work is also known as one of the representative works of the "New Wave" of Hong Kong cinema.
But behind Xu Ke, he was down again.
Wu Yusen introduced him to Mai Jia of New Art City, who had a good relationship with Mai Jia at that time, and New Art City was also newly established.
In the face of the introduction of her friends, Mai Jia sold Wu Yusen a face and let Xu Ke shoot "Ghost Horse Wisdom Multi-Star".
Just did not expect that during the filming period, because of the problem of funds, almost terminated, and Mai Jia also once again asked Wu Yusen, but Wu Yusen patted his chest and promised: let him finish shooting, the movie will definitely sell.
Sure enough, after the release, the box office of this work allowed New Art City to defeat Shaw and Jiahe for the first time, and also let Xu Ke win the Golden Horse Award for Best Director.
Taking advantage of the boom in ghost horse comedy, Xu Ke came back to "Best Partner", which directly broke the box office record in Hong Kong.
For a time, Tsui Ke became famous in Hong Kong film circles.
But his good friend Wu Yusen, who has been helping him, has also gone downhill at this time.
03.
In 1983, Wu Yusen finally realized his dream and filmed his first gunfight film "Hero Without Tears".
This year, just ten years have passed since Wu Yusen's directorial debut "Iron Man Tenderness".
During filming, Wu Yusen directly used a real gun for convenience, resulting in an actor being shot in the thigh.
After this work, Jiahe also terminated his contract with Wu Yusen.
Because Wu Yusen's works are no longer as popular as before, they are also called "box office poison".
This time, Xu Ke invited him to join the new art city, and before signing the contract, he also promised Wu Yusen that he would let him shoot an underworld movie.
You know, in the early 80s, New Art City recruited many directors, but Wu Yusen did not sell well.
To this end, New Art City sent Wu Yusen to the Taiwan branch to be a producer.
During that time, it was Wu Yusen's most unlucky and dark days, and he was once sad, and even considered whether to change careers and do something else.
It can be seen that Xu Ke has turned over as a salted fish, relying on a series of high-selling works, which has become a box office guarantee.
He even teamed up with Mr. and Mrs. Shi Nansheng to create their own company film studio.
In 1985, Wu Yusen was still depressed in Taiwan, and he was still directing the comedy film "Two Tigers".
Xu Ke ran to the set, met with Wu Yusen, and even played a strange old man in the film.
During this period, the two drank together and talked about their ideals, and they dreamed of reforming Hong Kong movies.
Looking at Wu Yusen, who lived very badly, Xu Ke and his wife Shi Nansheng were also very anxious, and the three of them discussed, and a "Hero's True Colors" came out.
At the time, they put their emotions on this movie.
Among them, there is another reason, Wu Yusen feels:
After returning to Hong Kong, I found that the young people in Hong Kong were a rootless generation, in a state of loss: very disrespectful to tradition, very indifferent, no idols, no faith, and no purpose in life.
To this end, I wanted to make a film that would rediscover some beautiful traditions that people have forgotten and ignored.
Even in the movie, Wu Yusen wrote his mood and feelings into the script.
Moreover, at that time, no one would make a police film into a personal movie.
Wu Yusen, however, did something else.
04.
When "The True Colors of Heroes" was preparing, Zhou Runfa, who had the same situation as Wu Yusen, offered to star in this movie.
Officially because of this, smoking, drinking, mouthing matchsticks, and holding a gun in both hands, the little brother of Wu's violent aesthetic and Zhou Runfa's domineering spirit complement each other.
In 1986, "The True Colors of Heroes" sold well at the box office, and Wu Yusen also swept away the decline and once again stood at the peak of Hong Kong directors.
The works of two people, why did Wu Yusen become famous and popular?
Years later, Xu Ke said in an interview:
We all love movies, have many common languages, and both want to one day gain greater autonomy and make high-quality films. In addition to complaining about each other, the two people also poured out a movie script, that is, "The True Colors of Heroes", and at that time they were very consistent in their ideas for this movie, thinking that anyone could be a director.
Because of the box office hit, Xu Ke also asked Wu Yusen to start shooting a sequel, and even more to release it in the Lunar New Year in 1987 to make another profit.
The two had a disagreement at that time.
Wu Yusen did not think that he wanted to make a sequel immediately, but Xu Ke forced it to be requested, which was completely non-negotiable.
There was no way, Wu Yusen could only choose to shoot.
And in the script, there is also a big controversy, that is, Xu Ke wants to use his own experience as a model, create a younger brother for the pony, and also put an important role for Shi Tian.
The filming of the film is even more chaotic than the script, because of the rush, many scenes do not even have a script, only a simple outline.
After that, it was too late to even be test screened, and it was sent to the cinema.
After the premiere, Wu Yusen also felt very painful, he said bluntly: I think it is one of the worst films in the history of cinema.
Even more commented on this movie:
Tsui and I had completely different ideas about sequels, and everyone in the studio wanted to put their own ideas into it, so the final film became a compromised, completely incongruous hodgepodge.
Because after this work, the feelings between them also cooled down rapidly, Wu Yusen did not like Xu Ke's approach to the quality of the film, and Xu Ke also thought that Wu Yusen was too stubborn, insisting on pursuing personal style and not controlling.
05.
After that, because of his feelings for Xu Ke, Wu Yusen refused to shoot for other companies, which also led to his lack of drama for a while.
Wu Yusen, who was once poor and destitute, also found Zhou Runfa to borrow money.
In the face of Wu Yusen, Zhou Runfa also went to help him pull investment and made the classic movie "Blood Double Male".
Since then, the two have parted ways.
Xu Ke continued to insist on his martial arts dream, and Wu Yusen also crossed the ocean to Hollywood to develop.
Relying on martial arts works such as "New Dragon Gate Inn" and "Huang Feihong" series, he laid the foundation for the dream of martial arts.
One relies on movies such as "Change of Face" and "Mission Impossible 2" to become internationally famous.
Although they shined in the film industry, they did not cooperate anymore.
In 2009, when Xu Ke Studio celebrated its 29th anniversary, Wu Yusen unexpectedly appeared, and the two embraced and cried.
Wu Yusen also said:
When I needed affirmation and friends the most, Xu Ke vigorously supported me to shoot "The True Colors of Heroes", so that I could find my dignity in the film; even so, I did not consider myself a hero, I just valued friendship and knew how to be grateful for everything.
Xu Ke responded:
The relationship between me and Wu Yusen is not like the outside world, the other day I was still on the phone with him, we often contacted, but outsiders did not know.
In 2010, at the Venice International Film Festival, Wu Yusen won the Golden Lion Award for Lifetime Achievement.
Wu Yusen, 64, was thrilled.
On the stage, Xu Ke also came to the scene and witnessed and shared this glory with Wu Yusen.
In this stage where the stars gather, Wu Yusen also said a word: Thank you Xu Zai.
When they met, they laughed and hated each other, but they could never go back to the era when they were prosperous.
They want to recreate the passion of that year.
Time flies, but it is difficult to achieve.
I only hope that they can continue to work together, which will be a legend again.