Released on July 30, "Fury Case" became the "first fire" that ignited this year's summer program, and as of press time, the film has achieved a box office of 333 million yuan, winning the single-day box office championship for 5 consecutive days. The film's reputation is also very good: Douban score is 7.7 points, Maoyan 9.5 points, Taobao ticket 9.3 points, is this year's highest reputation of Hong Kong-style action films.
"Fury: Serious Case" is the posthumous work of director Chen Musheng, starring Zhen Zidan and Nicholas Tse. Nicholas Tse and Chen Musheng have known each other for many years, and at the Guangzhou press conference on August 3, Tse Tingfeng recalled Chen Musheng: "Working with director Chen Musheng is one thing that I am particularly relieved and excited about. Every time we work with him, we can push each other's limits to the extreme. ”
Hard Bridge Hard Horse's Hong Kong-style action movie
On the Douban page of "Fury And Serious Cases", there is a high praise short comment: "It is a Hong Kong film, a genuine Hong Kong film, a Hong Kong film that punches the flesh and fights the real body, and a Hong Kong film that I have loved." "As the highest-grossing Hong Kong film in the mainland , or even the only one — the genre of Hong Kong-style crime films has also been breaking through in recent years, some playing narrative tricks, such as "Peerless"; some featuring retro feelings, such as "Chasing the Dragon"; and some with big scenes as selling points, such as the "Bomb Disposal Expert" series. However, "Fury And Serious Cases" returns to the most classic Hong Kong-style crime action film narrative, without too many flower racks, and the basic skills are stable and steady.
"Fury: Serious Case" follows the typical "double male" structure of Hong Kong-style crime films, and the whole story revolves around the good policeman Zhang Chongbang played by Zhen Zidan and the villain Qiu Gangao, played by Nicholas Tse. The action scene is naturally the "drama meat" of "Fury Serious Case", but the biggest scene of "Fury Serious Case" is only a street fire in the downtown area of Tsim Sha Tsui at the end of the film, and the battle may not be as good as the scene in "New Police Story" 17 years ago when the out-of-control double-decker bus demolished several streets, not to mention the various "explosion of red tunnels" and "bombing of airports" in Hong Kong-style action films in recent years. Despite this, the action scenes of "Fury Case" can still make the audience watch it well, relying on design and scheduling. For example, in the scene where Zhen Zidan bravely breaks into the shack area, in just a few minutes, Zhen Zidan and the villain fight from the contiguous roof, the narrow room, the winding alley, the dirty sewer to the empty road, in which the indoor machine gun fire is experienced, and Zhen Zidan alone beat off a large number of bandits with his fists and feet, and the villain leader in the sewers one-on-one melee combat scenes, space and action elements are very rich. And the ultimate duel between Zhen Zidan and Xie Tingfeng in the unfinished church is more reminiscent of the classic street battle between Zhen Zidan and Wu Jing in "Kill the Wolf": the two initially held a baton, one made a double knife, and then became local materials, sledgehammers, scaffolding, etc. became their weapons, and under the support of ingenious action design, Xie Tingfeng and Zhen Zidan fought on a par. Not only was the audience enjoyable, but Tse himself was also addicted. At the press conference in Guangzhou, Nicholas Tse said: "I am looking forward to having a rival play against Zi Dange for the second time in 15 years. I was better in my early 20s, but now I know my punches and kicks better, so I always wanted to play with him again and learn from him. ”
Nicholas Tse's charm as a villain is undiminished
An excellent Hong Kong-style commercial film can make the audience's emotions closely follow the plot, and will not feel bored or drama in the process of watching the movie. "Anger and Serious Case" has put a lot of effort into the shaping of the character, and the struggle between the "decent" Zhang Chongbang and the "villain" Qiu Gangao has become a clue to the audience's emotions.
"Fury Case" was titled "Fury" when it first appeared at the 2019 Hong Kong International Film and Television Festival, and "Anger" became the first driving force of the plot. Qiu Gang'ao's anger lies in being betrayed: he was once a rising star in the police force, and in a kidnapping of a wealthy businessman, the top suggested that he could use lynching to solve the case as quickly as possible, and he and his teammates accidentally killed the suspect. In court, they were betrayed by wealthy businessmen and high-ranking officials; under the pressure of lawyers, Zhang Chongbang, a colleague of Yishi and a friend, made key testimonies that put them in jail, which eventually led Qiu Gang'ao to go astray and become a ruthless criminal. Zhang Chongbang's anger lies in the death of his siblings: the first major crime committed by Qiu Gang'ao after his release from prison killed 8 policemen, including Zhang Chongbang's master, a police officer played by Lu Liangwei.
In contrast, Qiu Gangao in "Fury And Serious Case" has more "character arc" than Zhang Chongbang, and his unwillingness, brutality and madness, as well as the final tragic ending, all make the audience look at the mixed feelings. At the Guangzhou press conference, Nicholas Tse said that in fact, the final version cut off a lot of scenes, "now there is about 70%" left. "Before the show started, the director asked me, 'Do you want to play a good guy or a bad guy,' and I said it must be a bad guy because good guys are hard to do. I do think the creative space for playing the bad guys will be more free. He also admitted that as he grew older, he was now more able to grasp this complex role, "I think the screenwriters have written this role very three-dimensional, and I have grown a lot, this time playing such a complex and contradictory role, I added a lot of my own emotions." 」 ”
Dare to follow Chen Musheng to challenge the limit
"Anger and Serious Case" made Nicholas Tse, who has been intoxicated with cooking in recent years, return to the film world and hand over a beautiful answer sheet. This is probably something that only Chen Musheng can do: Chen Musheng and Nicholas Tse have cooperated in many films such as "SWAT New Human", "New Police Story", "New Shaolin Temple" and so on, and the two are also friends and mentors. Chen Musheng was diagnosed with advanced nasopharyngeal cancer in the late stages of filming, and unfortunately passed away in August last year, and he could not see the film released.
At the Guangzhou press conference, Nicholas Tse described him and Chen Musheng as "friends of life and death": "The first time I filmed with him was at the age of 19, making my first action movie "SWAT New Human", when I tried to hang a tightrope, blast, etc. Then there was "New Police Story", which slid down the outer wall of the convention center; and in "The True Colors of Boys", he jumped down several floors and was kicked by Wu Jing. Sometimes when I look back at previous movies, I think, 'Why am I still alive today?' Every time I meet him, I know we're pushing our limits and doing something new. ”
Nicholas Tse and Chen's last collaboration dates back to 2011's New Shaolin Temple. After many years of cooperation again, Nicholas Tse recalled: "The director has not changed at all, and he is still a person who does not smoke and drink and does not talk dirty. Since joining the film industry, Chen Musheng has always been a "professional" in action films. In addition to the recent "Cat Star" and "Dangerous City", in his resume of nearly 30 years, most of his works are fashion action films. In Nicholas Tse's view, Chen Musheng's style is unique: "His style is too distinct. Of course, there are many great directors in this industry who can shoot action scenes, but even if you ask them, they know that they are not as 'dedicated' as Chen Musheng. ”
After Chen Musheng left, does Nicholas Tse plan to take over the banner of Hong Kong-style action movies? He confessed: "I don't know how to continue. I have accumulated more than 20 years of tacit understanding and trust with him, and we have shot a lot of 'perverted' shots together. I'm 40 years old this year, and even if I had this heart, I wouldn't necessarily have this power. "Reporter Hu Guangxin
Source: Yangcheng Evening News