I haven't bought a movie ticket for many years. Yesterday, I made an exception for Jet Li.
The reason for making an exception is that the slogan "Jet Li's martial arts movies are going to close"-although I heard later that "I didn't say I wouldn't make kung fu movies or action movies in the future, but I just wouldn't make martial arts movies", which made this slogan seem a bit cunning. But I like Jet Li for many years, and I can't help paying tribute to this "most important work" regardless of the expected quality.
Huo Yuanjia is the most important work of Jet Li, which is fundamentally his own control of the film. Generally speaking, the director's control of the film is beyond doubt, but Huo Yuanjia is Jet Li's film. From all kinds of interview materials, we can clearly see what Jet Li wants to express in the film, and the director and screenwriter are just helping him to finish this idea. Although the film is completely commercial in propaganda, it is not a commercial film in the conventional sense in terms of original intention and shooting techniques.
The story of Huo Yuanjia is very simple and straightforward. It tells the story of how a young man went from blindly seeking victory to bravely fighting, and finally let himself die for his family. Then, after a painful struggle, we finally realized the realm of "stopping the war and making the benevolent invincible". The writers are Wang Bin and Feng Li of Heroes and House of Flying Daggers, and Du Zhiming of Jianghu. To tell the truth, when I saw this cast before watching the movie, I didn't expect anything from the plot of the movie, so I didn't feel disappointed and laughed after watching the movie. I have heard the most criticisms of this film before, that is, "speaking frankly" and "preaching". Indeed, preaching in Huo Yuanjia's films is almost everywhere. But unlike Hero and House of Flying Daggers, Huo Yuanjia tells a very shallow but true truth with a very simple story, which means "pretending to be a wolf with a big tail". It will not put on a condescending posture, but just tell you his experiences and lessons like a friend, so that you won't make the same mistake. Sincerity makes people laugh-I'm not praising the screenwriter. In fact, the performance of the screenwriter is basically the same as that of Hero, but on the screen, Huo Yuanjia's "self-improvement" is just like the "peace" of the king of Qin, which comes from the mouth of the actor. The latter is laughed at, and the former is touching.
I'm not familiar with director Yu Rentai. Or watched the film directed by him, but failed to leave any impression. Judging from this film, there is nothing brilliant, but it is also wonderful.
Speaking of "Jet Li's masterpiece", I can't help but compare it with his previous films. In my personal ranking, the best movies in Jet Li are Huang Feihong series (in fact, Huang Feihong is more like Tsui Hark's movies than Jet Li's movies), Tai Zhang Chi Sanfeng is the best martial arts performer, and Jason Wu hero is the best fighting performer. In "the legendary swordsman", Jet Li's kung fu is drowned in Viali of Cheng Xiaodong, and he is unconstrained, but his innocent and clear temperament is unforgettable; The epoch-making significance of Shaolin Temple to Kung Fu films has surpassed the achievements of the films themselves.
Huo Yuanjia should be compared with Huang Feihong in character image and background setting, but it is completely different from Huang Feihong's grand pattern. Although Huo Yuanjia also put the time in the background of the imperialist powers' invasion of China in the early 20th century, the whole film did not put the national justice and feelings of home and country in the main position, but paid more attention to the theme of how individuals face themselves and focused on the description of how to get rid of violence with kindness. From this point of view, Huo Yuanjia is very much like Thailand, Zhang Chi and Sanfeng more than ten years ago. The biggest difference is that the violence and kindness in Zhang Chi Sanfeng are represented by Dong Tianbao and Zhang Junbao respectively, while in Huo Yuanjia, Huo Yuanjia is the only one. Both of them also told a theme of "growing up" at the turning point of the story. Interestingly, it was Jet Li's idea to shoot "Tai Zhang Chi Sanfeng" more than ten years ago, and then it was completed in cooperation with Yuan Heping; Today, Jet Li has more people to help him realize his dream, but the result is the same story.
Thai Zhang Chi Sanfeng is a film with outstanding advantages and disadvantages, with excellent character setting and action arrangement. Zhang Junbao's process of realizing Tai Ji Chuan's theory in Madness and Jet Li's process of beating Tai Ji Chuan in Fallen Leaves Back to Roots are ingenious and unrepeatable. And its too old-fashioned plot, too playful characters and some crazy lines are really speechless. What makes people laugh and cry is that "Huo Yuanjia" almost completely inherits the advantages and disadvantages of "Tai Zhang Chi Sanfeng", but the advantages and disadvantages are not as prominent as before, just like a person's nature has not changed after he is old, but has become more smooth.
At the turning point of Huo's story, there is a plot in which Huo Yuanjia helps local villagers to transplant rice seedlings. When the wind blows, everyone stands tall, closes their eyes, and the bamboo forest opposite rises and falls with the wind. This scene is like a religious ceremony. I understand that the director's intention is to use an image metaphor to prove that "people can't always bow their heads and rush forward, but need to stop and think when necessary". To tell the truth, the setting of this scene is quite silly and too artificial, but looking at it, it seems that I really feel the cool breeze. This is exactly the same as Zhang Junbao's three words "Let go of the burden and run like a new student" in "Three Prosperities in Thailand and Zhang Chi". It seems that it can't be stupid, but it gives birth to recognition from the heart.
There is no doubt about the action design. Yuan Heping and Qi Xin of Jet Li can't be a masterpiece together. This movie didn't disappoint me at all. The intensive fighting one after another was wonderful, which really made people happy.
The action scenes in Huo Yuanjia are different from those in Jet Li's previous films. Yuan Heping is very good at using all kinds of complex terrain and props to design thrilling actions for characters in a narrow space. The Battle of Bamboo Ladder at the end of Huang Feihong and the Battle of Narrow Alley in Huang Feihong's Every Man Should Strive for Self-improvement are both classic works. In Huo Yuanjia, almost all the fights are in the ring, so it is difficult to design a unique action scene in an almost constant scene. But the fighting in Huo Yuanjia is so wonderful that people can't help admiring: Master Yuan Heping, mud is really immortal! Starry eyes ~ ~ ~
The following is purely personal interest, amateur nonsense. Please comment on the whole fight item by item, and correct any mistakes.
1. Before the Third World War, Huo Yuanjia fenced against the West with his bare hands, his pike against the Russian spear, and China fenced against the West.
It was my accident that these three games were put at the beginning of the movie. In general kung fu movies, heavyweight fights should be placed at the back of the movie, and although these three fights are not long, even in the whole movie, the wonderful degree is excellent.
Of the three games, the best one was spear against spear. The pike used in Huo Yuanjia is made of gray rod, which has good elasticity and combines rigidity with softness; Russian spear is a hard material, long and strong. At first, Huo Yuanjia deceived his own body in melee, which made the opponent's spear have no room for display. This is in contrast to Yang Ziqiong's overlord gun with double willow blades against Xu Shaoqiang in Wing Chun Quan, which was also designed by Yuan Heping. Wing Chun only uses the narrow space to make the overlord gun unable to display, while Huo Yuanjia relies entirely on the flickering posture to make the other side unable to open the distance, thus making the spear useless. After that, the Russian who was forced to do nothing broke his spear with a roar and stabbed Huo Yuanjia with a spear that was only half the length. When the spear tip is a few inches away from Huo Yuanjia's body, the other side's dominant spear tip has stopped at his eyebrows. This game vividly interprets the weapon "one inch long and one inch strong" in China Wushu with actions; The traditional saying that "one point is short, one point is dangerous" is fast-paced but not chaotic, with distinct levels. Jet Li's movements are natural and unrestrained, and his control is excellent, showing everyone's demeanor. Although the time is short, it is the top grade in the one-on-one ground fighting in kung fu movies.
Jet Li's sword is the highlight of Chinese fencing against western fencing. Sword is one of the most common short weapons in China traditional martial arts. However, apart from Huang Feihong's Iron Chicken vs. Centipede, Jet Li has never used a sword in other films. The reason may be that "the sword comes from Wudang", most of them are fighters who are good at martial arts in the family, and Jet Li is the first scholar of the Northern School, so the sword is not suitable for him. Today, Jet Li's physical fitness is not as good as that of the peak period, but the cultivation of family-run kung fu is more successful than when he was young. It is a long-cherished wish to show the exquisiteness of China's fencing on the screen.
Empty-handed boxing is similar to the next one, and it's not so dramatic. Skip.
2. In Guinness, Huo (Yuanjia's father) versus Zhao's father (his father).
Zou Zhaolong, the actor of Huofu, is called Ni Xing. He plays the ultimate boss killer in Zhongnanhai Bodyguard. It always gives the impression that he looks angry. This time, he turned into a modest gentleman and stuck on his beard, but he didn't feel abrupt. This fight aims to advance the plot, focusing on the palm that Hoff hit the other side in the eye but was rejected. The rest is just quite satisfactory. Zou Zhaolong's footwork is still excellent, but there is nothing to say. (Mr. Huo was kicked off the ring by the other side after being merciful. Backflip and kneeling are super handsome! & lt- This is entirely a personal BT interest ... Never mind ||)
2.5. Following the Golden Gate Challenge, Xiao Yuanjia VS Xiao Zhao Jian. This is the addition of 2-Xiao Yuanjia was kicked by Xiao Zhao Jian and then stepped on him. From then on, he decided to practice hard and finally beat Guinness.
PS: The scene where the fireman instructs his disciples to practice martial arts reminds people of the classic martial arts in Shaolin Temple. I don't know if it is a "tribute".
3. Gaotai, Huo Yuanjia VS Zhao Jian.
This is the revenge version of the 2.5 game. Laugh. It was also a beating. This time, the ring was set on a platform above 10 meters.
High-platform drumming has also appeared many times in Jet Li's films. The most representative ones are Huang Feihong VS Jiugong Real Person in "A Man Should Be Self-reliant", Huang Feihong VS Thief of the Western Regions in Huang Feihong's "Lion of the Western Regions" and Fang Shiyu VS Li Xiaohuan in Fang Shiyu. The high platform in "A Man Should Stand on His Own" is composed of curved tables. The table that has been shaking highlights the excitement of fighting. The techniques of "destroying Taiwan" and "opposing Taiwan" have appeared in many action films and become a major feature of Yuan's action films. The high platform of the "Lion of the Western Regions" is very small, and there is a windmill that keeps turning on it. This danger of being caught up and down makes the battle very enjoyable. In Fang Shiyu, there is a man and a woman on the platform, which is a wedding competition. It is hilarious but not sharp, adding many acrobatic elements such as HongLing Flying Man. Very lively and beautiful.
Compared with Huo Yuanjia's Gaotai, it is the least ingenious one, that is, a real wooden platform, but it is higher than "Gao", perhaps the highest one in all previous Gaotai. There is no fancy design, which enhances the realism of hitting. Whenever the character is forced to the edge of the ring, the audience will feel almost dizzy and sweaty. This paragraph must be computer-synthesized-the progress of shooting methods will really create better and better results!
As far as action is concerned, Huo Yuanjia's strong hand and Zhao Jian's firm stance highlight the battle. People fly out of the edge of the ring, and the action of swinging back with one hand has obvious traces of prestige, which is ornamental but not very real. And the character of "just fierce and sharp" is not as distinct as Xiao Haoqin's action in "Big Zhang Chi Sanfeng"-after all, Huo Yuanjia is just a young and competitive person, not a vicious villain.