As a pure kung fu film that is increasingly scarce in the current film market, "Ip Man's Biography: Zhang Tianzhi" is currently suffering a very unfair treatment in theaters. Not only is the film scheduled for very few screenings, but the timing of the screenings is also very embarrassing. In other words, even if there are many new films released at the same time this week, it will not compress the release rate of this film so exaggeratedly.
Of course, in good conscience, although director Yuan Heping has the halo of a master of his forehead, his directorial work in recent years is really uncomplimentable.
Although I had some doubts before watching the movie, after reviewing all the new films over the weekend, the "Zhang Tianzhi" co-produced by Ba Ye and Zhang Jin this time is really the best domestic film of the same period. Unfortunately, as of Christmas, this film Not only has the number of films not increased, but many popular theaters have even stopped arranging screenings for the film.
This rumored film is expected to be cold at the box office, but this time, the grievance is that the film did not fall in bad quality, but died in the hands of the offline film manager.
Let’s talk about a not-so-interesting anecdote. I rushed to watch this film on the first day it was released, and there was only one line-up in the cinema that I often go to. When I got to the cinema hall, the front desk told me that because I bought the ticket alone, I didn't want to show and asked me if I could see something else. Fortunately, another old brother came at this time. Both of us have to watch "Zhang Tianzhi", so a very strange pair of single dogs and private field duo is a trip.
After watching the movie, I would like to say that if the cinemas say that no one has watched "Zhang Tianzhi" based on the current results, it is actually very unfair. After all, the number of screenings is small, the time is poor, and the film does not have real popularity. Actors help out, and the official announcement is relatively weak. The current situation is a pity for this film.
However, just like the situation of Zhang Tianzhi in the film, how can there be so many smooth sailings in life, I just hope that after the word of mouth of the other films is down, we can see if this film has the possibility of turning over in the later stage.
The strongest traditional martial arts performance
The fighting scenes in this film are naturally worth looking forward to. Since Donnie Yen became famous, the fighting style of my country's action films is constantly approaching the number of fierce actual combats. The routines of seeing tricks and dismantling tricks in old movies are becoming more and more rare. .
What's interesting is that in recent years, the most outstanding action films of similar styles are almost all starred by Zhang Jin. "The Grandmaster" made Zhang Jin appear, and "Slaying the Wolf 2" helped Wu Jing and Tony Jia in the ultimate showdown. Zhang Jin established his status as a first-line star, and his career has been smooth sailing since then.
At the beginning of the next year, Zhang Jin and Donnie Yen co-starred in "Ip Man 3". This is also a rare act with Donnie Yen in recent years. Not only has it not been robbed of the limelight, but it even makes people feel that it has overwhelmed the protagonist.
Perhaps it is precisely because of Zhang Jin's continuous rise in popularity in recent years, coupled with Zhang Tianzhi's charming character, that this "Ip Man Biography" has been promoted.
In the film, Yuan Heping once again demonstrated his excellent level of martial arts design, coupled with Zhang Jin's elegant and unrestrained martial arts foundation, although the final effect is very different from Donnie Yen's "Ip Man" in style, the action scenes of this film are still full of highlights. .
Of course, as I said before, because Ba Ye's action design is more old-fashioned, there may be some action stunts that seem to be done by the actors themselves, but still using Weiya to create a feeling similar to light work will make today's audiences. It's a little playful, but fortunately, this style is familiar to Zhang Jin, and it definitely does not constitute a minus point on the whole.
With an excellent core team, international action actors such as Tonyja and Batista who came to help out in the film added a lot of highlights to the film.
If you remember the strong duel between Zhang Jin and Tony Jia in "Slaying the Wolf 2", "Zhang Tianzhi" will bring you more exciting fighting scenes; if you think the plot of Donnie Yen vs. Tyson in "Ip Man 3" Let you be addicted, then Batista, who is in his prime, from professional wrestling, can bring us a better visual experience. After all, compared to the old Tyson, the current Batista is no matter the body shape. , and his acting skills are better than Tyson, and this showdown will definitely allow the audience to earn back the ticket price.
Not to mention that there are also Shi Yanneng and Michelle Yeoh, two Chinese action movie stars with the same seniority and strong kung fu joining in the film. "Zhang Tianzhi" is a feast for action movie lovers.
Complete and rich plot story, passable role performance
As a rumored film, the completeness of the script and the richness of the story content of "Zhang Tianzhi" are really surprising. Compared with the simple battle between good and evil in most action films, this film involves the open and secret struggle of multiple forces. Roles and different forces also restrict and influence each other.
For example, the Tianle Gang that appeared in the film was divided into two factions due to internal conflicts; while the villain interest organization on the other side had some small frictions when cooperating with the Tianle Gang; A positive character, Zhao Jinhu, can be regarded as unknown; and the assassination organization, which also has super strength, also has an equally important role in the film.
After so many forces came on stage, the transition processing of the film can still be done relatively complete; after watching the whole film, the plot development can be interlocked smoothly and naturally, which is a good performance for an action film .
Of course, as an action movie, if there is no flaw in the plot, it can be considered qualified. The difference lies in the action scenes, and how much content the movie can let the audience remember is a reasonable standard to measure the plot of an action movie.
To be honest, Yuan Heping, as a director, has a weak ability to conceive of shots. There are really not many impressive pictures in a film. In addition, the impression given by the film when shaping the characters is relatively dull, and the actor's performance in the role. There is less space, and the protagonists are basically qualified to complete the performance task, but unfortunately, there is no classic screen image for the audience.
In contrast, the supporting roles of this film have more room to play.
Familiar "Ye Wen" routine, different "Zhang Tianzhi" presents
In the "Ip Man" series of films, because of the character of the protagonist Ip Man, the plot tends to be very routine. In general, its development is that Ip Man encountered trouble, Ip Man wanted to endure the past, endured it and found that he couldn't bear it anymore, so he In the past, beat the opposite side and conquer people by force.
It seems that "Ip Man" is about people who practice martial arts and must cultivate martial arts, but in the end they will actually fall into the routine of rushing to the crown and anger.
At the same time, because of the setting of the era, most of "Ip Man" 1 and 2 end with a confrontation with foreigners, and the plot of the film will also serve to pave the way for national emotions, so the development of the story is also very modeled.
It wasn't until "Ip Man 3" that the film changed Ip Man's final enemy to Zhang Tianzhi's rival, which was considered a new idea; but this time it was "Zhang Tianzhi"'s turn to be the protagonist, and we can't expect Ye Wenhe Zhang Tianzhi will have another fight, so the film returns to the traditional routine of beating foreigners, unsurprisingly.
However, although the story mode is the same, the plot development of "Zhang Tianzhi" is more refreshing because of Zhang Tianzhi and Ip Man's completely different ways of doing things.
Different from Ye Wen's forbearance in everything, Zhang Tianzhi sees grievances and grievances more clearly, and revenge is very neat. The revenge that can be avenged today will never wait until the sun rises the next day.
In the film, we can see several times that Zhang Tianzhi uses his kung fu to stand out for himself or his friends.
Even the national integrity that has been emphasized many times in "Ip Man" is infinitely weakened by Zhang Tianzhi. Of course, this is not to say that Zhang Tianzhi is not patriotic, but the film tells about a completely different value from Ye Wen. reflect.
Zhang Tianzhi is more like a pure Jianghu. Although at the beginning of the series of films, the young Ye Wen is very similar to Zhang Tianzhi, but the difference is that Ye Wen learned to forbear on the one hand because of the turbulence of the current situation, and more importantly, restraint discipline of his wife.
On the other hand, Zhang Tianzhi is completely different from Ye Wen. His competitive strength may be because the world is not peaceful, so he wants to get ahead with his martial arts skills.
At the same time, because Zhang Tianzhi was alone and had to take care of his only son, a large part of the reason why he wanted to become famous was also for his own children, and even the decision to live an ordinary life incognito was not only defeated by Ye Wen, A lot of it is for my own children.
If we compare Ye Wen to a gentleman in the rivers and lakes, Zhang Tianzhi can definitely be regarded as a hero in the martial arts. Even in the final battle, the reason for carrying him to fight is not a national righteousness. It is just for his friends. Fair persistence.
After the whole film, although Zhang Jin's handling of the performance may be a little overdone, Zhang Tianzhi's impression is very pleasing and positive.
The Formation of the Universe of "Ip Man"
Recalling that more than ten years ago, Donnie Yen got rid of his embarrassing status as a second-line star through "Slaying the Wolf" (2005) and "Fuse" (2007) in a row, and became a first-line action film actor. In 2008, a "Ip Man" It also helped him go further and enter the ranks of Hong Kong's top superstars.
The film "Ip Man" has changed the drawbacks of Donnie Yen's participation in films that focus on martial arts and less literature. Both literary and martial arts have blossomed, not only creating the most classic image of Ip Man on the screen, but also making Wing Chun's martial arts popular rapidly The rise has provided Donnie Yen with a platform to dedicate his best film performance, and this film has also successfully won the title of best film at the 28th Hong Kong Film Awards.
"Ip Man 2 The Legend of the Grand Master" was released. This sequel expands the pattern of the story and adds two important characters, Tornado and Master Hong, while ensuring that the characters and plot in the play are inextricably linked with the original generation, expanding new At the same time of the plot, it also takes into account the complex of the old audience, which can be said to be very funny.
Although the film's reputation failed to surpass the previous film in the end, as a sequel film, this film has successfully supplemented the screen image of Ip Man, and at the same time, the environment in the special era has been further enriched.
The episode of Ye Wen worshipping the mountain to compete in martial arts gave life to the so-called "martial arts" in that era. It can be said that it is precisely because of this scene that fans will watch Zhang Jin's martial arts competition in "Ye Wen 3" later. The plot of the martial arts hall will feel more real and believable.
After coming to "Ip Man 3", even though the time span of the plot has been stretched for a long time, the relationship between this film and the previous work has been further weakened, but some characters from the previous work have been retained to some extent, including Zhang Yongcheng played by Xiong Dailin and Zheng Zeshi. Including the police detective, this also makes the audience still not unfamiliar with the new Ip Man story.
The introduction of the role of Zhang Tianzhi at this time has finally declared the end of the old Ye Wen era, the social background has transitioned from the war period to a new stage, and the plot can finally return to the ordinary story theme from the level of national justice. Talk about those things in the arena.
After completing this transformation, after "Ip Man 3", Zhang Tianzhi's independent film appeared, because the rich setting of the 3rd generation middle film side also made the story background and content more credible.
Yuan Heping also took the opportunity to directly connect the opening chapter of "Zhang Tianzhi" with "Ip Man 3" roughly. Although this method is very unskilled, it is actually the most important for fans of the "Ip Man" series. Good opening option.
As for the environment in which Zhang Tianzhi lives, the filmmaker also specially arranged many details to pay tribute to the series.
For example, Zhang Tianzhi's son Zhang Feng had a fight with his classmates (also a big defeat) because of his father's affairs as in "Ip Man 3".
Zhang Feng cut out all the content of Zhang Tianzhi's previous newspapers, and this prop has also become a key prop to stimulate Zhang Tianzhi's fighting spirit.
Tyson's valet played by Tan Yaowen in "Ip Man 3" also appeared again this time, but this time the foreigner he found was worse than Tyson...
In many supporting roles, there are many side comments on Zhang Tianzhi, and most of these contents will be related to "Ip Man 3".
The dialogue in these characters' mouths is like a stranger saying something to you every time they see you, so after continuous accumulation, we also take Zhang Tianzhi as a very familiar character, even though adding " Ip Man 3", we have only seen this character on the screen twice!
In fact, apart from Zhang Tianzhi who came out of nowhere, in the series of Ip Man films, the producers were always looking for a suitable opportunity to bring the legendary Bruce Lee into the story and complete Ip Man's transformation from legend to reality.
And this plan will finally be realized in "Ip Man 4". When the character Bruce Lee first appeared in Ip Man's story, we may not know what kind of success it can help the film achieve.
But unknowingly, through the accumulation of several movies, the character of Ye Wen has become more and more real and full, and the river and lake where Ye Wen lives has become more and more vivid.
At that time, it may not only be Zhang Tianzhi who has already been released, let us imagine, if the series is extended to a "Ip Man Gaiden Bruce Lee", what kind of success can it achieve?
In fact, as far as the domestic film market is concerned, the attitude towards sequel movies is quite positive, but every brand wants to come up with a sequel, but there are too few IPs that can become popular.
Ning Hao's "Crazy Series" can be regarded as both fame and fortune, Xu Zheng's "囧 Series" is at least guaranteed to make money first, and Chen Sicheng's "Detective Chinatown" also has a trend of in-depth development.
In comparison, "Ip Man" (Ip Man) has launched four works, plus the four generations that have been filmed, the volume of five works is almost the most successful film series in recent years.
With the continuous development of the series and the richer content, the stories that the film can tell will not be limited, but will be more fully developed. We can see the ambition of the investors, and we can also feel what Ip Man is now. With the power of IP, the rest depends on how big the cake can be.
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