Murder and set fire to the golden belt, repair bridges and make up roads, and there are no corpses. Achen, the world should not be like this, life should not be like this.
- "Infernal Affairs 2"
In 2002, the glory of Hong Kong movies no longer slid into a trough. How bad was the Hong Kong movie at that time? One movie is shot and the other is on the street. The box office of a single film hovers around 2 million Hong Kong dollars. Very few can get 5 million at the box office. The whole film industry is panicked. In the same year, "SARS" struck, and the violent outbreak forced the Hong Kong government to restrict public gatherings and entertainment activities, and closed a large number of cinemas and dance halls, which made the already dwindling West Mountain Hong Kong movies worse, and there is a sense of sadness that the end is coming. And it was also this year that the hardest film in Hong Kong film history appeared. With the 20 million Hong Kong dollars given by Media Asia, Liu Weiqiang recruited many stars such as Tony Leung, Andy Lau, Huang Qiusheng, etc., and made a masterpiece of Hong Kong movies - "Infernal Affairs".
The hard core of "Infernal Affairs" is reflected in the following three points:
one. box office. After the film was released on December 12, 2002, it exceeded 30 million at the box office in just two weeks, and the final total box office was fixed at 55 million Hong Kong dollars, which was regarded as a box office miracle that year.
two. Award. The film swept the 22nd Hong Kong Film Awards in 2003, including seven awards for the best picture. He won five awards including Best Feature Film at the 40th Taiwan Film Golden Horse Awards in 2003.
three. international influence. In 2003, five companies including Richard Donner, director of the American film "Superman", Robert De Niro's production company, and Warner Bros. bid for the copyright of "Infernal Affairs", and Warner won in the end. In 2006, the American version of "Infernal Affairs" was released, and won the 79th Academy Awards for Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Editing, and Best Picture. In 2010, "Infernal Affairs" was ranked 30th on the Empire magazine's top 100 movies list. It said of "Infernal Affairs": "The presentation of the emotional torture suffered by the two leading actors makes the audience immerse in it during the viewing process. From this point of view, many other cool action scenes are only compared to Extra reward."
From box office to awards to international influence, the performance of "Infernal Affairs" can be said to have no dead ends in all aspects. The excellent performance of "Infernal Affairs" has given a boost to the declining Hong Kong films and forced them to continue their lives. Countless audiences and film critics firmly believe that Hong Kong films will surely come out of the trough and create greater glories. However, it turns out that this is just our wishful thinking, and after a brief ecstasy, people realize that "Infernal Affairs" is not a revival of Hong Kong cinema, but a return to Hong Kong cinema.
While Hong Kong films were fading away, Korean films began to emerge. In the past, they admired Hong Kong movies very much. The TV shows films such as Leslie Cheung, Chow Yun-fat, Wang Zuxian and others. At that time, the world movies did not have their place. However, in just 30 years, they have shown a strong ability to learn and innovate, allowing Korean films to go global. In 2012, on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of the release of "Infernal Affairs", director Park Jung-hoon assembled three movie stars, Lee Jung-jae, Choi Min-sik and Hwang Jung-min, to shoot a police and bandit movie "New World" known as the Korean version of "Infernal Affairs". As if announcing to the world the rise of Korean cinema.
The chairman of the Kinmen Group and the violent organization died in a car accident in Shi Dongchu, the boss of the Tiger faction. The incident caused a lot of shocks in both black and white. The various forces under Kinmen began to move about, Ding Qing, the number three person, and Li Zhongjiu, the number four person wanted to take this opportunity to win the talker, oh no, to inherit the cause of the president. On the other hand, in order to prevent the Kinmen Group from further infiltrating into the legal field and continuing to grow, the police put forward the "New World Plan" in time, hoping to achieve the purpose of controlling the gangsters by interfering in the election of the Kinmen Group's successor boss...
Does this scenario sound familiar? Have you seen it anywhere? For example the following conversation:
Mary: "I just remember that four years ago...you told me to kill Ni Kun."
Huang Zhicheng: "What do you mean? Blackmail me?"
Mary: "I'm not blackmailing you, but the two of us can't look back now."
Huang Zhicheng: "When the time comes, I will transfer everyone away."
Yes, we can see the shadow of Infernal Affairs 2. In fact, the concept of "New World" is also 100% derived from "Infernal Affairs", for which director Park Zhengxun made it clear in an interview with the media. However, what is commendable is that in the face of Zhuyu's previous works, Park Zhengxun was not constrained by his hands and feet, but was very open, successfully made innovations, and made a very Korean-flavored police and crime movie.
Compared with "Infernal Affairs", the character structure of this film is obviously traceable, but it is not exactly the same. The director erased Chen Yongren's underworld family background, removed his shackles, and created Li Zicheng; removed Ni Yongxiao's elegance, added eccentricity, and then Ding Qing; Righteous Section Chief Jiang. Then during the viewing process, the audience will be surprised to find that these changes have produced a wonderful chemical reaction.
The movie begins with a familiar plot. Li Zicheng angrily ran to the abandoned fishing pond to see Section Chief Jiang, and asked him why his undercover career had not ended, so he almost didn't shout out that classic line: "Obviously said yes. It was three years, but three years after three years, three years after three years, it’s almost ten years, boss!”
The difference lies in another familiar plot. When Li Zicheng was about to leave, Section Chief Jiang pointed to the baby clothes on the ground for him to take away. This gift was for his unborn child. At this time, Li Zicheng's first reaction was not gratitude, but that he was being followed. Section Chief Jiang's answer also acquiesced to this fact, and in the end the angry Li Zicheng threw the gift into the pool.
Yes, Section Chief Jiang, who was once betrayed by undercover agents, did not trust Li Zicheng, who was climbing higher and higher. Li Zicheng was just a pawn to achieve justice by himself. What he paid attention to was not trust, but control. In order to ensure 100% control over Li Zicheng, Section Chief Jiang started from both work and life to monitor Li Zicheng in an all-round way. In terms of work, Shi Wu, an undercover police officer, was sent to monitor Li Zicheng. If he found a mutiny, he would immediately kill him. In terms of life, he made a deal with Li Zicheng's wife to let her monitor Li Zicheng on the condition of releasing her father. At the same time, all the actions of the police are kept secret from Li Zicheng. Li Zicheng can only output information, but he does not know what the next step of the police will be. Even after China Hongke stole the police's undercover information, Section Chief Jiang still disregarded Li Zicheng's life and death and asked him to continue to complete the task.
In contrast, Ding Qing has the utmost trust and respect for Li Zicheng. There are several scenes throughout the film that show Ding Qing's respect for Li Zicheng. For example, when Li Zicheng disliked the copycat Rolex that Ding Qing gave him in front of his younger brother, Ding Qing was not angry, but symbolically vented his anger against his younger brother.
For example, Ding Qing disliked Li Zicheng's indifference but taught his younger brother Shi Wu a lesson.
When Ding Qing was not in China, he dared to trust Li Zicheng to manage the company. Even after knowing that Li Zicheng was an undercover agent, he still thought of brotherhood and couldn't bear to kill him.
So there is a strong contrast:
Section Chief Jiang is wary of Li Zicheng's suspicion, and Ding Qing respects Li Zicheng's trust.
Section Chief Jiang disregarded Li Zicheng's life and death for justice, and Ding Qing did not kill Li Zicheng for the sake of friendship.
There is no doubt that New World explores both good and evil as well as an element that is often present in Korean films: human nature. Every time the plot advances, Li Zicheng's inner torment deepens. A policeman who has been undercover for eight years, risking his life to perform tasks but not getting the trust of his own people, is always suspected. This kind of pain is infinitely magnified by Ding Qing's extreme trust and respect. Humanity and justice are in Li Zicheng's life. In the heart of the war between heaven and man, Li Zicheng walked to the brink of collapse step by step.
Li Zicheng once said: "What exactly am I to you? After so many years, those hooligans have trusted me, and you can't believe me if you obey me!"
Suffering, suffering all the time.
And all this came to an abrupt end in Ding Qing's monologue before his death:
Ding Qing: "Relax your expression, mother...I thought I would never see you again, so she's happy...Brother, you look tired, don't be like this...what are you doing? (Li Zicheng is thinking at this time.) Help Ding Qing put on an oxygen mask) You son of a bitch... in case... 1 in 10,000,000, I'm alive, what do you do... Can you deal with me... You have to be ruthless in order to survive, understand? ?"
When Ding Qing was dying, he used all his strength to push Li Zicheng, and then the balance tilted.
In fact, this kind of torture of human nature and reality is not the first of Park Zhengxun. We can find this theme in any well-known Korean genre film, such as "The Defender", "Train to Busan", "The Furnace", etc. It has almost become a Korean movie. The key is that the director has well integrated this element of Korean movies while retaining the characteristics of "Infernal Affairs", making the plot of "New World" completely dark and innovative. It is also worth mentioning that the director also boldly incorporated Korean-style violent aesthetics in this film, making "New World" more Korean-style.
The aesthetics of violence first originated in the United States, and was later introduced to Hong Kong. With the efforts of director John Woo, the aesthetics of violence developed and matured. In the 1980s and 1990s, the representative figure of the aesthetics of violence was John Woo. His interpretation of violent plot completely subverted the cognition of European and American audiences, and made violence feel poetic. For example, in "The True Color of Heroes", Brother Ma drove a speedboat back to save people in the BGM, and slammed the killer on the shore with firearms:
Another example is Xiaozhuang and Wang Hai in "Blood and Blood" in a firefight in a candlelit church, with doves flying amid the hail of bullets, and the Virgin weeping:
John Woo's violent aesthetic has also influenced many directors, including the famous Quentin Tarantino. Compared with the former poetry, Quentin's violent aesthetics focuses more on blood and gorgeousness. The violence under his camera has only one purpose: to make the audience feel good, and he also adds his own element: black humor. For example, in his famous work "Pulp Fiction", Joss played by Samuel L. Jackson suddenly pulled the trigger when others rambled to express his apology, including the hit "Django Unchained" a few years ago. This bridge occurs many times.
This violent aesthetic full of dark humor has almost become Quentin's label. As an admirer of John Woo, he also filmed a gunfight scene with a Hong Kong film flavor in "Django Unchained".
Usually, firearms are the weapons of choice for displaying violent aesthetics. They are not only fast but also lethal, and have almost become the standard of violent aesthetics. But Koreans don't like firearms, they prefer various tools in daily life, the more common the better. Such as hammers, daggers, baseball bats, etc. If you don't have them, then fists are also a good choice. For example, in "Old Boy", the 3-minute long shot of the fight, which is talked about by many fans, has a variety of fighting tools such as steel pipes, daggers, hammers, and wooden sticks.
Of course, this is also related to the theme of Korean crime movies. The theme of Korean crime movies is generally inseparable from "revenge". The protagonists are usually the oppressed. The setting of one shot by a firearm may be gorgeous and unrestrained, but it is obviously cheaper to oppress. It means that the death is too happy.
The same is true in "New World". When Ding Qing obtained the information about the undercover agent around him through China Hongke, he beat his subordinates to death with a shovel in front of Li Zicheng, and slammed his head again and again until the ground was dripping. It was a dazzling red, and Li Zicheng, who was beside him, was covered in sweat, and even his hands were shaking when he flipped through the documents.
A few simple shots show Ding Qing's anger and Li Zicheng's panic vividly. And this is another feature of Korean violent aesthetics - showing the inner world of the characters. The more violent and bloody the plot, the more it can reflect the characters' anger and emotional catharsis, and after catharsis, the audience's heart will cool down like the protagonist. In contrast, in "Infernal Affairs 2", whether Luo Jixian executed the three men who betrayed the Ni family, or Ni Yongxiao killed Luo Jixian, they all chose firearms, which were cold and neat. These are two different forms of violent aesthetics.
The most classic fight in the film happened in the underground parking lot. Li Zhongjiu sent someone to kill Ding Qing in the parking lot. More than 100 men in neat suits fought in the closed parking lot with baseball bats, wooden sticks and knives. The beasts hidden in the suits passed nearly 2/3 of the movie. After time, he finally couldn't hold it any longer, tore off his disguise, and showed his fangs to fight together.
In the face of the enemy, Ding Qing has been in a state of rage, full of foul language, and even reluctant to leave after stabbing several people, and finally his men dragged him away from the battlefield. His subordinates wanted to escort Ding Qing to escape through the elevator, but Li Zhongjiu's men were already waiting for him in the elevator with a short knife.
After Ding Qing was pulled into the elevator, as the elevator closed, a new trapped beast capital began. The director used a rotating and shaking wide-angle lens to film the battle of the trapped beasts. On one side was Li Zhongjiu's angry subordinates, and on the other side was a violent Ding Qing. The two sides in neat suits stood on the sticky ground full of blood, waving cold weapons with ghastly faces. Taking advantage of the extremely limited space, attacking, dodging and attacking again, and in the end, only those who survived are qualified to walk out of the elevator, showing the Tigers' determination to revenge and Ding Qing's heroism vividly. This scene caused extremely strong emotions to the audience. The visual impact also completes the desire to promote Ding Qing before suppressing it. From the ruffian and condescending at the beginning of the movie, to calmly dealing with Chief Jiang, to the ruthlessness when killing the undercover Shi Wu, and finally to the violent madness shown in the battle in the parking lot, the movie took nearly 90 minutes to shape Ding The role of Qing finally ends with violent aesthetics, making the audience realize that Ding Qing's rise to the top is not due to luck. Ruffian, calm, cruel, thoughtful, violent and many other elements are perfectly integrated in Ding Qing, and the characters are so three-dimensional
Of course, this film also has certain shortcomings. For example, because of the small role of Cui Minzhi's section chief Jiang, his image is not as full as Li Zicheng and Ding Qing, and even less than Li Zhongjiu, who is the only one. Compared with his previous film roles, he is slightly inferior ("Old Wu Daxiu in The Boys). Another example is that this film has weakened the strength of the Korean police (the daily sense of black public power in Korean movies), and such a confidential document undercover was taken care of by my famous celebrity within two days, which is suspected of forcibly promoting the plot. In general, "Infernal Affairs" is still better, but as a remake, Park Zhengxun has already handed in a satisfactory answer:
On February 21, 2013, "New World" was released, mobilized 168,960 viewers on the premiere day, and successfully entered the single-day box office champion, defeating "The Gift of Room 7", which had been the champion for many days, and was released for the first time. Weekly mobilized 860,756 viewers and successfully topped the Korean movie weekend box office chart
Then the familiar scene appeared again:
In April of the same year, Sony Pictures purchased the English adaptation copyright of "New World", and the adaptation was written by Will Fates.
In the end, the film accumulated 4.68 million viewers, ranking ninth among Korean films in 2013. And this year, its opponents are "The Defender", "The Gift of Room 7", "Snowpiercer", "Terrorist Live" and other powerful opponents.
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