Chapter 126: The Influence and Sensation of "Heroes"

The premiere dinner of "Infernal Affairs" was held at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel.

Normally, well-known five-star hotels like this have strict security and customer privacy protection.

But this is not a celebration party after all, the movie has not yet been released, so these media are still needed to provide heat.

Therefore, with the tacit consent of Media Asia Group, media reporters will be allowed to enter the hotel, but they are not allowed to enter the banquet hall.

But they didn't expect that as soon as the two of them came out, they were surrounded by these reporters.

Originally, Liu Zhou was not very famous in Hong Kong. Even though there was some heat when the "Xiu Chun Dao" project was announced, it was quickly dispersed by various entertainment news.

Although these reporters could not enter the banquet hall, they were able to gather that a fight seemed to have taken place inside.

Now seeing Andy Lau and Liu Zhou come out early, no matter whether they are the parties involved or not, they will not miss the opportunity to be interviewed.

This was the first time that Liu Zhou realized how crazy the Hong Kong reporters were. They almost stuffed the microphone into Liu Zhou's mouth.

Fortunately, the security guards in the hotel were always keeping an eye on the situation of these reporters and stepped forward to stop them, finally giving the two some space.

"Mr. Liu, I heard there was a fight in the banquet hall just now. Was it you guys?"

"Mr. Liu, can you tell me who was beaten?"

"Mr. Liu, why did you fight?"

……

Although Liu Zhou had a great time playing, it is not easy to talk about such things in front of the media.

So in response to their various questions, Liu Zhou and Liu Dehua remained silent and did not respond.

This was not an open media meeting and there was no obligation to answer their questions.

Seeing that the two were about to leave the hotel under the escort of security, the reporters knew that it would be difficult to learn from them what was happening in the banquet hall, so they could only change the subject.

"Mr. Liu, what do you think about Liu Jialing's photo incident?"

Hearing this question, Liu Zhou couldn't help but stop.

Eastweek may be used to having no bottom line and did not expect that this incident would cause a strong backlash from Hong Kong artists.

At the call of Mei Yanfang, president of the Artist Association, most of the artists in Hong Kong participated and took to the streets to hold a large parade to protest against the shameless behavior of East Weekly.

This incident caused a big stir, and East Weekly was suddenly a little panicked. It fired more than a dozen editors, saying that it was their private behavior.

However, Mei Yanfang and others were not satisfied with this and insisted on ceasing publication of East Weekly.

The truth is that Eastweek has had no bottom line since its establishment. Eighty percent of the entertainment news it reports is fake, and all the content is fabricated.

Eastweek and Apple Daily are the two media most hated by Hong Kong artists.

Now East Weekly is hyping up past events again, which immediately hurts their sensitive nerves.

In their view, after 1997, the dark years in the entertainment industry were over.

In the past, which artist didn’t have one or two things that left them with psychological trauma?
By doing this, isn't Eastweek reminding these Hong Kong artists that those things are not over yet?
It would be strange if their mentality didn’t explode!

Finally, it was the Hong Kong government that stepped in and ordered East Weekly to suspend operations for three months, which only slightly calmed their anger.

Liu Zhou and Liu Jialing had only met once, so they were not very familiar with each other, but he also despised the behavior of East Weekly.

So he still wanted to say a few words about the question raised by the reporter.

“I think the behavior of Eastweek is very shameful. I don’t know why there is such a dirty media in Hong Kong. This is unimaginable in the mainland.

Media like Eastweek should be completely banned, and I hope Ms. Liu Jialing will not be affected by this incident."

"But this is freedom of the press!" a reporter suddenly said.

"Freedom of the press does not mean having no bottom line. Don't get so close to me. I smell the same dirty smell from you as from East Weekly."

Hearing Liu Zhou's words, the people around him couldn't help but sneer, and the reporter was so angry that his face turned red.

However, Liu Zhou didn't care at all and got into the car and left under the escort of security guards.

That night, Liu Zhou took a flight back to Shanghai, rested there for a night, and returned to the crew the next morning.

Liu Zhou waved his sleeves lightly, without taking away a single cloud from the Hong Kong River.

But the news that he slapped someone hard at the premiere dinner of "Infernal Affairs" spread wildly in the circle.

However, they kept their mouth shut and did not fully disclose the matter to the media.

Therefore, the Hong Kong media could only report some groundless stories, but despite this, it aroused the curiosity of the Hong Kong people.

They really wanted to know who was so brave, a mainlander, to slap someone in the face in front of Hong Kong artists without any scruples.

However, there has been no complete news report, and they can only treat this matter as a joke after dinner.

Ordinary people don’t know about this, but this matter has spread throughout the circle, not only in the Hong Kong circle, but also quickly spread to the mainland entertainment circle.

They were able to understand the whole story of the incident better. After hearing about this incident, whether they knew Liu Zhou or not, they couldn't help but give Liu Zhou a thumbs up.

A few familiar people even called to inquire about the actual situation, but Liu Zhou didn't take it seriously and just briefly explained what happened.

Later, Liu Zhou got a little annoyed by the questions, so he simply turned off his phone and concentrated on filming the movie.

What Liu Zhou didn't expect was that when the news of this matter reached the crew, he found that the attitudes of the Hong Kong staff had become much more respectful.

Liu Zhou didn't say much about this. He didn't care about their attitude at all. As long as they completed their work conscientiously, that was enough.

Two days later, Andy Lau returned to the crew.

However, Liu Zhou had to leave again. He needed to return to Beijing to attend the premiere of "Hero".

Liu Zhou is currently a popular director in China, so Zhang Weiping sent him an invitation letter early on.

Because Zeng Li was the lead actress of this movie, and Zeng Li could replace Zhang Manyu to star in this movie, Liu Zhou really had to owe Zhang Weiping a favor, so Liu Zhou also accepted his invitation.

Liu Zhou also wanted to watch the premiere of the mainland's first commercial blockbuster, which would be held at the Great Hall of the People.

This is the first film to hold its premiere in the Great Hall of the People, and it is also China's first blockbuster that meets international standards!

Only after returning to the capital did Liu Zhou realize how grand the premiere was.

Not only reporters from the mainland but also many overseas reporters attended the event.

In order to keep pace with the international film event, all Chinese and foreign journalists present need to wear valid credentials and suits to enter.

And because thousands of guest reporters were invited, there was not enough seats even in the Great Hall of the People.

And given the influence of "Hero" at home and abroad, even the relevant leaders above may attend the premiere ceremony.

So in order to reserve spots, in addition to the investors of "Hero" and representatives of domestic and foreign distributors, only Zhang Yimou and the five leading actors attended the premiere ceremony of the main creative staff of the crew.

Even the martial arts director Cheng Xiaodong, who is also well-known overseas, the cinematographer Christopher Doyle, the costume designer Wada Huimei, and Zhen Zidan, who are important staff members of the crew, did not have a place to attend the premiere. This is probably the first time that important film creators did not have a place to attend the premiere in domestic and foreign film premieres.

At noon on the 14th, Liu Zhou arrived at the entrance of the Great Hall of the People.

Thousands of people filled the square in front of the gate.

The staff of New Picture are conducting strict entrance checks, and every guest and reporter must undergo an inspection comparable to a security check.

The reason for such strictness is mainly to prevent the outflow of pirated copies.

In order to meet the requirements for Oscar nomination, "Hero" was screened several times in Pengcheng some time ago.

As a result, some people used some illegal means to steal the content of "Hero" and caused a small-scale spread.

Therefore, in order to prevent criminals from taking advantage of this premiere to carry out piracy activities, New Picture and the cultural department have formulated strict preventive measures.

Although the uncrowned kings were somewhat unhappy about this, they still obediently accepted the inspection.

After inspection, Liu Zhou and Han Shanping entered the inner field through another door.

Not only he and Han Shanping received this treatment, but also some heavyweight guests.

"Liu Zhou, is the filming going smoothly?"

"It went pretty smoothly."

Han Shanping looked at the grand venue, where all kinds of celebrity guests, big and small, were sitting, and couldn't help but sighed and said:
"It seems that you are right. In our current situation, we need to make a big movie."

"Boss Han, it's right to make blockbusters, but it depends on who is shooting them. Not all famous directors have the ability to make blockbusters."

However, Han Shanping seemed to have misunderstood Liu Zhou's meaning and laughed and scolded:
"You don't think highly of Zhang Yimou?"

"Of course I am optimistic about Director Zhang. I mean other directors. China Film Group should be careful when making blockbusters in the future."

"You're not trying to praise yourself in a roundabout way, are you?"

Seeing that Han Shanping thought he was joking, Liu Zhou just smiled and said nothing more.

Looking at such a large venue, people were sitting neatly and an extra-large curtain was pulled up on the podium.

Such a movie premiere ceremony can be said to be every director's dream.

Liu Zhou felt that the premiere ceremony of "Infernal Affairs" was simply weak compared to this one.

The Hong Kong industry is still immersed in its own self-satisfaction, and has not noticed that the mainland film and television industry is undergoing earth-shaking changes every day.

"By the way, Liu Zhou, you were a little impulsive in Hong Kong before. Now that you are the people of big bosses and directors, you can't act recklessly. But, I feel very happy to hear that, hahaha!"

"I just couldn't help it because I saw that guy was spewing shit."

"Just hit them, they can't do anything about it. But from now on you have to learn to solve problems with reasonable means."

"Boss Han, I'm only in my twenties now. When I'm thirty, you can teach me how to do things this way."

"You, there will always be a time when you suffer."

Although Han Shanping said this, the smile on his face did not diminish at all, and it was obvious that he was not really against him hitting people.

After nearly an hour and a half of pre-screening activities, "Hero" finally began to screen.

Rewatching the movie again, Liu Zhou was still deeply attracted. He didn't pay much attention to the plot, but he was deeply amazed at Zhang Yimou's use of film aesthetics and color aesthetics.

After "Hero" was released in the United States, Hollywood director Spielberg said in an interview with the media:

“Although I don’t understand the characters and plot, I understand the movie through the colors.”

Only after watching this movie did Liu Zhou truly feel that film is an art.

Liu Zhou is not good at this kind of artistic creation!
The sixth generation directors always look down on this and that, but if you tie all the sixth generation directors together, in terms of film aesthetics, none of them are as strong as Zhang Yimou, Chen Shishi, and Wong Kar-wai.

Even Jiang Wen and Feng Kuazi can't compare to him.

After the nearly 100-minute movie was over, Liu Zhou and Han Shanping said goodbye.

He was the distributor of "Hero" and had a lot of things to do. Liu Zhou felt a little stimulated and wanted to go back as soon as possible to shoot his own movie.

Liu Zhou, who used to be the focus wherever he was, is no longer the focus of media attention.

Zhang Weiping made a big move this time, spending 20 million on publicity.

After the premiere, news about "Hero" was everywhere in the mainland.

However, there are always people who sing a different tune, and some media also have some negative reports.

"The plot is big but empty, listing the eight major crimes of "Hero"!"

"Hero" will be released nationwide on December 20th. Zeng Li and Zhang Ziyi are like classmates who have turned against each other! "

"The crew of "Hero" arrived in Shanghai. Zhang Yimou: Movies should focus on form!"

"Cheng Xiaodong talks about the design of "Hero" Hu Wuxia: Let foreigners understand slowly!"

No matter what the reports are, they can't stop the skyrocketing box office of "Hero".

In order to prevent piracy, Zhang Weiping hired a large number of college students to travel across the country and keep an eye on the copies at all times.

On December 20th, the first day of the release of "Hero", the box office revenue was over 13 million, which was jaw-dropping.

For the next ten days, the box office exceeded 10 million every day. On New Year's Day, the box office of "Hero" officially exceeded 130 million, breaking the domestic film box office record set by "Life and Death Choice".

Less than a month after its release, the box office exceeded 200 million.

At this time, everyone was looking forward to whether "Hero" could break the box office record held by "Titanic".

However, with the large-scale release of "Hero", his reputation has rapidly declined.

The hollow plot and the show-off of colors are the main points that Zhang Yimou and "Hero" are criticized for.

So this created a weird situation where the box office of "Hero" was still soaring, but director Zhang Yimou was constantly being scolded.

However, Zhang Yimou has never stood up to speak for himself. Instead, it is Zhang Weiping who has been arguing with those people.

The disturbances surrounding "Hero" did not affect Liu Zhou. After attending the movie premiere, he asked the crew to cut off communication channels with the outside media.

On January 20th, one month after the release of "Hero", Liu Zhou also finished filming the last shot of "The Blade of Embroidered Spring".

After more than two months of hard shooting, the film was finally completed.

They should have celebrated this happy moment, but a severe influenza pandemic made them afraid to act rashly.

Even leaving Hengdian is not allowed for the time being.

(End of this chapter)