Chapter 228: In this wild and untamed world, who doesn't know this...?

After the awards ceremony celebration banquet, Li Sishi and Cheng Erjian returned to the film crew to continue filming all night.

Unfortunately, due to the subject matter of this drama, there are a lot of night scenes and street scenes, and everyone was mentally prepared to be active at night.

The journey continued until the morning of the next day. While having breakfast at a nearby tea restaurant, the reporter I had arranged to meet arrived at the appointed time. It's customary to arrange for reporters to come and interview during filming in Hong Kong. The other party gets news about the new movie and writes about it, while the filming crew also gets the opportunity to promote their own film. It's a very well-known and mutually beneficial process in the industry.

The only minor issue is that Cheng Erjian and Wu Jinru's contracts with TBL haven't expired yet, so according to TBL rules, they can't speak Cantonese when being interviewed by other media outlets...

Watching the two of them struggling to answer questions in a Cantonese-accented Mandarin mixed with a few Taiwanese accents but 70% Cantonese, Li Sishi looked at them with a look of amazement at the diversity of species for a moment. In the end, she reluctantly gave up her rare little bit of rest time and prepared to go over and temporarily act as a "translator".

Seeing that Li Sishi couldn't stand it anymore and came over on her own initiative, the two who had been speaking incredibly awkwardly felt like they had been granted a pardon. They immediately and without prior arrangement, with expressions of immense gratitude on their faces, made way for Li Sishi in the perfect center position on either side...

Li Sishi, a former expert at vying for the center position: Thank you, but I don't really want this center position.

Of course, the funniest part was that all three of them were still wearing their costumes and looking like they were from the play. So, witnessing the comical scene of the two "big shots" making way for the schoolgirl at such close range, the reporter quickly called over the photographer to capture the moment for future "admiration" (or rather, amusement)...

"Look, this is what happens when you don't study. What villainous boss or newly appointed red stick? Now you can't even say a word." Since everyone was an acquaintance, Li Sishi casually brought up the role-playing joke from the play.

"Mmm, mmm..." At this moment, the incredibly cool male lead and the arrogant villain in the play both resembled lambs with their hooves tethered, lowering their eyes and obediently listening to the lesson, just like those slackers in the classroom who dared not look the teacher in the eye, fearing they would be called on to answer questions if they did...

Unable to bear watching the two of them any longer, Li Sishi could only answer herself: "Actually, this film, apart from the club elements borrowed from the original manga, isn't really a club movie; rather, it's a different kind of 'youth film.'"

.

"Or perhaps it's a new type of gangster film, with a touch of youth and coming-of-age themes added in the middle."

"It is a portrayal of the youth of a generation in a specific era. Seizing territory and gradually upgrading were the means for this type of person to seek survival in turbulent times." Combining the background factors of the era, Li Sishi analyzed in detail the film's exploration of social phenomena. "It's not out of desperation; most people don't want to go down this path because they know very well that once they embark on this path, they may never be able to turn back."

"But that's how it was back then. If you didn't take this path, you were likely to be bullied by everyone; but if you took this path and worked hard, you might be able to carve out your own niche. Of course, as the ancients said, 'One general's success is built on the bones of ten thousand.' Many people only see the glory of the general's triumphant return, but they don't see the sorrow of the bones buried deep inside."

Structurally, this movie follows a typical coming-of-age storyline, starting with the protagonist's initial "entry into the underworld," then experiencing numerous twists and turns along the way, and finally ending with the male protagonist defeating the villain who has always been against him, becoming a local leader, finding a home for his brothers, and having a female lead by his side. It's like he's grown from the bottom up to achieve success and a leap in status.

Replacing the theme of "joining clubs" with various sports, exams, or workplaces doesn't fundamentally change the core or structure. It's just that the theme of "joining clubs" is the most intuitive and obvious upgrade, and it best fits the specific social phenomenon that emerged in this particular era and region.

"Therefore, the rebellion against social norms unique to teenagers depicted in this film, using a sufficiently down-to-earth and relatable subject matter to reflect the helplessness of this generation and their pursuit of self-worth, still retains the traditional value of this type of film in its 'gray' social attributes..."

Those who know how to watch it will see the historical context, the core content, and the theme of "what goes around comes around" – a theme that was made clear from the very beginning – in this somewhat hastily made and poorly made film. But the problem is that most of the people who watch it at this point don't understand the true meaning of the film's theme.

However, it is precisely because of these "people who don't understand" who only focus on classic satisfying elements such as brotherhood and the triumphant rise to power that this movie, which was not favored from the beginning, has made an extremely impressive comeback in the future.

I don't know whether to call it a lucky miracle or an unfortunate misunderstanding.

The only undeniable point is that "People in the Jianghu"

This film series had all the advantages of timing, location, and people when it was released, which is why it became a blockbuster that saved the market in the mid-1990s with a small investment and hastily produced, shoddy work.

Since she had the rare opportunity to play the lead role in a film with a "refined" character, Li Sishi tried her best to remain objective as she shared her thoughts about the movie with reporters after its official release.

Only in this way can we more reliably break box office records while still maintaining a certain level of "artistic" quality.

You can't have your cake and eat it too, but if you eat one thing and then eat the other, no one will care too much about what you ate before eating the other.

After helping the two young men with thick Cantonese accents resolve their issues, reporter Li Sishi glanced up at the wall clock and couldn't help but give each of them a crisp, clean tap on the shoulder.

The two of them, seemingly unfazed, chuckled and lightly brushed non-existent dust off each other's shoulders before heading off to prepare for filming the scene of their confrontation in the mourning hall.

Seeing that Li Sishi had also started applying makeup, Director Liu Jixiang, who had just finished a quick inspection, nodded with great satisfaction: "Very good. I wish everyone else in my crew was as 'know-it-all' as Li Sishi."

They arrived smoothly at the last scene, which required a large number of extras. Director Liu Jixiang and his team hid in a corner to prepare for filming—they had rehearsed this scene many times before.

The crew's application to temporarily use the street was never approved, and this final group scene was the most enjoyable and satisfying part of the movie. So, director Liu Jixiang continued to use his usual tricks: if there was something to shoot, shoot it first and send people out quickly; if there was nothing to shoot, quickly move to another location and continue shooting. In short, the shorter the time, the better.

For this scene, Lau Chi-cheung even specially arranged a "stunt double" for himself. Whenever the police arrived, just like in the scene where they were fighting in the street, he could immediately push the stunt double out to take the blame, distract the police and madams, and then quickly lead the team to finish filming the last scene with the camera before returning to "confess"...

The idea was incredibly ingenious, but in this chaotic era, things were done in such a crude way. Anyway, it all boils down to this: since they wouldn't approve the application anyway, why not just do it first, block the road, finish filming, and then argue with the people in charge of managing this area...

Unfortunately, this closing act involved far too many people—over a hundred—forming a square formation and shouting. Even if they did nothing, it was incredibly easy to evoke a real reaction.

The panic of citizens who have witnessed or even experienced gang warfare.

Sure enough, after pretending to have permission to close the road for about ten minutes to film the scene where the male lead and his group devise a plan to defeat the main villain, they walked into the street and blended into the front row of the formation to receive close-up shots of the main characters. Just then, a group of motorcycles came roaring in front of them, and the police officers wearing special reflective uniforms were looking at them with serious expressions.

The media that came to film the final scene were from TBL. Seeing that there might be a pretty exciting scene coming up, they quickly ran to director Liu Jixiang, who had just finished negotiating with the police, to ask about the situation.

“There was nothing serious at all. We were just filming. We would film for two or three minutes and then leave. But when the police came, they acted like they were really catching thieves and were even thinking of calling the headquarters for backup…” Despite saying this, Liu Jixiang had a helpless expression on his face, as if he knew he was wrong but couldn’t admit it.

After all, this is how filming is done these days. Their applications are rejected, and they just go out and do it without asking permission. The police officers, on the other hand, arrive with a team based on the emergency call, make a show of it, negotiate with the film crew, and take some management measures. Everyone is just a working person trying to make a living, so they just do each other a favor and that's it.

Seeing that the director seemed to have almost finished negotiating with the police, the few remaining crew members immediately gestured towards the van.

Because the makeup artist went to the formation to make up the number of people and to fix the makeup of the male lead and supporting actors, Li Sishi, who was huddled in the van touching up her makeup and applying mascara, took off the pink tube that curled her bangs from her forehead. After checking her makeup in the mirror and finding no problems, she quickly ran out of the van and stood next to Cheng Erjian, who played the male lead, waiting for the last set of shots to be filmed.

Although a slight "permission" had been granted, to avoid any unforeseen complications, Liu Jixiang adhered to his usual swift and decisive filming pace. Seeing that all the actors were in position, he gave a command and led the camera crew backwards in sync with the actors' advance, continuing in one take to complete what could be considered a "large-scale scene."

The final act.

"3, 2, 1 - OK, that's it!"

At that moment, no one knew that in those short 3 minutes, a brand new hit IP would emerge.