With the development of the domestic film market, the total box office of the May Day holiday, which is the second or even third smallest period of the year, has also been increasing year by year.
The total box office for the May Day holiday in 2016 was 650 million yuan, 784 million yuan in 2017, 1.006 billion yuan in 2018, and 1.527 billion yuan in 2019.
By 2021, due to the release of popular movies such as "Your Wedding" and "On the Cliff", the total box office of the May Day holiday that year exceeded 1.682 billion yuan, setting a new record for the highest box office, number of attendees and number of screenings in the history of the May Day holiday, with nearly 44.45 million people watching movies.
There are many factors that determine whether a period is popular or not and whether it can achieve high box office results.
The length of the holiday and whether the audience has money and free time are one factor, but whether there are popular movies released is also very important.
More than a decade ago, when Hollywood blockbusters were popular in China, they were basically released in non-popular periods in order to protect domestic films. However, this did not stop them from selling tens or even hundreds of billions of yuan and setting box office records.
This year's May Day movies such as "Miracle: Stupid Kid" and "Hello, Brother" were very popular.
Especially for "Miracle", the preview before the release spread the reputation of the movie. On the May Day, the box office exceeded 100 million, surpassing "Hello, Brother" with 68.24 million to become the number one in the national box office that day.
During the following four-day holiday, "Miracle: The Stupid Kid" won the championship for five consecutive days thanks to its good reputation, with a total box office of 489 million yuan during the May Day period, becoming the biggest winner of this year's May Day period.
“This movie is really good, just like you said, it’s a good movie!
Director Wen Muye really didn’t disappoint.”
Coming out of the cinema in the evening, Liu Yifei and Gu Wei chatted about the movie "Miracle: Stupid Kid" they had just watched.
“Does this movie feel familiar to you?”
"Deja vu?" Liu Yifei didn't understand.
Gu Wei explained with a smile, "A poor man at the bottom of society with a child needs a large sum of money.
At this time, he happened to get an opportunity to make a lot of money, so he bought a lot of goods and formed a team to sell these goods.
Among them are single mothers who work hard, honest old people with special skills, hot-tempered men with strong self-esteem, and good-tempered peacemakers.
We all worked hard for a common goal, experienced a lot during the process, and became like a family."
"[I'm not the God of Medicine]?"
I didn't notice it when watching the movie, but after Gu Wei said this, Liu Yifei realized that this setting is almost the same as that of the movie "Dying to Survive" a few years ago.
Gu Wei nodded.
"[Miracle] was written by Wen Muye himself, and he was somewhat influenced by [Dying to Survive] when writing the script.
The film’s narrative structure and character relationships are very similar to “Dying to Survive.”
"If you hadn't told me, I wouldn't have noticed how similar he is to [Drug God]"
“This is where Wen Muye’s brilliance lies.
Although [Miracle] follows a template, it still puts a lot of effort into storytelling.
Twists and turns, conflicts, humor, and sensationalism are all included here, and the techniques and routines are very complete.
The storyline is touching without being clichéd or boring. From this perspective, Miracle is definitely a good film that is above average."
Liu Yifei thought for a moment and said, "I also think Miracle is very good, and Peng Yuchang's performance is also very good, but I always feel that there is still a big gap between it and Dying to Survive."
“This is normal.
The script of Miracle is far inferior to that of Medicine God. Although Wen Mu has made great progress in directing in recent years, it cannot make up for the fundamental difference between the two films."
Liu Yifei blinked her big eyes and said, "Please tell me more about it."
Gu Wei thought for a moment and said, "Let's talk about the two most important protagonists of the film first.
The male protagonist played by Peng Yuchang in [Miracle] was particularly good from the beginning and had no flaws.
He is an almost perfect person from the beginning, stubborn, patient, doting on his sister, and hardworking, these labels run through the whole story.
This kind of character setting seems to be fine, but being too perfect means a lack of growth, lack of character brilliance and tension, making it difficult for the audience to empathize.
And [Dying to Survive] does a very good job in this regard.
The character Xiao Yang was a profit-seeking small businessman from the beginning, and he sold medicine just to make money in the first half of the movie.
Later, after seeing the suffering of patients and the death of friends, he was greatly shocked and underwent a complete change.
He gave up his personal interests and helped patients regardless of gains and losses, and finally became a civilian hero.
This kind of character growth is what touches the audience the most and is also the charm of the character.
Let’s talk about the plot.
The plot design of "Dying to Survive" is very natural. The story progression, twists and turns, and character choices are all very reasonable, and the audience can easily immerse themselves in it.
In this regard, the arrangement of [Miracle] seems a bit artificial.
For example, the setting where a single mother sues her former factory due to work-related injuries is to give the protagonist an opportunity to show her sense of justice.
When thugs came to harass them, the factory manager took the lead in fighting to protect the employees in order to show that they were a loving family.
These are the essential differences between the two films.
So, [Dying to Survive] scored 9 on Douban, while [Miracle: Stupid Kid] currently only scored 8.”
Liu Yifei nodded in agreement, then smiled and said, "Although it's not as good as 'Dying to Survive', it's still a pretty good movie."
"That's for sure, compared to other movies, Miracle is miles ahead of them.
I said that "Miracle" was more technical than "Dying to Survive", but in fact this movie can definitely be regarded as a model of a successful commercial film.
Some movies not only have incomprehensible stories, but their logic is also absurd."
Liu Yifei tilted her head slightly and looked at Gu Wei: "Why do I feel like there's something else behind your words?"
Gu Wei shrugged: "I'm talking about the movie 'Hello, Brother' that was released at the same time."
“Is that movie so bad?
I remember that "Hello Brother" has grossed over 200 million yuan so far, making it the highest-grossing movie during the May Day holiday except for "Miracle."
"[Hello, Brother] is basically a low-profile version of [Hello, Li Huanying], and it starts to piggyback on the other party's popularity from the name.
But in terms of quality, it's several notches behind Hi, Mom."
After the May Day holiday, the domestic film market has become increasingly sluggish.
Many released films saw their box office drop sharply after their release dates. Miracle: The Little Big Boy had the smallest drop among all the films due to its good reputation, but its total box office only barely exceeded 800 million three weeks after its release, and it seems there is no hope of breaking 1 billion.
"Hello, Brother", which received a lot of bad reviews online, basically collapsed at the box office after the working day, with 240 million yuan in 5 days and only 70 million yuan in more than two weeks.
Although there is a big gap between it and Wen Muye’s other films, Gu Wei is very satisfied with the box office of "Miracle".
Even though some of the current blockbuster movies have box office revenues of billions, the combined revenue of the two parts of "The Battle at Lake Changjin" even exceeded 11 billion.
But in fact, any ordinary movie that can get a box office of 300 to 500 million is considered a good result, and more than 500 million is definitely a big hit.
The investment in [Miracle·Stupid Kid] was only 100 million yuan, and the total cost including other expenses such as publicity and promotion was 150 million yuan.
Now the box office is over 800 million, and the profit is nearly doubled.
"Congratulations on the huge success of [Miracle]. You must have worked hard on the roadshow with the crew during this period!" Gu Wei also called Wen Mu.
“It’s still about a week away from release, but judging by the current box office trends, it’s unlikely to reach 900 million.
The box office of over 800 million is not bad, I feel relieved that I didn’t destroy my own brand.
"Hahaha, Lao Wen, you are too modest.
If the reputation and box office of Miracle were just okay, then more than 90% of the movies in the industry would be garbage."
"I dare not say that."
Although Wen Mu has produced many excellent works in recent years, he has always been very low-key and does not talk much even when promoting his movies.
"Boss Yang said that he would hold a celebration party for the "Miracle" crew in a few days. Will you come back to attend it then?"
"I definitely have to go back. I also want to meet you to talk about [Extreme Rescue]."
When Gu Wei mentioned this, Wen Mu couldn't help but complain, "We clearly agreed to take a break, but first they asked me to be the producer of Manslaughter 2, and then I had to do the movie promotion for the better part of a month.
I’ve finally finished all my work and now I have to start preparing for your new movie.”
"Those who are capable should do more work. After finishing filming [Extreme Rescue], you can take as much time off as you want.
Let's have a couple of drinks at the celebration party in a few days!"
After comforting Wen Mu and saying a few words, Gu Wei hung up the phone.
"Are you going to take a few days off?"
Liu Yifei, who was sitting next to him, asked.
"Yes, the company is holding a celebration party for the crew of Miracle Stupid Kid. I'm going back. Besides attending the party, I'm also going back to take care of some company matters."
Gu Wei put his phone aside and reached out to hug Liu Yifei in his arms.
"I just heard you mention that movie that shares the same worldview as Wolf Warrior 2. Is it going to start filming in the second half of the year?"
"Yes, [Extreme Rescue].
Not only does it share the same worldview with "Wolf Warrior 2", it is also related to "John Wick 4" which I filmed at the beginning of the year.
I plan to give this film to Wen Muye. I gave him the script a few months ago and it is currently in the early stages of preparation."
Liu Yifei raised her head slightly: "Is there a role suitable for me?"
Gu Wei shook his head: "Aside from the male protagonist, the main character of [Extreme Rescue] is the rescued sister. She must be played by Yang Chaoyue, just like in [John Wick].
Most of the other supporting characters are villains, or fraudsters coerced by villains, such as the beautiful dealer, etc. You are definitely not suitable."
"Okay~"
Liu Yifei's expression showed a hint of regret.
"When will the movie 'John Wick 4' that you and Keanu Reeves are working on be released?"
"It was originally scheduled for around August or September, which is a good time slot both in China and North America."
"So fast?" Liu Yifei was a little surprised. She knew that Gu Wei's movie was only finished in March.
"well enough.
[John Wick 4] is an action movie with few special effects shots and relatively simple post-production.
The finished film has been released, and Lionsgate has been arranging the release date and preparing for publicity.
I expect it to be released in August, in the latter half of the summer season."
"I'm looking forward to your first Hollywood blockbuster. I hope it won't be as disastrous at the box office as my Mulan."
At this point, Liu Yifei shook her head and said, "Definitely not. With your current box office appeal, you have a base of at least 2 billion in the domestic market.
The John Wick series has always had a great reputation, so it will definitely be a box office hit!"
"I hope it's as you said~"
Gu Wei was not worried at all that the Hollywood blockbuster he was involved in would not do well at the box office.
His decision to choose Lionsgate's John Wick project was a well-considered one.
A series of movies usually has the first one that is the most exciting, and then each one gets worse and worse, but the "John Wick" series is just the opposite.
Since the first film, the sequels have been better than the previous ones in terms of box office and reputation. The fourth film sold more than 400 million US dollars worldwide, and its Rotten Tomatoes freshness rating was as high as 93%, setting a record for the series.
Even on Douban in China, it has a high score of 8.1.
You have to know that this is just a pure gun battle action movie with a relatively simple plot.
This also shows how exciting the action scenes in this movie are.
Gu Wei replaced Zhen Zidan's role in the film, and then increased his role a lot, thus forming a dual male lead structure.
His version not only retains the original's exciting action scenes but also improves the film's story, and is definitely better than the original.
So no matter from which aspect, "John Wick 4" will definitely be a success.
A week passed quickly, and Gu Wei asked for leave from the director and boarded a plane back to Beijing.
"Boss, Huanxi Media has sent us a script and would like to invite you to star in it."
On the plane, Gu Wei was looking at his mailbox when Yang Dan came over.
"[Huanxi Media]?
What movie?
【Huanxi Media】 is the company of Xu Zheng and Ning Hao.
Gu Wei had worked with Xu Zheng before when filming "Time Raiders". When filming "The Wandering Earth", he often had dinner with Ning Hao from the crew of "Crazy Alien" next door. They all have a good relationship.
He thought these two people had a new project to look for him, but Gu Wei didn't remember what movie Xu Zheng had filmed at that time. He thought it was a new film that Ning Hao was preparing.
"It's a film directed by Zhang Yimou, called 'Red River', a suspense comedy."
Only when Yang Dan placed the script in front of Gu Wei did he understand.
Needless to say, I was definitely chosen to play "Sun Jun".
Zhang Yimou and Gu Wei are also familiar with each other, as they first knew each other when they were filming "The Great Wall".
The two had a chat at the Golden Rooster Awards ceremony last year. At that time, Zhang Yimou said that he would definitely find him if there was a suitable opportunity. Gu Wei just thought that the other party was being polite and didn't take it seriously.
"When will Director Zhang's film start filming?"
“The plan is to start filming in July.
It is said that the shooting period is very short, and it is expected to take more than a month."
Gu Wei laughed. How could it not be enough? There was only one scene, and a few people were running around acting, just like a sitcom.
Gu Wei was thinking while flipping through the script.
"Forget it, I've already booked a film with Wen Mu for [Extreme Rescue] in July, and after this film, there's [Girl in Disappearance] produced by our company, so I definitely won't be able to spare the time.
Let’s talk to Huanxi Media and push it.”
Yang Dan nodded, hesitated for a moment and said, "Boss, this is the third time you have rejected Director Zhang Yimou.
And this time I'm the main character, isn't that a bit bad?"
Yang Dan has been following Gu Wei since the company was founded, from being his assistant at the beginning to being his executive agent now, and knows him very well.
When "The Great Wall" was being prepared, Director Zhang invited Gu Wei to play the role of Lu Han, but he turned it down. He only went back to play a cameo role because of his relationship with China Film Group.
In 2020, Zhang Yimou filmed "On the Cliff" and invited Gu Wei to play "Wang Chuliang", who is also the lover of Liu Haocun's character, but was rejected again.
This is the third time that [Man Jiang Hong] has performed.
"I understand. Please reply to Huanxi Media normally. I'll call Director Zhang later to explain." (End of this chapter)
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