Chapter 102 - Hong Kong Martial Arts
"I don't know if your grandfather ever mentioned the very famous Xingyi Quan of the internal martial arts to you when you were practicing?"
Wu would definitely not mention Xingyiquan for no reason, Lin Mingyang did hear his grandfather Lin Aoquan mention that Xingyiquan originated in Taigu, Shanxi Province, and was one of the three major internal martial arts styles in China. The style of Xingyi Quan is hard hitting and hard advancing, a few like lightning and thunder, unique among the internal martial arts.
Lin Mingyang nodded, "I've heard of this style of boxing, known for its good fighting, there is the saying 'Taiji doesn't go out for ten years, but Xingyi kills people in one year'!"
"I am also a layman for Xingyi Quan, but when I was young, I was in Hong Kong Shaw Brothers Film Company following the most famous action movie director at that time, Chang Cheh, I learned a lot of techniques from it, replace the knife in Chang Cheh's movie with a gun, then it will be very much like my 'Heroic Colors'. During that time I had a lot of contact with martial arts companies in Hong Kong, and during that time I also came across a few Xingyi Quan practitioners and watched them practicing. This kind of boxing gives me the feeling of majestic simplicity, simple and practical movements, fierce fighting style, no gimmicks, swift stance, straight in and straight out." John Woo recalled some of the things he saw when he first entered the movie and television industry.
"The style of Xingyiquan is to fight in Gu, with the expression 'no move, no fight, just one stroke'." Although Lin Mingyang was in the United States and hadn't seen this kind of boxing with his own eyes, he knew that Xingyi Quan was very obviously gun boxing, and that gunplay was a great art of the battlefield that appeared after the Zhou Dynasty in China, and had the effect of protecting the king and defending the country. Ancient famous generals Zhao Zilong and Jiang Wei are good at gun. Jiang Wei has a descendant of the Song Dynasty Zhou Dong, is the head of the forbidden army, his disciples leopard head Lin Chong succeeded him, Zhou Tong late in life, there is a disciple of Yue Wu Mu Wang, the divine gun to set the northern border. Born out of the big gun, Xingyi Quan fighting style is especially suitable for battlefield combat, it can also be said that this set of boxing is several generations of people experienced battlefield fighting and gained.
Wu was inspired by Lin Mingyang's previous performances, and Xingyi Quan is basically a figurative boxing, its main routines are mostly copied from some of the animal's predatory and self-defense actions, that is, the so-called "figurative and take the meaning of", added to the transformed werewolves and vampires in the fight, not only does not seem to appear out of the blue, at the same time, will also make the fight become more exciting. The fight will be more exciting at the same time.
"Hollywood's usual fight scenes I do not like, you integrate Chinese martial arts into the action show idea is very good, but the Chinese martial arts is profound, the use of a lot of skills, why don't we take a trip to Hong Kong to find a few experienced martial arts director, let them help design a set of Xingyi Quan as the core of the fighting action?"
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John Woo was the kind of director who would do something immediately when he thought of it, and on this trip to Hong Kong he not only called up Lin Mingyang, but also invited his leading lady Kate Beckinsale to accompany him. They ostensibly went to Hong Kong under the banner of promoting the movie, so it didn't attract too much attention from the Hollywood media, but the media in Hong Kong had already caught wind of it. John Woo with the two main stars of "Legend of the Dark" has not yet moved from Budapest, this side of the Hong Kong media has been bustling. Reporters from the organizers by all means to get from John Woo's schedule in Hong Kong, and then and early on waiting at the airport.
To do publicity is only a front, Wu did not expect the media in Hong Kong will be so enthusiastic, on the plane, he and Lin Mingyang chatting about the topic is still centered on the Hong Kong martial arts to start.
After all, John Woo is a director from the Hong Kong film and television industry out of the situation in this area can be said to know it all: "Hong Kong's professional martial arts industry is divided into: technology, equipment, boxing, car, replacement, Wei, fire, miscellaneous eight doors. A mature martial arts team, at least these eight complete establishment, respectively, by the eight leading master with a number of apprentices underneath, responsible for all the movie martial arts, stunts and other work."
"Aren't martial artists stuntmen?" Kate Beckinsale was on the side and also heard the conversation between the two, she was curious because Hollywood had specialized special effects stuntmen, but there was not such a complicated classification as what Wu said.
"You know that Hong Kong is famous for its action movies, and a martial arts company is actually a miniature crew, with things like props, lighting, and even dramaturgy included, and stuntmen are just one of the departments." Lin Ming Yang explained patiently to this British beauty.
Kate nodded her head as if she understood, and then Lin Ming Yang proceeded to ask John Woo for knowledge related to the martial arts line.
"The so-called 'technique', is stunt, especially refers to the kind of thrilling action performance; 'weapon', is the apparatus, refers to the traditional Chinese sword, sword and stick those action design; 'fist ', is the design of kung fu, the movie unarmed fighting demolition of those moves, this door in Hong Kong and the international community is the most popular; 'car', as the name suggests, is the car stunts, flying car stunts; 'double' is the double, instead of the actor to complete all the action, equipment, pyrotechnics and fireworks. All the action, equipment, pyrotechnics and other thrilling and difficult action; 'Wei' refers to the Weiya, that is, hanging wire, this line of work is the invention of the Hong Kong people themselves, do not look down on hanging a rope flying around in the sky, responsible for pulling the rope of the martial arts masters must be very professionally trained, otherwise it is very easy to get out of danger; 'Fire', that is, pyrotechnics, here also includes firearms, bombs and so on. Hong Kong movies in this area of skill is far more than Hollywood to be much more, the actor performance was shot dead when the body exploded a small hole, there is plasma sprayed out but will not hurt the actor's skin of those, this line of work is the master's work; and 'miscellaneous', that is, miscellaneous, to put it bluntly is the first seven doors do not include the work of the door the remaining of the whole package."
"All the martial arts companies in Hong Kong include these eight disciplines?"
"That's not true, many martial arts classes lack a certain type of martial arts, or have several masters for a certain type of martial arts, according to their own specialties or the company's movie needs. For example, in Jackie Chan's Sung Ka Pan, there are three or four leading masters in the 'Technique' school."
John Woo mentioned these several Hong Kong martial arts firms, Chengjia Ban is Lin Mingyang most familiar with, several generations of Chengjia Ban bleeding hands off the red Jackie Chan, but also let the Chengjia Ban this big flag famous all over the world.
"Then we need to find talents in this area of 'boxing', also looking for Cheng Jia Ban?"
"The Cheng Family Class is indeed very powerful, you know to get the best action director at the Hong Kong Academy Awards, it's as difficult as winning the championship in the NBA, because everyone's overall strength is very strong. And Seng Jia Ban is by far the most awarded action team, and the only one that has been able to win this award for three years in a row. Internationally, though, Yuen Woo-ping's Yuen Ka Pan was much more famous during this time. Especially after The Matrix and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, Hollywood action directors like to find him to work with."
From this comment, Lin Mingyang could basically conclude that John Woo was not looking for either the Cheng family class or the Yuan family class this time, if he was looking for Yuan Woo-ping, he wouldn't have to fly all the way to Hong Kong, because the "Eight Masters" had been staying in Hollywood all this time, so he didn't have to go through so much trouble to look for him.
"When I was still working under director Zhang Che, I knew a martial arts instructor, who now has his own martial arts firm, and is not very famous in Hong Kong, but the Xingyi Quan that I told you about was what he practiced for me at that time."
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Walking into the lobby of the Hong Kong International Airport from the VIP channel, Lin Mingyang was taken aback by the scene in front of him. Because it was in the name of publicity, he knew that this trip had been known by the media in advance, but with so many people surrounding the outside of the passageway, the scene still looked a bit exaggerated. All of the reporters were crowded at the front of the crowd and had their lenses tuned in early.
Lin Mingyang and Kate Beckinsale were both wearing sunglasses, but they were already very conspicuous standing together, not to mention that there was a smiling John Woo standing in the middle of the room, making them very recognizable in the crowd. As soon as they appeared, they drew countless flashes off the lights and shrieks of surprise from the fans, the reporters were busy taking pictures, while the fans in the back were neatly shouting out the English names of Lin Mingyang and Kate. During this period of time, Terminator 3 was being released in Hong Kong, and Cinderella's Glass Phone also did well when it was released in Hong Kong, so both of them each had a good number of fans over here.
There were more than 1,500 fans and journalists present, and hundreds of security guards were mobilized at the airport to maintain the order of the scene. Under the close escort of more than ten black-clothed security guards, the group had a hard time getting through the crowd. Lin Mingyang was still wearing sunglasses and playing it cool, but Kate took off her sunglasses and waved her hand gently at her fans with a smile.
This action stimulated the surrounding fans, and the idea of them squeezing over this way grew stronger. The scene began to become a little chaotic, walking in front of John Woo was in time to get away, but Lin Mingyang and Kate was "dumplings", a few strong black security guards, still can not block the enthusiasm of the fans around. Left and right is surrounded by can not go, Lin Mingyang and Kate can only take the fans handed over the signature pen, in their clothes or hat on the fall on their own name.
Kate's fans are mostly male, so she is also the security guards focus on the protection of the object, and Lin Mingyang side of the fans have a lot of young girls, probably because they think they are not a big threat, the agency arranged in his side of the security force is a little stretched, it is not easy to see this new generation of Hollywood's most famous young handsome, those excited female fans naturally will not miss the opportunity, they have to crowded over and asked to shake hands with Lin Ming Yang.
Shake hands on the handshake, hold it and do not let go, Lin Ming Yang with great difficulty to "break free" from this hand, other hands immediately reached over. People are really too much, the signature is certainly not signed over, under no circumstances he can only have a mouth to bite the signature pen, both hands and use, in the end that is not a handshake, just touch it and immediately move away.
Fortunately, the quality of Hong Kong fans are very high, taking the opportunity to pull clothes, scratching the face of this kind of crazy behavior did not appear, Kate is intact, but Lin Mingyang out of the time but some lousy, anyway, the face sunglasses are crowded crooked.
"Are all Chinese people so enthusiastic?" It was also Kate's first time encountering such a situation, even though they had already gotten into the car, there were still reporters and fans chasing after them, and they were stopped by the security guards.
Lin Mingyang sat in the car before he had time to hold up his sunglasses, "Hospitality is a traditional Chinese virtue!"
Kate patted her chest with "palpitations", "The British are as crazy as this in the soccer stands!"
"I think you'd better get ready to deal with the entertainment reporters in Hong Kong!" John Woo, who was also sitting in the car, kindly reminded, "I guarantee they'll be just as 'professional' as their counterparts in Hollywood!"
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With the previous experience at the airport, at the subsequent press conference site, facing the densely packed reporters seated under the stage, Lin Mingyang and Kate were fully prepared. However, at the beginning, the Hong Kong reporters left their questions to John Woo, after all, his success in Hollywood was considered a source of pride for Hong Kong people. Hong Kong movies were now in decline, but the directors trained in Hong Kong were making a splash in Hollywood, and they also had a sense of being in honor.
Hong Kong reporters are most concerned about is not John Woo in Hollywood, they prefer to recall the past Hong Kong film in the past great years, the question naturally came to Tsui Hark, rumors in the jungle, the two have been against each other for more than 10 years.
John Woo in front of Hong Kong reporters, recalling his own and Tsui Hark when the friendship, very emotional: "In fact, I am very grateful to Tsui Hark." He always remembers that when he was the most downtrodden in his life, it was Tsui Hark who gave him the opportunity to shoot "Heroic Colors".
When Tsui Hark became popular, John Woo was experiencing the most downtrodden three years of his life. Several consecutive comedies lost money, the new film "Heroes Without Tears" was hidden by the company, John Woo became box office poison. Some of his friends, even those who had helped him, thought "you can retire" or told him that he should go home and look at the videotapes to know what was popular now and then shoot again.
Tsui Hark knew that John Woo was aggrieved, so he asked him to remake Long Gang's classic film "Heroic". In fact, both Tsui Hark and John Woo wanted to make this script, but Tsui Hark saw that John Woo was not getting anywhere, so he let him have this movie, and he himself was the producer of the movie.
The success of "Heroic" changed John Woo's life and became a monument to the golden age of Hong Kong cinema. Chow Yun-Fat became a star, Dillon found a market, and even Tim Yip Kam-Tim, who was starving as an art assistant, had his fortunes changed. Tsui Hark gave Woo his first Best Director award at the 1986 Hong Kong Academy Awards.
"I am very nostalgic, we all sympathize with each other for so many years, I have been working in Hollywood for so many years, back to Hong Kong too many feelings. more than 10 years ago, my first director's award is also Tsui Hark awarded me. When that 'Heroic' memorable things are really too much, almost me, Tsui Hark, Zhou Yunfa gang of young people's heart."
After talking about the old things, the questions from the reporters on the stage slowly returned to the topic, "Foreign reporters believe that you are one of the few directors who can achieve box office success in both your own country and Hollywood, how did you do that?"
"It's hard to say. In terms of the American audience, they want to see some different movies. The first movie I went to Hollywood to make, The Ultimate Bullseye, was not successful because I was too ambitious and made an American story into a Hong Kong movie, which was hard for some audiences who are used to action movies to accept. When they saw some slow-motion shots, they thought it was like a commercial; when they saw a freeze-frame shot, they thought it was the end of the scene. Later, I realized that I was still making an American film, and people want to see an American film, but with something different in it. You can't change their viewing habits, all of a sudden, completely. Since you can't change the audience's inertia, you have to learn how to make American films as a foreigner."