Entertainment: I am the peak

Chapter 473 Arrogance and Ignorance

"The Left Ear" grossed 52 million yuan on its opening day and broke 100 million yuan in two days, proving that youth films are still a hot genre.

But nobody cared; Wolf Warrior's total box office had already surpassed 5 million.

Li Qiutang also forwarded the good news that "Wolf Warrior" had surpassed 5 million on her personal Weibo account, and said that she would hold a celebration banquet for Wu Jing. However, the media was not interested in "Wolf Warrior" at all, and were focused on chasing the hot topics of "Little Tiger" and "Fast & Furious 7".

Fast & Furious 7 is so hot!

Fast & Furious 7 may be the hottest movie in the world this year.

By the time "The Left Ear" was released, "Furious 7" had already grossed nearly 19 billion yuan in mainland China. No one doubted that it would reach 2 billion yuan. The question now is whether it will reach over 2 billion yuan.

The success of "Furious 7" also shows that the ceiling of the mainland market is far more than 20 billion yuan, and can go even higher.

At times like these, there are always those who want to spoil the fun: "Furious 7 sets a new record, but what exactly is Chinese-language cinema lacking?" From Avatar to Transformers 4 to Furious 7, why is it always Hollywood blockbusters that make history?
Some, however, are overly pessimistic, exclaiming, "Hollywood is sweeping the market, and Chinese-language films are collapsing!"

The movie "My Sunshine" is still criticizing the TV series version.

The internet is flooded with accusations that the TV series is cheap, poorly made, and rudimentary.

Regarding the comparison of the actors, netizens said that Tang Yan, at 32, was trying to look young while playing a college student, while Yang Mi, at 29, had a more youthful feel as Zhao Mosheng.

Tang Yan's performance was dull and lacked emotional depth, while Yang Mi's performance was "more lively".

It's fair to say that netizens have completely slammed the TV series!
Tang Yan did not respond at all.

A few days later, "My Sunshine" was released.

It topped the Japanese charts with 6300 million yen on its first day.

This result is undeniably good, leaving Tang Yan's fans speechless.

During the three-day May Day holiday, "My Sunshine" topped the box office with 1.7 million yuan in revenue, marking a three-peat for youth films during the May Day holiday.

However, the reputation of "My Sunshine" could not be maintained at all. Huang Xiaoming was once again criticized for his greasy acting, and Yang Mi's Zhao Mosheng was also criticized by netizens for lacking the sunny and independent temperament of the original work.

As for the problems such as chaotic plot and failed adaptation, there are many more.

Tang Yan and the fans of the TV series immediately retaliated by watching the spectacle.

However, many viewers overlooked another film released during the May Day holiday, "Helios".

It grossed 30 million on the first day and over 100 million in three days.

However, in media reports, this film is usually presented as a foil to films such as "The Left Ear," "Silent Separation," and "Furious 7."

However, Li Qiutang only posted a review of this film on Weibo.

"Helios is a ridiculous and trivial film. With a nuclear crisis, why is it still about Hong Kong police? The director mentions the Hong Kong garrison and Beijing, so he must know how a similar situation would be handled in reality. But he still chose to follow the old Hong Kong film formula. I don't know if this is arrogant knowingly choosing not to, or simply ignorance. It's always Hong Kong police, always catching moles. I have no doubt that if they made an apocalypse film, the police would still be the ones maintaining order, and they would still be catching moles within the police force. This is probably why Hong Kong cinema has declined to this point."

It is rare for a renowned director like Li Qiutang to publicly criticize a film, especially a newly released one.

Li Qiutang's criticism quickly became a trending topic.

#Li Qiutang criticizes the Equator#
Li Qiutang's criticism resonated with many netizens.

"A whole truckload of weapons experts sent from Beijing were wiped out in Hong Kong. The director is too daring to film this."

"I think this film is very well made. Its strength lies in serving as a negative example to tell the audience that if Hong Kong people do not listen to the central government and do not respect the Basic Law, they will inevitably cause big trouble sooner or later."

"I bought tickets because of this lineup, but I found out I was totally ripped off. It's really fake and cheap."

"If you don't understand how outrageous this movie's scope is, let me give you an example: an atomic bomb is suddenly discovered in your town, and the people in charge of handling it are your town mayor and the police station chief. That's how outrageous the story of 'Helios' is." "Rather than arrogance and ignorance, it's more like it was done on purpose. This film expresses the attitude of Hong Kong people towards us: I don't trust you."

Li Qiutang's criticism had little impact on the box office of "Helios," since many viewers of the film do not read reviews online. However, Li Qiutang exacerbated the collapse of "Helios's" online reputation.

It received a score below 6 on Douban, which is considered a failing grade.

Li Qiutang's unexpected criticism of "Helios" is seen as a retaliation for the film's six nominations and zero wins at the Hong Kong Film Awards.

This makes you think Li Qiutang is petty. If he really cared about the Hong Kong Film Awards, he would have started criticizing it on the day of the event. Why would he wait until now?

He criticized "Helios" simply because he thought the film was bad.

He could easily talk his way out of it, but the three major production companies of the film—Silver Supervisory Authority, Media Asia, and Vantone—were all wondering if he had offended Li Qiutang somehow.

In particular, the prosecution agency called Chen Zhixi to inquire about the situation. Chen Zhixi replied, "Nothing happened. He just accompanied Yifei to see a movie and thought it wasn't good."

Why don't you do something about it?
Who can control him?
The company has tried to take over his Weibo account for joint management more than once, but he just won't give it up.

On the third day after the May Day holiday ended, Li Qiutang went to the headquarters of Wanda Yanjing for a meeting.

There's only one issue: the later stages of "Mojin: The Lost Legend" also went over budget.

It really wasn't Li Qiutang who did it!

“If I wanted to go over budget, why would I go to Toronto where it’s cheaper? I’d just shoot in New York, which would cost you a lot more money.” Li Qiutang first distanced herself from the project.

Next, the two visual effects supervisors from China and the US, along with the post-production producer, took turns reporting on the situation. In general, the post-production overruns of "Mojin: The Lost Legend" mainly focused on two aspects.

The two aspects are visual effects production and 3D conversion.

The movie "Mojin: The Lost Legend" has more than 1600 special effects shots, most of which were produced in China, while some of the more difficult ones were outsourced to American and South Korean companies.

However, Li Qiutang had high standards for special effects. He did not allow the post-production to be rushed just because the film was scheduled for release in December. Li Qiutang even said, "At worst, we will postpone the release, but we will make sure the effects are good."

To achieve good results, you have to spend money.

Several bosses sat down together and looked at some of the finished materials. To say that they wasted money would be unfair to the post-production team.

After a long silence, Ye Ning finally spoke, "How much more do you want?"

"We still need another 4000 million," the post-production producer said.

In a typical film company, they might cut corners and do a shoddy job, but that's not Wan Da's style, and Li Qiutang wouldn't allow the crew to cut corners at this crucial moment.

"Add it," Li Qiutang urged Ye Ning to nod. "If we take it to Cannes in a few days and the foreigners don't think it's effective, then it'll be a loss."

"Mojin: The Lost Legend" has received an official invitation from Cannes and will bring a prologue scene to the film market.

Ye Ning wasn't a stingy person; she only needed the time it takes to smoke a cigarette before deciding to add the extra 4000 million.

"With a production cost of 2.6 million yuan, this is probably the most expensive domestic film ever made."

The original production cost of "Mojin: The Lost Legend" was 1.8 million yuan, but it exceeded the budget twice, totaling 8000 million yuan.

"The returns will be huge," Li Qiutang said with a smile. "I can guarantee you 10 billion."

After this cost overrun, the total cost of "Mojin: The Lost Legend" will exceed 3 million yuan, and Wan Da must consider the director's profit-sharing agreement proposed in the fall.

(End of this chapter)