Japanese Entertainment: From special effects actor to action superstar

Chapter 161 Each of them takes the first step

After the glasses were found, Eiji Mantani said he didn't want them anymore.

There's a high probability that Wan Gu won't be able to use it in the future, so he might as well give it to Gu Ming as a souvenir.

"Okay, maybe one day when I'm not filming anymore, I can secretly wear the glasses and go to outer space!"

Gu Ming felt a little emotional and then accepted the gift.

At this moment, Gu Ming had a videotape in his hand with Cheng Long's big face printed on it.

"Snake in the Eagle's Shadow" was directed by Yuen Woo-ping and the team behind it was the Yuen Clan, which later became famous.

This movie was also the first movie that made Cheng Long famous.

Snake in the Eagle's Shadow premiered in Hong Kong in February 1978, and was subsequently released in other countries. In December 2, Toei re-dubbed the film and released it in Japan.

The film eventually grossed HK$2.7 million in Hong Kong and also had a huge impact in Japan.

Before this, Cheng Long was a completely toxic actor. He was scolded every day, which made Cheng Long so autistic that he didn't want to film anymore.

After Snake in the Eagle's Shadow, Jackie Chan became famous.

Gu Ming has never lost contact with Hong Kong and would occasionally exchange information with them. When this movie was released, Jackie Chan got rid of the title of box office poison in one fell swoop, so with a certain desire to show off, he mailed a videotape over.

Look! This is a movie where I'm the main character! Isn't it great?
Of course, this videotape was not translated into Japanese and had no dubbing, so essentially only Gu Ming himself could understand it.

Gu Ming sat cross-legged there and watched the entire 94-minute martial arts movie.

It is similar to Gu Ming's impression of Snake in the Eagle's Shadow, but with some extra content added. Although the fighting is still as rigid as before, Gu Ming can clearly see that Cheng Long has gained some say. In the daily practice of the role, the fighting moves have been rewritten. It seems that the last conversation was very inspiring to Cheng Long.

However, it is still the usual style of Hong Kong movies. The script is very weak, and the plot is driven entirely by the stupidity of the characters. Many contents also seem very inexplicable.

"Snake in the Eagle's Shadow was still the old-fashioned, methodical martial arts, but when it comes to the next film, Drunken Master, Cheng Long gets the voice, and it's completely different!"

Gu Ming felt a little emotional.

Look at Jackie Chan next door, he is already making movies, but he is still making TV series.

Of course, the income from filming TV series in Japan is higher than that from filming movies...

The only drawback is that it takes too long. Annual dramas often require a whole year to shoot, and it is difficult to have time to do other things in between.

"Well, I'm almost ready to produce the first work of the 'Gu Family Class'!"

Gu Ming pressed his finger joints and secretly encouraged himself.

"Cat's Eye" is sponsored by various companies, including Takeda Pharmaceutical, and TBS will provide the cast, including the director. Producer Yoji Hashimoto will be responsible for coordinating various issues during filming.

As for the actors, the protagonist Utsumi Toshio was confirmed to be Tani Akira, and the supporting roles were naturally cast from within the agency.

Among the three sisters, the eldest sister was arranged by TBS, the second sister Gu Ming planned to use Higuchi Kanako directly, and the third sister was naturally Yakushimaru Hiroko, who had not been seen for a while. Jissoji Akio said he would help contact her.

——Maruko-chan became very powerful later on and was able to support a large portion of the box office. Who would have thought that she was only thirteen years old this year, and six years later when she starred in "The Tale of the Eight Dogs of Satomi", she would actually be a nineteen-year-old girl.

The three female lead stunt doubles have also been selected: the eldest sister Michiko Nishiwaki, the second sister Yuan Qiu, and the third sister Yuka Oshima.

In this chapter, each of the three stunt doubles will have a character with a face and lines, serving as Cat's Eye's enemy.

Gu Ming intended to showcase the agency's strengths in action design in this production. As long as the ratings were high enough, its influence would quickly expand. By then, he feared he would be flooded with action design offers.

"In terms of scripting, the entire first season's script has been written. In addition to my own work, Tetsuo Kaneshiro wrote two episodes, one episode needed to be produced separately to meet Takeda Pharmaceutical's advertising requirements, and one episode written by Shozo Uehara. However, coordinating the shooting order was a problem."

"TBS has taken the copyright for the videotapes and other broadcasts, but the copyright for various adaptations, such as comics and animation, is still in my hands. It would be best if I could find Hojo Tsukasa and have him continue drawing the Cat's Eye Sisters..."

Gu Ming drew a big circle on the paper.

Cat's Eye Sisters, originally written by Hojo Tsukasa, tells the story of the three sisters, Raibu Rui, Raibu Hitomi, and Raibu Ai, whose artist father disappeared and all the artworks he collected throughout his life disappeared. In order to retrieve their father's collection, the three sisters set out late at night and steal back the relics one by one.

Toshio Utsumi from the Metropolitan Police Department's special task force, who is Hitomi Raiu's lover, unknowingly participates in the investigation of the case. The whole work gradually unfolds under the theft of the three sisters.

However, the original work also has some problems, such as too many "kill must die" characters, which is characteristic of the era, but it is still too much. In addition, the three sisters all have a good impression of Utsumi Toshio because he is more like their father.

That's right...

The three Cat's Eye sisters actually all have an Oedipus complex. Based on this, they all develop feelings for Utsumi Toshio.

Of course, it doesn't matter if they develop feelings for each other, but Gu Ming thinks it would be meaningless if they come up with a setting like an Oedipus complex.

Toshio Utsumi is Toshio Utsumi, not a substitute for Cat's Eye's father.

Gu Ming has already changed this one directly.

As for the welfare shots, it is impossible to completely change the characteristics of the times, but Gu Ming still tried his best to make some meaningless killings disappear.

It's okay to flirt with Utsumi Toshio...but I can't have just anyone join in the fun.

"That's almost it!"

After Gu Ming made the decision, he prepared to contact Hong Kong and ask Yuan Qiu to come quickly.

The landlady is still young, has not gained weight and has good skills. Instead of staying in Hong Kong to continue making bad movies, it would be better for her to shock the Japanese and earn some yen.

The matter was settled and Gu Ming stood up.

Cheng Long took his first step towards becoming a superstar with Snake Eyes.

"Then, I also hope that this film, 'Cat's Eye', will be an important step for me and the Gu Family Team!"

……

……

"Brother Gu Gu, the thing you wanted to inquire about has a result!"

In the evening, the younger brother from the office called Gu Ming.

This is what Gu Ming was waiting for, and he immediately asked about the follow-up.

I briefly talked about the experience of Honda Ishiro.

"That director, Honda, is a very powerful figure at Toho and very famous. However, before he returned to Toho, he had returned from overseas. Before that, he was a soldier in the old imperial era."

These things were not even deliberately concealed, and you could find out with a little inquiry.

Gu Ming listened silently and almost lost his voice.

A picture of life experience slowly unfolds before Gu Ming.

34年参军，36年因受到226牵连暂时被隔离审查，38年调往盛京……44年被俘，46年归国。

Gu Ming finally understood why he felt that Honda Ishiro had a different temperament.

"asshole……"

Gu Ming pinched his fingers secretly.

In fact, when seeing Honda Ishiro before, Tani Ming was a little hesitant because he had heard some rumors, such as Honda Ishiro preferred Yuyi's team, and the famous Showa Okunoki anti-China screenwriter "Ishido Shuro" was brought into the team by him.

But in Gu Minglai's time, there was not much information available in the country, so he just regarded Honda Ishiro as a person with a relatively biased ideological experience.

But now, after hearing what his younger brother in the office said, Gu Ming realized what he had overlooked.

Honda Ishiro is not an ordinary Yuyi at all.

This person served in the old Japanese Army!
Recalling some of Honda Ishiro's habits when they met that day, Gu Ming immediately understood why it was like that.

Because this person actually served in the military.

(End of this chapter)