I am a historical film director in the entertainment industry.

Meanwhile, in October, with the golden autumn weather shining brightly across the country, the annual National Day box office battle has officially begun.

"Crazy Racer," directed by Ning Hao and produced by Shengli Films, officially premiered. Unsurprisingly, it topped the box office charts on its opening day, not only winning the daily box office champion but also taking the top spot on the monthly box office list.

With a single-day box office exceeding 100 million yuan, it is enough to crush the vast majority of films released during the same period.

It's worth noting that many low- to medium-budget films may not even break 100 million yuan in total box office revenue, but "Crazy Racer" easily achieved this feat with just its opening day box office.

This phenomenal first-day sales performance is inseparable from the ample pre-sale preparations made beforehand.

More than a month before the film's release, Victory Films launched a comprehensive and multi-channel publicity campaign, combining online and offline promotion to secure a large number of moviegoers and audiences in advance, which led to an explosive growth in the film's box office on its opening day.

Such an exaggerated box office performance directly shocked the entire domestic film and television industry.

Since Cheng Sheng's emergence, the domestic film and television box office market has been like a stock market with ups and downs. Blockbuster films often break box office records, while unpopular works have mediocre reviews and box office performance, with huge gaps.

Previously, it was widely acknowledged in the industry that only Cheng Sheng held the key to consistently creating blockbuster films. Now, with the huge success of "Crazy Racer," everyone has realized that Ning Hao has taken over the baton and joined the ranks of top box office directors.

The film's phenomenal box office success on its opening day was no accident; there are multiple key reasons behind it.

Firstly, there was a scarcity of high-quality domestic films during this year's National Day holiday, with most of the theater screenings being occupied by imported blockbusters. Audiences who wanted to watch local comedies or domestic dramas had almost no choice, so they naturally focused all their attention on "Crazy Racer".

Secondly, Shengli Films' publicity and distribution were extremely effective. They started a full-scale online promotion more than a month in advance, covering all aspects including short videos, social media platforms, offline posters, and cinema projections, maximizing national awareness and achieving a publicity effect that made the whole nation aware of the product.

Thirdly, it has a strong IP fan base. "Crazy Stone" has long been a classic of domestic absurd comedy, with a legendary reputation and a huge fan base.

Upon hearing that "Crazy Racer" was a sequel to the same series, continuing the classic crazy style, countless longtime fans did not hesitate to buy tickets to support the film, guaranteeing its box office performance on its opening day.

However, everyone in the industry knows that the initial box office success is just the beginning of the hype. Whether a film can truly achieve legendary status and maintain its reputation depends on its subsequent box office performance and the audience's genuine feedback.

Only if the film's box office revenue doesn't experience a precipitous drop can it truly establish itself.

But no one expected that after the release of "Crazy Racer", the online reviews were polarized and controversy arose.

Some viewers believe that the film perfectly continues the absurd and humorous style of "Crazy Stone," with a tight plot, frequent jokes, and no dull moments, making it a rare high-quality domestic comedy. Other viewers, however, bluntly stated that the film is far inferior to its predecessor, with a contrived plot and forced jokes, essentially just rehashing old material and excessively exploiting the audience's nostalgia for "Crazy Stone."

A veteran film critic even published a public article, offering a sharp critique and pinpointing the film's shortcomings.

Many viewers went to the theater with nostalgia and expectations for "Crazy Stone," only to be disappointed. While "Crazy Racer" is packed with jokes, most remain superficial, offering little that truly touches the heart or resonates with the audience. Rather than a comprehensive upgrade of "Crazy Stone," the film overemphasizes the clever misunderstandings and absurd, everyday moments of its predecessor, turning them into contrived coincidences and uncontrolled madness. It transforms sophisticated dark absurdity into an over-the-top farce, filled with deliberately designed dramatic conflicts throughout.

The film features a large cast of characters, and the production team deliberately selected actors with distinct appearances and personalities to portray them. However, all the characters share a highly homogenized core, adhering to a uniform template: stupidity, arrogance, and blind impulsiveness. The film is permeated with the low-IQ setup of the entire cast: bumbling gangsters, bumbling drivers, bumbling businessmen, bumbling hitmen, and bumbling police officers.

All the comedic moments and dramatic conflicts in the film rely on the characters' low intelligence to function. The creators deliberately downplay the characters' logic, using their irrationality and inconsistency to generate laughs, almost "dehumanizing" them. This results in the audience only experiencing a sense of amusement as they watch the characters suffer misfortune and embarrassment throughout the film, without any empathy or pity; the laughter is cold and empty.

The reason why "Crazy Stone" became a classic is not simply because of its dense jokes. Its success stems from its meticulous observation of real society, from the vivid details of everyday life, and from the helplessness and perseverance of ordinary people. The film's absurdity and humor are rooted in reality, allowing viewers to see their own lives reflected in the laughter, and beyond a knowing smile, to feel moved and reflect.

Warmth, healing, and a sense of grounded life were the core themes of the previous work, while "Crazy Racer" completely abandoned these core elements, leaving only deliberate farce. The two are worlds apart in terms of scale and quality.

This professional film review quickly went viral online, with countless viewers who had seen the film praising and agreeing with it.

Undoubtedly, Crazy Racer won at the box office, but completely lost in terms of reputation.

Affected by the collapse in word-of-mouth and the spread of negative reviews from the audience, the film's subsequent box office performance plummeted.

The film grossed over 100 million yuan on its opening day and topped the box office charts; however, its box office plummeted by half on the second day, earning only 50 million yuan; on the third day, the box office dropped to 30 million yuan; and from the fourth to the fifteenth day, although the daily box office remained stable at around 10 million yuan, it fell far short of the blockbuster figures predicted by the industry before its release.

Previously, industry insiders unanimously predicted that, relying on the popularity of the series of IPs and the advantage of the National Day holiday, the total box office of "Crazy Racer" was expected to exceed one billion yuan.

However, considering the subsequent trend, the film's final total box office will most likely only reach around 500 million.

A total box office of 500 million is a peak achievement that most directors can only dream of, enough to make them legendary.

For Ning Hao, who was full of confidence and determined to break the 1 billion yuan box office mark, it was undoubtedly a regrettable defeat, leaving him feeling disappointed and unwilling.

But putting aside the gap between expectations and reality, the film's low-cost investment of just over ten million yuan yielded a box office of 500 million yuan, resulting in an astonishing return on investment and making the company a fortune.

While some are down on their luck, others are up on theirs.

Although there were some regrets, the film's male lead, Huang Bo, took off completely with this film, reaching the peak of his career.

As early as "Crazy Stone", Huang Bo became well-known to the audience for his down-to-earth acting skills and vivid character portrayal, but at that time he was only a supporting actor and failed to gain a firm foothold.

"Crazy Racer" is his first truly big-budget production with an absolute male lead. (End of Chapter)