NABC Chapter 83 New Records, New Experiences
Chapter 83 New Records, New Experiences
Chapter 84 New Records, New Experiences
Tang Long sized up the still-young Tang Jili and smiled, "Tang Jili, I've heard of you. You were the director of the movie 'Dragon in the Magic Domain' that was released last year, right?"
Upon hearing this, Tang Jili's smile became much more genuine; the person in front of him truly knew him.
"That's right, but it was my first time directing, and the box office was just so-so, less than ten million."
"But the movie was very creative in terms of both action design and gunfight scenes. I was immediately impressed after watching it and wanted to meet the director."
However, I never had the chance until now, and my wish has finally come true.
"Ah Long, you're being so enthusiastic towards Tang Jili, are you trying to steal him away from me?"
That won't do. Not only do I value him, but Jiahe values him very much too.
"I wouldn't dare poach someone, but I'd like to collaborate with Tang Jili."
Don't let Tang Jili's youthful appearance fool you; he's been in the industry for thirteen years, having entered the entertainment circle as a stuntman in 1979.
Later generations only know him as a capable director, but he was also very good at martial arts.
Tang Jili practiced martial arts from a young age, including Mantis Boxing, Xingyi Boxing, and Wing Chun.
In 1979, he became a disciple of Yu Yuanwen, a junior brother of Liu Jialiang, also known as Shenxianwen, and learned Hung Kuen. Later, he became a disciple of Lu Xiudong, the president of the Hong Kong Jingwu Association, and learned Dachengquan, thus combining the strengths of several schools.
Like Tang Long, he started as a stuntman and gradually became a martial arts instructor and executive director.
In 1990, he started his own business and invested in and filmed his debut film, "The Magic Dragon," serving as producer, director, and screenwriter.
The movie didn't flop at the box office, but it didn't make any money either.
Through working on this film, he personally experienced that running a company is not as simple as he had imagined.
At that time, Jackie Chan had just disbanded his stunt team and was recruiting new members, so he volunteered to go for an interview, hoping to find a powerful backer so that he could focus on making movies.
Given his qualifications and abilities, Jackie Chan hired him without even conducting an interview.
Jackie Chan provided many valuable suggestions during the preparation for the filming of "Police Story 3".
Although "Dragon in the Magic Domain" had only so-so box office results, it was indeed a well-thought-out film and received considerable praise within the industry.
Therefore, Jackie Chan and Golden Harvest unanimously decided to appoint Tong Chi-lee as the director of "Police Story 3", which shows that his abilities are highly recognized.
It was from "Police Story 3" that Jackie Chan and Tong Kwai-lee began their 30-year collaboration.
The two have collaborated on many classic films, including this year's *Police Story 3*, the year after *Rumble in the Bronx*, and the year after that...
Police Story 4 helped Jackie Chan successfully break into Hollywood and became the highest-grossing film in Hong Kong for two consecutive years.
Both "Rumble in the Bronx" and "Police Story 4" are films that grossed over 50 million at the Hong Kong box office.
Their subsequent works, including "The Myth", "Chinese Zodiac", "Kung Fu Yoga" and "Vanguard", were all collaborations.
Tang Long had been troubled by the director of "SPL: Sha Po Lang," but now that he had met Tang Jili, it was like a pillow being delivered to him when he was sleepy.
Tang Jili is undoubtedly a perfect fit.
"You want to hire Ji Li to make a movie?"
Jackie Chan was quite surprised. He dared to entrust him with the direction of "Police Story 3" because he knew his abilities after working with him for more than half a year.
Unexpectedly, Tang Long dared to ask him to act in a movie as soon as they met.
He hadn't proven his abilities before.
"That's right, I'm preparing a police action movie. Everything is ready except for the director."
Seeing Ji Li reminded me of "The Legend of the Condor Heroes," and I felt he was a perfect fit to direct my film.
During this period, Cui Baozhu has secured contracts with the actors he has selected.
Only the director remains, still hanging in the air.
"A police thriller? You're going up against my 'Police Story 3' now," Jackie Chan laughed.
"Brother Long, although they are both police and gangster films, they are different in style and won't match."
"When will your movie start filming? My 'Police Story 3' is starting filming this summer, and Ji Li can't be absent."
"That's enough time. I plan to start filming for my movie 'SPL: Sha Po Lang' on June 1st, and I guarantee we can wrap up filming in a little over a month."
"Sha Po Lang? That's a strange name, it's all very confusing."
"Sha Po Lang" originates from ancient Chinese numerology and is a collective name for the three inauspicious stars "Seven Killings", "Broken Army", and "Greedy Wolf".
In Chinese astrology, these three stars represent a life pattern characterized by turmoil, change, courage, and challenges.
The film's title alludes to the protagonist's sense of helplessness, his tragic fate, and his desperate struggle for survival.
"SPL: Sha Po Lang" tells a brutal story about the conflict between the police and the underworld, where there is no absolute good or evil, only violence to combat violence.
The film is intense, despairing, and filled with a fatalistic tragic tone.
The murderous aura and ruthlessness conveyed by the title "Sha Po Lang" are a perfect match for the film's hardcore action and tragic ending.
Tang Long felt that this name was the most suitable; any other name would immediately diminish its unique style and impact.
"You're really cultured; it seems I should really talk to you more."
Then Cheng Long looked at Tang Jili and asked, "Jili, what are your thoughts?"
"Brother Long, I want to give it a try."
After listening to Tang Long's introduction, Tang Jili felt that his novel "Sha Po Lang" was pretty impressive.
Moreover, Tang Long's ability to write screenplays is now widely recognized in the industry, so this movie will not be bad.
Moreover, he is a newcomer and needs to hone his skills by making more films.
Since there was still time, he naturally wanted to give it a try.
"Go if you want, do a good job, and show Tang Long what the Jackie Chan Stunt Team is all about."
Tang Long was overjoyed to see the two nod.
"Ji Li, go find Cui Baozhu tomorrow. She's the film producer, and the cast is already finalized, including Sanmao, Leung Ka-fai, and Donnie Yen. Get the pre-production work done first, and once I'm done with 'Swordsman 2,' we'll start filming immediately, trying not to delay your filming of 'Police Story 3' with Brother Long."
"Okay, Mr. Tang."
"Calling me Tang Sheng is too formal. You can call me Ah Long, just like Brother Long."
With one worry gone, Tang Long felt much more at ease.
He remained consistently in top form during subsequent promotional activities for "Twin Dragons".
Needless to say, Jackie Chan always has plenty of energy when it comes to movies.
After nearly a week of intensive promotion by the two, the upcoming release of "Twin Dragons" has successfully topped the popularity charts.
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However, the limelight was quickly stolen by "All's Well, Ends Well".
On February 17th, "All's Well, Ends Well" officially ended its run after 28 days in theaters.
The box office settled at 48.8 million, just one step away from 50 million.
Although the box office unfortunately did not break 50 million, the nearly 49 million Hong Kong dollars in box office revenue still amazed the entire industry.
A new record has been set, and it has increased the previous record by nearly six million.
Many media outlets have asserted that "All's Well, Ends Well" has already secured its place as this year's box office champion.
But only Tang Long knows just how fierce Stephen Chow is this year.
The box office record of HK$48.8 million seemed unattainable, but he broke it himself in just six months.
"Twin Dragons" was released in Golden Harvest theaters under such circumstances, riding the wave of popularity of "All's Well, Ends Well" and Stephen Chow's legendary status.
With Jackie Chan and Tang Lung involved, the popularity of "Twin Dragons" couldn't be completely overshadowed.
The collaboration between a veteran kung fu superstar and a rising kung fu star is quite interesting.
On its opening day, it grossed HK$1.86 million, which is a respectable result.
In its first seven days, "Twin Dragons" grossed over HK$15 million.
Following this trend, it's definitely impossible for it to surpass "All's Well, Ends Well," and it might even fall short of "I Love Twisted Wood."
At this time, "I Love Twisted Wood" had also finished its theatrical run, with a box office of over 36 million.
However, it should be no problem for "Twin Dragons" to eventually gross over 30 million at the box office.
Moreover, the majority of the film's profits come from overseas, and Jackie Chan's box office appeal in Taiwan and overseas is far greater than that of Stephen Chow and Chow Yun-fat.
Tang Long stopped paying attention to the subsequent box office performance of "Twin Dragons".
He and Xu Ke rushed to the mainland, which delayed their journey by half a month.
The rest of the crew had arrived and, under the guidance of assistant director Li Huimin and martial arts director Cheng Xiaodong, were filming some outdoor scenes.
With the director and male lead in place, filming of "Swordsman II" officially got on track.
Xu Ke was quite understanding of him and didn't arrange any filming schedules for him yet, but he filled up Lin Qingxia's filming schedule to the brim.
This is a good time to rest and adjust his condition; Tang Long has been exhausted during this period.
He was just about to lie down when the knocking on the door sounded.
As soon as the door opened, Tang Long's initially impatient expression instantly transformed into a smile: "Sister Zhilin, what brings you here?"
"What? You're not welcome?"
"How could that be? I'm just surprised. You don't have any scenes to film today?"
2
Tang Long smiled and welcomed Guan Zhilin in, then closed the door behind him.
"I thought you'd forgotten about me."
"How could that be? You're my dear older sister."
"That sounds nice, but why haven't you come to see me lately?"
"I'm just busy. You don't know how tiring it is until you participate in the promotion of 'Twin Dragons'."
"I'm not talking about this period of time, I'm talking about after the New Year."
After the New Year, Tang Long spent all his time with Liu Jialing and Wang Zuxian, and he didn't remember Guan Zhilin at all.
Moreover, even though a woman like Rosamund Kwan could bring him the ultimate experience, he always felt that he couldn't control himself.
"We're busy after the New Year, aren't we?" Tang Long replied with a smile.
"You're probably busy spending time with your other good sister."
Seeing that Tang Long was about to speak, Guan Zhilin covered his mouth with her hand and whispered in his ear, "You don't need to say anything. I'm going to take a shower and I'll be out soon."
She didn't care how many women Tang Long had; all she knew was that during this time, whenever the night was quiet, her mind was filled with images of Tang Long's powerful body.
But this awful man never comes to see her.
After saying that, Rosamund Kwan took off her coat and strolled towards the bathroom.
Tang Long's earlobe was still warm, and as he looked at her graceful back, he couldn't help but swallow.