Making Waves in Hong Kong

For all ten members of the Tai Chi delegation, this was their first time celebrating the Lunar New Year away from home. The leftist faction arranged a Spring Festival banquet, but after eating and drinking their fill, nobody had much spirit for celebrating. Under Chen Qi's schemes and arrangements, everyone was working like dogs and genuinely had no time to worry about the New Year. As the film grew hotter and hotter, exclusive interviews followed. Since none of the others were great talkers, Chen Qi fielded them all, holding forth with audacious remarks. "I've spent years at the studio, so I've had access to some Hong Kong films and know a thing or two. Jackie Chan is quite good—he's forged his own style and has a bright future... What? You say he's gone to Hollywood? The Cannonball Run? Wow, with a lousy title like that, it's bound to flop. The arrogant Americans will never let a Chinese person have creative freedom. He needs to recognize where his base lies: conquer Asia first, then look to Europe and America." "Sammo Hung is chubby and capable. Isn't he the most agile fat man in Hong Kong? I haven't been slacking these past few days—I tracked down a lot of Hong Kong films to watch. I saw Encounter of the Spooky Kind; it was quite good." "I heard Hong Kong has a New Wave movement. I think Tsui Hark and Ann Hui are great. Tsui Hark dares to dream and dares to shoot, possessing a cinematic aesthetic of his own—he's destined for greatness. Ann Hui is also remarkably fierce as a director; I think she'd do wonders with realistic subject matter." "I deliberately bought a ticket to see Security Unlimited. Even though I couldn't understand Cantonese, the movie was great. I feel like Michael Hui has an aloof, highbrow charm—the kind where an intellectual looks down on uncultured brutes." If Chen Qi had been a local Hongkonger, he would have been challenged to a fistfight within minutes. Had he crossed paths with the triads, a full service of beatings, shootings, and concrete shoes dumped into a pond would have been a given. What right did a twenty-year-old junior have to lecture and criticize his seniors? Yet he happened to be a mainlander, sent officially to participate in cultural events. Dammit, that was precisely what made the locals so sick to their stomachs. In the end, he didn't spare veteran master Lau Kar-leung either. "I watched My Young Auntie. How should I put it? Hong Kong action cinema is moving with the times, yet Master Lau is still clinging to old conventions. Perhaps he's somewhat conservative, not caring much about the world's progress and development. An old master living and wallowing in an era gone by, soaking in the sunset of the past. Oh right, didn't someone say before that we should make friends through our works? I heard that after fourteen days, My Young Auntie has only grossed just over three million. Tai Chi made three million in three days—oh wait, now it's four million in four days. How embarrassing, how embarrassing!" This old geezer Lau Kar-leung had terrible interpersonal relations. He loved nothing more than fancying himself a martial arts grandmaster, looking down on this person and that person, insisting everyone listen to him, boasting that he alone was the true orthodox Southern Fist. His relations with the Sammo Hung Stunt Team, Jackie Chan Stunt Team, and Yuen Clan Stunt Team were all strained. He had directed a movie called Martial Arts of Shaolin starring the original cast of The Shaolin Temple, where he treated mainlanders with utter discrimination. For instance, when shooting a sunrise scene the next day, he made the mainland actors wait on set starting at three in the morning. After they waited for seven hours, Lau Kar-leung strolled in at his own leisurely pace, claiming he had overslept. Then, after filming for just a bit, he called it a day, claiming they had missed the optimal sunrise lighting so there would be no more shooting that day. He had pulled stunts like that all the time. He had been wildly popular in the 1970s and early 1980s, but once Hong Kong kung fu films shifted toward flying across the skies and burrowing through the earth, he failed to keep up. Afterward, only Drunken Master II remained as a classic. When Chen Qi roasted the old fossil, not a soul came to his defense aside from his own Lau Kar-leung Stunt Team—a truly miraculous testament to his standing. Lau Kar-leung was furious, but the facts were right in front of everyone: My Young Auntie simply couldn't cut it. Forget crushing My Young Auntie, Tai Chi's daily box-office average even held a clear lead over Security Unlimited, making overtaking it only a matter of time. Now the Hong Kong film industry was genuinely astounded. ………… Late at night, in a restaurant. Sammo Hung had brought several of his brothers over for late-night snacks right after watching Tai Chi, taking the opportunity to hold a study session. Don't assume Hong Kong stuntmen were mere uncultured brutes. In their cutthroat competition, they regularly watched their rivals' films and racked their brains over how to shoot something even more impressive... If you jumped from the second floor, I'd jump from the third while set on fire just to outdo you. That was how they operated. Today, however, felt a bit different. A glowing title seemed to hover over his head—"The Most Agile Fat Man in Hong Kong"—and his brothers could barely suppress their laughter whenever they looked at him. "That little bastard!" "Talking about me like that—sooner or later I'll teach him a lesson!" Sammo Hung was quite exasperated. Strictly speaking, Chen Qi hadn't insulted him; he had even praised him. But it was that disrespectful, cheeky teasing that grated on him. "Tai Chi really is well-made, no exaggeration there, but it's not something we can copy." "Why not?" "Wow, look at how Li Lianjie fights. Who among us can pull that off? You or me? Ching-ying, can you do it?" "I can't either!" Lam Ching-ying shook his head and said, "He was trained under the mainland's sports system specifically for that style of wushu. We've never trained like that, so there's no way to imitate it." Wu Ma said, "I think the style of Encounter of the Spooky Kind works. The Yuen Clan Stunt Team's The Miracle Fighters did so well at the box office. Why don't we make another one like that?" "That's a good idea. I was thinking the same thing." Sammo Hung nodded. "When I get the chance, I'll go talk to Mr. Chow and work up another script." "Brother Sammo, why not ask that kid named Chen to write it?" Chung Fat said teasingly. "Are you out of your mind?! Has Hong Kong run out of writers that I'd have to find a mainland kid? Better not let me catch sight of him, or I'll really sort him out!" Sammo Hung slammed his hand on the table. ………… Golden Harvest. Raymond Chow and Leonard Ho were also talking. Leonard Ho was one of the co-founders of Golden Harvest, the company's core pillar, and Jackie Chan's godfather. "I see that Li Lianjie has exceptional martial arts skills. Can we pull some strings and sign him?" "I looked into it. His official affiliation is, uh..." Leonard Ho struggled to find an appropriate description before saying, "Anyway, he was groomed by the state, and all his official affiliations belong to the government. There's nothing we can do." "What a shame. Such outstanding talent, yet we can't put him to use. Forget it, then!" Raymond Chow shook his head. "Ah-Lung went to America to develop his career. The Cannonball Run will be unveiled in a few months. Keep an eye on the publicity." "Understood!" Jackie Chan had gone to the United States over the past two years. The Big Brawl was released the previous year to abysmal reviews, and this year came The Cannonball Run, another critical disaster. In truth, both films did decently at the box office, but they completely stripped away his personal style, leaving moviegoers utterly dissatisfied. Only after these two setbacks did he realize he had to establish his roots in Hong Kong and radiate across Asia first, until Rumble in the Bronx in the 1990s finally made him famous in Hollywood. ………… "Brilliant!" Inside a leftist cinema, Tsui Hark wore a hat and watched furtively from the seats, clapping and cheering at the thrilling moments. Tai Chi suited his taste to perfection! The martial arts choreography, the natural landscapes, the historical setting, the patriotic sentiments... They were all elements he loved. The only pity was the lack of a pair of beautiful actresses playing out a lesbian romance. Tsui Hark had already directed The Butterfly Murders, We're Going to Eat You, and Dangerous Encounters of the First Kind before joining Cinema City. This year, All the Wrong Clues (...for the Right Solution) would hit the screens. That film would perform very well at the box office, but it was not what he truly loved—merely a gig to put food on the table. What he truly loved were gods and demons, mortals traversing the martial arts underworld, national feuds and personal vendettas, and beautiful actresses in lesbian romances... When the movie ended, Tsui Hark walked out of the cinema reluctantly, two names etched into his mind. One was naturally Li Lianjie, but the other was Chen Qi. Having watched Wrong Turn, he was immensely fond of that potent cult-film style. "Who knew mainland filmmakers had already become this formidable!" "How can I find a way to collaborate with him?"