The Spring Festival movie “Unknown”, which is currently in theaters, has a total box office of more than 800 million yuan, setting a record for the highest box office of director Cheng Er’s personal work. Such a spy movie with a unique style, a certain viewing threshold, and can even be classified as a literary film, can get the current box office, which is enough to show the tolerance of the Chinese film market and the diversity of audience aesthetics. As the film’s behind-the-scenes operator, Yu Dong, the film’s chief producer and chairman of Bona Films, said that “No Name” successfully blends artistic temperament and commercial blockbusters.
Impressed by Cheng Er’s familiarity with history
The first public appearance of the project “No Name” will be at the 2021 Shanghai International Film Festival. When Yu Dong announced that talented director Cheng Er would direct this spy film, the audience in the media was all over the place. At that time, everyone did not know that Tony Leung and Wang Yibo would appear in “No Name”, let alone that the film would tell the story of the underground workers of that era with the audio-visual language, narrative editing and aesthetic style full of the director’s personal temperament.
“”Unknown” focuses on the unsung heroes on the hidden front during the Revolutionary War, which is the origin of the title. The “Three Heroes of Longtan” and “Red Spy” Yan Baohang, who are familiar to everyone, are the epitome of many underground party members on the hidden front. The environment they live in is very harsh , full of unpredictable changes, they have made indelible contributions to the revolution.” Yu Dong said, the early red films “The Electric Wave That Never Dies”, “The Man Who Deals with the Devil” and the 2009 ” “The Wind” is a classic spy movie about the underground party fighting wits and courage with the enemy, and the TV series include “Latent”, “Kite”, “Pretender” and other works. “When Bona chose this subject, he also faced a challenge, that is, how to use new film language and expressions to express the story of the underground party.”
Perhaps it is for the sake of novelty that “No Name” became the first work that Yu Dong and Cheng Er collaborated on. Yu Dong used to find Hong Kong directors to make films before, and was used to the fast-paced and strong plot style, while Cheng Er’s works are calm and restrained, with strong artistic quality. Yu Dong said frankly that choosing Cheng Er was also “a big adventure”. He said that he spent a lot of time communicating with Cheng Er, and finally because of Cheng Er’s familiarity with this period of history, he made up his mind to cooperate. “I am very surprised by Cheng Er’s understanding of this period of history. He is very clear about the relationship between historical figures in the 1930s and 1940s. Chatting with him seems to be a beneficial process.”
Casting was once a sweat
“No Name” finally set the background in Shanghai, an “isolated island” during the Japanese occupation period, and it took a lot of thought. Yu Dong revealed that he and Cheng Er discussed for a long time about the selection of the topic, and finally decided on Shanghai because various forces in Shanghai were competing with each other at that time, full of various intricate story lines, and it was also the low tide of the Chinese revolution. “Many of the underground parties lurking in the hidden front at that time died due to single-line connections. It is very important to be able to explain this history clearly and tell today’s young audiences.”
Being able to invite Tony Leung, a well-recognized and capable actor in the Chinese film industry, to play the leading role, is considered by many fans to be the biggest highlight of “No Name”. Yu Dong said that he has collaborated with Tony Leung many times, and he knows that he is a good actor who does not take roles easily, but once he decides something, he will do it with heart. Tony Leung had never worked with Cheng Er before, so Yu Dong immediately found a theater in Hong Kong and played Cheng Er’s last work “Romantic Disappearance History” for him. After reading it, Tony Leung decided to see Cheng Er. At the beginning, Yu Dong was worried that there would be a lack of a producer between Cheng Er and Tony Leung, fearing that the two would “not be able to get together”, but he did not expect that Cheng Er and Tony Leung would cooperate very smoothly in the filming of “No Name”. Tony Leung played an intelligence officer who came to Shanghai from Guangdong in the film. He had both Cantonese lines and challenged many Mandarin lines, which surprised many movie fans.
Appointing Wang Yibo and letting him play against Tony Leung is another adventure for “No Name”. The acting skills of “top idols” have always attracted much attention. “No Name” is Wang Yibo’s first film to appear to the public, and he also has to play with “top actor” Tony Leung. Before that, no matter who cast this role A sweat. Regarding this, Yu Dong said with a smile that Wang Yibo is “glamorous” under the camera.
Let the audience see different types of movies
During the filming of “No Name”, Yu Dong seldom went to visit the set, because he knew that Cheng Er, as the author and director, didn’t like to socialize. “I tried not to go to him. I just invited him to have a meal with Mr. Liang the day before the start. It was the National Day. The box office of “Changjin Lake” achieved very good results. Cheng Er was also very excited. Said that he hoped that when “No Name” was released, Boss Yu would still be so dedicated to help him release it.”
Yu Dong said frankly that this time Bona, as the producer, tried his best to make the film more commercial and popular based on its script, so that it is easier for the audience to understand. “”No Name” is a flashback narrative. After the previous scene is finished, another scene is played. After going to many scenes, the audience will know that the first scene still has such a great effect. This This narrative method also brought a great sense of rupture to Cheng Er’s films. However, because of the strengthening of dramatic conflicts this time, the fragmentary narratives of the past have been connected. I think this is a very good time between artistic expression and commercial films. Nice combination.”
However, in Yu Dongyan’s eyes, Cheng Er “is not a good student who completes homework on time”, so he must be patient enough and give him enough time to adjust each scene. “Cheng Er won’t deal with you, and he won’t change it according to your wishes after he promises you wholeheartedly. He has his artistic pursuit and production requirements.” Yu Dong said, “It’s good, I didn’t urge you too much. He, I think the film should be the best until it is satisfactory. I hope that the audience will be able to see different types and more styles of films after getting out of the epidemic. I have full confidence in Chinese films.” (Text/Reporter Yuan Yuner)
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责编：杨帆 ]