The experiences of Shi Ji and Lu Xiaokong in the film are hilarious, and there are also plenty of laughs off-screen. Although "The Phantom Thieves" is doing very well at the box office, there are still a number of viewers who give it negative reviews.
【It was pretty boring. It's just a story about two thieves stealing things. It didn't feel original or valuable. Director Zhuang truly lives up to his reputation as a man who makes bad movies.】
【I have no idea what everyone's laughing at. It's boring, rubbish, and has absolutely no educational value.】
【Don't even look at the Barrier! It's full of stale and vulgar jokes, not sophisticated at all, it's absolutely awful. I wasted two of the most precious hours of my life going in there.】
...
Of course, these comments have little effect on Zhuang Hongyi. After all, he's been making commercial films for many years, and these same people often criticize him for his lack of substance, his vulgarity, and his terrible movies...
But the film market is inherently geared towards lower-income groups. Many people simply don't have the patience to watch movies that are full of educational messages. They go to the cinema to relax and have fun, not to listen to lectures.
Looking for an educational movie? Then go watch the comedy next door.
The comedy film released in the same period started off quite funny, but then the style suddenly changed, and the film's level of sophistication and value increased throughout. It even ended with a scene of "making dumplings".
Those viewers who were tricked into going in were all choked by the high-minded values forced upon them. Even Tiger, a film critic on Bilibili known for his sharp tongue, jokingly said that it was the first time he had seen a Spring Festival Gala skit in a movie theater, and he was forced to eat a big dumpling. This is simply "progress" in the film industry! It has successfully solved the problem of not being able to watch skits in movie theaters.
This incident has become a bit of a joke, and almost everyone who has been quietly following the Spring Festival film season knows about the "dumpling-making movie" meme.
As a result, in the following days, the comedy failed to make the box office charts and missed out on the top three.
However, "The Phantom Thieves" remains firmly in first place, unshakeable.
During the leisurely holiday that followed, Xiao He counted the box office earnings of "The Phantom Thieves" while strolling around Beijing with his parents.
The family spent more than a week in Beijing and had a very pleasant Spring Festival holiday.
However, pleasant times are always short-lived.
After the Spring Festival, Xiao's parents went back to Shanghai, and Xiao He also returned to Shanghai to finish up some of the work that had been left behind before officially joining the production team of "No Bait".
Meanwhile, the box office of "The Phantom Thieves" has officially surpassed 3.5 billion yuan, and the final box office is expected to stay at more than 4 billion yuan.
Compared to previous years, this box office figure is already quite good. After all, the competition during this year's Spring Festival film season was not particularly fierce. There were no dark horses that took off, nor were there any big-name celebrities. The overall quality of the films during the Spring Festival season was relatively average—of course, this is in comparison to films from previous years.
Overall, "The Phantom Thieves" has received quite good reviews. As a commercial film, it has fully proven its value and future potential.
Upon seeing this data, Xiao He knew that "The Phantom Thieves 2" was basically a sure thing.
Although the criminal impact of "The Phantom Thieves Alliance" on him is negligible based on the current fluctuations in points, Xiao He is already quite satisfied. After all, through "The Phantom Thieves Alliance," he has already obtained two "potential stocks," "Yuya" and "No Bait." Xiao He is not too greedy.
However, we can still look forward to seeing how much screen time he gets in "The Phantom Thieves 2"...
Given his current relationship with Director Zhuang, Director Zhuang shouldn't treat him unfairly... right?
-
A few days later, Liu Rulan received the cast list from Fan Congwen in advance.
"No Bait" is undoubtedly a production with a very large investment. Apart from Xiao He, the main cast members are all well-known big names, and there are also many guest appearances.
For example, Ding Wanyu, the actress who played Shu Yuxiu's wife in "No Bait".
Ding Wanyu is now thirty-five years old, which is the peak of her career as a talented actress. She is the type with strong skills but not much luck. In the previous films she starred in, she missed the Best Actress award every time due to one problem or another, and she had a feeling of being a runner-up every year.
However, she is very hardworking and willing to take on many roles, even if it means being a decorative figure in a big director's film or the lead actress in a bad movie. She has no complaints, which has led to polarized opinions about her outside the industry. Some people think she is a good actress, while others think she is just so-so. But many directors still like to use her. In many movies starring big-name male stars and award-winning actors, she often makes a cameo appearance as the male lead's decorative wife.
Therefore, Ding Wanyu is also known as a "professional wife".
This time, Xiao He and she became husband and wife, which is simply a dream start. Xiao He's current status and achievements are the worst among all of Ding Wanyu's "husbands".
Moreover, considering the age difference between them, which is more than ten years, although they are still a handsome man and a beautiful woman and there is no obvious age gap, Xiao He still felt immense pressure.
"Is Ding Wanyu already thirty-five years old?"
Inside the villa, Xiao He, sitting on the sofa listening to Liu Rulan's introduction, rubbed his ears, momentarily doubting whether he had misheard.
He knew Ding Wanyu; he had even seen her movies in theaters when he was in school. But perhaps because the years had flown by, it didn't feel so real to him. Xiao He always felt that she was only in her twenties.
Liu Rulan clearly noticed Xiao He's unease, and calmly closed the document in her hand, saying to Xiao He, "The age of actresses is indeed a mystery. If they take good care of themselves, they will always be twenty, and if they don't, they will at most be thirty. But it's different for male stars. It's common for them to grow up and look like uncles or aunts."
Xiao He subconsciously touched his cheek.
"Don't worry, your face shape is the kind that can hold up a lot of flesh, and it seems you don't have any problems with widening jawline at the moment."
Liu Rulan comforted Xiao He in time.
Xiao He: ...Thank God!
"To make it in the film industry, you either need capital or hard work and luck. Unfortunately, most people have neither capital nor that one in a million good fortune. So by the time they climb up step by step, most of their youth has been wasted there."
At this point, Liu Rulan sighed.
"So rather than you worrying about not being able to cooperate well with her, perhaps she should be more worried about not being able to cooperate well with you. After all, you are the male lead handpicked by Director Ning Jiaqi, while she is just a guest star as the female lead."
Xiao He rubbed his temples: "Okay, I understand."
He just had another moment of confusion about the ages within the industry.
In almost every film crew he participated in, people called him "brother" or "sister," and he stood out exceptionally for his youth. Of course, this was also because most of the film crews Xiao He participated in were filled with actors with solid acting skills, and there were relatively few young actors with good acting skills, let alone one like him.
This resulted in Xiao He's co-stars, even his "wife," being ten years younger than him.
Xiao He chuckled inwardly.
That's good too, at least there's no trouble of creating a fake couple dynamic.
Liu Rulan coughed lightly, put down the documents in her hand, and then brought up another ◆ Nоvеlіgһt ◆ (Only on Nоvеlіgһt) matter: "The theatrical release date for 'Law of the Jungle' has been agreed upon, and it's scheduled for the Qingming Festival."
Xiao He nodded, then asked with some surprise, "Why choose Qingming Festival?"
Actually, based on the production schedule and timeline, Xiao He thought Director Ren would release it during the May Day holiday, since there would be more viewers and more people going to the movies at that time.
