Can the first part of Fengshen be considered a "magic modification"?, Jiang Ziya is no longer the protagonist of the Shang King | cruel and unjust | Jiang Ziya

This year's summer season is undoubtedly lively. Since its release, "Fengshen Part 1: Chaoge Fengyun" has gained a lot of attention. In the already released viewing experience, some people feel that this is a mythological epic blockbuster with visually stunning special effects; Some people also feel that there are issues with the rationality of the story plot, and there is a suspicion of being a "bad movie".

As the opening work of the "Fengshen Trilogy", this movie tells the story of King Yin Shou of the Shang Dynasty, who was cruel and unruly, and the awakening of the Proton Ji Fa, who turned out to be a court song. The "Fengshen Trilogy" is based on the Ming Dynasty novel "Fengshen Yanyi" and the Song and Yuan Dynasty vernacular "King Wu's Conquest of Zhou and Pinghua".

In China, due to the well-known story of "Fengshen", it is not easy to make a movie that suits the public taste. Is the first installment of "Fengshen", which gathers many famous actors such as Fei Xiang, Huang Bo, and Li Xuejian, worth the ticket price?

A brand new story?

In the first part of "Fengshen", there are familiar names and character relationships: King Zhou is still fierce, and Boyi Kao is still Ji Fa's brother... but the story is almost brand new.

Picture merchant Wang Yinshou was very cunning and used Daji, who was possessed by a fox demon, to seize the throne. The young Ji Fa is a proton and regards Yin Shou, who is capable of fighting and fighting, as a hero.

Out of admiration and trust in Yin Shou, Ji Fa also reported the Four Marquises for plotting rebellion. However, Yin Shou forced four protons, namely the biological sons of Xibo Marquis and others, to kill their fathers.

The slaughter in the main hall made Ji Fa doubt a series of beliefs instilled by Yin Shou. When his elder brother Boyikao was killed and made into meat cakes, Bi Gan dug his heart to force the fox demon to take its original form, and his friend Yin Jiao was beheaded, he finally saw Yin Shou's cruel face and turned to Chaoge.

There are various opinions on the interpretation of movies. Columnist Han Haoyue's feeling is that after Ji Fa wakes up, returning to Xiqi means that the protection of her home has changed from passive to active. However, the film does not add any more ink here and appears somewhat plain.

The movie set up Easter eggs. The Nine Tailed Fox Demon suddenly appeared, saving Yin Shou, who had already died from exhaustion; Wen Taishi, who was on an expedition to the North Sea, led the four generals of the Demon Family back to the court, and a three world war was about to begin.

Has it been modified by magic?

In various discussions about the first part of "Fengshen", whether the plot has been "demonized" is another focus.

The movie has made modifications to many original settings. Jiang Ziya is no longer the protagonist, and Ji Fa's experience becomes the clue that connects the entire story. As a proton, he overcame the crisis of identity recognition, broke away from evil forces represented by Yin Shou, and returned to the right path.

Growth stories are indeed more likely to resonate in the present. When Ji Fa was deeply conflicted and in pain, Ji Chang, who was imprisoned, said, "It doesn't matter whose son you are. Who you are is what matters." This sentence touched the tears of many viewers.

In previous films and TV dramas, King Zhou was incompetent and incompetent, instigated by Daji to do all sorts of bad things, indulging in debauchery and harming the people. In the movie, Yin Shou, knowing that Daji was a fox demon, remained indifferent and became increasingly cruel and ruthless. The argument of "beauty brings disaster" has been completely abandoned, and Daji, possessed by fox demons, is more like a "career partner" who conspires with Yin Shou, reflecting his ambition and cruelty like a mirror.

The combination of the two finally brought about anger and resentment, making it logical for "King Wu to overthrow Zhou" and the logic to be self consistent.

The director of the film, Ulsan, once said that the growth of heroes and the ability to distinguish between good and evil are the themes that this film aims to express. "It is a movie with warmth, in which the struggle between good and evil is extremely cruel and extreme, and the family part is also very warm."

It has to be said that "Fengshen Yanyi" has built a huge mythological system, with complex branches and many similar routines, nothing more than immortal and demon battles, battles, round after round, but there is almost no particularly heavy ideological expression in the content.

Therefore, Han Haoyue bluntly stated that Yin Shou was full of greed, and his external behavior was more closely related to his internal motivation. The highlight of "patricide" can naturally lead to subsequent stories, and the adaptation of "Fengshen Part 1" is not a magic modification.

Film critic Cui Ting said that compared to the original work, the movie has removed many elements related to gods and monsters, including the character "N ü wa". "It is actually a mythological epic film that emphasizes the role of humans and is more likely to generate a sense of empathy."

Regrets and Expectations

In fact, whether the story is told smoothly, whether the logic is smooth, and whether the actors' acting skills are overall satisfactory are all standards for evaluating the quality of a movie.

A long time ago, the first installment of "Fengshen" sparked discussions on the design and casting of the Nine Tailed Fox. Some viewers have also pointed out that the figure of the nine tailed fox in the main film is mostly fleeting and not as exaggerated as in the previous pictures.

Fei Xiang plays Yin Shou with an accent that occasionally makes people stand out, but his excellent stage performance experience to some extent compensates for this deficiency. The unscrupulous power and ambition are vividly reflected in this character.

It is said that since 2014, Ulsan and the screenwriting team have started writing scripts and have revised more than ten drafts in the past five years. The filming cycle of the "Fengshen Trilogy" is very long, taking 18 months, with a total of 438 filming days, and the crew has exceeded 8000 people.

The first part of "Fengshen" tells the story of King Yin Shou of Shang, who was cruel and unruly, and his concubine was awakened; The second part of "Fengshen" tells the story of the Yin Shang army pressing down on the border, and Ji Fa defending Xiqi; The third part of "Fengshen" tells the story of King Wu's conquest of Zhou, the battle between humans, immortals, and demons, and the enfeoffment of the divine world.

Under repeated polishing, the war scenes in "Fengshen Part 1" can be described as grand, like the siege of Jizhou. Cui Ting believes that beyond the story, the significance of this movie lies in elevating Chinese mythological films to an industrial level.

However, to Han Haoyue's regret, in the plot surrounding Jiang Ziya, the "Immortal Trio" did not handle it well enough, and the comedic elements did not match the overall atmosphere; Furthermore, the "patricide complex" is somewhat too strong.

But he believes that the first installment of "Fengshen" is still a domestically produced masterpiece worth watching, and the creators constantly explore during the filming process, taking a step closer to the profound core of Chinese mythology.