Domestic martial arts, declining.
This is an indisputable fact.
I still remember the last time I watched a martial arts movie in a movie theater was four years ago, "Shadow".
This kind of genre film, which belongs exclusively to China, seems to have been forgotten by the market and creators at the same time.
But once, it was brilliant.
Hu Jinquan's "Heroine" won the highest comprehensive technical award at the Cannes Film Festival.
Wong Kar-wai's "East Evil and West Poison" won the best cinematography at the Venice Film Festival.
Ang Lee's "Hidden Dragon and Crouching Tiger" won the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film.
These are very groundbreaking in the field of Chinese films.
But without exception, they are all Hong Kong and Taiwan films.
So we can't help but ask: Is there no good martial arts film in the mainland?
Of course.
This must mention the first martial arts film in the mainland - "Double Flag Town KnifeMan".
Compared to other classic martial arts films, "Double Flags Town KnifeMan" is too low-key.
Just like the situation after the release of the film that year, the response was mediocre.
But time will eventually prove the greatness of this movie.
Xu Ke's "New Dragon Gate Inn" and "Knife", Zhou Xingchi's "Domestic Lingling Qi" and "Shaolin Football" are all deeply influenced by it.
In particular, the classic bridge section of "Qi Imperial Sword" was imitated by many martial arts films later.
It was also internationally popular, winning the "International Film Critics Award" at the 43rd Berlin Film Festival and selling a high international copyright price of $4.8 million.
After the establishment of the CCTV-6 movie channel in 1996, it will be replayed every year.
What is the charm of this movie that can compete with time?
The protagonist of "Double Flag Town KnifeMan" is a young knifeman, a child brother.
Since childhood, he practiced the "Kansai Infinity Sword" with his father, and his skills were hidden.
After his father's death, he went to Shuangqi Town alone to meet a girl who had set up a doll kiss when he was a child, a good sister.
Located in the middle of the desert, the town of Shuangqi is an extralegal place, and there are often robbers.
The good sister almost raped a bandit, but the child brother shot and killed him.
However, this move angered the bandit leader, a knife fairy.
This man's knife skills are exquisite, and everyone is afraid to stay away.
Knowing that his men had been killed by his brother, he was filled with grief and indignation, and rushed to Shuangqi Town with a group of robbers overnight.
He went on a killing spree in Shuangqi Town, and finally it was the turn of the child brother.
In the confrontation between the two, the famous sword immortal was defeated.
Solving a knife fairy, in order to stay away from right and wrong, the child brother escaped from Shuangqi Town with his good sister
The story of "Double Flags Town KnifeMan" is not complicated, and the reason why it can become a classic is because of two major breakthroughs.
The first breakthrough, "Double Flag Town KnifeMan" jumped out of the framework of traditional martial arts films and completed the integration with Westerns.
Its storyline is similar to the setting of an American Western:
A small town in the west, a duel between the two males, plus a little bit of affection and revenge.
When traditional martial arts films are all attached to the landscape of Jiangnan, it sets its sights on the desolate west.
The crew filmed in the Hexi Corridor, laying the aesthetic foundation for the entire film "Desert Wind and Dust".
The film spends a lot of time showing the scene of the west -
Reckless and reckless, flying sand and stones, old people with nailed horseshoes and camels carrying goods on the side of the road.
Each character's face and lips were chapped, and their sheepskin jackets were covered with dust.
It is also in such a harsh environment that human survival instincts can be fully stimulated and become the premise of all competition and killing.
The second breakthrough, the orchestration of the fight scenes.
"Double Flag Town KnifeMan" is different from traditional martial arts films, and does not shoot the fight process specifically and lengthily.
It pursues a sense of ceremony and atmosphere of fighting.
With the help of the western landscape, the psychological state of the former warrior of the fight is integrated with the environment.
Take the highlight of the final sword fairy and the child brother's duel.
The Sword Immortal had already taken the lives of three people in a row, and his body emitted bloody qi.
And sitting quietly under the flagpole, his eyes were scattered, and the food in front of him did not move half a mouthful.
When he staggered to his feet, a knife immortal was already approaching him.
The two men's knives collided, and between the electric flint stones, both sides froze.
The wind and sand blew through, only to see blood slowly flowing down the child's forehead.
At this time, the knife immortal was smiling.
That scene felt like a knife fairy had won, and the child brother had suffered misfortune.
But then in the next shot, a knife fairy fell.
At this time, the audience suddenly realized that the blood on the child's face was the blood of a knife fairy.
The martial arts scene in "The Knife Man of Double Flags" is like Gu Long's novel.
The knife in the knifeman's hand is like the gun in the waist of a western cowboy.
Duels between masters are often simple, and one move determines the victory or defeat.
What it pursues is not the beauty and design of the moves, but the mood and aftertaste of the fight.
So we say that "Two Flags Town KnifeMan" is a subversive martial arts movie.
It can become the "first martial arts film in the mainland", not only an artistic innovation, but also an important significance of the times.
It not only created a precedent for the integration of martial arts films and Western genres, but also boldly chose a teenager as the protagonist.
Both practices seemed inconceivable at the time.
But doesn't such an adventure just represent the martial arts spirit that dares to break the convention?
At the same time, it also highlights the martial arts plot of "heroes from ancient times to teenagers".
Originally, I thought that in today's "decline of martial arts", I will not see similar works again.
Unexpectedly, I was punched in the face a few days ago.
"Young Man Driving into the Rivers and Lakes".
This is a martial arts micro-film that is also narrated from the perspective of "teenagers".
That kind of youthful spirit swaying in the shadow of the sword and light sword is indeed a long time gone.
A place of seclusion, surrounded by bamboo forests.
There were seven teenagers who lived in deep practice and reached the stage of leaving the mountain.
At present, they still have the last level left, a martial arts trial, and only those who pass the level can go down the mountain.
The teenagers are highly motivated and eager to try, but the road to passing through the customs is not an easy road.
The seven have their own opponents and dangers.
They are also good at different things, or have long guns, swords, bows and arrows.
There are also double whips, iron fans, daggers, and close-quarters punch and kick kung fu.
The contest takes place between trees, bamboo forests, and stonehenges.
The teenagers are tall, one move at a time, and their temperament is outstanding, and they are already quite heroic.
The light and shadow of this play is very special.
It is not natural light, but a kind of light similar to a stage play.
It's as if teenagers are in the spotlight of life.
Light and shadow are accompanied by dexterous changes in movement, and the texture is full.
In order to achieve such an effect, the crew set up a real scene shed one tree and one tree.
One of the sheds covers an area of about 2,000 square meters, and a total of 4 are built.
It satisfies the background of woods and bamboo forests, and can arrange the lights freely.
In the end, the teenagers, with the help of ingenuity, all passed the pass smoothly.
But after the break, unexpected things happened.
Master stood with his hands behind his back and said to them, "Your last hurdle is me."
The teenagers were caught off guard, and under the majesty of the master, Qi Qi took a step back.
If you retreat and do not fight, you will lose your previous achievements.
As we all know, in martial arts stories, going out of the mountain is a symbol.
It not only marks the completion of martial arts, but also a symbol of overcoming inner demons and overcoming oneself.
Therefore, even in the face of a respected master, the teenagers are still willing to give it a go.
They took turns to attack, only to be easily knocked to the ground by the master.
The teenagers' initial fighting spirit was almost worn away.
But in the face of Master's ridicule, they instead woke up.
Turn frustration into strength and shout "We don't recognize."
So the seven people gritted their teeth, exerted their last strength, swung open the formation, and made a final attempt.
Just a moment before they could exert their power, Master stopped them in time:
"You really want to hurt me?"
It turned out that the teenagers had passed the test.
This last level is the test of their hearts.
The war will not retreat, defeat will not fall, and the party will see fearlessness.
With this "chivalrous steam", Master can safely let them go down the mountain.
Since then, there has been another legend of "young chivalry" on the jianghu.
As soon as this micro-movie was launched, it dominated the hot search list and swept the screen of the whole network.
On the same day, it occupied 9 hot searches.
Related hot topics, read 3.4 billion times.
Not only that, but also set off a "martial arts fever" on other platforms.
Station B appeared in a variety of "ancient style martial arts" of the second creation of the clip.
It's hard to imagine a 10-minute micro-movie that can cause such a big sensation.
Moreover, unlike other New Year's Eve films, they strive to make a fuss about the "Year of the Tiger".
It has a unique way to celebrate the New Year with "martial arts teenagers"!
This just shows that although martial arts have declined, the inspiring martial arts feelings in our bones are still there.
I hope that this micro-film can attract more young people to pay attention to our martial arts culture.
Heroes come out of my generation, and the sword goes to the end of the world.