Chapter 17 Chapter fifteen

After that, Jet Li continued his previous style and took over the Hollywood blockbuster "Dragon's Pool and Tiger's Den" directed by David McNally.In the film, he plays the role of the messenger of justice again, and once again dominates Hollywood with Chinese kung fu.The film also topped the US box office champion list due to its excellent performance. At the end of 2001, Zhejiang. The filming entered the final finishing stage.One evening, Jet Li received a call from Joel Silver, a famous Hollywood producer. Josifer is a well-known producer in the United States. In Hollywood full of action movies, Josifer has established an action kingdom that belongs to him. The movies he produced have earned him more than 3.5 billion US dollars in the world. income. The "Extreme Matrix" series of films released in 1999 earned him 456 million in revenue. This film not only rewritten a new era of action movies, but also won him four Academy Awards. In 2003, he launched the second and third episodes of "The Matrix". The series of hackers eclipsed all sci-fi action movies. "Newsweek" selected 2003 as the year of "The Matrix".

The movies he has produced include "Ultimate Vanguard", "Devil Commander", "Lethal Weapon" series, "Ultimate Detective" series, "Fatal Romeo" and other blockbusters. He has cooperated with action stars including Bruce Willie, Arno Schwarzenegger, Mel Gibson, Keanu Reeves and Jet Li, etc. Silver said to Jet Li: "Jetli, is the piece almost finished?" Jet Li said honestly: "It's almost finished, and now the filming is basically finished, and I can go back to the United States after completing some necessary work." "Come here when you're done, I have a film waiting for you here."

"OK!" The film Joel Silver mentioned was the later Hollywood blockbuster "Dragon Pool and Tiger's Den". Silver and Jet Li have been good friends for many years. Jet Li was able to gain a foothold in Hollywood, and Silver helped him. Therefore, the relationship between the two A tacit understanding has been formed, as long as it is his film contract, Jet Li will readily accept it. After finishing the pre-shooting, it immediately entered the post-production. At this time, there was a lot of speculation about this martial arts masterpiece in China, and all the news about the hero was placed on the front page of the entertainment news.Some critics said that Chinese audiences have never watched blockbuster movies made in China. Once there is a movie, people all over the country are as happy as poor people who suddenly have money. They have to show their money to others.

The hype in the domestic media has also affected the foreign media, and even the famous "Time Magazine" in the United States joined in the fun. A reporter for Time magazine commented: "The most anticipated Chinese film since Ang Lee's Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. The success of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon was a mixed blessing for the Chinese film industry: the good news is that it gave all Westerners a taste of Asian cinema. I started to be interested, but what worries me is that many Chinese filmmakers are planning to re-copy Ang Lee’s road to success, and it’s still unknown where this road will lead.”

"Actually, we don't know whether "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" will open up a big market for Asian films, or is it just a fluke success? But no matter what, it has shouldered the hopes of all Asian films. The pressure is Obviously. Although names like Zhang Yimou and Du Kefeng are well-known, they have never been exposed to martial arts films before. Moreover, Zhang Yimou said that there are not many dialogues between the characters in the movie, but the scenes and music should be used to highlight the artistic conception and historical atmosphere. Telling a story, I don’t know if the result can be accepted by the audience.”

A few days ago, the US "Time Magazine" made a special report on Weibo, which also shows how much attention it has received. The following is the interview with actor Jet Li. A few days ago, the US "Time Magazine" made a special report on him, which also shows the degree of attention he has received. The following is an interview with "Time Magazine" on Jet Li. "Time" asked: "What surprised you about working with Zhang Yimou?" Jet Li: "He always wants to challenge and change the culture through movies. He always wants to break the rules. This movie is different. He tries to establish new rules and implement them."

"Time" asked: "Do you think Chinese audiences will like this movie?" Jet Li: "The older generation might like it, but I'm not sure about the younger ones." Time asked: "How creative were you in this movie?" Jet Li replied: Martial arts directors are better than me, but I will have some ideas to communicate with the directors. What is also important to me is the martial arts director. Once I know who it is, I will sign a contract with him (her). "Time Magazine" asked: Are you tired of making martial arts films? Jet Li replied: I am already a Buddhist, I don't think force can solve things.

"Time Magazine" asked: Chow Yun-fat did not develop well in Hollywood in the early days, why did you succeed so quickly in the United States? Jet Li replied: Chow Yun-fat is a talented person, but his action movies have not been remembered by many audiences. That may be because he is an actor first and he does not know kung fu. Like me and Jackie Chan, I have never known an Asian actor. How to get a foothold in Hollywood, if the market needs you, then you stay, if the market doesn't, you pack your bags and go home. "Time Magazine" asked: You have become a commercial person, right? Does this have something to do with your living in the United States?

Jet Li: Maybe, I make movies for American TV, I think it’s good to be able to do other things besides being an actor, money is not very important now, especially for Buddhists, you can’t give away money, houses when you die Or what to take away, I think I am responsible now, I don't want kids to watch my "Kiss of the Dragon", I don't want to hear 5 year olds imitate movies and say nasty swear words, I hope I can send some positivity to others things rather than violence.Of course, you need to make money first, and then you can be able to do what you want to do. After the performance, the whole country was a sensation and the market was hot. In Beijing, even when it was snowing heavily, people lined up to buy tickets. Many people who hadn’t been to the cinema for more than ten years also paid their own money to enter the theater. One week after the listing, the box office quickly exceeded 100 million yuan. It continued to rise in the second week, and soon broke through the 200 million mark.Just like Zhang Yimou, who has always been prudent, also exclaimed: "Unexpected, really unexpected. In my original idea, the box office revenue should be 50 to 60 million yuan, and the top is 80 million yuan. Unexpectedly, it broke through more than 200 million yuan. Really. Even if you don’t dare to think about it, the huge potential of China’s film market has revealed the tip of the iceberg! No wonder foreigners say that China’s film market is an untapped diamond mine.”

Jet Li, who is far away in the United States, was also very happy when he learned of the hot sale.Said: "Finally made another film that is as popular as "Shaolin Temple"." What makes Jet Li even more happy is that the domestic popularity has attracted the attention of the international market for this film. The American Miramax Corporation spent a huge sum of money to buy its copyright in North America, and plans to release it in November 2002 as an American academy film. Partial screening of the films participating in the award. Jet Li did not expect that the road to the U.S. screening would start with twists and turns.Just when it was about to be broadcast in the United States, Chinese officials were preparing to submit the film as a candidate for the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film. After Miramax learned of the news, it believed that if the film was nominated in November 2003, it would be , this time the release will be able to play a sensational role.So the release time was cancelled, waiting to be nominated.

In 2003, because of its excellent quality, it was nominated for the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film, but for some reason, Miramax gave up the plan to release it in November 2003 and changed the release date to April 16, 2004. Opening in Los Angeles and New York, they want to hit the summer blockbuster with a big box office hit, because visually, this movie can really stand up to the best of Hollywood Compete.Since then, Miramax postponed the release date for another 4 months due to many factors, until it was released nationwide on August 20, 2004. On August 20, after many hardships, it was finally released in the United States, and the title was changed to "Jet Li".The reason for this change is that Miramax considered Jet Li's box office appeal in the United States. In order to make this film a sensation in the United States, Miramax held a grand premiere.At the premiere, Jet Li talked eloquently to reporters.This time, Jet Li talked about Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan.For these two dragons, Jet Li expressed his respect for them. The reporter asked: "Before filming, when did you want to make some achievements in acting?" Jet Li pondered for a while and said: "It was in 1974. Bruce Lee had just passed away at that time. Someone found me and said to me: "Jet Li, your kung fu is very good. Do you want to be an action star when you grow up? "At that time, when I was only 17 years old, I thought it would be good to be a star. It just so happened that a director chose me. In this way, I started to embark on the road of film. The reporter asked again: "In your life, how much influence did Bruce Lee have on you?" Jet Li recalled: "At that time, when I went to perform in Europe, we did a few moves, and many people would ask us what we were doing, and people would shout "Bruce Lee, Bruce Lee". Even in Africa, Bruce Lee was very famous. .I've seen his videos and I'm fascinated by him. He's a master of martial arts, his philosophy, his moves, body and mind, are just amazing." "Some people must be comparing you to Jackie Chan? What do you think about that?" Jet Li held out his thumb and said: "Jackie Chan is a very good comedy action star. I can't do his moves. He can't do mine either. It's like you walk into two Chinese restaurants, two Restaurants will have different meals. The reporter asked: "Jackie Chan said he never used a double, have you ever used a double?" Jet Li laughed and replied: As long as it is something I know, I don't need a substitute.If I never learned, I would use a double. "Today is the premiere, what kind of movie do you think it is?" Jet Li said from the bottom of his heart: "It's really a very special movie because it doesn't have a set pattern. Generally, in movies, good people get into trouble, their wife or mother dies, and then they go to the mountains and old forests In martial arts, and then come back to kill the bad guys: revenge. But there is not a real bad guy in the movie, different people have different points of view. We want the audience to decide which point of view they like. It is a very unique movie, It's a different way of telling a story. I've always believed that violence is the way to solve problems, but we know that violence is not the only way to solve problems. So what the audience sees is how to solve problems. After its premiere, it was released nationwide. The beautiful costumes, gorgeous sets, high-level fighting scenes and unique color arrangement made the film popular in the American film market.For this martial arts film full of oriental magic, both critics and ordinary audiences have commented on the film.They said: "It is the most amazing Chinese film I have seen so far, whether it is directing, filming, screenwriting, special effects or film technology. The colors used in the film are breathtakingly beautiful. The martial arts scenes are exquisite and useless. Flawless. Great performances from the actors, realistic stunts. Sophisticated lighting, effects, this movie is amazing." However, some film critics gave negative comments, saying: "There are only the protagonist and no supporting roles in the film. There are 7 actors in the whole film, and the rest are extras composed of troops; for some Western audiences, the film is too much. Illusionary. In "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon", the suspended sword dancing scene is already the limit of Western audiences' understanding of Chinese Qinggong. There are too many aerial martial arts scenes in this film, which have exceeded the audience's understanding." After finishing the promotion of a piece, Jet Li rested at home for a period of time. When he had time, Jet Li would open his mailbox to read e-mails. Jet Li’s emails came from all over the world. Many friends were very concerned about his acting career and gave him many suggestions.Sometimes, Jet Li incorporated their opinions into the filming work to make his performance more perfect. After resting for a period of time, Jet Li immediately devoted himself to the filming of "Dragon Lake and Tiger's Den". "Longtan Tiger's Den" is also translated as "Deadly Cradle" and "Born to Die". This film gathers action film masters from the United States, Europe and China, and the producer is Silver.The director is Andrzej Bakovia, who loves action movies and admires oriental kung fu, and his old partner Yuan Kui is in charge of the martial arts action design of the film.In addition to Jet Li, the film's protagonists also include the famous American rapper DMX, Chinese action actress Kelly Hu, and Kung Fu master Mark Dacascos who grew up in Germany. DMX grew up in the cruel environment of the black street. He has a brand new way of street fighting. Chinese-American actress Hu Kaili was born as a beauty queen, but she has good martial arts and is a black belt in Taekwondo. Among actresses, she is a rare kung fu master.She stood out from "The Scorpion King" and quickly became popular.In "Dragon Pool and Tiger's Den", Kelly Hu played the role of the opponent's personal bodyguard. The two had many rival scenes. You can beat me with just one hand! It’s like kindergarten versus college students, the level is much worse.” Another master who competes with him is the German action film master Mark Dacascos.Jet Li said that when he was choosing an actor to play against him, he did some research on the Internet, including Vindiso and Arnold, who were both on the list, but in the end, the netizens chose Mark as his actor. The rival partner, Jet Li said: "Mark said that he is my fan, because he is very fascinated by kung fu movies. He has seen many movies starring me, but the first condition for everyone to choose him is to play well." Mark Dacascos is best known for his role in "The Covenant of the Wolves".He admitted that Jet Li had been regarded as his idol more than ten years ago, because he had watched "Shaolin Temple" starring Jet Li, so since then he regarded Jet Li as a hero in his heart, and being able to act on the same stage with Jet Li made him flattered. In addition to a strong cast, the film is unique in the design of martial arts scenes. As early as a few months before the filming, when Jet Li was promoting the new film in the United States, whenever he had free time, he would actively contact the action director Yuan Kui to discuss the film's martial arts scenes with him.They analyze each person's role and specialty, as well as the situation they are about to encounter, and design actions suitable for each actor. Jet Li said to Yuan Kui: ""Dragon Pool and Tiger's Den" combines Josifer's consistent action movie mode, kung fu and large-scale explosion scenes, and brand-new visual shocking effects, which will refresh the audience who love action movies. We must make this movie well. .” Yuan Kui said: "No matter how good the plot of a martial arts movie is, if the fighting is not good, the movie will not improve. Therefore, we have to work hard on martial arts movements. Foreigners like martial arts movies with strong actual combat. In order to make the martial arts scenes It looks realistic, so we try to use less "hanging wire" in this movie, because this kind of action looks unnatural and gives people a fake feeling. Too many hanging wire pictures will make the movie look beautiful, but it will greatly reduce The realism of martial arts." Regarding Yuan Kui's analysis, Jet Li agreed. The two believed that in "Dragon Lake and Tiger's Den", it is necessary to present the real feeling of fighting for life and present the most simple side of martial arts. In order to make kung fu shock the hearts of Americans, Yuan Kui designed a primitive and bloody fighting style. Yuan Kui's design also opened Li Lianjie's eyes. They rented a free fighting venue and let Kung Fu players from all over the United States come to fight freely , the most powerful person fought with Jet Li. After DMX heard the news, he yelled excitedly, saying, this is the fastest way to win in the black street, as long as you can win in the iron cage of the free fighting arena, even if you walk sideways on the black street No one dares to trouble you. One day in May 2002 was a soul-stirring day for Jet Li and Hollywood. In the Hollywood Kickboxing Arena, Jet Li will fight 15 free kickboxing masters in an iron cage.This fighting match is specially designed to pursue the realism of the film. They want to open the eyes of audiences in Hollywood and the world with a primitive and bloody fighting method. Because Jet Li has the halo of a kung fu superstar, the kickboxing competition has attracted many masters who want to compete with him.All the people who came to participate in the fighting match came in the name of Jet Li, and many people even came here to gain fame by defeating Jet Li.Since they are not formal actors, the filming of this scene is particularly dangerous. The participants also include a heavyweight fighting champion and two lightweight fighting champions. Best of all they all come true! In order to select 15 fighters who can compete with Jet Li, before the filming of this scene, a preliminaries were conducted to select the top 15 fighters.Unexpectedly, after the news was broadcast, it attracted more than two hundred masters to sign up.Some of these people are from the underworld and are good at free fighting; some are good at Chinese Kung Fu, karate, judo, Japanese peace, and muay thai. Almost everything imaginable is here, and some people who have never even heard their names are here. It can be said to be unprecedented.During the preliminaries, the contestants were originally required to count as far as they could go, but as a result, more than two hundred people beat the preliminaries to a bloody floor. The 15 masters selected in the end will have a ten-day free-for-all with Jet Li. In this fighting match, Jet Li also created a brand-new one-handed fighting method for himself.In the arena, he always puts his right hand in his pocket. This way not only shows his complete confidence and pride, but also makes people feel that he is unrivaled in domineering.In this regard, Jet Li modestly explained: Once I use my right hand, the person who comes will either die or be disabled, so I will only use it when facing life and death.In a word, let us see that there is a kind heart behind Jet Li's arrogance. Although the whole fighting process is very dangerous, the result is satisfactory. The absolutely wonderful and real martial arts scenes make "Longtan Tiger's Den" shine.Jet Li also crossed the language barrier with these masters who came to compete and became good friends.Action director Yuan Kui and producer Joe Silver highly praised this. They said that this free fight is the most authentic and a rare classic in Hollywood in recent years. I believe that apart from Jet Li, no one else can shoot it. Such a picture. The story summary of "Longtan Tiger's Den" is: Fett, the theft leader played by DMX, had to obey orders because his beloved daughter Vanessa was kidnapped. He led a group of capable men to invade a closely monitored building in Los Angeles and seized Dozens of rare and rare black diamonds, just as he got his hands and was about to exchange these black diamonds for his daughter, a Kung Fu master—Su (Jet Li) popped out halfway.In order to prevent these black diamonds from falling into the hands of ambitious people, Su and Fei Te fought. It turns out that the black diamonds in Fett's hands are not only valuable, but are actually top-secret military products. These diamonds are the key to activating some powerful weapons. If the black diamonds fall into the hands of criminal groups, it will endanger the entire world. The security situation in the world is unimaginable.In order to protect these black diamonds, the Taiwanese government specially sent Su to fly halfway around the world to stop the evil people from their ambitions. Su knew that not only would he want to get back the black diamonds, but he would also face his predecessor, who had also received brutal training in killing, and his kung fu was even superior to his. Ling (Mark Dacascos), a master of martial arts. Like Su, Ling is also a ruthless killing machine. To achieve his goal, he kidnaps Fett's daughter and forces him to steal black diamonds in exchange for her life.However, Fett finally understood the importance of the black diamonds in his hands after getting acquainted with Su. However, the life of his daughter Vanessa was at stake, and the seriousness made him confused for a while. He didn't know whether to return the black diamonds. to Sue. Ling's every move was within Su's expectations, and the two finally came to a face-to-face showdown. Fett didn't decide to fight to save his daughter until this moment. Although Jet Li's image in this film has not changed radically compared with the past, his Chinese Kung Fu has deeply attracted American audiences.After the premiere of the film, a reporter wrote in the report: "I finally waited for the opportunity to interview the world-renowned Kung Fu superstar Jet Li who dominates Asia." This shows the admiration Americans have for Jet Li. "Dragon Lake and Tiger's Den" was released in North America on February 28, 2003. Only four days later, the box office reached 17 million U.S. dollars, ranking first in North America for two consecutive weeks. Ben Affleck's science fiction film "Daredevil" Kicked off the championship and created Jet Li's best achievement in Hollywood - crowning the North American box office! A week later, Exhibitor Relations announced the box office revenue statistics for this week. The top ten North American box office box office that week were: "Dragon Lake and Tiger's Den", "Back to School", "Daredevil", "Perfect Match", "Chicago" , "The Jungle Book 2", "Royal Veyron", "Fate Hangs in a Thread", "Marshal Shenzhou", "CIA Pursuing Order". After the successful launch of "Dragon Pool and Tiger's Den", Jet Li shocked the American audience with his real kung fu.The March issue of the American fashion magazine "Men's Journal" published the annual list of "25 Strongest Tough Guys in America" ​​selected by the magazine.Jet Li was elected as one of the tough guys with his "screen killer" image.In addition, the elected figures include Hillary Clinton, the wife of the former US President Clinton, the Republican Senator John McCain, the famous black American rapper "50 Cent", and the test driver. Rusty Hyatt. "50 Points" was shot nine times, but he still endured the pain and drove to the hospital by himself.Hite is the best test driver in the world.His job is to "test the accident with his own body" and personally test the safety and security of the car when it encounters a car accident. After finishing "Dragon Pool and Tiger's Den", Jet Li thought about it. After he came to Hollywood, he also made several movies. As he grows older, it is impossible for him to make films in the United States for a long time. Where will he spend the rest of his life?So he said to Li Zhi: "We are almost forty years old, and we should also think about where we will live our old age?" Li Zhi was quite sad after hearing his words.Beauty's twilight is a sad thing for all beauties.After thinking for a few days, Li Zhi said to Jet Li: "How about we live in Shanghai when we get old?" . Jet Li said: "Go where you say." In 2004, Shanghai invited Jet Li to be the guest of honor for the "2004 China Top Ten Lawrence Championships", and Jet Li went to Shanghai with his wife Li Zhi.At the awards ceremony at the Shanghai Grand Theater, Jet Li met his old friend Tsui Hark. As soon as Tsui Hark met, he said, "I heard you are going to become a monk?" "Leaving home?" "Oh, you don't know, the newspapers outside are saying that you don't want to be in the film industry and you are going to become a monk." Tsui Hark spoke with a strong Cantonese accent. Jet Li smiled and asked, "Do you believe such news?" Tsui Hark said, "Of course I don't believe it." "You don't even believe it, how can you say I believe it?" The two laughed. Tsui Hark said: "You come back this time to participate in the award ceremony? Then you, an international superstar, are too easy to invite." Jet Li said to him in a low voice: "Besides participating in the award ceremony, I also have a more important purpose. I want to buy a house in Shanghai and prepare for my old age." Tsui Hark said hehe: "Really? House, didn't you buy a house in Shanghai more than ten years ago?" "It's too small to fit. Buy a big one and prepare to die in Shanghai." "Then you are going to ascend to heaven in Shanghai?" After finishing speaking, Tsui Hark realized that he had said something wrong.Chinese people have always been superstitious, especially afraid of bad luck, and the most taboo is to mention "death".He hurriedly added: "Oh, look at my crow's mouth, I said something wrong." Unexpectedly, Jet Li not only didn't care, but also said with a smile: "I have converted to Buddhism for many years, how can I be afraid of talking about death? I firmly believe that life is just a process of reincarnation. Therefore, even if I know that the end is approaching, I will not be afraid, nor will I feel any remorse or regret." Seeing that Jet Li was not afraid, Tsui Hark still talked freely, he was relieved and said, "Why are you not afraid of death?" "Because I've always taken good care of my wife, my family, and being kind to others, there's nothing I can't let go of." Jet Li also revealed to Tsui Hark his "big plan after death". He said that he once told his wife Li Zhi that when his Japanese "end is approaching", he would be cremated in a Tibetan temple he had donated to.And I hope that one of the eminent monks can write an inscription on his tombstone.In addition, Jet Li also admitted that he thought about "death" every day. Jet Li said: "I have been to Tibet for 10 days recently, just to learn how to face my own death. Buddha believes that everything I do in this life will directly affect the next life, so I hope to do my best to help others in this life, so that the next life can be better. .” Tsui Hark didn't expect Jet Li to think about death so seriously, and he was very impressed. After the award ceremony, Jet Li and Li Zhi went to various places in Shanghai to look at houses, but they couldn't find any suitable ones, so they went back home and took the opportunity to return to the United States. After Jet Li returned to the United States, the sequel to "The Green Hornet" made waves again.Universal Pictures had planned to invite Jet Li to make "The Green Hornet" when he first came to the United States, but it fell through in the end. Later, the copyright of "The Green Hornet" changed, and another film company, Miramax, bought the copyright of "The Green Hornet". The shooting plan of "Green Hornet" is on the agenda of Miramax Company. As for who the company will invite to play the role of Kaito, the assistant of "Green Hornet" once played by Kung Fu superstar Bruce Lee, director Kevin Smith gave The answer given is: "It's still Jet Li". After nearly ten years, is Jet Li willing to take this role?American entertainment reporters approached Jet Li with this question, and said: "If the producer finds you, will you agree to act?" Jet Li replied readily: "Of course it is exciting to be able to play the role of The Green Hornet. I am very eager to play it. You must know that Kaito, played by Bruce Lee, has become a classic in my mind. He is my idol." Unexpectedly, a few days later, the director of "The Green Hornet" Kevin Smith quit the crew for some reason. The "Green Hornet" issue has been put on hold again