On September 29th, The Smiling, The Proud Wanderer had its premiere at the Poly Grand Theater in Beijing.
That night, many domestic mainstream media and many famous people in the industry published their reviews on their websites and blogs. All of them were full of praises!
Meng Shaotang, whose ID was "Teacher Meng" on Waves blog, published his review at midnight.
[Tonight, I experienced an adult fairy tale!]
This was the title of the blog post. The freelance writer, who had millions of fans, wrote in the post, "… A history that is divorced from reality. The background of the film is completely imaginary. In this imaginary world, there are high and mighty sects, magical martial arts, exciting swords, heroic heroes who sing sorrowful songs, ambitious schemers, and devastatingly beautiful women …"
"This movie contains thrilling fights, strange and unpredictable conspiracies, interesting romances, and rich philosophies. The one who leaves the deepest impression on the audience is undoubtedly the protagonist, Linghu Chong. He cares very little about fame and fortune, and he is not affected by worldly thoughts. He is free and unrestrained, and he is hot-blooded and heroic. Although he has experienced hardships, he is indomitable!"
"I have never thought that a real martial arts movie would be like this. I have seen a few so-called martial arts movies before, and with all due respect, they are just a bunch of garbage!"
"I think a real martial arts movie should be like this. It is a fairy tale that belongs to us adults …"
Meng Shaotang's film review blog post was more than 2,000 words long. Unlike his usual film reviews, this blog post was obviously written in a hurry. Therefore, there was no elaborate embellishment in the writing style, but the true feelings between the lines were exactly his unique style.
Those who were familiar with "Teacher Meng" knew that although he was over 40 years old, he had always been a romantic person. His reviews were casual and he wrote whatever he wanted. He laughed and scolded freely, and he never betrayed his moral integrity.
Meng Shaotang's praise for "The Smiling, The Proud Wanderer" exceeded his previous highest evaluation for domestic movies, so many fans left questions in the comment section, "Teacher Meng, did you receive money?"
It was actually very normal to have such doubts. Nowadays, it was common for domestic blockbusters to hold a premiere, inviting a large number of media and people in the circle to come and support them. Then, there would be a flood of good reviews.
As the saying goes, people support people in the sedan chair, so everyone was used to it. Some time ago, "The Smiling, The Proud Wanderer" was very popular, so it was not surprising that people spent money to buy good reviews on the night before it was released.
Some people ridiculed Meng Shaotang on the blog, saying that he finally sold his moral integrity for a good price!
In the face of such vicious ridicule, Meng Shaotang didn't get angry to defend himself. He just showed three screenshots of online tickets on his blog, saying that after "The Smiling, The Proud Wanderer" was officially released, he would take his family to the cinema to support it.
Some people were surprised, some people questioned, some people ridiculed, and some people took the opportunity to attack. But for the vast number of Lu Chen's fans, these praises and comments undoubtedly gave them a shot of adrenaline, and the atmosphere in related posts, forums, and QQ groups became more enthusiastic.
On the evening of the 30th, the online pre-sale of "The Smiling, The Proud Wanderer" ended, and the box office sales reached 49.7 million, only 300,000 away from breaking the 50 million mark!
On October 1st, "The Smiling, The Proud Wanderer" was released in more than 3000 cinemas in China, and the screening rate was 32.50%.
In China, the National Day screening period was ranked third after the summer and New Year's screening period, so "The Smiling, The Proud Wanderer" couldn't outshine others, and it also had to face competition from many competitors.
And among the movies released at the same time, the biggest threat to "The Smiling, The Proud Wanderer" was undoubtedly the action blockbuster "Ace Agent" produced by Superstar Pictures, which was also released on October 1st, and the screening rate was 43.77%, firmly crushing "The Smiling, The Proud Wanderer".
Superstar Pictures was a famous film company in Hollywood, with a long history and strong strength. It was also one of the first American film companies to enter the domestic market. Every year, there would be two or three blockbusters introduced into the domestic market, and they earned a lot of box office.
"Ace Agent" had an investment of 170 million US dollars, and the cast was strong. The male and female lead had considerable appeal in the domestic market, and the intensity of the publicity was not weak at all.
So it was natural that "Ace Agent" had more screening than "The Smiling, The Proud Wanderer". In fact, the screening rate of "The Smiling, The Proud Wanderer" was more than 30%, and it was also the result of Chen Fei Media's countless efforts. Because the box office of the martial arts films in the summer period failed badly, the cinema chain still had lingering fears.
That was because Lu Chen, Chen Fei 'er, and Liu Gangsheng's status were high enough, and coupled with the overwhelming publicity some time ago, under normal circumstances, it wouldn't be strange to give 10% screening.
And whether or not they could keep this screening rate depended on the performance of the film. Once the audience's reputation was not good, then the cinema chain would quickly adjust, and there was no mercy to speak of.
In front of the benefits of the box office, the cinema chain was very realistic. Whichever film had more people watching it, they would give it more screening.
Other than "The Smiling, The Proud Wanderer" and "Ace Agent", there was also a domestic comedy film, a domestic urban romance film, and a Xiangjiang police and gangster film that took up the rest of the share.
Compared to "The Smiling, The Proud Wanderer" and "Ace Agent", these three films didn't have a large cast, investment, or publicity. If there were no accidents, they wouldn't be a big threat.
The real competition still depended on "The Smiling, The Proud Wanderer" and "Ace Agent"!
"Aren't you worried at all?"
Beijing, Chen Fei Media's headquarters, in the general manager's office, Lu Xi looked at Lu Chen who was playing "Plants vs Zombies" on his tablet, and complained, "A lot of people are waiting to see you make a fool of yourself!"
The battle of the box office had already begun, and Lu Xi was in the headquarters, constantly paying attention to the screening of "The Smiling, The Proud Wanderer". She had been feeling uneasy, but in the end, Lu Chen was just leisurely playing a game at this time.
After setting up a new group of peashooters and eliminating the last wave of zombies, Lu Chen put down the tablet in his hand, smiled and said, "There's nothing to worry about, we've done what we should and could do, now it's up to the audience to decide.
"As for others wanting to see us make a fool of ourselves, let them watch, let's see who can laugh in the end."
Lu Xi was convinced, "You're really ambitious …"
Lu Chen smiled and didn't say anything.
Coming this far, he had already obtained countless things that he had dreamed of. Even if he failed, he didn't need to be afraid.
Because he had done his best, and had no regrets!
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