Professional interpretation of the first scene of the movie "Kung Fu"

Chapter 1: "The Crocodile Gang makes trouble in the police station, and the Ax Gang dominates the beach"

The movie officially begins with another long shot. Starting from the close-up shot of Inspector Chen, the camera began to pan back.

The long shot of the movie is like a pair of eyes of the audience peering into the layout of the police station. At the same time, the sound of screaming people could be heard in the ears, which further aroused the audience's interest. Attract the audience to follow the swing of the long shot to discover the story behind it - where did the sound come from? What happened? Who was beaten in the police station?

Finally, the camera freezes on the plaque of "Sin Buster".

Not long after, a police officer was thrown over. This picture is actually very ironic. They were supposed to be the police officers who were supposed to eliminate violence and clean up evil forces, but instead they were thrown onto the glorious plaque of crime nemesis and fell down hard. This is not just a simple injury to a person's body, but also an insult to the police station's face. It is a straightforward and humorous reflection of the disorder and darkness of the society at that time.

It also left a suspense for the audience, who dared to beat the police like this? I have to admire how well this lens language tells stories.

The next scene cuts to the person behind the beating. I saw the eldest brother of the Crocodile Gang played by Feng Xiaogang yelling "Who else?" That kind of domineering attitude can make the audience feel a tremor across the screen. It's no surprise that someone who can say such domineering words in a police station dared to beat up a police officer before.

Here I would like to analyze it from the perspective of the lens. This is a close-up. The focus of the camera is on the face of the leader of the Crocodile Gang. From his domineering eyes, ferocious face, and sharp teeth, the temperament of the leader of the Crocodile Gang is well conveyed.

The second sentence the leader of the Crocodile Gang said was ridiculous - such a beautiful woman was caught here just because she spat on the ground. At the same time, the camera cuts to the woman he was talking about.

Is there any royal method? Are there any laws?

The words of the Crocodile Gang boss are obviously a slap in the face of a thief shouting to catch a thief. It was clear that he was lawless and caused a scene in the police station, but he still had the nerve to criticize the police and complain about his dissatisfaction with this society. Audiences who understand the logic behind this must be amused when they see this.

Then the camera panned down to the shoes of the leader of the Crocodile Gang. At the same time, he said the line - your director must also give our Crocodile Gang face. This sentence lets the audience know that the group of people causing trouble in the police station are the Crocodile Gang.

In addition, we noticed that when the Crocodile Gang boss said this, the camera was focusing on the Crocodile Gang boss's shoes. Let’s see, do these shoes have a crocodile style? Just like the Ax Gang's logo that appears later is an axe, then the Crocodile Gang's logo may be these crocodile-style shoes. The language of this shot is indeed very rich.

The photographer used the zoom shooting technique in the scene where the Crocodile Gang boss's shoes are on and the next scene where the beaten police officer appears in the frame. If we take a closer look, we will find that the focus of the camera shifts from the Crocodile Gang leader's shoes to the face of the policeman who was beaten. Let the audience's attention shift, thereby replacing the editing of the video screen with zoom. The transition between shots is natural and avoids abruptness.

After the police were tortured and humiliated in all kinds of ways (spitting, scalding with hot water). The Crocodile Gang seemed to have the upper hand and looked majestic. Before leaving, I didn’t forget to boast: Why are you looking at such a handsome boss? The next shot is very interesting - Detective Chen calmly closed the door slowly. I think this closing scene is a metaphor for how the police and the Ax Gang later teamed up to close the door and beat the dogs, and strangled the Crocodile Gang. It laid the foundation for the subsequent plot.

This is a line that I will never make a movie in any business. In fact, it is a very common line, but the reason why it makes the audience feel nonsensical and make them laugh is because the leader of the Crocodile Gang who said this line is the great director Feng Xiaogang. Coupled with this sexy and provocative picture, it can be regarded as the last glimmer of glory left to us viewers before the death of the Crocodile Gang.

As waves of heavy footsteps came, murderous intent was heard, and the door of the police station seemed to be locked premeditatedly. Faced with a dilemma, the boss of the Ax Gang felt something was wrong. At this time, the camera showed another close-up. The boss of the Crocodile Gang changed his previous domineering side and his eyes became serious.

The composition of the shot below is very interesting. The members of the Ax Gang are in the upper part of the frame, and the head of the leader of the Crocodile Gang is in the lower part of the frame. The position of the composition above and below actually indicates the level of power between the two.

We can also analyze the level of power between the two from the perspective of the camera.

The shot of the Crocodile Gang was shot from a tilted angle. A low-angle shot will show which side of the crocodile gang is at a disadvantage. In addition, only one person from the Crocodile Gang appears in the shot, which means that he is alone and unable to support himself.

Let’s take another look at the elevation shot of the Ax Gang. Contrary to the low-angle lens, the elevation lens increases the height of the ax gang, making it appear the stronger side, giving people the impression of being aggressive and facing a formidable enemy. In addition, let’s talk about the background of the fireworks behind the Ax Gang. This is a distress signal sent by the Crocodile Gang, but it has become the embellishment of the Ax Gang’s appearance. (A little digression here. I wonder if you think this picture is particularly beautiful as I do?)

From an overall narrative perspective, the existence of the Crocodile Gang is just to highlight the power of the Ax Gang. , to put it bluntly, it is soy sauce. From a social perspective, this also reflects that it was an era where the big fish ate the small fish, and the winner was the king and the loser was the bandit.

The appearance of the Ax Gang was due to the Crocodile Gang, and the introduction of the Ax Gang was uttered by the Crocodile Gang, not by a monologue in the movie, or by the Ax Gang self-recommended.

Before the leader of the Crocodile Gang said the words "Axe Gang, I will fight with you", there was no axe, nor the words "Axe Gang". It wasn't until the leader of the Crocodile Gang said these words that we, the audience, knew that the more powerful of this group was another gang - the Ax Gang.

In this shot of the Crocodile Gang leader escaping, the director used slow motion. Slow motion extends the drama time. Generally, violent scenes often use slow motion to increase the beauty, showing scenes of horror and ferocity, severed limbs and arms, and splattered blood and flesh.

This scene of Brother Chen waving is very iconic, and there are several such actions later. This action of Brother Chen foreshadows that he is going to go on a killing spree, letting the audience know this habitual thought - if Brother Chen waves his hand, the consequences will be serious.

The first characteristic of the Ax Gang is its brutality and ruthlessness. This is vividly shown in the movie. There are many plots that show the Ax Gang's arrogance and unreasonableness, without any room for maneuver. In this plot, when the leader of the Crocodile Gang lies on the ground and begs for mercy, he wants to talk about his feelings and find a way out. But the Ax Gang just hit and beheaded them without saying a word, showing no mercy and no room for maneuver.

The second characteristic of the Ax Gang is brutality and violence. The footage did not directly show how badly the leader of the Crocodile Gang was chopped and how bloody the scene was. The side description of Brother Chen's backache and sweat profusely indicates how long Brother Chen's chop lasted and how hard he cut. As for how disabled the boss of the Crocodile Gang is when he dies, the director wants us, the audience, to figure it out on our own.

One thing I want to mention here is that some audience friends said in the barrage that Brother Chen was so tired after just a few chops, which was a false performance. I don't quite agree with it. Although there are only five or six slashing actions in the picture, this is actually the director's use of a pulling technique. Visible sweat replaces or eliminates the miserable process that we didn't see in the middle.

The boss is dead, what should the boss’s wife do? The second boss changed the focus of the camera with just one look. This was so easy. It gives me the feeling that the Ax Gang is concise and concise, and they are ruthless and don't talk much. Try not to speak if you can without speaking, and use actions and eyes instead. In this scene, the zoom shooting technique was used again. The focus of the camera is adjusted from the first and second boss of the Ax Gang to the lady of the Crocodile Gang in the back. Let the audience's attention shift, thereby replacing the editing of the video screen with zoom.

The transition between shots is natural and avoids abruptness.

What follows is a close-up of Mrs. Crocodile's facial expressions, especially the tears she sheds. It foreshadows how scared and frightened she is at this moment. The purpose is also to highlight the ferocity and violence of the Ax Gang.

The Ax Gang, who have always been concise and to the point, said nothing and made a statement. Brother Chen said: Don't be stupid, sister-in-law, I don't kill women, you can go.

We can appreciate the mystery of this sentence: The background of Brother Chen saying this is that the Crocodile Gang’s wife is begging him for mercy, begging to let her live. And through the subsequent plot, we also know that the Ax Gang is so murderous that it is almost impossible to let her go, so Brother Dangchen said the first half of the sentence first - don't be stupid, sister-in-law. We, the audience, will subconsciously think that the Ax Gang means - want to leave? Don't be stupid, there is no way.

However, the second half of Brother Chen's sentence was very calm and serious - I don't kill women, so you can leave. Seeing this, we, the audience, may be like Mrs. Crocodile Gang, believing it to be true and thinking that Brother Chen will give him a way out.

But what’s the result? She hadn't even taken a few steps when she was shot dead, and she died so tragically. This unexpected plot is beyond our audience's expectations and subverts the audience's thinking. So in other words, Brother Chen's words caused the audience to reverse their thinking one after another. This shows how cleverly this line is set up.

Here Brother Chen’s waving action appears again. A weird, suspenseful soundtrack plays. This allows the audience to guess what his next move will be. The Crocodile Gang lady is not going to die soon.

This exaggerated action shot amplifies the shooting effect, which is unreasonable. Although the scene does not have a single line of dialogue, it is very nonsensical. I have to admire the ingenuity of the director's conception.

Stephen Chow's nonsensical lines are matched with Brother Chen's smug and ridiculous dance moves after killing people. What was originally a tense and bloody scene of massacre became very relaxed and humorous. They tease others before they die, showing the hypocrisy of the Ax Gang.

When the second master said this before leaving. This also implies that the strangulation was a collusion between the Ax Gang and the police department. To be more precise, the police paid money to buy axes to help with this. The police can't hold their heads high in front of the Crocodile Gang and have no right to speak, let alone the Ax Gang. Just like the second boss said, they The policemen play the role of a low-level job cleaning the floors.

The next scene of Detective Chen sweating profusely and counting money in a hurry explains everything.

The story of the mantis stalking the cicada and the oriole behind has come to an end. What follows is a Hollywood-style dance by the Ax Gang, which has the charm of "L.A. Confidential" and "Chicago". The camera is cross-edited, showing a messy crime scene on one side, black and white photos, accompanied by the click sound of an old-fashioned flashlight. On one side is the group dance scene of the Ax Gang, which is violent and absurd, dark and playful. It makes people feel funny, but they have to be frightened.

The first shot is Brother Chen dancing on the floor. The pattern on the floor happened to be in the shape of a flower. The flower symbolized beautiful things, and him dancing on it symbolized the trampling of beauty. Later, Fire Cloud Evil God's hidden weapon was also a golden flower with a poisonous needle stuck in the middle. When the golden flower unfolded, it happened to be the pattern on the floor. At this time, Brother Chen dancing on the pattern symbolizes the poisonous needle in the middle of the golden flower. It can be seen that the director has good intentions.

As the number of people gradually increases, this also symbolizes the Ax Gang's ever-expanding sphere of influence. There is strength in numbers and they are popular.

The scene switches between the eldest brother of the Ax Gang and his younger brother dancing with an ax, some black and white photos of people hacked to death by the Ax Gang, and the casino run by the Ax Gang. These cross-cut scenes really express the hot power of the Ax Gang to the extreme.

The parallel montage seems to convey this message to us - the Ax Gang relies on violent and unfair means to seize social resources, dominate Shanghai's economic market, and open casinos, dance halls, and restaurants. Business will naturally lead to a huge fortune.

Restaurants, dance halls and other entertainment venues

Gambling casinos

And then use this to make a fortune, with a table full of money that can't be counted.

Especially the final freeze-frame shot makes the audience terrified even through the screen.

The first chapter mainly shows the chaotic and disorderly social background of Shanghai at that time. Gangs are prevalent, especially the domineering and powerful Ax Gang.

In addition, according to the normal arrangement of movie characters, the audience can probably guess that the Ax Gang will be the villain of the movie!

So how will the movie develop next? Can the Ax Gang continue to be so domineering? How will the real character appear? What role will Xingye play in the movie? Please listen to the breakdown next time!