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Kong Qingdong
Edited yesterday at 08:39
Chivalrous and loyal heart reflects the nine states - watching "The Legend of the Condor Heroes: The Greatest Hero"
Kong Qingdong
During the Spring Festival of the Year of the Snake, Monk Kong, with a little fatigue from watching the Spring Festival Gala last night, watched the new film "The Legend of the Condor Heroes: The Greatest Hero" directed by Tsui Hark in a slightly crowded crowd. Monk Kong is also a relatively senior martial arts researcher, and he has published several books about Jin Yong. In the past 2024, in commemoration of the 100th anniversary of Jin Yong's birth, I opened the "Jin Yong Novel Research" course at Peking University for the fifth time. Based on my previous experience of watching Jin Yong's dramas, I didn't have high expectations for this viewing. But first, it's rare to have a leisure time during the Spring Festival, second, to express my remembrance of Mr. Jin Yong, and third, I want to see what tricks Tsui Hark can play on Mr. Jin Yong's 100-foot pole. Unexpectedly, I was deeply attracted soon after the show started, and I was moved several times during the process. When light moved several times during the process. When light walked out of the theater, I quickly determined in my mind that this was the best film adaptation of "The Legend of the Condor Heroes". On the way home, I made up a few random words about my impressions:
The chivalrous spirit and loyal heart shine through the nine states, and the carved bows and iron horses have never stopped.
Where is the heroic spirit of the clouds now, and when will the smoke of war end? The first success of this film is that it is highly
faithful to the original work. As a genius in the film industry, Tsui Hark has many creative ideas and it is not difficult for him to make up a new story or set a new theme. But Tsui Hark chose the most difficult path: try to abandon the flowery style and honestly stick to Jin Yong's original intention - it just so happened that there was a satirical skit program called "Flower Rack" on the Spring Festival Gala last night.
Jin Yong's martial arts has a core idea: inner strength is better than moves, and stupid kung fu is better than flowery style. - In fact, this is also the core concept of Chinese thought. The basic theme of "The Legend of the Condor Heroes" is the combination of the national stance of defending the country and the worldly feelings of compassion for the world. Tsui Hark firmly grasped this main
line from beginning to end. The father of the protagonist Guo Jing, Guo Xiaotian, was a hero who fought against the Jin Dynasty in the Song Dynasty. After being killed by the Jin people and traitors, Guo Jing fled to the Mongolian grassland with his mother, was taken in by the Khan, raised to adulthood, and became brothers with the fourth prince Tuolei. As the Khan wanted to marry the princess, he could become a golden sword prince consort. Logically, the Mongolians had a great favor to him. And the Khan's words were not
without reason: What favor did the Song Dynasty have for you? How many of those loyal ministers of the Song Dynasty had a good end? But Guo Jing's idea was: I am a citizen of the Song Dynasty, I cannot forget the "Jingkang Shame" contained in my name, and I cannot watch the people of the Song Dynasty being bullied.
At the end of the film, Guo Jing defeated the possessed Western Poison Ouyang Feng in front of the two armies, saved the Khan with his superb martial arts, and persuaded the Khan's soldiers to retreat. What he thought was: the grassland and the Central Plains are the same, whether it is expanding the territory for thousands of miles or being the best in martial arts, it is not the greatest hero. The greatest hero is the one who can defend world peace and save people of all ethnic groups from suffering. Tsui Hark has firmly held this line. I think if Mr. Jin Yong were still alive, he would be very pleased and would no longer say that watching his works being adapted is like "watching his own children being beaten by others."
The second success of this film lies in the selection and guidance of the actors. And this contains Tsui Hark's deep understanding of the characters in Jin Yong's original work.
For example, Guo Jing should never be understood as "stupid", but should be understood as "simple and naive." The learning process of simple and naive people may be relatively long, but because of the gradual and cautious progress, they may learn deeply and become great. Guo Jing, played by Xiao Zhan, highlights the heroic spirit, the simplicity is full of affection, and the stubbornness is full of justice. This is the hero Guo Jing who helped the Song Dynasty guard the border for more than 30 years.
Huang Rong, played by Zhuang Dafei, is no longer just a clever and timid person, but a leader of the Beggars' Sect with a big picture and a heroine with deep confidence in love. The most commendable is Hua Zheng, played by a new face Zhang Wenxin, who surpassed all previous roles of the same character and truly performed the heroic spirit of the prairie princess - being able to take it or leave it in love, being able to fulfill herself and others, isn't this also a kind of great hero?
The third success of this film is the organic combination of the wonderful individual fighting of martial arts and the magnificent scenes of national wars. The fierceness of the Mongolian cavalry and the grandeur of the Mongolian camp are metaphors for the peerless martial arts of a few martial arts masters, which cannot change the general trend of history. The magical martial arts
duel under the eyes of thousands of troops and horses is also a metaphor for the subjective initiative of individuals in the development of history and the universal law of history that details affect the overall situation. The use of various special effects photography and large scenes shot by drones have expanded the audience's psychological space in depth and breadth, and
approached the aesthetic imagination formed by reading the original novel.
In short, like all classic masterpieces, the history of film adaptations of Jin Yong's novels will continue, and this film will inevitably become a battle for success that later generations cannot easily bypass. In today's international context where war is raging and people from all countries are all concerned about the theme of "war and peace", it can once again prompt people who are well-fed
and well-fed to think: What is a hero? What is the greatest hero?
After returning home and eating some porridge and pickles, I felt that the greasiness disappeared and the chivalrous spirit was growing. Monk Kong also made up a few sentences and sighed:
Where is the carved saddle in the rivers and lakes,
and the chivalrous shadows
are flying and the sword is cold.
Looking at the vast world,
the vast river and the setting sun.
January 29, 2025, the night of the Spring Festival in the Year of the Snake
