Gordon Chan’s (陈嘉上) new movie, The Four <四大名捕> spins up impressive results and beats Painted Skin 2: The Resurrection’s <画皮 2> opening weekend box office results. The Four fights its way and raked in $80 million RMB in its opening week! The film breaks China’s opening box office records in less than a week. Interestingly, The Four is promoted as the martial arts version of X-men and Fantastic Four. Hence, the theme naturally appeals to a wide range of audience. The Four stars a strong cast of Crystal Liu (刘亦菲), Deng Chao (邓超), Colin Chou (邹兆龙), Ronald Cheng (郑中基), Anthony Wong (黄秋生), Wu Xiu Bo (吴秀波), Jiang Yi Yan (江一燕), Cheng Tai Sheng (成泰燊) and Sheren Tang (邓萃雯). Painted Skin 2 has earned $600 billion RMB in box office sales to-date. With The Four ferociously catching up at the box office, it may even topple Painted Skin 2 at the finishing line! Currently, The Four already exceeds Painted Skin 2’s screening numbers in theaters, screening as much as twenty times in a single theater! After the Painted Skin 2, there is no strong contender in the China’s box office. The next contender is Ice Age 4, but it is only screening end July. It is not surprising that The Four tops the box office being the only blockbuster around in these two weeks. Despite Strong Box Office, The Four is Bashed The Four has come under fire for deviating from Wen Ruian’s original novel involving the four constables. Hard core fans call the film absurd and messy. The four constables in the original novel use their intelligence and perseverance to solve difficult crimes, but the constables in the film only tap on their super powers. Audience also criticize Gordon Chan for packing the film with various super-power characters, ranging from invisible man, western zombies, sorcerers, and even the Hulk! Although The Four is widely criticized by audience, it continues to reign at the box office. The leading actors especially Deng Chao and Wu Xiu Bo are charming female audience with their suave looks, stirring a debate over who is better looking. Gordon Chan Filming a Sequel Gordon Chan is currently filming a sequel to The Four in Hengdian. When asked if he would include any steamy bath scenes as in his previous films, he replied, “I feel that a woman will reveal her secrets during her bath! Yes, I will include a bath scene in the sequel!” Anthony Wong will also be cast in the sequel and will develop a romance with Sheren Tang. He lamented that his earnings dropped in the The Four 2, “I have more fighting scenes but my earnings are even lower!” Gordon Chan replied to Anthony, “But you are going to have more romance!” When asked about the audience’s criticisms on The Four, Gordon Chan expressed that the style of the film is entirely different from the novel. He will improve on the visual effects, costumes and include more romance in the sequel. Creds: Sohu
