The main storyline of the film is a condensed and shortened version of the original novel. The character settings basically follow the previous work, such as the heroic version of Zhang Wuji and the extremely wretched "Two Elders of Huashan", and this is precisely the main reason why "The Demon Cult Leader" won word of mouth.

In fact, judging from Zhang Wuji's family background and upbringing, it is normal for him to be ruthless and cruel. This is not original to the film. When the serialized version was created, the young Zhang Wuji was like this, decisive in killing and calculating.

However, what Jin Yong wrote was not a refreshing novel like "Long Aotian" after all, and the ending could not change history. It was Zhu Yuanzhang who overthrew the Yuan Dynasty and seized the world. It would be a bit inappropriate for Zhang Wuji, who had the demeanor of a hero and was the best martial artist in the world, to be mentioned.

After the modification, what later audiences and book fans saw was Zhang Wuji, a man who was indecisive and repaid evil with kindness.

But this is against human nature. His parents were forced to commit suicide on the spot by people from the five major sects. When he was young, he was determined to avenge his parents and pay blood for blood, but when he grew up, it seemed as if he had forgotten all the hatred overnight.

Even if it is necessary to temporarily unite the major sects in the martial arts world for the sake of the anti-Yuan cause, the resentment in the heart still needs to be revealed.

Jiang Heng's version of Zhang Wuji focuses on portraying him from this perspective, and some inadvertent small details besides the fighting scenes make the viewers feel awe-inspiring.

As a result, many guests secretly admired that Jiang Heng is indeed an internationally renowned director. In addition to his profound directing skills, his acting skills are also so outstanding.

Another pair of more outstanding characters in the film are naturally the extremely wretched "Two Old Men of Huashan".

At the beginning of the film's preparation, Li Xiaoping intended to let Chen He and Zheng Kai play these two roles.

After all, they are all artists of the company. After becoming popular with "Running Man", they have also gained a lot of fans.

The two of them playing such roles will not make the audience feel uncomfortable.

But Jiang Heng thought that since the film was promoted as having an "all-action star" cast, it would be better to use actors with kung fu skills to avoid being criticized by some film critics.

But after much thought, it's really hard to find someone who has both the kung fu skills and is willing to play such a role.

Until one day Yuan Hua came to see him, Jiang Heng instantly remembered the landlord he played in "Kung Fu" and thought, isn't this the most suitable candidate?

And Yuande is really a perfect fit.

Jiang Heng immediately called the two of them together and told them his thoughts.

The two initially refused, mainly because they had been working behind the scenes for many years and were a little reluctant to appear in front of the stage.

Jiang Heng promised to support Yuan De in becoming a director and directing TV series, and the latter agreed.

As for Yuen Wah, I don’t have any requirements.

The main reason is that he has no interest in being a director, and he knows that he doesn't have the image to be a leading actor, so he just wants more red envelopes.

Jiang Heng gave a big red envelope on the spot without saying anything, and the matter was settled.

The two have been in the film industry for many years and have played many roles, so there is nothing they cannot let go of.

The "Two Elders of Mount Hua" he played were extremely vulgar, but his lines were very sharp. He always said things that "used the past to satirize the present" and were thought-provoking, so that when the film was approved, many related scenes were deleted.

The company was shocked by this, but Jiang Heng was not surprised. After all, in In the Name of People, Secretary Yu Liang once said: "Don't say anything that is not conducive to unity!"

On the big screen, the plot continues. After the battle between Fan Yao and Zhang Wuji, they immediately discussed a strategy to rescue the six major sects.

Next, Fan Yao plotted against He Biweng and Lu Zhangke. One after another, action stars who played guest roles as masters of Ruyang Palace appeared on the stage, dazzling the audience and making them feel very excited.

Especially when Zhou Haimei, who played Nun Miejue, appeared on the stage, the audience was greatly surprised.

Speaking of the version of "The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber" in which she participated, the plot was actually changed quite seriously, but she really brought the character of Zhou Zhiruo to life, leaving countless fans with unforgettable memories.

What was unexpected was that Jiang Heng actually asked her to play the role of Nun Miejue. This was in line with the saying, "When I grow up, I will become you!"

On the night when Zhang Wuji and his men were causing trouble in Wan'an Temple, Zhao Min, played by Jing Tian, ​​was dressed in a white warrior uniform and escorted away by a group of guards, shouting, "Zhang Wuji, you still have one thing left for me to do. Are you planning to shirk your responsibility?"

Zhang Wuji, played by Jiang Heng, replied: "A real man should be upright and upright. Once a word is spoken, it cannot be taken back. As long as it does not violate my conscience and the moral code of the martial arts world, I will definitely fulfill my promise."

Zhao Min: "Okay, then you wait for me!" Then she left under the escort of a group of guards.

Fan Yao, played by He Rundong, hurriedly said, "Master, be careful, little county lord... the evil woman is full of tricks, you must be on guard against her. Your safety is related to the anti-Yuan cause, and you cannot afford to make any mistakes!"

Zhang Wuji had a confident look on his face, "Don't worry, nothing will happen!"

The plot continues on the big screen. Zhang Wuji leads the characters from the six major sects to escape from Dadu and then bids farewell to everyone.

In the original novel, the later plot is that Zhang Wuji returns by himself.

But this version of Zhang Wuji is a tyrant, how could he not care about his own safety? He still ordered Yang Xiao, Wei Yixiao, and Xiao Zhao to accompany him, but they just hid in the dark.

Afterwards, Zhang Wuji and Zhao Min had a secret meeting to look for Xie Xun and the Dragon Slaying Sword.

In this drama, the actor who plays the Golden Lion King Xie Xun is Hong Jinbao. He has a strong physique and looks very majestic.

The fighting scenes are equally impressive, and his skills are still as good as ever.

In order to make the second half of the plot more compact, the side storyline of the Persian Ming Cult was directly deleted.

However, when Granny Jinhua finally revealed her true face, it still caused a burst of exclamations, because the actor was actually Megan Fox.

"Oh my god, my goddess!"

"It's really beautiful. I think this version of Dai Qi Si is the best!"

“She shouldn’t be considered an action actor, right?”

"But the character of Daisy is a foreigner, so casting Megan Fox is respecting the original novel!"

"Indeed, Xiao Zhao and Dai Qi Si are not alike at all!"

"Haha, there's nothing we can do about it!"

As for Xiao Zhao's plot, in the film she followed the Purple-Robed Dragon King.

Because the Persian Ming Cult storyline is gone, the story here is changed to that of the Purple-Robed Dragon King who was seriously injured and needed to find a place to recuperate. She would rather die than return to the Ming Cult, nor be protected by Zhang Wuji.

Seeing this, Xiao Zhao could only ask to stay and take care of her mother, saying that she would go find Zhang Wuji one day. Then, Xie Xun got lost on the way back, and Zhang Wuji exclaimed, "Where is Dad!"...

The subsequent plot generally follows the original novel, but has been cut and condensed in various ways, while also focusing on the entertaining nature of the fighting scenes.

At the end of the film, it was the elite Ming Cult led by Zhang Wuji that completely defeated the Ruyang Palace's troops who intended to exterminate the Central Plains martial artists at the foot of Shaolin Temple. Even Wang Baobao, who was later known as "the world's most extraordinary man", barely escaped with his life.

The easter egg at the end is that Zhu Yuanzhang, Xu Da and others were ordered to pursue and finally stopped in Haozhou City, the birthplace of the Ming Dynasty. The film ends here.

However, many viewers were a little confused. What was going on? Did this mean there would be a sequel?
Is Director Jiang planning to make up a plot in which Zhang Wuji and Zhu Yuanzhang fight for the world?

This is purely a thankless task!

The problem is, the director of this film is Wang Jing, so he is not planning to make some magical changes and rehash the old stuff, right?

Based on his previous personality, it is really possible for him to create a movie about Zhu Yuanzhang fighting Zhang Wuji!

After the film screening ended, the lights in the main venue came on, and the guests and audience applauded and congratulated Jiang Heng and Wang Jing.

Some even praised it as the best martial arts film in the past decade.

Xu Ke, who was also in the guest seats, changed his expression slightly, because the "Flying Daggers of Dragon Gate" and "Detective Dee" series he shot were all within the scope of this decade!

Of course, to be fair, "The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber: Return of the King" is indeed a classic martial arts film.

In terms of cast, there are only a handful of Chinese-language films that can compare.

The visual effects are also very shocking and stunning. Although the film is not a 3D martial arts film, it excels in terms of swift and fierce action and numerous fighting scenes.

Of course, in terms of story content, it cannot be compared with classic martial arts films like "Once Upon a Time in China".

Neither Jiang Heng nor Wang Jing planned to work hard on that level.

The reason is simple. Today, when martial arts culture is already missing, trying to create the image of a chivalrous hero is undoubtedly a thankless task.

Furthermore, Wang Jing started to deconstruct martial arts since "The Demon Cult Leader" and "The Deer and the Cauldron". In "The New Shaolin Five Ancestors", he even made the chief leader Chen make a grand appearance and then died quickly. It was obvious that he did not have the "filter" of a hero.

After the premiere, there was a dinner to thank the guests as usual.

As the male lead, Jiang Heng was the center of attention. As the director of the film, Wang Jing was also surrounded, toasted, and chatted with by many people.

After all, judging from the final performance of "The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber: Return of the King", it is a foregone conclusion that it will be a big hit at the box office.

Not to mention the high quality of the film, even if it was a little bit worse, with the current cast, as long as more money was invested in publicity, the box office would definitely easily exceed 1 billion.

Judging from the quality of this film, the possibility of making, if not 2 billion, 1.5 billion, 1.6 billion, or even 1.8 billion or 1.9 billion is very high.

By then, Wang Jing's reputation had become even more powerful, and he was considered one of the top directors in the mainland.

Since Jiang Heng can’t get an important role in the film, he can think of a way with Wang Jing!
The guests were toasting each other and enjoying the wine.

Media reporters have been working overtime overnight to finish their manuscripts, and the many film critics present are also trying to figure out from which angle to write a review with a novel perspective.

Therefore, if ordinary audiences want to know the comments about "The Demon Cult Leader" first, they have to go to Douban or Tieba to read the reviews posted by ordinary audiences who attended the premiere.

Some said: The movie is super good, the fighting scenes are smooth and shocking, and it can be called the best martial arts movie in the past 20 years. Especially the star lineup, it is really shocking, there are so many stars! Although most of them are out of date, it is still a wonderful feeling to have hundreds of action actors participating in a martial arts movie together. I think this movie can be called the last "Chinese martial arts movie!"

Some netizens commented on the performances of some actors in the film one by one, such as: Don't expect Cheng Long and Zhou Xingxing, they are both at the beginning of the film, playing characters in memories, it's really a flash! Hong Jinbao's Golden Lion King is really domineering, Yuen Tak and Yuen Wah's "Huashan Two Elders" are more classic than the first film, many of their lines are really too sharp!

As a result, some netizens replied below, saying that in the original version of the film, the lines of the "Two Elders of Huashan" were more sharp, and they have already been deleted!

There was a lot of discussion about the content of the film on Douban and Tieba. In addition to the overwhelming positive reviews, there were also some negative ones.

Some netizens think that Jing Tian's face is not majestic enough, and Princess Shaomin lacks aura. Jiang Heng's Zhang Wuji is too domineering and scheming, which is not the Zhang Wuji we are familiar with.

Because it involves Jiang Heng and Jing Tian, ​​this type of comment quickly sparked heated discussion among netizens on the official website. The vast majority of them were supportive, believing that Jiang Heng's version of Zhang Wuji was superior to Jet Li's version, both in terms of the character's appearance and aura.

Of course, this kind of comparison is only made by netizens. Many media outlets, such as China Film Report, China Entertainment Report, Penguin.com, and Xinlang Entertainment, all praised the film and Jiang Heng's performance.

Relatively few people praised director Wang Jing. After all, everyone knew that Jiang Heng was the biggest contributor to this film.

In the following days, Bonna Pictures arranged for the main creative staff to travel to various parts of the country to participate in preview events.

Jiang Heng also flew to Japan, South Korea and North America to promote the release of "The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber: Return of the King".

Because it is not a simple special effects blockbuster, and most of the actors in the film are not known to overseas audiences, the overseas box office prospects of this film cannot be compared with Jiang Heng's previous films.

As for publicity, Jiang Heng was unwilling to put in too much effort and returned home after attending three premieres.

After another day of rest, the day of the film's release finally arrived.

Because there was only one movie premiering on that day, and the box office growth of several other movies was sluggish, "The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber: Return of the King" took 81.3% of the screenings on the first day of its release, which can be said to have dominated the schedule.

On that day, popular theaters across the country were packed with people, most of whom came to see "The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber." Of course, if you wanted to watch other movies, you could hardly buy tickets.

The next day, the film's first-day box office results were released, reaching a staggering 2.39 million yuan. Although it failed to break Jiang Heng's previous first-day box office record, it was still quite amazing!
This is a pure martial arts 2D movie, and the average ticket price is much lower than that of a 3D special effects blockbuster.

But it still grossed 2.39 million RMB at the box office. The number of viewers on the first day of the film was quite impressive!
After learning about the results, Wang Jing was so happy that he couldn't stop smiling for a long time. He first called Jiang Heng to tell him the good news.

Of course, he knew that Jiang Heng must have obtained the data before him, but he still chatted with Jiang Heng for a while.

Afterwards, he called Hong Kong directors in Beijing, including Wu Yusen, Xu Ke, and Liu Weiqiang, and said he would treat everyone to a meal.

At the banquet, both Wu Yusen and Xu Ke looked at Wang Jing with envy.

Xu Jie has been struggling in the mainland for many years, but has never produced a work that can be called a hit, and there are signs that he is falling behind.

Wang Jing just made a sequel and he was going to become a big director with a box office of over 1 billion. It's really frustrating to compare yourself with others! (End of this chapter)