1905 movie network feature If you pick up an antique pot and rub it, what do you think will appear? Is it the lamp god in "search banner"? Maybe not this time, in the cartoon "Wishing Dragon", you can summon a fluffy, pink dragon!
As soon as the dragon opens its mouth, you know it is an old acquaintance. Jackie Chan not only voiced the pink cartoon dragon, but also served as the producer of the film, striving to make China more intense. As early as the 2019 Golden Rooster Awards, he announced four new film projects in one go, including the "Wishing Dragon" that has been in production for many years, and there are still some important plots in depth.
After 2 years, the animated film was finally released. In the traditional off-season January, the film performed well and is expected to eventually win 100 million box office. Many viewers who have seen the film also feel relaxed and humorous. It is a family movie suitable for all ages, and Jackie Chan’s dubbing of Shenlong is definitely the biggest surprise.
It is said that it is not easy to make such a dragon. In addition to Jackie Chan’s dubbing to make this dragon come alive, the production behind it is also quite hard. As early as in "Return of the Great Sage", Tian Xiaopeng revealed that making a complete dragon requires very complicated technology. This time for this pink dragon, the animation team equipped more than 1,000 controllers on the dragon’s body, and the hair reached 3 million. In addition to flexible movement, the dragon can also turn its shape into square, round and other different shapes.
Although you may have seen pictures of Jackie Chan as Chun Li, or all kinds of funny fighting designs in the early years, you can never imagine that he will play a cute and acting cute role, but "Wishing Dragon" fulfills our wish to see Jackie Chan "act cute". In the movie, Ding Siqi, a Shanghai teenager dubbed by Niu Junfeng, is the first human being in the modern world that the dragon met. However, the dragon, who wanted to use his divine power to intimidate the teenager, was fascinated by modern civilization and became a look that had never seen the world. He was curious about TV, refrigerators and airplanes.
In the movie, we hear the Dragon God using Jackie Chan’s voice to dislike the bus, must take a taxi, and even shrimp strips "based on their appearance", proudly calling it "civilian food", but after a bite, the industrial food immediately "really fragrant". It is said that Jackie Chan has been doing the dubbing work of "Wishing Dragon" for three years, just to find the most suitable voice performance method.
But if it is just because Jackie Chan dubbed it, it is not a surprise. Because of Jackie Chan’s participation, "Wishing Dragon" looks like an animated version of Jackie Chan’s movie. Needless to say, the male lead Ding Siqi, after fulfilling his wish to know kung fu, every move is like Jackie Chan’s possession. From the appearance of one move, to the street fight with the villain, to the random use of props, it is simply a one-to-one restoration of Jackie Chan’s classic movie.
For example, there is a scene in which the male lead falls from a building in the film, and viewers who are familiar with Jackie Chan will immediately be reminded of the classic scene in the classic movie "Plan A." In "Plan A", Jackie Chan jumps up the bell tower along the flagpole and then falls from the 15-meter-high bell tower. In this scene, Jackie Chan himself goes into battle, and to prevent accidents, two layers of tarpaulin are added between the ground and the bell tower. In the end, Jackie Chan falls from the bell tower, also breaking through two layers of tarpaulin and falling heavily to the ground. "Wishing Dragon" restores this classic scene, and also arranges for the male lead to fall from the upstairs and go through several layers of tarpaulin.
In addition to "Plan A", we can also see the shadow of Jackie Chan’s self-directed and self-starred film "Junior Brother Goes Out". "Junior Brother Goes Out" is the first film in Hong Kong, China, to exceed 10 million at the box office. It tells the story of a martial arts hall that participates in the lion dance conference every year. At the beginning of the film, Jackie Chan designed a lion dance performance. In the early years, Hong Kong’s stuntmen were also called "dragon and tiger martial artists". One of the reasons is that in addition to practicing martial arts, they also undertake dragon and lion dance work. "Junior Brother Goes Out" is also one of the few lion dance scenes in his film. In "Wishing Dragon", the animation team paid tribute to the lion dance scene, but turned the yellow and white lions into a yellow lion and this pink dragon.
In the story, "Wishing Dragon" is very similar to Jackie Chan’s 1989 film "Miracle". In "Wishing Dragon", the father of the poor boy Ding Siqi’s childhood sweetheart Wang Lina is in financial crisis, so he comes up with the idea of Shenlong. In "Miracle", Jackie Chan also has a relationship with the daughter of the former boss of his hotel, and the hotel is also harassed by villains. As for the story of the dragon itself? The animation gives us many hints. For example, Shenlong was an emperor before his death. He conjured up an army like terracotta warriors for Ding Siqi, and the emperor’s dress for him is also very similar to the emperor’s dress in the Qin and Han Dynasties. So it’s not hard to guess that the Dragon God was probably designed with Qin Shi Huang as the prototype reference. Jackie Chan also made a movie related to Qin Shi Huang, which is the famous "Myth". Although Jackie Chan played two roles in the film, he did not play the role of Qin Shi Huang, but played a general of the Qin Dynasty. However, this will still remind the audience of these classic movies when watching "Wishing Dragon".
Director Xu Haofeng once asserted Jackie Chan in his film review: "Jackie Chan can be a martial arts superstar at the age of 70. When he can no longer make thrilling moves, he can still rely on the Peking Opera design in the film to entertain people. He doesn’t fight alone like Bruce Lee, he pays great attention to the scene, and the group fights in his films are the stage of Peking Opera. The somersaults on the stage of Peking Opera are all walk-ins, and the real protagonist just needs to play with the feathers on his head." These words are actually saying that Jackie Chan is like a famous character in Peking Opera. As long as he appears, he can win the house, and as long as he appears, there will still be an audience looking forward to him. Maybe one day, Jackie Chan really can’t do dangerous moves anymore, but as long as he appears in an action movie, he can still give the audience a reassurance.
In fact, it is true that on New Year’s Day 2021, when Jackie Chan appeared in the promotion of "Wishing Dragon", many viewers found that he was slightly unwell – he suffered a recurring waist injury and struggled to walk. But when he appeared in front of the audience after the screening, the cheers were still the loudest. This is the charm of filmmakers. No matter what age, they are still trying new possibilities. This curiosity and never-ending exploration of new things may be the biggest surprise for the audience.