Master, Are You Trying to Get This for Free?

"The production costs of that kind of show are nothing compared to what my 'The Banquet' has to offer. It's incomparable; it's a sure loss."

These words indicate that Director Feng is somewhat unwilling to admit defeat.

He doesn't think his movie is bad, but the special effects are simply inferior. This gap in raw quality is something he can only accept, no matter how unwilling he is.

Even so, Lao Feng is not going to admit defeat easily. This is a preemptive measure, which can be seen as laying the groundwork for his movie to be released in August.

The reporter trusted Director Feng's explanation; he nodded, wrote a few words in his notebook, and then turned to Director Zhang.

"Director Zhang, what's your opinion?"

Compared to Lao Feng, Director Zhang is much more tactful.

There was no other way; Lao Zhang was determined to win a grand slam of international awards, so he dared not offend foreign filmmakers.

Shinji Matou may be weak in winning awards, but that doesn't mean he has no influence abroad.

What if you make a careless remark and the other person holds a grudge against you and targets you from then on?

With the intention of not offending anyone, Lao Zhang explained it very simply, "That Japan Director named Shinji Matou made full use of all the visual tools at his disposal to let us enjoy incredibly spectacular special effects scenes."

"Technically speaking, this film is impeccable."

After saying that, Director Zhang and Director Feng left without looking back.

After watching "Super Eight," they knew their film had met its match and they had to revise their promotional strategy.

They're racing against time these days.

Reporters waiting outside the theater interviewed not only well-known filmmakers, but also some ordinary movie fans.

"Tiga is so cool!"

This is the answer from most of the children.

"The movie was very exciting and action-packed; my child loved it. I'll bring him to see it again next time."

Clearly, this is a parent who isn't particularly fond of Ultraman.

"It was so amazing! Seeing my childhood hero on the big screen was truly moving."

This represents the opinions of those Oscar fans regarding the film.

"It was so enjoyable to watch! The 3D effects were absolutely amazing! It's definitely worth paying for this kind of movie! All the current domestic films are just a mess; I have no desire to watch them at all."

These are the thoughts of the vast majority of ordinary movie fans.

"Now that domestic films and imported blockbusters are all expensive, I think it's worth paying to see a movie like this."

After leaving the movie theater, Li Ri'ang first took his nephew home, and then took a taxi home alone.

Although it was late when he got home, he was not sleepy at all.

At that moment, his mind was filled with images of Ultraman fighting monsters, and the smiling faces of his childhood heroes.

"I wish Ultraman could actually appear in real life."

Li Ri'ang looked up and let out a long sigh. Unable to sleep, he simply turned on his computer and shared his excitement after watching the movie with his friends.

Brothers, I'm back from the movie!

Soon, someone responded to Lao Li's words.

[How was the movie? Was it disappointing?]

Li Ri'ang glanced at the ID and knew that the other person was a tokusatsu enthusiast like himself.

But unlike myself, who is a tolerant person, this netizen is a 100% original Showa-era fundamentalist.

He was the first to shout out the nickname "Chameleon" for Ultraman Tiga in the group chat. In his opinion, Ultraman fights by changing his form instead of training to become stronger is simply a heretic.

Because of this idea, after learning that there were Heisei Ultraman in the movie, he said he would never watch it, even if it meant dying.

No, the movie was so awesome, it didn't disappoint at all!

Li Ri'ang organized his thoughts and quickly typed out his truest feelings before the other party could refute him.

[Putting everything else aside, the special effects alone are outstanding! The 3D effects are many times better than those of 3D roller coasters in amusement parks! They're on completely different levels! Especially the effects of the city being destroyed, they look exactly like the real thing.]

The other party seemed stunned by Li Ri'ang's words, and after a while spoke:

Even if the special effects are amazing, is it still Ultraman?

Li Ri'ang retorted directly, "How can it not be? They're all old dubbing from the Shanghai Film Dubbing Studio, exactly the same as when I was a kid!"

[Real?]

[Of course, I think you should try to accept the Heisei era Ultraman; the Showa era is over after all.]

[The new Ultraman doesn't feel the same at all!]

Li Ri'ang believes the other side is stubbornly holding on.

Of course, it's also possible that the other person genuinely believes that way.

Regardless, Li Ri'ang himself decided to watch the movie a second time after its official release.

I'm going to watch this movie a second time, and I hope everyone will too! And you absolutely must see the IMAX 3D version; it'll be more enjoyable than doing [beep--!].

Someone immediately refuted Li Ri'ang's statement. "Come on, you deadbeat virgin. Have you ever [beep--!]?"

[No, but I've used my hands. Don't tell me you haven't tried.]

[Brother Li, you win.]

Li Ri'ang smiled smugly in front of the screen.

"Haha, that's what they mean when, if I drive fast enough, it's always someone else who gets embarrassed."

Chapter 247 Master, are you trying to get something for free?

[Watching this will give you more pleasure than doing [beep--!]]

Seeing Li Ri'ang's comments on the screen, many of his fans developed a strong interest in <Super Eight>.

None of these people were able to attend the preview screening of Super Eight. Some didn't get a spot in the lottery, while others lived in cities without IMAX screens. But they all shared a common love for movies and deeply loved the Ultraman series.

Seeing their friends rave about the film, their expectations were raised to an unprecedented level.

This generation of viewers is like Transformers fans from a Parallel world in 2007, seeing their childhood heroes appear on the big screen in a completely different and even more awesome form, and their sense of pride and long-accumulated feelings begin to surge.

Furthermore, Shinji is completely different from Bayonetta, that guy who likes to ruin childhood memories.

Despite the upgraded materials used in the slime suits, the Ultraman in "Super Eight" differs somewhat from Tsuburaya Productions' own Ultraman designs. However, this difference actually makes the Ultraman and monsters look more refined, unlike Tsuburaya's own designs which tend to appear overly rounded and cartoonish.

Actually, to be honest, Shinji's version of the Super Eight design is closer to the original designs by the designers.

It can be said that Shinji's version of "Super Eight" has achieved a major upgrade for the Ultraman IP while faithfully recreating childhood memories in every aspect.

And this is exactly what Chinese moviegoers love.

The grand scale and excellent special effects are enough to attract casual fans, but the authentic childhood memories will satisfy longtime fans the most.

This is only a preview screening, yet major professional film and television websites in China have already placed Tiga in the most prominent position on their homepages.

The comments section on the <Super Eight> page was buzzing with excitement. Aside from children without internet access and parents who didn't care Best Actress, about a hundred moviegoers left their thoughts on the film in the comments section.

This movie is amazing! It completely evaporates your Human Order while watching it!

[The movie had such a strong Ultraman vibe! I was able to stay calm until Tiga transformed, and I was completely stunned!]

[The film can only be described as stunningly beautiful. When the Ultraman's distinctive battle cries rang out, I felt like I was going to suffocate! This is what my childhood was all about!]

[Putting everything else aside, just one sentence: I fucking love this Ultraman movie.]

After bragging to his friends, Lao Li's smile grew even wider as he saw the excited comments online.

As he replied to these comments and gave thumbs up to those who praised "Super Eight," he reminisced about his childhood memories.

Back in the days when I would go crazy with my friends in the neighborhood every day, pretending to be Ultraman and fighting monsters in the stairwell, back in the days when everyone wanted to be Ultraman and beat up the "monsters" on their own.

As an emotional link connecting the generation born in the 1980s and 1990s, Ultraman holds a very special place in the hearts of countless people.

Because of the continuous broadcast on television, the number of Ultraman fans born in the 1980s and 1990s initially far surpassed that of all other tokusatsu series, including Kamen Rider.

Although very few people remain Ultraman fans even after growing up, there are still dedicated Ultraman fan clubs, online forums, and enthusiast groups in China, as well as some offline events.

Historically, Ultraman's fan base gradually dwindled, even being overtaken by Kamen Rider, mainly because Tsuburaya Productions failed to deliver in the 21st century, especially with the lackluster performance of the first few installments of the new generation, leading to the loss of its dominance.

Everything will be different in this world.

Thanks to Shinji's involvement, the Ultraman series returned to the mainstream audience's view with the movie "Super Eight". The potential Ultraman fans and children who are obsessed with Tiga provided the basic audience for this Ultraman movie.

As midnight approached, more and more viewers who had seen the preview screenings returned home.

Online reviews of the film are also increasing.

On the Tieba forum, a person with the ID [Big Brother Yantou] left a message: [To say that this movie will be popular is an understatement. How can we use the superficial unit of "fire"? We should use "explosion"!]

[A two-and-a-half-hour movie is quite long, but I love it! Daigo is so handsome!! Even more handsome Ultraman!!]

This is a message someone left for a friend on QQ. I don't know if it's a young girl who's obsessed with good looks or a man who's infatuated with a human-shaped figure.

Similarly, comments praising the movie's special effects are ubiquitous online.

[3D movies are absolutely amazing! When will we be able to make movies like this ourselves? (T▽T)]

[Just one word -- awesome!]

[Super, invincible, ultimate, awesome, explosively awesome! No movie has ever made me almost pee my pants in my seat like this one!]

[Hey upstairs, are you sure you don't have a prostate problem?]

[I'd be willing to pay twice the price of a regular movie ticket to see a film of this caliber! This is what a big-budget movie is! What was last year's * the Promise *? Where did all that money go? Did one guy surnamed Chen send film rolls to another guy surnamed Chen?]

[Who knows? But the photos taken by that photographer surnamed Chen were indeed quite good; I enjoyed them very much, in every sense.]

[Upstairs, can I borrow a phone to talk?]

These positive reviews are not all from ordinary viewers Best Actress; many are also from paid online commentators hired by Type-Moon Company.

After all, the Chinese film market is still in its infancy, and Shinji's various outrageous moves are simply ruthless here.

Especially for film critics in China, the prices are ridiculously cheap.

A mere few hundred red tickets were enough to get these professionals to cheer for "Super Eight" in the newspapers.

It's worth noting that even Milo Johnson, an employee of Jidai Group., spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on public relations for the project "Super Eight".

Of course, these hundreds of thousands of dollars are not just for writing film reviews; there are also a series of other contractual requirements that the film critic needs to fulfill.

Even so, the cost of publicity in China is really low, so low that Shinji even thinks he might be able to make money in China this time.

It's worth noting that in order to cultivate the market and establish a foothold for 3D movies in China, Shinji was prepared to lose money to gain publicity for "Super Eight" in China.

As a result, the extremely low marketing and distribution costs actually made Shinji see the possibility of making a profit.

However, not everyone buys into Ultraman's appeal.

On Douban, a Chinese film and television website primarily frequented by the middle-class population, many people expressed their dissatisfaction with "Super Eight".

While there are some positive reviews, the platform is mostly filled with negative comments.

Many people even suggested boycotting the film, calling "Super Eight" a "noisy, boring, and meaningless movie."

Some people even viewed this film as an "extended advertisement for selling toys."

[If you don't want to buy toys for your child, you'd better not take them to see this movie. It was made solely to waste your money and kill your time.]

Without a doubt, these guys are not Shinji's target consumer group.

Fortunately, mainstream viewers like Li Ri'ang Super Eight knew that the comments on Douban were just for fun, and that it was better to go to the high-level forums than to read Douban comments.

"Ah... I really want to watch it again right away."

Old Li glanced at the release date of "Super Eight" in China again, and then sighed once more.

"There's still a month left, how are we going to get through this month?"

In fact, Li Ri'ang also knew that even a month later, it wouldn't be so easy for him to watch "Super Eight".

It's not that tickets for the movie "Super Eight" are hard to buy, but rather that IMAX tickets are hard to get.

Keep in mind that there are so many people in the city, but there's only one IMAX theater.