Lin Yuan rode in the car driven by Zhang Ziyi as it sped through the streets of Hong Kong Island. Today's filming location was a bathhouse.
The story of Rush Hour 2 continued on from the previous film.
The plot was roughly this: the inspector played by Jackie Chan and the Black detective played by Chris Tucker became partners.
The two came to Hong Kong Island for a vacation, only to get caught up in a bombing case.
John Lone played the main villain, while Zhang Ziyi played the villain's capable female enforcer.
What they were filming at the bathhouse today was a fight scene where Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker joined forces against gang members.
By the time Lin Yuan and Zhang Ziyi arrived at the filming location, the scene had already begun.
This was Lin Yuan's first time watching Jackie Chan film an action scene up close. Naturally, he was immensely curious and focused intently on observing and learning.
Although he had filmed some action scenes himself, he had never done a large group fight like this. If he could learn even a little from Jackie Chan, he could avoid many detours.
Jackie Chan, dressed in a bathrobe, was being surrounded and beaten by a group of gang members in matching bathrobes.
At first, Jackie Chan was fighting the gang members in a straightforward, methodical manner.
But being outnumbered, he was soon kicked toward a pile of chairs.
And so, Furniture Store God of War mode officially activated!
He first used the chairs in all sorts of creative ways to drive back his enemies, then stepped on a metal trash can and used it as a weapon, kicking the enemies away one by one.
Seeing things turn against them, even more enemies rushed in to gang up on him.
Jackie Chan immediately ran, vaulted, and rolled through the pile of lounge chairs, widening the distance between himself and his enemies before picking them off one at a time.
The entire action scene flowed with remarkable smoothness and continuity, while its choreography was humorous and entertaining. At a glance, it was unmistakably Jackie Chan's signature style.
Style?
Lin Yuan suddenly realized something. A thought flashed through his mind, but he did not manage to catch it.
He did not dwell on it and instead continued watching and learning humbly. Jackie Chan's use of the camera in particular gave Lin Yuan tremendous inspiration.
Lin Yuan noticed that throughout the entire fight scene, Jackie Chan rarely relied on rapid cuts.
Instead, he made greater use of character blocking and movement. Not only did that make the fight more tense and exciting, it also gave the footage a stronger sense of continuity.
For example, whenever Jackie Chan knocked back an enemy on the left side of the screen, another enemy would be arranged to enter the frame from the right in advance.
That ensured that as soon as one enemy was sent flying, another enemy's attack immediately followed.
This kept the action from stopping and the characters constantly engaged in combat, creating the excitement of the fight scene.
Perhaps this was the scene-blocking foundation of an action master.
While benefiting greatly, Lin Yuan could not help but feel impressed.
"Cut!"
At the director's command, the action scene concluded perfectly.
Jackie Chan rolled his shoulders and walked off the set.
He spotted Lin Yuan and waved in greeting.
At that moment, a member of the Jackie Chan Stunt Team stopped him. "Big Brother, the gang members came again last night..."
"We'll talk about that later. I need to handle something first." Jackie Chan cut him off, walked to a cabinet, pulled out a document, and headed toward Lin Yuan.
"Did you rest well last night?" Jackie Chan asked with a smile.
"If I couldn't rest well in Big Brother's mansion, wouldn't I be unable to survive in my own humble home?" Lin Yuan replied with a smile.
"That's good. I was afraid you wouldn't be used to staying there. Oh, right, this is the agreement for our collaboration. Take a look and see if there's anything unsuitable." Jackie Chan handed him the document.
Crash!
Just as Lin Yuan took the document and was about to open it, the floor-to-ceiling glass door beside them was smashed to pieces.
A group of gang members in black suits, wielding steel pipes and machetes, charged into the filming location and surrounded the crew.
Lin Yuan gave them a rough count. There were at least seventy or eighty gang members, and the waists of several leaders bulged suspiciously, as though they were carrying guns.
What was going on?
The gang members in black suits parted down the middle, and an elderly man wearing a Tang suit stepped forward.
"Third Master Tang, why are you here?" Jackie Chan's expression turned ugly.
"The more some people prosper, the stingier they become. I can't just stand by and watch someone break the rules!" the old man known as Third Master Tang said.
"I brought my crew to Hong Kong Island to film a movie in order to promote Hong Kong Island and Chinese culture to the world. I don't owe you anything, and I won't pay a single cent in protection money."
Jackie Chan had always opposed these gang members. Back then, he had also experienced having film reels stolen and location crew members constantly harassed.
But he had not yielded back then, and he certainly would not bow his head today.
"Then what else is there to say? It seems that unless I teach you a lesson, you won't change your mind." Third Master Tang said.
"I'm warning you not to act recklessly. If you cause international negative publicity, you'll pay the price!"
"Don't worry, I won't touch those foreigners. But that delicate little girl is going to suffer."
Third Master Tang pointed at Zhang Ziyi. "Take her back and have some fun. When he pays, send her back."
"Don't go too far!"
Jackie Chan was about to step forward when five or six gang members blocked him.
Looking at the machetes gleaming with cold light, he did not know what to do for a moment.
He often fought one against many in movies, but that did not mean he could really fight several enemies wielding sharp weapons in real life. That would be courting death.
Although there were nearly twenty members of the Jackie Chan Stunt Team in the crew, they were all empty-handed. How could they fight gang members who outnumbered them by at least three to one and carried weapons?
"What are you doing? Let me go!" A burly man restrained Zhang Ziyi and dragged her toward the exit.
It was Zhang Ziyi's first time encountering something like this. With no mental preparation at all, she was terrified out of her wits, tears streaming down her face.
"Big Brother, save me! Don't let them take me away."
"Let her go!"
Jackie Chan was about to rush forward when machetes immediately forced him back. His face instantly turned livid.
Everyone in the crew was too intimidated to speak, furious but silent.
Crack!
Just as Zhang Ziyi was about to be dragged out the door, a wooden stick suddenly swept across and smashed heavily into the burly man's wrist, followed by the crisp sound of bone breaking.
Zhang Ziyi raised her tear-filled eyes and discovered in shock that Lin Yuan stood in front of her, holding a wooden pole pulled from a broom.
She froze for a moment, then immediately shoved Lin Yuan hard toward the door.
"Little brother, don't worry about me. There are too many of them. Run!"
But Lin Yuan seemed nailed to the floor. No matter how hard she pushed, she could not move him.
Lin Yuan noticed that even while she was in danger, the first thing she thought about was still his safety.
Standing up for her today was worth it.
Lin Yuan pulled her behind him and pushed her back among the crew before saying, "It's fine. As long as I'm here, no one can hurt you."
In truth, Lin Yuan had not expected something like this to happen today.
With Jackie Chan's fame and status, who would dare treat him like this overseas?
Yet it had truly happened on Hong Kong Island, in his own hometown.
Perhaps it was only human nature. You rose to prominence here, and people had seen your humble days before you made it big, so naturally they did not think you were all that impressive.
When people knew you too well, the aura disappeared.
This matter had originally had nothing to do with Lin Yuan, but since Zhang Ziyi had been dragged into it, he had no choice but to intervene.
Alone, with only a wooden stick in hand, he stood fearlessly before the mobsters in black suits.
"Local gangs really have no manners."
"You definitely won't listen to me right now, but in a little while, you'll listen carefully."
(Sigh... People in the comments keep saying this part is impossible. But this really happened. Reality always surpasses imagination. If you're interested, you can search for it yourself.)
Thanks to reader 20240418191746608 for the reward.
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