Think that year ｜ without Leslie Cheung, who can be so crazy？

In 2010, the film "The King of Guns" directed by Tung shing Yee was released, with the subtitle "Miss Leslie Cheung … Guns 2000" at the end.

He was referring to another film that Leslie Cheung starred in in 2000: The Gun King.

The King of Gunmen is a typical commercial blockbuster made in Hong Kong, with twists and turns, dense fog, difficult to distinguish between right and wrong, lively scenes, complicated relationships between characters and equal male and female protagonists.

The story of Gun King is very simple, and the relationship between characters is also very simple. Almost as soon as the murder came out, we knew who did it. In the middle of the movie, it was certain that the gun king played by Leslie Cheung would die. If it weren’t for Leslie Cheung, the film wouldn’t have been made like this.

With Leslie Cheung, such a superb alternative film has been made. No other person or movie has ever shown abnormality and madness in such a profound and detailed way.

In other movies, a madman is a madman from the first appearance, or a "normal person" in the previous scene, and has become a "madman" when he comes out again. The transition from a "normal person" to a "madman", if any, is passing by. "Gun King" uses the length of the whole movie to show the whole process of a person from normal appearance to complete madness. This kind of play is not only unprecedented, but also difficult to copy in the future.

Rick, the "Gun King" played by Leslie Cheung, is a genius of firearms. In a shooting competition, he met another player who suddenly went crazy and shot at the crowd because of his investment failure, so he killed this person. His own demons were awakened and began to yearn for killing and destruction.

Three years later, he killed a witness and four special police officers as a killer. The visa section said that it only took the gunman 10 seconds. Few people have such a good marksmanship. The police soon knew that he did it, but there was no evidence, so they forged evidence to frame his girlfriend for possession of firearms and arrested her. At this time, it is reasonable for Rick to take the money and run away with the fake passport that he has already prepared, and wait for his girlfriend to be released and live a good life together. But from the beginning, the "gun king" killed people not for money and a good life, but for the destruction of the gun, and he didn’t care about his own life.

Because his girlfriend was detained, the destruction level of "Gun King" rose to another level. He didn’t play cards according to common sense at all. First, he fought a gun battle with the police with one enemy and ten, and then threatened the police to kill a policeman if he didn’t let his girlfriend go one day. And as soon as he said it, he killed the policeman who forged evidence and framed his girlfriend. So the police agreed to the deal, and he broke into the tight encirclement set by the police alone and rescued his girlfriend … If he died like this, of course, he was shot dead in the end.

If someone else were to play the gun king, it would probably be made into a story of a heroic detective, a psychopath and a murderer. However, due to Leslie Cheung’s superb performance, what is actually presented is a story of a genius who pursues the ultimate and goes crazy until self-destruction. It’s a bit like Hong Lingyan, but it’s more extreme and willful than Hong Lingyan.

Poster of "Hong Ling Yan"

Although the plot of "The King of Guns" is extremely simple, the details and texture are very particular, and the soundtrack of makeup photography clips is also very powerful, making it harder for actors to get it again. One of my favorite clips is that a rich man asked Rick to help him change his gun. After receiving the goods, he excitedly found a dead chicken to beat, and the raw meat was splashed out one by one. Rick was watching coldly, and there was a flash in the middle: it was blood all over the wall, accompanied by magical music, which was a precursor to his obsession. Next, when the rich man with poor marksmanship asked his men to hold a live chicken as a target for him, he neatly took the gun and turned away, saying "I will refund you" without looking back. Another clip is that when Rick was surrounded by several policemen in the police station, he heard that his girlfriend was framed and detained. He was so angry that his mind was blank and he could only see the gun in his eyes, because the gun was almost part of his body instinct. Although he managed not to grab a gun in the police station at that time, he immediately started the rapid destruction mode after going out.

"Gun King" was originally a common setting of two male masters in Hong Kong-made gunfight films. Leslie Cheung played Rick, the gun king who was possessed by computers, and Fang Zhongxin played Miao Zhishun, a police officer who was also good at shooting, to fight against him. The scenes of the two were similar. Because his opponent is Leslie Cheung, Fang Zhongxin tries his best to give the best performance every day, but in the end he still becomes a foil with a vague face. It’s really not his fault, but Leslie Cheung’s acting skills burst. In the movie, we can see that Leslie Cheung pushed his emotions and state to the limit. From the very beginning, he was a little autistic but his smile was warm and pure. After killing people in the middle, he looked calm and crazy. In the end, he was completely out of control. He didn’t seem to sleep for a long time. His face was sallow and swollen, his eyes were red, and he was only excited about death and took the initiative to go to destruction.

Fang Zhongxin plays Officer Miao.

He didn’t get any prize for this film. But he has always had a ruler in his own mind, that is, "give your heart out" and "sincerity". He pushed himself to the limit, not for fame and future, but for the performance itself.

After watching this movie, many viewers will be more inclined to the gun king than the police, and it’s not just because they prefer Leslie Cheung as an actor. Because Rick, the gun king in the film, remained upright from beginning to end even though he was crazy, the police did a lot of dirty tricks. From the beginning, when Rick and Officer Miao competed for the shooting champion in the field, Officer Miao’s colleague was the supervisor, so he deliberately distracted Rick and affected his play, but Rick didn’t complain or show any concern. The middle police found no evidence and forged evidence to detain Rick’s girlfriend; Finally, Rick took his girlfriend away in the downtown area. One of the policemen aimed at them behind their backs and felt that he would be blocked from hitting by his girlfriend. The Miao police officer who presided over the arrest actually ordered "shoot!" The role set by Fang Zhongxin is that his shooting skill is almost as good as Rick’s, he is good at balance and calculation, and he also knows how to rely on the system. This role later appeared in "The King of Guns" and was promoted to be an inspector. And Leslie Cheung’s role is talented and casual, free from the system, open and obsessive, allowing himself to fulfill his demons and eventually self-destruct. Although the average person won’t go that far, it will resonate more or less.

Many classic characters in film history are crazy geniuses and charming villains, such as Dr. Hannibal played by Anthony Hopkins in The Silence of the Lambs. Even the most successful performers only make the audience feel that these lunatics are charming and can’t understand them. Only the madman played by Leslie Cheung is not only authentic, but also understandable.

Huang Qiusheng, who often plays an abnormal and crazy role, marveled after seeing Leslie Cheung’s performance in this play: "How can he act so well!"

I’m afraid this is because Leslie Cheung himself is a mad genius.