Movie Goldfinger
As the two superstars of the century in the Hong Kong film industry, Tony Leung and Andy Lau are also the heroes who created the first years of Hong Kong films, and they have also witnessed the great changes of the century in Hong Kong, but there are very few works that the two have really collaborated on, and the last time Andy Lau and Tony Leung collaborated on a film was "Infernal Affairs" in 2002. It is rumored that the two actors made a 20-year covenant that year, so there is the "Goldfinger" we want to introduce today.
If "Infernal Affairs" is the culmination of Hong Kong police films, then the "Goldfinger" in front of the audience can be said to be a love letter to Hong Kong films from Zhuang ** and the two major actors.
This work includes both police and bandits, as well as the Independent Commission Against Corruption and financial predators, and of course, the ups and downs of Hong Kong in the midst of prosperity.
The film is not limited to the traditional narrative of black and white, nor does it deliberately reproduce the "Mission Impossible" like "Infernal Affairs", but strives to truly restore a famous case of the century in Hong Kong, and through the portrayal of the two characters of Cheng Yiyan and Liu Qiyuan, gradually unveil a thrilling showdown for the audience - savagely breeding greedy ambition and tested fragile human nature.
The film does not strictly follow the timeline of the characters' growth, and contains a lot of interludes and flashbacks.
The beginning of the story is in the 70s of the last century, Cheng Yiyan (played by Tony Leung), who was standing on the bow of the ship, came to Hong Kong alone to work hard.
At the same time, Lau Kai-yuen (played by Andy Lau), who works for the Independent Commission Against Corruption, has to face mass demonstrations by the police.
Then in the early 80s of the last century, Liu Qiyuan, who had become a senior investigation officer of the Independent Commission Against Corruption, led his subordinates to arrest Cheng Yiyan, who could be called a "financial giant", and Cheng Yiyan's subordinates were also arrested by the Independent Commission Against Corruption on suspicion of financial crimes.
Through the mouths of Cheng Yiyan and a group of cronies, the film presents the legendary story of Cheng Yiyan to the audience since the early 70s of the last century.
In the early 70s of the last century, Cheng Yiyan, who failed in the construction business in Malaysia and Singapore, came to Hong Kong alone, and it didn't matter if he didn't have any money, he couldn't even find a serious job when he first arrived in Hong Kong.
Life was unbearable, and he couldn't even pay the rent of the snail cage for a while. Until he accidentally met the real estate developer Zeng Cambridge, and by chance helped the latter ** sell a piece of land. Through Zeng's Cambridge relationship, Cheng Yiyan soon embarked on the fast track to making a fortune.
In the past few years, Cheng Yiyan quickly transformed from a poor boy to a rich financial predator, with dozens of companies, countless employees, and assets all over the country and abroad.
Of course, you don't have to think about it to know that even the most capable people can build such a huge business empire in just a few years. The reason why Cheng Yiyan was able to achieve so much in such a short period of time is largely due to his "empty glove white wolf" strategy.
The film does not give a more detailed and easy-to-understand explanation of Cheng Yiyan's methods of making a fortune, but simply put, he is a "white wolf with empty gloves", raising stock prices through various illegal or improper means, false transactions, and obtaining a large number of illegal loans from banks and other financial institutions in violation of regulations, so as to achieve his own goals.
Under Cheng Yiyan's series of operations, the listed "Jiawen Group" soon ushered in unprecedented glory, and was even able to spend a huge amount of money to buy the most expensive Jinshan Building in Hong Kong. At that time, Jiawen Group** was even more valuable than money at one time, and small shareholders who did not know the truth had to buy Jiawen's ** even if they smashed the pot and sold iron.
But the fake is still fake after all, with the fluctuation of Hong Kong in the 80s of the last century, the rupture of the capital chain of the Jiawen Group, and the mysterious deaths of the relevant personnel involved in the Jiawen case, Cheng Yiyan soon became the focus of the Independent Commission Against Corruption.
But the most shocking part of the whole movie also unfolded, even in the face of a large amount of conclusive evidence, Cheng Yiyan was still able to get out of the way, this arrest that seemed to end the whole incident was actually just the real beginning ...... of the contest between Liu Qiyuan and Cheng Yiyan
Through the real and delicate presentation of the film, many viewers must have guessed that the movie in front of them is based on real events.
The story of "Goldfinger" is based on the famous "Jianing case" in Hong Kong, and the "Jiawen" group in the film is the "Jianing" group in reality, and Cheng Yiyan, played by Tony Leung, is the prototype of Chen Songqing, the behind-the-scenes controller of the "Jianing" group. Chen Songqing took advantage of economic loopholes to maliciously raise stock prices, harming the rights and interests of countless small shareholders, and the adverse impact of this unprecedented financial fraud case on Hong Kong's economic development can be said to be incalculable. However, after 17 years of investigation, Chen Songqing was finally sentenced to three years in prison.
As mentioned above, the whole movie is full of a lot of drunken and luxurious depictions, but it does not give an easy-to-understand explanation of Cheng Yiyan's fortune process, let alone depict why Cheng Yiyan and Liu Qiyuan took different paths, which is a pity for the film.
But the flaws are not hidden, thanks to the complexity and drama of the prototype events, coupled with the superb acting skills of Tony Leung and Andy Lau, the whole movie is still fascinating.
The splendid Jinshan Mansion, the desperate gamble, and the well-dressed sons of wealthy families ......The excellent lens language and scene layout of "Goldfinger" present the audience with a dreamlike, true and false "** years".
All kinds of visual wonders and the ups and downs of the times give people a unique sense of history, and also let countless audiences truly feel the wonderful integration of small people and big times at the unique turning point of the colonial era and the return to the motherland. From this point of view, "Goldfinger" can be called the most breakthrough Hong Kong film work in recent years, and may set a new benchmark for crime film and television works.
It took more than 10 years for the Independent Commission Against Corruption represented by Liu Qiyuan to finally send Cheng Yiyan to prison, which shows from the side that it is not easy to truly implement the fair rule of law in the face of practical interests. In the face of money and status, Cheng Yiyan and Liu Qiyuan made their own different life choices, and also brought them on completely different life paths.
The different endings of the two characters can't help but make people ponder - how can the real tragedy of the capital bubble and fragile humanity not be repeated?There is money outside the money, there are people outside the people, and it is obviously difficult to completely entangle the real interests with the strength of the individual, and a sound rule of law and perfect supervision are the real solutions.