I Did It My Way (film)

Last updated
I Did It My Way
IDidItMyWay.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Traditional Chinese 潛行
Simplified Chinese 潜行
Literal meaningSneak
Hanyu Pinyin Qián Xíng
Jyutping Chim4 Hang4
Directed by Jason Kwan
Written byChiu Nga-fei
Tse Ching-wah
Produced byAndy Lau
Connie Wong
Starring Andy Lau
Gordon Lam
Eddie Peng
Cya Liu
Simon Yam
CinematographyJason Kwan
Edited byAlan Cheng
Music byDay Tai
Production
companies
Infinitus Jupiter Productions
Shanghai Ben Xiao Hai Film & TV Culture Media
Alibaba Pictures
Super Lion Culture Communication
Universe Entertainment
Infinitus Entertainment
Beijing Bad Monkey Cultural Industry Development
Huawen Pictures
Distributed byUniverse Films Distribution
Focus Films
(Hong Kong, Worldwide)
Edko Films (Hong Kong)
Release dates
  • 29 December 2023 (2023-12-29)(China)
  • 11 January 2024 (2024-01-11)(Hong Kong)
Running time
115 minutes
CountryHong Kong
LanguageCantonese
Box officeUS$55.7 million [lower-alpha 1]

I Did It My Way is a 2023 Hong Kong action film directed by Jason Kwan, produced by and starring Andy Lau. The film focuses on the physical and psychological warfare between undercover drug enforcement police officers.

Contents

Production for I Did It My Way began in April 2022 [1] and ended on 10 August of the same year. [2] [3] The film was released on 29 December 2023 in China [4] and on 11 January 2024 in Hong Kong. [5]

Plot

Four tons of drugs secretly arrived in Hong Kong and disappeared. The man behind the scenes was actually the seemingly harmless lawyer George Lam. With the help of live streaming drug trafficking on the dark web, his close friend and beloved wife encountered changes one after another. Reaching a dead end, Lam went completely crazy and wanted to make the whole world pay the price.

Cast

Theme song

The theme song for the film played over the end credits, titled "Understanding the Reasoning" (道理都懂), available in both Cantonese and Mandarin versions, is composed by Qin Lei and is sung by Andy Lau, with Lau also writing the lyrics for the Cantonese version of the song [6] while the lyrics for the Mandarin version of the song are written by Tang Tian. An alternate Mandarin version of the song sung by Cya Liu, which is not played in the film, was also released for promotion. [7]

Production

News for the film was first reported by the Hong Kong media on 13 June 2022 that a new action film tentatively titled Bring in the Wine (將進酒) directed by Jason Kwan and starring Andy Lau, Gordon Lam, Eddie Peng and Kevin Chu is set to begin production, with Lau also producing while Chin Ka-lok and Dion Lam serve as action directors. [8] On 18 June 2022, Lau mentioned in a video for the 34th anniversary of his fan club, Andy World Club, that he was working on the film in Hong Kong, which has a new Chinese title (潛行, lit. "Sneak) as the previous title has been registered and cannot be used. [9] The following day (19 June), filming of a scene took place at a noodle stall in Ngau Tau Kok where Lau, Lam, Peng, Simon Yam and Kent Cheng while it was also reported that the film has begun production in the month of April. [1]

On 12 July 2022, the film released it first teaser poster which featured Lau, Lam and Peng and unveiled its official English title, I Did It My Way, displaying a slated release date of 2023. [3] The following day (13 July) it was reported that Lam had sustained an injury while filming a stunt sequence in Tsing Yi and was hurt when he protected a child actor that he was holding from falling on uneven ground with gravels and rocks. Lam was temporarily immobilized and was conveyed to the hospital but later responded to the media and assured it was not a serious injury and he was recovering while four days later, Lam can be seen discharged from the hospital as he attended the 40th Hong Kong Film Awards on 17 July. [10] [11]

Filming for an action sequence which is set in an island in Malaysia where Lau's character, George Lam, is ambushed by South American mercenaries during the wedding of Lau and Liu's character, Vivian, took twelve nights to complete. The production encountered heavy rain storms every night on the location, including RED rainstorm signals on certain nights. A large set was built on the beach where a major shootout occurs which accumulates into a major explosion which took 3–4 hours to film. As producer, Lau worked extensively with action director Chin on each shot of the scene including the position and blocking of the actors and how the action and dialogue complement each other. [12]

Production for I Did It My Way officially wrapped up on 10 August 2022. [2] [13]

Marketing

On 4 November 2023, producer and star Lau alongside director Kwan and cast members Lam, Peng, Liu, Yam, Terrance Lau and Chu promoted the film at the 36th Golden Rooster Awards. At the press conference, Lau's portrayal of a "fierce" villain in the film became a focus while Kwan and the cast also praised Lau as being a "fierce" actor and producer who set high standards for the film and himself. Photos where each attendee personally took with Lau in the past were also showcased. Each of them spoke of their experiences working with Lau and expressed gratitude for Lau's past favors to them. [14]

On 22 December 2023, a promotion song for the film was released, with Lau and George Lam singing a cover version of the 1982 song, "Hard to Separate Good and Evil" (難為正邪定分界), which was originally sung by Johnny Yip and Mak Chi-sing, composed by Joseph Koo and lyrics written by Cheng Kwok-kong. The music video for the song was made using AI generated visuals of Lau and Lam and was directed by female director Junie Lau, who had previously won an international competition for a self-made AI music video and was discovered by Lau through social media. [15]

Release

I Did It My Way was theatrically released on 29 December 2023 in China [4] [3] and on 11 January 2024 in Hong Kong. [5] The first teaser trailer for the film was released on 17 January 2023. [16] [17]

Reception

Box office

I Did It My Way has grossed a total of US$55.7 million worldwide combining its box office totals from Hong Kong (US$1.4 million), China (US$54.1 million) and North America (US$198,405). [18] [19] [20]

In Hong Kong, the film debuted at No. 2 during its opening weekend, grossing HK$4,891,447 (US$625,457) during its first four days of release including previews. [21] The film remained at second place during its second weekend grossing HK$3,580,373 (US $458,008), and has grossed a total of HK$8,469,121 (US$1,083,386) by then. [22] During its third weekend, the film grossed HK$1,690,604 (US$216,328), remaining at No. 3 for its third consecutive week, while accumulating a total gross of HK$10,159,725 (US $1,300,029) so far. [23] The film grossed HK$749,557 (US$95,833) in its fourth weekend, coming in at No. 4, while having grossed a total of HK$10,909,522 (US$1,394,819) so far. [24] [25]

In China, the film debuted at No. 3 during its opening weekend, grossing US$26.6 million during its first three days of release. [26] The film grossed US$5.6 million in its second weekend, coming in at No. 3, and had grossed a total of US$31.4 million by then. [27] During its third weekend, the film grossed US$2.7 million, coming No. 5, having accumulated a total gross of US$47.7 million so far. [19]

During its limited theatrical run in North America, the film grossed US$75,873 in its opening weekend playing at 36 theatres, coming in at No. 27. [28] In its second weekend, the film grossed US$25,610, coming in at No. 34, while accumulating a total gross of US$147,970 by then. [29] During its third weekend as the number of theatres playing the film dropped to only 13, the film grossed US$11,727, coming in at No. 40, and has accumulated a total gross of US$175,531 by then. [30] With theatre counts reduced to only four, the film grossed US$6,912 during its fourth weekend, coming in at No. 44, while having grossed a total of US$190,686 by then. [31] The film's theatre counts were reduced to only two during its fifth weekend where it grossed US$2,100, coming in at No. 56, while accumulating a total gross of US$198,405 so far. [32]

Critical reception

Simon Abrams of RogerEbert.com , stating the film "exemplifies the current state of mass-oriented Hong Kong genre cinema, leaning hard on its seasoned cast to both remind viewers of better movies and carry this one around the bases fast enough that you still get your money's worth", while also praising Lau's performance as the villain being the film's main draw. [33] Dan Skip Allen of the Critics Association of Central Florida praises the film's realistic cinematography and depiction of technology as well as the action sequences which he describes as one of the best parts of the film, while also giving praise the performances of main cast members Lau, Lam, Peng and Liu. [34] Christopher Cross of Asynchronous Media praises Chin Ka-lok's action choreography while criticizing the film's inaccurate portrayal of technology and one-dimensional characters, noting Lau and Lam's performances are the only ones carrying the film. [35] Avi Offer of The NYC Movie Guru praises the film's action sequences but criticizes the convoluted plot and unmemorable characters. [36] Tay Yek-keak of Today Online gave the film a score of 3/5 praising Lau and Lam's performance and the undercover angle of the story which reminances Infernal Affairs while feeling that Peng is underused in his role. [37] Edmund Lee of the South China Morning Post gave the film a score of 2/5 stars, criticizing its illogical screenplay and inaccurate depiction of the internet while praising Lam's performance as the film's highlight. [38]

See also

Notes

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References

  1. 1 2 "劉德華由內地回港拍戲首度現身拍外景狀態大勇". 26 June 2022.
  2. 1 2 "《潛行》順利煞青 重磅男神大講感言：對電影的精神及態度沒有轉變！". 10 August 2022.
  3. 1 2 3 "劉德華監製新片《潛行》玩神秘 與林家棟彭于晏上演臥底大戰". 12 July 2022.
  4. 1 2 "劉德華十六年後再演反派，犯罪動作片《潛行》定檔12月29日".
  5. 1 2 "劉德華領軍金像人馬展開警毒生死對決 《潛行》定檔1月上映". 3 November 2023.
  6. ↑ "劉德華 (Andy Lau)新歌《道理都懂 (粵) [電影《潛行》片尾曲]》歌詞＋新歌試聽＋MV". 19 January 2024.
  7. ↑ "劉德華劉雅瑟演唱不同版本《道理都懂》".
  8. ↑ "Andy Lau and Eddie Peng Star in New Movie".
  9. ↑ "父親節 劉德華拍片賀「華仔天地」34周年 唱《心肝寶貝》送天下父親". 19 June 2022.
  10. ↑ "Gordon Lam injured protecting child during stunt, taken to hospital". 14 July 2022.
  11. ↑ Lim, Ruey Yan (18 July 2022). "Patrick Tse is oldest Best Actor winner at Hong Kong Film Awards". The Straits Times.
  12. ↑ "《潛行》槍戰連拍12夜 劉德華小島婚禮遭追殺 劉雅瑟挺孕肚考驗體能 (14:18)".
  13. ↑ Lim, Ruey Yan (11 August 2022). "Andy Lau and Gordon Lam co-stars again after 10 years". The Straits Times.
  14. ↑ "潛行 劉德華被彭于晏封最狠監製 林家棟感謝知遇之恩 (18:36)".
  15. ↑ "《潛行》劉德華林子祥重唱80年代經典《難為正邪定分界》 華仔利誘阿Lam出山拍戲 ：保證每日有10個鐘瞓".
  16. ↑ "Andy Lau, Gordon Lam and Eddie Peng collide in the high-tech drug underworld in the Teaser Trailer for 'I Did It My Way'".
  17. ↑ "劉德華警匪動作新片《潛行》 公開15秒預告暗藏玄機". 17 January 2023.
  18. ↑ "I Did It My Way - Box Office Mojo".
  19. 1 2 "China Box Office: 'Jonny Keep Walking' Retains Top Spot as 'The Beekeeper' Lands in Fourth". 15 January 2024.
  20. ↑ "I Did It My Way (潛行) (2023)". The Numbers. Retrieved 2024-03-25.
  21. ↑ "Hong Kong 2024 Weekend 2 January 11-14, 2024".
  22. ↑ "Hong Kong 2024 Weekend 3 January 18-21, 2024".
  23. ↑ "Hong Kong 2024 Weekend 4 January 25-28, 2024".
  24. ↑ "Hong Kong 2024 Weekend 5 February 1-4, 2024".
  25. ↑ "Hong Kong Weekly Box Office".
  26. ↑ "China Weekly Box Office (12/25-13/31 2023".
  27. ↑ "China Box Office: 'Jonny Keep Walking' Rises to Weekend Top Spot Ahead of Dueling Andy Lau Films". 8 January 2024.
  28. ↑ "Domestic 2024 Weekend 2 January 12-14, 2024".
  29. ↑ "Domestic 2024 Weekend 3 January 19-21, 2024".
  30. ↑ "Domestic 2024 Weekend 4 January 26-28, 2024".
  31. ↑ "Domestic 2024 Weekend 5 February 2-4, 2024".
  32. ↑ "Domestic 2024 Weekend 6 February 9-11, 2024".
  33. ↑ "I Did It My Way movie review & film summary (2024) - Roger Ebert".
  34. ↑ "I Did It My Way Review- A Hong Kong Action Crime Thriller With A Cool Story". 12 January 2024.
  35. ↑ "'I Did It My Way' Review - Asynchronous Media".
  36. ↑ "Reviews for January 5th, 2024 - The NYC Movie Guru".
  37. ↑ "I Did It My Way Review: Crime thriller spends too much time on Andy Lau-Lam Ka-Tung bromance, leaves Eddie Peng out in the cold".
  38. ↑ "I Did It My Way movie review: Andy Lau-led crime thriller about drugs on Asia's dark web is ruined by bad writing and a silly depiction of e-commerce". 9 January 2024.
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