The Thunderstorm

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The Thunderstorm
TheThunderstorm.jpg
Film poster of the 1970s re-release version
Traditional Chinese 雷雨
Simplified Chinese 雷雨
Hanyu Pinyin Léi Yǔ
Jyutping Leoi4 Jyu2
Directed by Ng Wui
Screenplay byChing Kong
Based on Thunderstorm
by Cao Yu
Produced byAu Ming-gau
Starring Bruce Lee
Yin Pak
Cheung Ying
Kong Duen-yee
CinematographySuen Lun
Edited byChoi Cheong
Music byWu Dajiang
Production
company
Wa Kiu Film Company
Distributed byTai Sang Films
Release date
  • 14 March 1957 (1957-03-14)
Running time
124 minutes
CountryHong Kong
Language Cantonese

The Thunderstorm is a 1957 Hong Kong historical drama film starring Bruce Lee and directed by Ng Wui. The film is based on the play of the same name by Chinese dramatist Cao Yu. [1] Originally filmed and released in Cantonese in 1957, The Thunderstorm was dubbed into Mandarin for re-release during the 1970s in Hong Kong when Bruce Lee shot to superstardom during the time when Mandarin films dominated Hong Kong cinema.

Contents

The film is also known as ThunderandRain and Leiyu. [2]

Cast

Production

In August 1956, The Thunderstorm was announced as one of the first two productions of Wa Kiu Film Company, alongside Fate in Tears and Laughter (1957). [3] Ng Wui was set to direct, with Wu leading an ensemble cast that included Cheung Ying, Yin Pak, Mui Yee, Man-lei Wong, Lee Ching  [ zh ], Lo Tun  [ zh ], Yip Ping  [ zh ], and Yuet-ching Lee in lead roles. [3] Pre-production lasted about a hundred days, during which the script underwent eight rewrites. [4] The film was adapted from the play of the same name by Cao Yu. [3] Significant changes in the adaptation of the included shifting the narrative from fragmented to chronological, extending the story's time frame from a single day in the original four-act play to a 20-year span in the film, and adding original plot elements, such as the aftermath of Chow Pok-yuen and Lui Shi-ping's private affair. [5]

Filming began later that year, [1] with production entering its final stages by December. [3] The shoot lasted around a month and involved a crew of 126 people, considered large-scale for that time. [4] Location shooting took place at Nam Sang Wai and the Tsui Sing Lau Pagoda in Yuen Long, as well as Castle Peak in Tuen Mun. [6] Ng devised a new cinematography technique by tilting the tracks and rolling the camera down the slope for close-up shots, a method he named the "diving bomb" (Chinese :俯衝轟炸). [7] Test screenings were held on 10 March 1957, [8] with Ta Kung Pao offering positive reviews and describing the ensemble cast's performance as "exceeding expectations". [9]

Release

The Thunderstorm was theatrically released in Hong Kong on 14 March 1957. [10] [11] [12] It became the highest-grossing Hong Kong film of 1957 on its opening day, earning over HKD$30,000, [13] and Ta Kung Pao noted that the box office was "very impressive" after a week. [14] By the twelfth day of its release, over 400,000 viewers had been recorded, making it the highest-grossing Hong Kong film of all time. [15] Rediffusion Television rebroadcast the radio series adapted from The Thunderstorm in response to the film's popularity. [14] The film was also screened at the 28th Hong Kong International Film Festival, [16] and had a digitally restored re-release in November 2023. [17]

Critical reception and legacy

Hon Lin of Wah Kiu Yat Po noted that while the film features strong performances, particularly by Cheung Ying and Ng Wui, it ultimately falls short in execution and coherence, leaving much to be desired in terms of storytelling and character development, rendering it less effective than the Cantonese opera of the same name released during the same period. [18] Ho Chi-fung of Va Kio Daily considered the adaptation to be a "powerful and emotionally resonant" work, showcasing the maturity and talent of its original cast and crew, which contributes to its status as a classic. [19] Film critic Yick Yi-man acknowledged that while he found Ng more adept at handling comedies and humor, he praised Ng's improvement in directing tragedies, highlighting his incorporation of humor and emotional depth into the film's familial scenes. [20] : 28  The film was also said to "imitate the Blackboard Jungle-style films being made in the USA" at the time. [21]

Although Bruce Lee only had a supporting role as Chow Chung, this film marks Lee's first adult role, [22] : 17  with historian Ricardo Mak  [ zh ] considering it as one of his most notable performances in a Cantonese-language film. [23] : 138  This Bruce Lee film was also noted for the absence of fight scenes: "Counterpointing this combative role [in The Orphan], The Thunderstorm , featured no fight scenes at all," [24] and was one of the first Hong Kong productions that starred a still-teenager Bruce Lee. [25] Stephen Chow paid homage to The Thunderstorm by incorporating a scene where he portrayed Bruce Lee's part in his 1999 film King of Comedy . [26] [27] Some of the footage of the film is re-used in the international version of Tower of Death. [28]

References

  1. 1 2 郑杰 (1 July 2021). 李小龙影传：征服世界的光影英雄 (in Chinese). 华中科技大学出版社有限责任公司. ISBN   978-7-5680-7157-4.
  2. ↑ Wang, Jimmy; Luca, Lorenzo De (1990). Bruce Lee: il piccolo drago (in Italian). Edizioni Mediterranee. ISBN   978-88-272-0300-2.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "啼笑姻緣雷雨後 柳毅傳書今開鏡" [After Fate in Tears and Laughter and The Thunderstorm, Liu Yi Delivers A Letter Also Begin Filming Today.] (in Chinese). Ta Kung Pao. 15 December 1959. Retrieved 1 March 2025.
  4. 1 2 "雷雨" [The Thunderstorm]. Hong Kong Film Archive (in Chinese). 13 January 2020. Retrieved 1 March 2025.
  5. ↑ "紀念曹禺逝世20周年:中國的"莎士比亞" 19歲構思《雷雨》" [Commemorating the 20th Anniversary of Cao Yu's Death: China's 'Shakespeare' Conceived The Thunderstorm at Age 19.]. People's Daily (in Chinese). 13 December 2016. Retrieved 1 March 2025.
  6. ↑ 鄧達智; 鄧桂香 (2013). 元朗四季好日子 (in Chinese). Wan Li Book. ISBN   9789621452276 . Retrieved 1 March 2025.
  7. ↑ "吳回俯衝轟炸 觀眾看拍雷雨" [Ng Wui's Diving Bomb, Audiences Experience the Making of The Thunderstorm] (in Chinese). Ta Kung Pao. 27 December 1956. Retrieved 1 March 2025.
  8. ↑ "雷雨拍竣 本週日試映龍王公主試片" [The Thunderstorm Completes Filming, Test Screening alongside Dragon King's Princess This Sunday.] (in Chinese). Ta Kung Pao. 8 March 1957. Retrieved 1 March 2025.
  9. ↑ "粵語片雷雨今招待影界" [Cantonese-language Film The Thunderstorm Hosts Film Industry Reception Today.] (in Chinese). Ta Kung Pao. 11 March 1957. Retrieved 1 March 2025.
  10. ↑ "「雷雨」今上映" [The Thunderstorm Opens Today.] (in Chinese). Wah Kiu Yat Po. 14 March 1957. Retrieved 1 March 2025.
  11. ↑ 馮應標 (26 April 2017). 李小龍年譜: 一代武星戲裏戲外的真實人生 (in Chinese). Zhonghua Book Company. ISBN   978-988-8463-18-3.
  12. ↑ 羅振光 (1 June 2016). 李小龍商管學 (in Chinese). 匯智出版有限公司. ISBN   978-988-14827-2-3.
  13. ↑ "平原游擊隊將映 雷雨票房紀錄佳" [Guerrillas on the Plain Set to Release, Amidst the Box Office Record Success of The Thunderstorm] (in Chinese). Ta Kung Pao. 18 March 1957. Retrieved 1 March 2025.
  14. 1 2 "雷雨影片錄音劇麗的呼聲再播送明起一連四天播完四幕" [The Thunderstorm to be Rebroadcast on Rediffusion Television for Four Consecutive Days Starting Tomorrow.] (in Chinese). Ta Kung Pao. 20 March 1957. Retrieved 1 March 2025.
  15. ↑ "雷雨觀眾多華僑公司繼續發行新片啼笑姻緣及柳毅傳書" [Many Overseas Companies Continues to Release New Films Fate in Tears and Laughter and Liu Yi Delivers A Letter After the Viewership Success The Thunderstorm.] (in Chinese). Ta Kung Pao. 26 March 1957. Retrieved 1 March 2025.
  16. ↑ Film festival program for the 28th Hong Kong International Film Festival (in Chinese). Hong Kong International Film Festival. 2004. ISBN   9789628471201 . Retrieved 1 March 2025.
  17. ↑ "李小龍電影《人海孤鴻》加場放映" [Bruce Lee's Film City Kids 1989 Adds Extra Screenings.]. Ta Kung Pao (in Chinese). 28 July 2023. Retrieved 1 March 2025.
  18. ↑ Hon, Lin (31 August 1957). "兩番 雷雨" [Double Feature: The Thunderstorm] (in Chinese). Wah Kiu Yat Po . Retrieved 1 March 2025.
  19. ↑ Ho, Chi-fung (12 September 2022). "（隨筆）《雷雨》1957" [(Opinion piece) The Thunderstorm 1957]. Va Kio Daily (in Chinese). Retrieved 1 March 2025.
  20. ↑ Yick, Yi-man (2015). 寫實與抒情 從粤語片到新浪潮 (in Chinese). Sino United Publishing. ISBN   9789620438363.
  21. ↑ Thomas, Bruce (23 February 2012). Bruce Lee: Fighting Spirit. Pan Macmillan. ISBN   978-0-283-07081-5.
  22. ↑ "李小龍電影中的「功夫」" ["Kung Fu" in Bruce Lee's Films]. Wow!Screen (in Chinese). 1993. Retrieved 1 March 2025.
  23. ↑ Mak, Ricardo (2016). 止戈為武 中華武術在香江 (in Chinese). Sino United Publishing. ISBN   9789620449598 . Retrieved 1 March 2025.
  24. ↑ Gross, Edward (1990). Bruce Lee: Fists of Fury. Pioneer Books. ISBN   978-1-55698-233-0.
  25. ↑ Davies, Clive (6 March 2015). Spinegrinder: The Movies Most Critics Won’t Write About. SCB Distributors. ISBN   978-1-909394-06-3.
  26. ↑ 賴家俊 (23 September 2020). "【曹禺110周年誕】周星馳重演《雷雨》 向偶像李小龍致意" [[Cao Yu's 110th Anniversary] Stephen Chow Reenacts The Thunderstorm to Pay Tribute to His Idol Bruce Lee.]. HK01 (in Chinese). Retrieved 1 March 2025.
  27. ↑ 采風 (15 November 2023). "鵬情萬里：重溫《雷雨》" [Endless Affection: Revisiting The Thunderstorm]. Wen Wei Po (in Chinese). Retrieved 1 March 2025.
  28. ↑ Hunt, Leon (2003). Kung Fu Cult Masters. Wallflower Press. ISBN   978-1-903364-63-5.

See also

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