Creation of the Gods I: Kingdom of Storms
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| Creation of the Gods I: Kingdom of Storms | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Traditional Chinese | 封神第一部：朝歌風雲 |
| Simplified Chinese | 封神第一部：朝歌风云 |
| Directed by | Wuershan |
| Written by | Ran Ping Ran Jianan Wuershan Cao Sheng |
| Based on | Investiture of the Gods by Xu Zhonglin |
| Produced by | Du Yang Wuershan William Kong Barrie M. Osborne |
| Starring | Fei Xiang Li Xuejian Huang Bo Yu Shi Chen Muchi Narana Erdyneeva Xia Yu |
| Cinematography | Wang Yu |
| Edited by | Ka-Fai Cheung Yuan Du Shuo Huang |
| Music by | Gordy Haab |
Production companies | Tencent Pictures Beijing Jingxi Culture & Tourism Mongketengri Pictures Dongyang Mongketengri Film & TV Production Tianjin Maoyan Weiying Cultural Media Shanghai Tencent Penguin Pictures Qingdao Haifa Pictures |
| Distributed by | Beijing Jingxi Culture & Tourism Huaxia Film Distribution Well Go USA Entertainment (North America) |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 148 minutes |
| Country | China |
| Language | Mandarin |
| Box office | $373.9 million[1] |
Creation of the Gods I: Kingdom of Storms (Chinese: 封神第一部：朝歌风云; lit. 'Investiture of the Gods Part One: Zhaoge Turmoil') is a 2023 Chinese epic fantasy film directed by Wuershan. It is the first film in the Creation of the Gods trilogy, adapted from the 16th-century fantasy novel Investiture of the Gods written by the Ming dynasty author Xu Zhonglin. The film was released in China on July 20, 2023.[2]
The first film mainly narrates the fantastic and fictitious version of the political fallout following the ascension of the last king of Shang dynasty. The two sequel films of the trilogy are due to be released in 2024 and 2025, with the second film focusing on Xiqi's defense against Shang's attack, while the third film features Xiqi's counterattack, eventual victory and establishment of the Zhou dynasty.[3]
Plot[edit]
Lord Su Hu of Jizhou rebels against the Shang dynasty. The Shang army, led by Prince Yin Shou, defeats the rebels. Shou and his hostage-sons break through rebel defenses and kill Su. Su Daji, the daughter of Su Hu, commits suicide but then emerges alive and is captured, with the Shang army returning home.
King Di Yi is killed during the victory feast by a suddenly deranged Crown Prince Qi - Shou's brother; Qi is accidentally killed by Ji Fa, a hostage-son from the western state of Xiqi. Shou becomes king. Divination during the coronation finds the dynasty to be cursed by the patri-regicide. Shou promises his own ritual suicide to placate the Heavens and lift the curse.
Meanwhile, the Immortals of Kunlun consider giving Shao the Investiture Scroll, which can restore order and save the world from the curse. Jiang Ziya, a monk and a disciple of Yuanshi Tianzun, volunteers to deliver the scroll but realizes that Shao, a tyrant, should not have such power. Ziya leaves with the scroll and is joined by nephew-disciples Nezha and Yang Jian. They are pursued by Shen Gongbao, an alchemist and Ziya's rival, and Crown Prince Yin Jiao and Ji Fa. They encounter Ji Chang, Ji Fa's father and the Duke of the West, who is travelling to the capital Zhaoge to greet the new king. Chang finds an infant demon, whom he names Lei Zhenzi, and sends Zhenzi to Kunlun on Ziya's advice.
Chang and the other three dukes (of the East, North and South) meet secretly; they are skeptical of the legitimacy of Shou's ascension. The meeting is discovered by royal guards. Shou orders the dukes to be executed for high treason by their hostage-sons. Chong Yingbiao, son of the Duke of the North, complies without hesitation. E Shun, son of the Duke of the South, instead attacks Shou, who kills them both. The Duke of the East kills himself on the sword of Jiang Wenhuan, his son. Ji Fa argues that Chang would suffer greater humiliation by making a public confession of faking divination than by being executed; Chang is sent to the dungeon. Shao kills Bo Yikao, Chang's eldest son. Chang confesses to treason to save Ji Fa, and is publicly paraded and humiliated.
Meanwhile, Jiao finds and pursues a man-eating fox spirit in the palace, discovering it to be possessing the body of Su Daji. Shou accuses Jiao of attempted patricide to project Daji, now the favored consort. Queen Jiang is killed trying to kill Daji. Jiao is injured attempting to kill the spirit and escapes the palace with Ji Fa's help. Jiao, Ziya and High Priest Bi Gan, Shou's uncle, agree to expose the spirit Shou. Bi Gan sacrifices his magical heart to evict the fox spirit from Daji's body, but Shou already knew that the spirit was a demon. The spirit was imprisoned by Tang of Shang but it was released by Shou's during the battle of Jizhou. The spirit persuaded Shou to become the Overlord of All, and possessed Qi to assassinate Di Yi. Jiao is arrested and sentenced to death. Ji Fi seemingly obeys Shou's order to execute Chang.
Ji Fa and the hostage-sons from Xiqi rebel during Jiao's execution. Ji Fa faked Chang's death , who was taken out of the city by Lei Zhenzi. Chong Yingbiao decapitates Jiao, whose head and body are retrieved by Nezha and Yang Jian. Ji Fa fights and seriously wounds Shou before fleeing the city with Ziya. Ziya and the scroll are pursued by two Taotie statues possessed by Shen Gongbao.[4] Ji Fa exchanges clothing with Ziya, draws the statues away and defeats them, and then rides away to freedom. Gongbao sends a swarm of crows against Ziya.
In a few mid-credit scenes, the fox spirit - still possessing Daji's body - resuscitates Shou; Ziya fishes alone on Wei River and notices Gongbao's crows; Wen Zhong, Grand Preceptor of the Shang dynasty who has been away at war for ten years, returns to the capital along with his generals including the Four Demonic Giants.
Cast[edit]
- Yu Shi as Ji Fa — the second son of Ji Chang and the future leader of the Xizhou, who served as a hostage-son and royal guard of Yin Shou, also the narrator of the story
- Fei Xiang as King Yin Shou — the second prince and later King of the Shang dynasty
- Li Xuejian as Duke Ji Chang — the lord of Xiqi and Duke of the West, and father of Ji Fa
- Huang Bo as Jiang Ziya — a Kunlun monk who is entrusted the Investiture Scroll, later becomes the chief strategist of Xiqi
- Narana Erdyneeva as Consort Su Daji — the concubine of Yin Shou, whose body is possessed by a nine-tailed fox
- Chen Muchi as Prince Yin Jiao — Yin Shou's only son and crown prince of Shang dynasty
- Xia Yu as Shen Gongbao — a rival monk to Jiang Ziya who came to serve King Shou as a magical strategist
- Yuan Quan as Queen Jiang — Yin Shou's wife and queen consort, and Yin Jiao's mother
- Wang Luoyong as Bi Gan — Yin Shou's uncle and the High Priest of Shang dynasty
- Yang Le as Bo Yikao — the eldest son and heir of Ji Chang, and brother to Ji Fa
- Cisha as Yang Jian — a nephew-disciple to Jiang Ziya, who specializes in water magics
- Wu Yafan as Nezha — a nephew-disciple to Jiang Ziya, who specializes in fire magics
- Hou Wenyuan as Chong Yingbiao — the hostage-son of the Duke of the North, and fellow royal guard and bitter rival to Ji Fa
- Huang Xiyan as Jiang Wenhuan — the hostage-son of the Duke of the East, a fellow royal guard to Ji Fa
- Li Yunrui as E Shun — the hostage-son of the Duke of the South, a fellow royal guard to Ji Fa
- Xu Huanshan as King Yi — Yin Shou's estranged royal father
- Gao Shuguang as Yin Qi — Yin Shou's estranged elder brother and the previous crown prince of Shang dynasty
Production[edit]
Casting[edit]
The cast of “Creation of the Gods I: Kingdom of Storms” was selected from more than 1,400 people from 15,000 global auditions, and then interviewed by the director Wuershan himself, and finally selected more than 20 young actors to enter the performance camp for six months of training.[5]
The training camp is based on the “Theory of Liuyi (Six Skills)” of "manners, music, shooting, rein, books and mathematics", offering courses such as acting, martial arts, equestrian, shooting, drum music, Chinese cultural history, body shaping, film viewing and analysis, and so on. And they were supplied by scientific nutrition, the training camp effectively builds actors' strong bodies and muscle lines in line with ancient warriors' bodies.
Yu Shi, who plays Ji Fa, was not a trained actor, and participated in the training and shooting of the “Creation of the Gods I: Kingdom of Storms” is the beginning for Yu Shi as an actor. In the cast, he received comprehensive training in performance, equestrian, movement, etiquette, drum music, cultural history, etc. The shots of Ji Fa riding a horse and turning around and shooting, and riding his horses across the fire wall were all acted by him without substitute.
Wuershan said, “All the difficult equestrian moves are done by the actors themselves. They started training from scratch for 6 months. It is amazing to be able to complete such a complicated performance."[5]
Filming[edit]
Principal photography for the film started on September 9, 2018.[6] The three films of the trilogy were filmed back-to-back.The filming location was set in Qingdao, Shandong, primarily in the studios of the Oriental Movie Metropolis.[7] In February 2019, the first part of the trilogy has completed filming and preliminary editing.[8]
Music[edit]
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Release[edit]
Creation of the Gods I: Kingdom of Storms was released on 20 July 2023 in China.[2]
It was released in the United States on 22 September 2023.[9]
| Release | |
|---|---|
| Time | Country/area |
| July 20, 2023 | Mainland China |
| September 14, 2023 | Australia |
| September 14, 2023 | New Zealand |
| September 22, 2023 | The United States |
| September 22, 2023 | United Kingdom |
| September 22, 2023 | Ireland |
| September 28, 2023 | Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia |
| October 20, 2023 | Cambodia |
| January 24, 2024 | South Korea |
| February 9, 2024 | Netflix (Globally, Include Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, Philippines and Japan) |
Reception[edit]
Critical response[edit]
The film received 8.0 out of 10 points on the Chinese review website Douban.com.[10]
On Rotten Tomatoes, the film received a rating of 56% based on 9 reviews.[11]
Box office[edit]
On the opening weekend, its box office was ranked as No.1 in the Chinese market.[12] By the 6th day, its gross reached $70 million.[13]
Awards and nominations[edit]
| Awards & Nominations | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Time | Event | Category | Result | Nominee |
| 2023-6 | 2023 Weibo Night | Movie of the Year | Won | Creation of the Gods I: Kingdom of Storms |
| 2023-8 | The 18th China Changchun Film Festival | 'Golden Deer Award' for Best Film | Nominated | Creation of the Gods I: Kingdom of Storms |
| 2023-9-2 | The 18th China Changchun Film Festival | ‘Golden Deer Award’ for Best Editing | Won | Creation of the Gods I: Kingdom of Storms |
| 2023-9-3 | 2023 Filming Italy | Best Film Award for Best Genre - Artistic Contribution | Won | Creation of the Gods I: Kingdom of Storms |
| 2023-11-4 | 36th Golden Rooster Awards | Best Feature Film | Won | Creation of the Gods I: Kingdom of Storms |
Notes[edit]
References[edit]
- ^ "Fēng Shén Dì Yī Bù (封神第一部) (2023)". The Numbers. Archived from the original on 19 March 2024. Retrieved 18 November 2023.
- ^ a b "Dream retold for the silver screen". China Daily. 2023-07-27. Archived from the original on 2023-07-27. Retrieved 2023-07-27.
- ^ "《封神第一部》如何九年磨一剑". CCTV (in Chinese). Beijing Youth Daily. 2023-07-22. Archived from the original on 2023-07-27. Retrieved 2023-07-27.
- ^ 网易 (2023-08-30). "道具师也要参加训练营！《封神》美术的创作经都在这里了". www.163.com. Archived from the original on 2023-10-04. Retrieved 2023-10-01.
- ^ a b 肖潇. "《封神第一部》如何九年磨一剑". news.cctv.com. Archived from the original on 2023-07-27. Retrieved 2023-08-25.
- ^ "30亿巨额投资《封神三部曲》曝开机照 阵仗大! 乌尔善导演领衔庞大制作团队亮相". Mtime (in Chinese). 2018-09-05. Archived from the original on 2019-01-16. Retrieved 2019-09-08.
- ^ "《封神第一部》定档暑期 在青岛东方影都拍摄完成". qdxin.cn (in Chinese). Peninsula Metropolis Daily. 2023-06-17. Archived from the original on 2024-03-18. Retrieved 2023-07-27.
- ^ "乌尔善《封神》初剪完毕2020暑期上映 第二三部立项曝剧情 重要卡司还在保密中". Mtime (in Chinese). 2019-02-24. Archived from the original on 2019-02-27. Retrieved 2019-09-08.
- ^ Brzeski, Patrick (8 September 2023). "Chinese Fantasy Blockbuster 'Creation of the Gods I: Kingdom of Storms' to Get North American Release From Well Go USA (Exclusive)". Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on 26 September 2023. Retrieved 19 September 2023.
- ^ "《封神第一部》票房破5亿，豆瓣评分7.7！为了殷寿付出五年，费翔 ：我已经62岁，人生还有几个五年?". National Business Daily (in Chinese). 2023-07-25. Archived from the original on 2023-07-27. Retrieved 2023-07-27.
- ^ "Creation of the Gods I: Kingdom of Storms". Rotten Tomatoes. Archived from the original on 2023-09-29. Retrieved 2023-09-23.
- ^ Frater, Patrick (2023-07-23). "China Box Office: 'Barbie' Opens in Fifth Place With $8 Million". Variety. Archived from the original on 2023-07-27. Retrieved 2023-07-27.
- ^ "电影《封神第一部》票房破5亿". Jiemian News (in Chinese). 2023-07-25. Archived from the original on 2023-07-27. Retrieved 2023-07-27.
