I'm just trying to ride the wave of popularity!

Chapter 40 "The Chinese Version of Superman" Sweeps Across China!

Outside the Huaying International Cinema, the place was bustling with noise.

Inside the Huaying International Cinema, there were still more than ten minutes before the movie started.

Deng Hairong rushed to the restroom, grabbed a bottle of hand sanitizer, and stared intently at the bewildered cinema staff.

"Do we... have anyone make this kind of hand sanitizer? And when did the premiere of 'Superman 2' become [Feihe Cinema]?!"

"..."

Under the light.

The hand sanitizer bottle in his hand had a poster for "Superman 2" printed on it, and below the poster, it clearly read: "Watch 'Superman 2' at Feihe Cinema."

wrong!

Damn!

This isn't "Superman 2," it's "Superman 2"!
The cinema staff were stunned and stammered, unable to say a word.

Immediately afterwards...

Deng Hairong walked toward the toilet seat in the bathroom with a gloomy expression!
Almost every toilet in the bathroom has a toilet seat hanging on it!
damn it!
In this sweltering heat, who would put on a toilet seat!

He looked down at a line of words printed around the toilet seat.

Not satisfied with just "Superman 2"? Come to Feihe Cinema and watch "Sun Wukong vs. Superman 2"! Experience visceral, bone-crunching action and the ultimate visual experience!

???

He then looked at the toilet paper in the bathroom...

Seeing how utterly depraved these people are, even printing "Tired or sleepy? Come to [Feihe Cinema] to watch 'Sun Wukong vs. Superman 2'!" on toilet paper!

……

this moment!
He felt his blood pressure spike!
"Get rid of it!"

"Get rid of all of these things!"

"..."

..........................................

Five minutes before the premiere of Superman 2!
Fans and media representatives from all walks of life arrived one after another.

Film critic Liu Jiasheng, among these people, excitedly walked into the movie theater!

The screening room, which can hold a thousand people, was packed with people, and various posters and merchandise for "Superman 2" were piled up on the prominent screening area.

All I could hear were various expectations and discussions about "Superman 2" and its plot!

Like Liu Jiasheng, they all look forward to witnessing the glory of the Superman series IP again, and they are even more looking forward to the visual shock and anticipation that Superman 2 will bring them!
Looking at the excited figures, he took a deep breath, opened his laptop, and wrote the title of "Superman 2" on a document.

My thoughts drifted back to thirteen years ago.

In the summer of 1987, at the age of fourteen, he walked into the movie theater and, in a daze, saw the premiere of "Superman" and was utterly shocked!
That year, in supermarkets, department stores, and bookstores across China, you could see all sorts of comic books about "Superman 2." A series of "Superman" stories seemed to have opened the door to a new world for him overnight...

That year, "Superman 1" made everyone believe that "humans can fly!"

Thirteen years later, by chance, he joined the media industry and became the chief film critic for Global Cinema magazine.

Over the years, he has watched countless movies, but none have given him the same shock and excitement as the Superman series.

He sat in the back row, staring at the big screen that was about to begin.

At this moment, he could no longer suppress his excitement, and his hands trembled slightly.

To calm himself down and describe the film more objectively, he took a deep breath, picked up the mineral water bottle next to him, and took a small sip, which calmed him down a little.

and many more!

He stared subconsciously at the cover of the mineral water bottle!

He noticed something odd about the "Superman 2" on the mineral water bottle!

Immediately afterwards...

His eyes widened!

It's not "Superman 2" but "The Man Who Leapt Through Time"...

Are the organizers really that careless?
When he looked closely again, he saw a set of words clearly visible on the mineral water bottle!
Watch "The Longest Nite 2" at [Feihe Cinema]

[Feihe Cinema, the world premiere of [The Distant Friend 2]!]

???

Seeing this, he suddenly began to question the meaning of life.

He took a closer look at the Superman 2 movie ticket in his hand, refusing to believe it.

It's definitely Huaying International Cinema!
Wait, where did this [Feihe Cinema] come from?
……

"Sorry!" "Sorry, could you please change the bottle?"

"Feel sorry……"

"Staff error..."

Just as he was feeling somewhat bewildered, the staff of the cinema not far away suddenly changed their expressions and hurriedly came over, offering to exchange their bottles for the newest bottled water...

....................................

Just as he was feeling somewhat lost...

The screen in front of us lit up!
The entire screening room fell silent instantly!
He was instantly energized!
Without thinking much, I kept my eyes glued to the big screen.

The premiere of "Superman 2" has begun!

……

Perhaps it was because the first Superman movie was so successful that the sequel, Superman 2, was difficult to make. Or perhaps it's because we've grown up, watched more movies, and have higher aesthetic standards.

Half an hour later, the anticipation in Liu Jiasheng's eyes, which had been yearning to find that same shock in the movie "Superman 2," gradually disappeared.

Superman 2 continues the storyline of Superman 1.

A new villain invades Earth. Superman, who wanted to save the world, loses his superhuman abilities and becomes an ordinary person due to unforeseen circumstances...

For the first half hour, it focused on describing how powerful this villain was, how frustrated Superman was, and how difficult the world was...

After watching for half an hour, the grand scenes and visceral combat I was hoping for were nowhere to be seen. For the entire thirty minutes, the protagonist was treated like a peripheral character, his fighting strength constantly suppressed...

Is this the movie that cost $1.8 million to make?

Liu Jiasheng was stunned!

However, considering the previous reputation of "Superman", Liu Jiasheng ultimately watched it carefully.

After watching for almost an hour, we finally saw the frustrated Superman finally gain superpowers after all sorts of efforts!

Just when Liu Jiasheng thought Superman was finally about to unleash his power...

The villains suddenly kidnapped Superman's girlfriend, and in order to save her, Superman was forced to endure all sorts of humiliation, which made Liu Jiasheng so frustrated that he wanted to curse!
You're a superman, and a human villain is stepping on your head like this?

Where's your super speed?
Where is your flight?
Where is your radiation?
The plot is already somewhat illogical. It's not that the power levels are inconsistent, but it's definitely suppressing the fighting power!
After nearly an hour and a half, the movie finally began to reach a climax, featuring some epic special effects...

but……

Having witnessed the spectacular scenes of carrying airplanes and fire engines in "Superman 1," Liu Jiasheng found the aerial combat in "Superman 2" quite different. While the special effects were undeniably explosive and stimulating, "Superman 2" featured numerous seemingly lackluster fight scenes and showcased more violence, completely lacking the visceral impact of real punches.

The pacing is so slow, yet Superman's decision to give up his powers is surprisingly straightforward. The female lead is completely a burden; the world is about to end, and she's throwing a tantrum, threatening to jump off a building and crash into a fruit stand. The sheer stupidity is enough to send your blood pressure soaring through the screen...

There's a feeling of being frustrated for a long time, about to have a great time, but then you see the AVI storyline where the female lead turns into an old woman, and you instantly become impotent!

Liu Jiasheng took a deep breath!

I was deeply disappointed!
Aside from the amazing special effects, the plot of this movie is utterly worthless and completely lacks the impact of "Superman 1"!
even!

After watching it...

He had a vague feeling that something was wrong!

....................................

After the premiere of "Superman 2"...

With the promotion and hype from numerous media outlets, Deng Hairong accepted a series of interviews and event roadshows.

I was busy until the early hours of the morning before I finally got back to the office.

"Mr. Deng, are the box office results for 'Superman 2' out?"

"How many?"

"The opening weekend box office just broke 1500 million..."

"Oh sure!"

After seeing this data, Deng Hairong nodded.

In 2003, with a box office of 1500 million on its opening day, it was definitely a blockbuster.

"However, there's something I'm not sure if I should say..."

"you say……"

"Pirated copies of 'Superman 2' are already on the market!" The assistant took a deep breath, his expression filled with rage. "What's worse than piracy is that today, a movie called 'Sun Wukong vs. Superman 2' has gone viral in the pirate market, taking advantage of the release of our 'Superman 2'. It's sold nearly 10,000 copies today alone!"

"..."

"It's one thing to ride on our coattails, but what's most despicable is that the quality of this movie is outrageously bad, and pirated copies are all using our 'Superman 2' name, causing a large number of movie fans to be deceived. Some uninformed netizens, after watching that 'Sun Wukong vs. Superman 2' movie, started cursing our 'Superman 2'!"

(Two chapters delivered...)
(End of this chapter)