It is said that there are 3 success formulas for a commercial film: sex scenes, ghosts and bloodshed.
The attraction of bloodshed in a film is often driven by personality traits like high sensation-seeking. It allows viewers to enjoy the thrill of the spectacle. Watching onscreen violence enables some audience to release pent-up tension, aggression or emotion.
I guess many are like me. We do not like bloodshed in films. Seeing intense suffering or cruelty, even if fictional, can cause distress. Quite a number of people are simply disgusted by the sight of blood and bodily fluids.
Now in Hong Kong, you can watch 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple (28年後: 人骨聖殿).
The Bone Temple is 2026 post-apocalyptic horror film. The film explores the nature of evil, the loss of innocence, and the thin line between civilization and barbarism.
The plot is this: nearly three decades after the Rage Virus outbreak, Britain became a wasteland where the infected victims are ironically less dangerous than the human cultists, especially a young blood thirsty group where everyone calls themselves “Jimmy”. Dr. Kelson is a kind man who works in a jungle to find humanity in the infected zombies. The storylines collide when Jimmy confronts Kelson at his bone-adorned sanctuary, forcing a tense standoff that results in defeating the Jimmys brutally.
The work can on its own be a very entertaining movie with the great British actor Ralph Fiennes (賴夫費恩斯)playing the role of Dr. Kelson. He has earned 3 Academy Award nominations for his wonderful performances in the films Schindler’s List (舒特拉的名單), The English Patient (別問我是誰) and Conclave (教宗選戰). When a good story and impressive acting are present in this film, all the bloodshed really seems to be an unnecessary weapon.
In Hong Kong, category III films are restricted to persons aged 18 or above in order to protect minors from potentially harmful materials including intense violence. The Bone Temple is a category III film. Although some of those aged 18 or above may support the film, it will lose the younger audience who can also mean a bigger demand share.
I love movies like The Bourne Identity (叛諜追擊) which are action-packed and adrenaline-fueled. Their contents of intense fight choreography, relentless chase scenes and massive explosions are surely attractive because of its lack of bloodshed. Violence does not relieve tension. It creates more pressure on the audience.
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