"Is this really not the actual person?"
Tiger Brother stared at Xiao He's portrayal of "Zhu Third Brother," his eyes widening in disbelief.
Before coming, he had reviewed the materials and related news, so he still had some impression of this face.
But he never expected the production team to achieve such incredible accuracy!
Could it be AI face replacement?
Tiger Brother glanced at the name listed beside the character, searched for Xiao He on his phone, and found photos of Xiao He playing "Mu Ze."
Uh... the difference between this actor and "Zhu Third Brother" was simply too dramatic...
Tiger Brother already had his suspicions and shook his head with some regret.
It seemed Director Hou's team had resorted to AI face replacement... What a pity. This would definitely feel jarring on the big screen.
Current AI technology still wasn't perfect, and film production particularly required actors to convey micro-expressions, fully integrating themselves into the scenes.
Anyone would feel disconnected and startled when suddenly seeing a semi-real, semi-fake AI face amidst a group of method actors delivering powerful performances.
The last production that tried this had failed spectacularly.
Looks like Director Hou is about to crash and burn too...
Sitting in his seat, Tiger Brother was already mentally drafting titles for his upcoming video—
[Director Hou's New Film Shocked with AI Face Replacement? Already Doomed!]
[The Biggest Flaw in "Killing Life" Production Revealed?]
As Tiger Brother pondered, the theater lights dimmed, and "Killing Life" officially began screening!
...
"Stop your damn crowing, you old undying creature! Every damn morning you know nothing but making noise—I'm gonna slaughter you good—"
Zhu Third Brother spoke in thick local dialect while grabbing the neighbor's rooster, slamming it to the ground, and without hesitation bringing his butcher knife down on the rooster's neck, letting blood spray everywhere.
Zhu Big Brother kicked him in the buttocks, roaring: "Get your ass to the slaughterhouse! What if all this bloody mess scares people?"
Zhu Third Brother curled his lip without speaking, just stood up, single-handedly lifting the rooster by its two legs as if carrying some garbage, and leisurely walked back to the slaughterhouse.
...
The film ran 140 minutes total, first telling the story of the three Zhu brothers starting from their slaughterhouse, then showing how police discovered clues during an anti-crime operation and launched an investigation targeting the Zhu brothers.
The early truth was revealed to the audience without any plot twists—it was clear the three Zhu brothers were villains—but the latter part remained intensely gripping. With omniscient perspective, viewers watched police gradually focus their investigation on the Zhu brothers while witnessing the brothers' futile struggles like trapped animals. This invisible confrontation ran throughout the entire film, constantly tugging at viewers' heartstrings.
Tiger Brother never took his eyes off the big screen, watching the entire plot with rapt attention.
Killing Life... Killing People!
The three Zhu brothers originally slaughtered animals, but gradually they seemed to become animals themselves, beginning to use their knives to kill people to achieve their goals.
The viciousness in their eyes transformed throughout this change, making the entire viewing experience nerve-wracking.
What shocked Tiger Brother most was Xiao He's portrayal of Zhu Third Brother.
Perhaps because he hadn't held much hope for this character from the beginning, Tiger Brother truly hadn't expected much. But when Zhu Third Brother appeared on screen, he actually felt goosebumps rising all over—
The resemblance was uncanny! This absolutely couldn't be achieved through AI face replacement alone. Moreover, the actor's presence and performance were remarkably convincing—those increasingly gloomy, ice-cold eyes after committing murder still made Tiger Brother break out in cold sweat just remembering them.
"If Xiao He didn't look like he was only in his twenties, I'd suspect he was actually the escaped criminal from back then," Tiger Brother couldn't help muttering.
Especially later, there was a mirrored sequence comparing chicken slaughter and human murder.
After catching Wu Xiaohua who had fled to the doorway, Zhu Third Brother first threw her to the ground and assaulted her, then raised his knife to slash her neck, letting blood spray everywhere before being washed away by heavy rain. Finally, he slowly dragged Wu Xiaohua back to the slaughterhouse by her legs, leaving only a faint red bloodstain... This scene perfectly mirrored the earlier chicken slaughter sequence, creating stark contrast. Even remembering the way he carried the chicken now seemed indistinguishable from how he carried a person.
—Evil ghosts walk among humans, while heaven turns a blind eye.
Tiger Brother grew furious just thinking about how Zhu Third Brother ultimately escaped into the deep mountains at the end, his whereabouts unknown.
That's it? Just like that? Could they really not catch him?
Even after twenty years, it remained a deeply ironic tragedy that stabbed straight into the hearts of victims' families, leaving nothing but anger and faint regret.
Watching the screen gradually darken as credits began rolling with the music, Tiger Brother rubbed his tired eyes and took a deep breath.
Just as he prepared to take out his phone to record his viewing impressions, the screen before him lit up again—
Twenty years later...
Tiger Brother's eyes widened as he quickly straightened up.
—Damn, the production team is this bold? They actually dared to rewrite the final outcome?
"Early yesterday morning, a body was discovered in the basement of a bar in Shanghai's Haibin District..."
A figure with slightly graying hair but still upright posture appeared in a narrow corridor alongside the news broadcast.
Tiger Brother recognized this figure as the special investigation team leader played by Zhuo Jianhua, except after twenty-plus years, he had transitioned from robust middle age into elderly years.
"The deceased has been identified as Zhu Deshan, 45 years old, native of Lu City in Province C. Police investigation confirms he was one of the fugitives from the 'Rongtou Slaughterhouse Massacre Case' twenty-seven years ago..."
"Is it confirmed?" The team leader grabbed the person beside him, his voice trembling slightly.
Twenty-seven years! Every time he remembered this case, he lost sleep at night, constantly regretting his caution back then—if only he had moved faster to arrest the three Zhu brothers, Zhu Third Brother wouldn't have disappeared, and the case wouldn't have become a lasting regret for so many.
Now hearing about Zhu Third Brother's whereabouts, the team leader grew extremely agitated.
"Sir, please steady yourself." A nearby officer quickly supported the team leader's arm.
"I'm fine, I'm fine—"
The team leader waved his hand, his steps firm and rapid as he entered the room and lifted the white sheet.
Indeed, it was him.
The team leader took a deep breath, turning to the medical examiner: "How was his life these past years?"
Medical examiner: "Terrible. He should have been doing manual labor all along—irregular meals, outwardly strong but inwardly weak. Significant wear and calluses on shoulders, fingers, and other areas. Condition of various organs extremely poor. And I found a tumor in his stomach."
He paused before continuing: "Malignant."
The team leader listened silently, not speaking for a long while.
Finally, the screen slowly darkened, leaving only his weathered, heavy voice—
"This beast died well!"
—Killing Life!
Blood-red characters filled the screen as theater lights suddenly brightened, pulling everyone out of the story. People blinked as if awakening from a dream, beginning to whisper among themselves.
Only Tiger Brother remained seated, his expression complex.
Before this bonus scene, Tiger Brother had mentally rated this film 8.7 out of 10.
The tense plot, intricately connected case details, smooth scene transitions, outstanding performances by several actors... Due to genre limitations, Tiger Brother couldn't guarantee box office success, but he could confidently say this was the highest quality crime genre film released in recent years!
But...
The director just had to add this worthless appendage at the end, forcibly creating a "Zhu Third Brother dies" conclusion that left people completely confused. This move practically detonated Tiger Brother's pet peeves.
Director, come here, let me ask you something—did you produce this sudden piece of crap? Look me in the eyes!