Picture this: A fast-cut montage of an energetic crowd made up of hip hop dancers cuts to a young man stating, “If I do well, do I have a chance of staying in the street dance club?”
Thus begins One And Only’s first and only (so far) trailer, which was released on July 26.
Directed by comedian-turned-filmmaker Dong Chengpeng (also known as Da Peng), the film stars Wang Yibo, one of China’s best-known pop idols.
Wang will step into the shoes of an emerging hip hop dancer who dreams of joining a street dance club run by a veteran dancer; the latter will be played by actor Huang Bo, known for starring in comedic roles.
At the time of writing, the 15-second trailer for the film, which will be released later this year, has racked up more than 33.6 million views on Weibo and gained over 482,000 likes from enraptured fans.
“Looking forward to seeing Wang Yibo on the big screen!” reads one comment, summarizing how millions of the celebrity’s fans feel. (In case you didn’t know, Wang’s fans are wild: The 24-year-old has previously paid the price for fame and been stalked by crazed fans, who have even gone as far as placing tracking devices on his car.)
Many are excited about One And Only’s unusual blend of comedy and hip hop.
“I have seen hip hop movies and comedy movies, but this is the first time I’ve heard of a hip hop comedy movie! The collision of the two themes and the many hip hop groups who participated in this film lead me to have very high hopes,” commented a netizen.
“A fusion of dance and comedy themes [with] a lot of hip hop bigwigs participating in the performances — it’s hard not to look forward to it!” gushed another.
Some have also expressed their hope that the film will help the Chinese street dance scene mature.
Not to be a killjoy, but given China’s strict Covid-19 policies and unexpected prolonged lockdowns, it’s hard to predict how many cinemas will be open during the film’s release. Nevertheless, fingers crossed for the best!
Watch One And Only’s trailer with Chinese subtitles on YouTube.
All images via YouTube
