YOLO (film)

YOLO is a 2024 Chinese comedy-drama film directed by Jia Ling and starring Jia and Lei Jiayin. A comedic adaptation of the 2014 Japanese film 100 Yen Love, it tells the story of Du Leying who has stayed at home for many years, who after meeting boxing coach Hao Kun overcomes the challenges that follow and starts a new life.

YOLO grossed $479.5 million worldwide, making it the fifth highest-grossing film of 2024 and the highest-grossing Chinese film in 2024.

Plot
After graduating from college and working for a period of time, Leying (Jia Ling) chose to withdraw from society and close her social circle, believing this was the best way to "reconcile" with herself. For ten years, Leying has lived with her parents, followed an unhealthy lifestyle, and rarely engaged in any activities. As a result, Leying has become obese, as well as estranged from her family and friends.

One day, Leying is approached by her cousin Doudou (Yang Zi), an intern at a TV station sourcing candidates for a job search reality show, who believes Leying could be a good fit. When being interviewed together with her mother, Leying gets into a quarrel with her sister Ledan (Zhang Xiaofei), who humorously criticizes Leying for being lazy and overly dependent on their parents. Leying leaves the interview and calls her boyfriend Shan (Qiao Shan) and her best friend Lili (Li Xueqin) out for lunch, only to find out that they have been cheating on her and are getting married soon due to Lili being pregnant. Leying breaks up with Shan and leaves disgusted after being asked to be the bridesmaid so that Lili will not be seen as a homewrecker.

The next day, Leying gets into another quarrel with Ledan during a mealtime discussion about transferring a property Leying inherited from their late grandmother under Ledan's name, so that Ledan's daughter can move to a better public school. The two sisters end up fighting and Leying decides to move out. Supported by her mother, Leying rents an apartment and finds a job as a waitress at a local restaurant. She runs into Hao Kun (Lei Jiaying), a down-on-his-luck boxing coach from a nearby gym. Hao Kun, who is being pressured by the gym owner Liang (Sha Yi) to procure new clients, invites Leying to a promotional event at a nearby park. Leying misunderstands the invitation as Hao Kun being interested in her, and agrees. At the event, Hao Kun tells Leying he chose to become a boxing coach only to find a place to train, and expresses his love for boxing. Developing feelings for Hao Kun, Leying agrees to become Hao Kun’s first boxing student.

Some time later, Hao Kun is fighting in a gym boxing match, the winner of which will qualify for the city championship. Hao Kun loses the match to fellow coach Tianfu (Zhu Tianfu). After the match, Hao Kun complains drunkenly to Leying that he should have won the match but Liang declared Tianfu the winner because the latter is more handsome to female gym recruits. Leying carries a drunken Hao Kun to her apartment and the two end up having sex. The next day, Hao Kun moves in with Leying, planning to quit his job and continue his training elsewhere. Hoping Hao Kun can participate in the city championship, Leying pays Tianfu to withdraw, thus allowing Hao Kun to compete instead. Hao Kun trains at the gym in preparation for the championship while Leying serves as his assistant, manages Hao Kun’s daily life, and even carries out some of Hao Kun’s sales duties. However, just before the match, Hao Kun accepts a bribe from his opponent’s father to lose deliberately, and says he will retire after the match. Leying tries to convince Hao Kun not to give up boxing, but Hao Kun fiercely scolds Leying for being unrealistic and denies that he and Leying are in a relationship, causing Leying to leave disheartened. A disturbed Hao Kun is then knocked out by his opponent in the first round.

Leying returns to work at the restaurant but is sexually harassed by her boss, whom she punches in self-defense. After being taken to the police station over the incident, Leying is picked up by Doudou and agrees to attend the job search show, hoping this will help Doudou to pass her work probation. During filming, the production team plays a maliciously edited version of Leying’s interview which paints Leying as a bad daughter who insulted her mother. As a result, Leying is berated by the audience while she pretends to faint on stage. After leaving the studio in despair, Leying finds a gym advertisement upon returning to her apartment. Motivated by the slogan “Have you ever won once?”, Leying decides to seriously pick up boxing and signs up for training under a different coach.

After a year of intensive fitness and boxing training, Leying has lost 50 kg of weight and acquired a boxing permit. Impressed by Leying’s progress, Liang allows her to be a substitute in an upcoming match. Leying’s father also asks Leying to return and help at their family convenience store, praising her that boxing has changed her both physically and mentally. While helping at the store, Leying runs into Hao Kun again, who has quit boxing and become a construction worker. Leying invites Hao Kun to her debut match.

At the match, Leying faces Liu Hongxia (Zhang Guilin), a professional boxer and former champion. Liang warns Leying about the difference in their skill levels and experience, but Leying tells Liang not to throw in the towel no matter what happens. Leying fights well at the beginning but soon is outmatched by Liu’s speed and power. She is forced onto the defensive and gets knocked down repeatedly. By the end of round two, Leying is badly injured and can barely stand on her own, yet she still refuses to surrender. Moved by Leying’s determination, Liang suggests Leying go on the offensive with her left punches. In the third and final round, Leying remains defensive for most of the time but manages to land a heavy left punch on Liu’s head amidst her attacks. However, Liu recovers from the punch and immediately delivers a counter attack, knocking down Leying once again. Almost unconscious, Leying recalls her oversubmissive past: how she agreed to transfer her inherited property to Ledan after their fight; how she eventually agreed to become Lili’s bridesmaid at the latter's request; how she lied about having prior sexual experience to make Hao Kun feel comfortable; how she pretended to faint when filming for the job search show under Doudou’s instructions, only to learn that Doudou was deliberately casting her in a negative light. She also recalls that after returning home from Doudou's show she failed to attempt suicide by jumping off her apartment. Reaffirming her determination to “win at least once”, Leying stands up before the count finishes, just as the final bell rings.

Despite losing the fight by decision, Leying's courage wins her the respect of the crowd, including her family. Liang tells Leying that it is the best fight he has ever seen. Walking away from the arena, Leying is approached by Hao Kun, who invites her to a dinner date, wishing to resume their relationship. Leying turns him down, saying that she will consider it when she is “in the right mood”. She then jogs home after making her first ever post on social media, claiming that she has finally won once in her life.

Cast

 * Jia Ling as Du Leying
 * Lei Jiayin as Hao Kun
 * Zhang Xiaofei as Du Ledan
 * Zhao Haiyan (actor) as Mom
 * Zhang Qi as Dad
 * Xu Jun Cong as BBQ restaurant manager
 * Bu Yu as He Kun
 * Zhu Tianfu as himself
 * Liu Honglu as Rider

Special appearance

 * Yang Zi as Dou Dou
 * Li Xueqin as Li Li
 * Ma Li as Ma Chunli
 * Sha Yi as Laoliang

Filming
The film started shooting in Guangzhou at the end of September 2022, and wrapped up in November 2023. In addition to filming in Panyu, Yuexiu, Nansha and other places in Guangzhou, it was also shot in the nearby Pearl River Delta area, such as Zhongshan Park in Foshan and Xiqiao Mountain National Park.

According to Jia Ling, the film took over a year to be filmed because it was filmed five times. Also, she lost over 50 kg to get in shape to became "like a boxer".

Soundtrack
On February 18, 2024, one song from the soundtrack, "Everything Comes in Time" (一切都来得及) was released alongside its music video. In the music video, Jia Ling is shown performing a duet with herself: before losing weight and after losing weight.

Release
The film was released over the Lunar New Year holiday in China, grossing 1.6 billion yuan at the box office in its first four days screening, and surpassing the 2.1 billion mark by the 15 February, becoming the most successful movie in the Spring Festival season 2024. As of March 23, 2024, the cumulative box office was 3.456 billion.

On February 9, 2024, it was reported that Sony Pictures had acquired international distribution rights for the film. The film was then released in Singapore and Malaysia on March 21, 2024.