Chapter 123: Fierce Battle on Christmas Eve
January 10, 1999.
At the fourth floor conference hall of Hilton Hotel in Los Angeles, Yi Feiyang represented the film crew to hold a simple press conference about the upcoming movie "Saving Private Rachel", and almost all the newspapers and radio stations in Los Angeles were invited.
The press conference was conducted in a very friendly atmosphere. Before it began, Yi Feiyang, representing TOP Film Company and Dream Movie Company, paid heavy tribute to the late Mr. Henry the Elephant. The press conference then officially started, with Yi Feiyang answering questions about the film's planning, shooting, and content. As a result, the originally mysterious content of "Saving Private Rachel" was revealed a little bit. However, Yi Feiyang naturally didn't reveal too much, saying that would spoil their appetite.
At the press conference, Yee Feng-yang officially announced that "Saving Private Rachel" co-produced by TOP and Dream Movie will be released simultaneously in 200 cinemas in Los Angeles tomorrow, January 11. Among these cinemas, the "Star Cinema" of the eight major cinema lines of TOP Film Company will start half an hour earlier, and all the main creators will attend at that time.
Regarding the press conference held by Yi Feiyang, various Hollywood media outlets have given different reactions.
Some media outlets that like to dig up gossip news are shouting the slogan "Let's see what kind of pornographic film 'Yang' can make" and making a big deal about it in the press.
However, the tone of these articles is inevitably somewhat clichéd. This Chinese director, although having some talent, has degenerated into making a pornographic film for Christmas release, calling it "Make this Christmas more sensual". Bullshit, this is purely **!
They didn't know that "Let's make this Christmas a little brighter" was actually the promotional idea thought up by Henry, the deceased elephant.
Some mainstream media, however, are lukewarm about the upcoming new play, reflecting an unusual calmness. Perhaps it's because the Christmas season has already entered its final stage, and Yi Feiyang wants to catch this last bus, which seems a bit difficult, because... the competition is too fierce!
From last November to this January, during the Christmas season, all major American film companies made every effort to recover from their losses in the summer and make a profit. Everyone wanted their films to be successful and profitable, so they could have a happy new year. One way to guarantee a "fat year" was to have big-name stars and celebrities in their movies, including handsome men and beautiful women who hadn't been seen in years...
……
The first shot of Christmas archives
An American comedy film produced by Walt Disney Productions: "Ernest Saves Christmas".
The slogan is: Celebrate Christmas with a bang, "Golden Boy King" and "Funny Queen" accompany you to laugh wildly!
Director: Alan Smithee
Starring: Jonathan Taylor, Jessica Bell.
This Christmas comedy film was invested and shot by Disney Film Company. The director of "Ghostbusters" and the famous American "Hollywood Golden Boy" Jonathan-Taylor, as well as the "Queen of Comedy" Jessica-Bell, starred in the lead roles. The former played the male protagonist who is extremely unlucky in the play, not only sacrificing his appearance but also being ridiculed by everyone and suffering a lot. It can be said that this is the biggest challenge for the Hollywood child star-turned actor in history. Hollywood's "Big Laughing Aunt" Jessica-Bell played the role of Jakeo's brainless girlfriend in the play, and the two silly people made everyone laugh.
Selling point: A Christmas comedy with a playful and adventurous nature that kids love to watch, plus the Disney "family-friendly" gold label.
……
Christmas file second gun
Universal Pictures presents a romantic movie: "Sixth Sense of Fate".
The slogan is: The arrival of the handsome Reaper, true love transcends life and death!
Director: Martin Brest.
Starring: Brad Pitt, Anthony Hopkins, Claire Forlani.
The film's inspiration came from a 1934 movie adaptation of a stage play, and director Martin Brest had been simmering on it for 20 years. "When I first saw that movie 20 years ago," Brest said, "I was really taken with it, it was an undiscovered good story, what we wanted to do wasn't remake but further explore the elements that fascinated me."
As the two most famous male actors in Hollywood today, Anthony Hopkins is an Oscar-winning actor and a veteran of the industry who guarantees a good movie. Brad Pitt may lack some acting skills but his handsome appearance makes him suitable for a Christmas movie outing.
Selling point: Classic stage play adaptation, two major Hollywood-style male leads, a must-see Christmas romance for loving couples!
……
Christmas third gun
Warner Bros. Pictures presents a romantic film: "City of Angels".
Slogan: Angels come to the world, willing to give up returning to heaven for love.
Director: Brad Silberling
Starring: Nicolas Cage, Meg Ryan.
The film's precursor is the 1987 German film "Wings of Desire", but its true target is "Ghost". Cage's angel lacks a bit of the ethereal quality he should have. When he approaches the heroine, the audience not only doesn't feel that she will be protected by the angel, but also worries that she will be harmed. Meg Ryan almost repeats her role in "Sleepless in Seattle". The angels depicted in the film are called "yin yang gui" in Chinese, who specialize in welcoming people who have just died to the afterlife at hospitals. There is a scene where the angels gather by the sea, which seems to pay homage to Bergman's "The Seventh Seal".
Selling point: Not selling Santa Claus but an angel, taking a bitter and abusive love route, a popular young actor paired with a top beauty, at least visually pleasing.
……
This is just a microcosm of the Christmas strategy of the three major Hollywood film companies, and more film companies have also taken out their own films that they had put on hold, hoping to make a big sale during this attractive period and earn a lot of money.
However, as long as they are professionals, they can find that among the many Christmas and New Year's movies, there are two most obvious types of films. One is a comedy film in the mode of "family fun", such as Disney's "Home Alone". This play is aimed at the children's market, with small hands holding big hands, driving the whole family to watch together. It can be said that during Christmas, the atmosphere is joyful and the mood is pleasant.
Another type is romantic films targeting men and women in love. As the saying goes, romance is an eternal theme of movies. As long as it's a romance movie, there must be a market for it. After all, Americans who claim to be free and romantic can skip Christmas turkey, but they cannot skip dating!
"Ghost", "Gone with the Wind", and last year's "Titanic", these excellent love movies, with their super-hot word of mouth and explosive box office, tell everyone that love not only nourishes the soul but also makes money!!! And it's a big profit!!!!
So this Christmas has become somewhat romantic. In addition to Universal's "The Sixth Sense", and Warner Bros.' "City of Angels", several other romance films have joined the fray.
This battle, no gunsmoke. No guns, no ghost killers, no robots, earth-shattering collisions, only miserable love. Tragic men and women, and the story plot that abuses me...
In these plays, the god of death and angels came down to earth, the common point is that they all fell in love, drowning each other... The god of death and angels are not easy either, more miserable than China's Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai, at least they can send off eighteen miles, but these two are more miserable than each other...
As the three-month Christmas season is about to end, when everyone thought that Christmas movies would not produce any more super dark horses or box office miracles, Yi Feiyang's "Saving Private Rachel" is ready to be officially released at the end of the season!
……
On January 11th, the weather was beautiful, and the snowflakes that had been falling continuously finally stopped, making the whole world seem extremely quiet.
In the evening, a cold wind suddenly rose, blowing the entire Giant Star Cinema area refreshingly. Passersby who happened to pass by here would find that this originally not-so-good cinema had suddenly become bustling in an instant. Car after car gathered from all directions, and among them were many luxury cars. The streets were crowded with people, and the entrance of the Giant Star Cinema was unusually noisy.
Yi Feiyang and Tu Zibei, along with the late Mr. Henry's private lawyer, stood on the steps outside the cinema to greet the invited guests, while Gao Jiaobao and Jack Black were busy inside.
The screening was attended by 200 people, mostly from the film industry, with the rest being residents of the neighborhood where the movie was shot, as well as some enthusiastic audience members who had heard about the premiere.
The first to arrive was Paramount Pictures' boss, Mr. Raymond, the head of Paramount Pictures, who was able to attend the premiere of this film solely because of his pleasant cooperation with Yi Feiyang. For a talent like Yi Feiyang, Mr. Raymond genuinely believed he could befriend him, especially since Yi Feiyang's three films had helped Paramount dominate the box office during the Halloween season. As a gesture of reciprocity, he felt it was necessary to attend this premiere; otherwise, given TOP's notorious reputation for being "indecent", they wouldn't have shown up here.
"Mr. Lai, hello, welcome! " Yi Feiyang smiled and extended his hand, Lai was very polite and smiled, shook hands and said: "Dear Yi, you've got me in a lot of trouble, I thought after our cooperation, we would have better projects, but you actually made a pornographic film with that guy Henry... Oh, sorry, I shouldn't be jealous of someone who has passed away, but I really hope to cooperate with you again!"
"Will be, definitely will be." Yi Feiyang smiled. "If this play reacts well, I also hope that Mr. Raymond can assign more theaters to me, so it can be fully released."
"No problem at all! As long as this play is impressive enough, I'll collaborate with you again even if you don't ask me to!"
After chatting for a few more minutes, Mr. Raymond went into the cinema.
Next to him, Gao Jiabao rushed up and made a ghostly face at Yi Feiyang, meaning "Catch this guy, big man!"
When Mr. Guste from Lionsgate arrived, it caused a stir on the scene, not because Guste is more famous than President Raymond, but because of Lionsgate's dazzling performance last year.
"Haha, dear Yi, it's not easy to support you, is it? Look at this, so many people are blocking the way here. Those who know think it's a movie premiere, while those who don't think there's been a traffic accident." Gusta patted Yifei Yang's shoulder in a very affectionate manner.
Yi Feiyang smiled slightly, "Thanks for coming out to support me, I originally thought it would be pretty dull this time."
"Hmm, it can't be quiet this time, because apart from me, Paramount's Mr. Raymond isn't here early, is he?"
I'm lost, why does it sound like a vinegar flavor?
Yi Feiyang could only laugh and say: "That's Mr. Raymond giving face, otherwise how could a nobody like me invite him to come?"
"Haha, dear Yi, your mouth is getting sharper and sharper, but I don't know if the movie you're filming this time is just as fierce?"
"Go take a look and you'll know, won't you?"
With a smile, Yi Feiyang invited Gusta in.
The appearance of these two big shots made everyone on the scene drop their jaws, and they had to reevaluate Yì Fēi Yáng's "reputation". Especially those employees from top film companies thought to themselves, even Mr. Henry didn't have such prestige when he was alive, this Chinese Yi is really not simple!
Later, the appearance of several guests also made Yi Feiyang somewhat unexpected, because these people either knew or didn't know each other. They didn't know each other because they had only met once at the previous Christmas party and weren't very familiar with each other. They knew each other because they had chatted before and felt pretty good about it, including the genius director Quentin Tarantino and Chinese actor Da Ge Cheng Long.
Cheng Long's appearance was unexpected by Yifei Yang, according to Cheng Long's words, he originally planned to fly back to Hong Kong immediately after reading the script of "The Peak Moment 2", but when he heard that his "fellow countryman" was holding a premiere ceremony here, he came to grab some free drinks with a thick face.
Cheng Long and I are both Chinese, standing together with our arms around each other's shoulders for a photo. Yifei Yang thinks that no matter what happens in the future, the friendship given by the other side is precious enough.
As for the genius director Quentin, Yifei Yang's understanding of him has always been on the movie "Kill Bill". On the one hand, he greatly admires how Quentin perfectly "desecrated" Chinese Kung Fu movies. On the other hand, he has to admit that Quentin introduced Hong Kong Kung Fu culture into Hollywood in a strange and peculiar way. It can be said that the subsequent emergence of the martial arts craze in Hollywood is absolutely related to this person; and the fact that Hollywood filmmakers have learned the essence of Hong Kong Kung Fu movies from him also has something to do with him. In short, this guy is a big "bridge"!
