director of the millennium

Chapter 311 Success or failure?Scheduled in Japan!
"Success or failure? Behind the box office success of "Red Cliff" are a flood of negative reviews!" - "Yangcheng Evening News"

"The story is unclear, the characters are completely off track, and there is almost no core. The movie is just a fabrication. Is it a bit biased to comment on "Red Cliff" like this?" - "Daily Entertainment News"

"Even though there are many flaws in Red Cliff, it still cannot cover up the brilliance of this movie." - "Southern Metropolis Daily"

"Instead of using the history of the Three Kingdoms as a propaganda point, we use the sex scene between Lin Chilin and Liang Chaowei. Is this what a historical blockbuster should do?" - "Hua Xia Daily"

Looking at the newspaper bought by his assistant, Wu Baige angrily threw it on the table.

"What kind of reporters are they? They don't understand movies and are talking nonsense!"

The other articles were okay, but the article in "Hua Xia Daily" could be said to have really poked him and made him a little bit off guard.

The movie "Red Cliff" has been promoted since February, but who is it mainly promoting?

It's not Tony Leung, nor Kim Sung-wu, nor even Chow Yun-mao who plays Cao Cao (he wouldn't refuse to play "Red Cliff" because he didn't play "Pirates of the Caribbean 3"), but Lin Chi-lin who plays Xiao Qiao.

To sum it up, I wish the whole world could know that sister Zhilin played Xiao Qiao.

you ask why?
Wu Baige went to Taiwan to develop his film career in 1984. The network of contacts in Taiwan behind him was not much less than that in Hong Kong.

And Lin Chilin is a star that Taiwanese people want to admire in recent years, even if she is a model.

Before participating in "Red Cliff", Lin Chilin was just a slightly famous host in Taiwan.

Of course there is a big promoter behind her becoming the heroine of "Red Cliff".

Wu Baige has always been a supporter and even a pioneer of the argument of "using mainland resources to support Hong Kong and Taiwan artists".

It is absolutely normal for these two parties to be combined.

However, if it were in the past, some thoughtful people in the mainland would not say much on this topic if they knew that Lin Chilin was a newcomer that Hong Kong and Taiwan circles wanted to praise.

Just like when Jin Chengwu was highly praised and asked to be matched by a mainland actor, everyone tolerated it.

But things are different now. Wu Yuan's "Your Name" proved that a purely mainland team can also get high box office, and Hong Kong and Taiwan teams are not the only ones.

In the middle, Feng Xiaogang's "Assembly" once again proves that even without big-name actors, it can still earn hundreds of millions at the box office!
Now there is also "Gravity", a Chinese film starring a mainland actor and once again breaking the box office record.

With the Mainland filmmakers working hard and supporting themselves, the editors-in-chief of Mainland entertainment newspapers certainly dared to open fire.

Why should mainland movie fans praise the bad feet of Hong Kong and Taiwan stars?

Good is good, bad is bad.

For such a blockbuster with an investment of 3 million, the focus of promotion is an unknown female host from Taiwan. How could the mainland newspapers not complain about such an outrageous thing?
Just as Wu Baige had no reason to refute this kind of criticism, it could only make him angry.

Don’t I just want to support a newcomer?
Is it wrong for a director like me to praise newcomers?
As for the reason for being criticized?

Doesn’t he, Wu Yuan, praise newcomers?
That piece of shit "Your Name", weren't all the actors new?
He also stuffed Liu Yifei into the crew of "Pirates of the Caribbean 3".

At that time, why didn’t you media reporters talk about him?

Wu Baige was angry in his heart. He did not understand the dissatisfaction of the mainland media at all. He only felt that these people were making trouble unreasonably.

"Have you compiled the box office data of South Korea, Thailand, and Singapore?" Wu Baige asked his assistant with residual energy after throwing away the unsightly newspapers.

"It's been compiled." His assistant said quickly: "In the first week of its release in South Korea, it received 20 moviegoers, making it the third most watched movie in the week."

"Thailand's first-week box office was US$80, also breaking into the top three weekly box office."

"Singapore even topped the weekly box office championship, with a box office of US$130 million."

It didn't get much box office, but its rankings were pretty good.

Wu Baige's complexion also improved a bit.

As some film critics have said, "Red Cliff" is not a movie only for Chinese people. It is even aimed at foreign markets.

After all, he is a director who has been in Hollywood. Wu Baige is still very ambitious. He not only wants to sweep Asia, but also wants to counterattack North America.

"South Korea's publicity needs to be stepped up. Let Kim Sung-wu and Zhou Yunmao go to South Korea to appear on some programs and do some publicity."

"Has the release schedule in Japan been arranged?"

"It's been arranged." Assistant Hui reported: "It has been confirmed that "Red Cliff" will be released in Japan on November 11th. At that time, the entire crew will go to the Japanese premiere."

The most important overseas market for "Red Cliff" is Japan. The era of the Three Kingdoms is also well-known to the Japanese.

I don’t know why, but the Japanese have a mysterious interest in the Three Kingdoms era of China. Coupled with the influence of various Three Kingdoms-themed games, they also cherish the heroes of the Three Kingdoms.

People such as Guan Yu, Zhao Yun, Cao Cao, and Liu Bei may be more famous in Japan than historical figures from Japan's unpopular historical periods.
The Battle of Red Cliff is even more widely known.

It can be said that the Japanese market is the natural ticket warehouse for "Red Cliff".

It is also because of the Japanese market that Wu Baige dared to make such a high-investment blockbuster.

He is indeed a bit conceited, but he is not a fool. He knows that relying solely on the mainland market cannot support a movie with an investment of 3 million.

An original modern campus romance film like "Your Name" was able to earn 150 billion yen at the box office in Japan. His two "Red Cliff" films combined to earn 200 billion yen at the box office, right?
The current Japanese yen is still quite valuable. One hundred yen is worth 6.74 yuan. 100 billion yen is 6.7 million yuan. If it sells for 200 billion yen, even if there is no domestic market, "Red Cliff" can still maintain its capital.

(The share of overseas movies in Japan is only about 30%.)
It can be said that the Japanese market is more important to "Red Cliff" than the Chinese market!
There is no way the Chinese market can make "Red Cliff" return its money.

"November is a bit late, but it's not bad." Wu Baige nodded.If you are scolded in the country, then you will be scolded.

In order for "Red Cliff" to be recognized by the world, all threshold things in the work should be eliminated.

National characteristics cannot be preserved because foreigners cannot understand them.

Personal characteristics cannot be preserved even more.

In the deep-rooted concept of Chinese audiences, the Romance of the Three Kingdoms is an eternal classic and no adaptation is allowed. Therefore, the audience can only accept the old version of the Three Kingdoms and will never understand other people's Three Kingdoms.

Overseas audiences have no idea about "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" and it is easy to draw on a blank sheet of paper. Wu Baige believes that his "heroic" film, which is more in line with the aesthetics of overseas audiences, will receive good reviews overseas.

In this way, flowers bloom outside the wall, and the inside of the wall will be fragrant.

Now these mainland reporters are firing all kinds of shots and criticizing constantly. When "Red Cliff" achieves outstanding results overseas, these people will naturally reflect on it and even take the initiative to admit their mistakes and praise "Red Cliff" instead.

He knows very well what the current situation of mainland movies is like.

I have low self-esteem, but I desperately want to be recognized and accepted by the world. If I achieve a little success overseas, I will be promoted to a altar at home.

Didn’t that young boy Wu Yuan become regarded as a super director in China just because he made some achievements in Hollywood?
Wu Baige curled his lips with some disdain.

In his opinion, Wu Yuan was just lucky enough to take over "Pirates of the Caribbean", a commercial series that was destined to be successful.

It's just a common commercial blockbuster in Hollywood. If it were him, he would be able to make it well. There's nothing surprising about it.

Directors like him who have been making movies for decades, from Hong Kong to Taiwan to Hollywood, step by step, are truly outstanding directors who have the ability to stand the test of time.

Wu Yuan?Just bad luck!

In the age of light and shadow, the general manager's office.

Wu Yuan was also reading today's new newspaper at this time.

However, the headlines of the newspaper in his hand were different.

"Comment on "Gravity": Behind the "realism" of science fiction is national strength!" - "People's Daily"

"Public Opinion Focus: Cultural Confidence and National Strength Demonstrated by "Gravity"!" - "Xinhua Daily"

"Facts have proven that Chinese science fiction has the ability to tell its own stories!" - "Guangming Daily"

""Gravity" is a breakthrough in the field of science fiction films. Chinese filmmakers have begun to have the confidence to use their own narrative methods to challenge the science fiction films that have been monopolized by Hollywood for many years." - "China Youth Daily"

"Focus on the future, rather than the traditional Chinese historical epic - "Gravity"!" - "Worker Daily"

The newspapers in Wu Yuan's hands were all official media.

These official media seem to have a tacit understanding, and they all wrote an editorial article about "Gravity" today.

Although it is not the front page headline, it can occupy half a page in the official media, which is very rare in Chinese movies in the past.

Especially the last editorial in the Workers' Daily, which refers directly to a recently released historical epic, arguing that its adaptation deviated from the true history and made the ups and downs of the epic look very petty.

Although he didn’t mention it directly, anyone who has read this article will know that it is “Red Cliff”.

Although Director Han and China Film Group seem to have great power and are the helmsmen of the Chinese film industry, they are really not ranked high in the entire Chinese system.

When "Gravity" has been linked to China's aerospace industry, promoting China's strength and boosting national self-confidence, and even has the intention of becoming China's business card, the public opinion of this movie is no longer in China Film's control.

Even though Director Han didn't want to see this kind of behavior of criticizing and criticizing "Gravity", some official media still praised "Gravity" and took the opportunity to criticize "Red Cliff".

It's normal. Whether the "Red Cliff" movie does well at the box office or not doesn't affect them.
On the contrary, it was the random adaptation of "Red Cliff" that made many veteran writers in the state media particularly dissatisfied.

Compared with "Gravity", which made the boss very satisfied, "Red Cliff" is really unpalatable.

Just like Teacher Six cannot accept some movies that have been adapted from "Journey to the West", most writers in the official media who have experienced the influence of "Old Three Kingdoms" cannot accept Wu Baige's version of "Red Cliff".

Looking at these articles praising "Gravity" and criticizing "Red Cliff", Wu Yuan was in a good mood.

Everything is afraid of comparison!
In my dream, when "Red Cliff" was released, I didn't have a viable opponent. Although I received a lot of scolding, it wasn't to the extent that the official media was punished.

Now that there is a "good work" as a foil, some official media can't help but quit.

"Haha, the daily box office performance of "Red Cliff" was cut in half this week, right?"

"Yesterday's single-day box office was only 2000 million? Is it similar to "Gravity"?"

Wu Yuan smiled happily.

"Red Cliff" is only in its second week of release, but the box office results are similar to "Gravity", which has been in its fourth week. This result can be said to be embarrassing to grandma's house.

Although the total box office still reached 1.8 million, it was completely incomparable with the exaggerated box office of more than 3 million in his memory!
"Are you sure?" Wu Yuan suddenly turned to Li Xiaoping and asked.

Li Xiaoping, who knew what he was asking, said hesitantly: "It's confirmed, November 11th."

"Then let's arrange it for November 11th!"

"After waiting for so long, he is finally scheduled!"

(End of this chapter)