Exploiting Hollywood 1980

  Chapter 975 Opposing drama

   "Huh?" Michelle Pfeiffer heard John Malkovich asking Ronald not to spread the relationship between the two, and suddenly turned her head, her eyebrows raised, as if she didn't quite believe what he said.

  With reddish eyes, her lower lip trembled a little, then stood up, not forgetting to nod with Ronald, and quickly ran to the direction of her trailer.

  "Michelle", John Malkovich heard the movement, and quickly turned back to chase, leaving Ronald in place.

  Things came so suddenly, as if after a gust of wind, nothing remained. Only Ronald was left standing messily in the sun. After standing there for a while, Ronald stretched out his hand to touch the place where the two of them were sitting just now, and confirmed that he was not dreaming.

   "Shxt!" Ronald turned a few corners, came to the lounge just now, and waved to Richard, "Let's go first, and call Rick (Nisita) immediately. There is something urgent."

   "John Malkovich is in the industry, and he has a bad reputation in this area. I have many, many complaints about him." Nisita, who was woken up, sighed on the phone.

"Should we contact Michelle's agent Limato right away..." Richard interjected, this matter was broken by Ronald, but someone was spreading gossip beforehand, it seems that sooner or later it will be spread, If you can't communicate with Michelle's broker who handles financial business like her father in advance, it will be a lot of trouble later.

  Pfeiffer's agent Limato flew to Paris on the Concorde after hearing the news. Came to the set the next morning.

  Ronald took Limato to the outside of Pfeiffer's trailer. John Malkovich was sitting at the door. Ronald gave him a strange look. Didn't he say that he himself is notorious in the relationship between men and women? Why does she seem to be infatuated this time?

   "Tuk Tuk...", Ronald knocked on the door.

   "Go away...", Michelle Pfeiffer yelled from inside.

   "It's me, Ronald. And Mr. Limato."

   Soon Pfeiffer came to open the door. Ronald let Ed Limato in, and stood by himself, looking at John Malkovich who didn't know whether to go in or continue to wait.

   "I'm sincere..." Markovich didn't know what was going on, but actually defended Ronald.

   "Why don't you let her calm down, I don't think the timing is very good now, you still have scenes to film." Ronald saw that the mental state of both of them was a bit abnormal, and advised him to go back. Malkovich went back in a daze.

  Limato and Michelle Pfeiffer talked for a long time, and finally finalized the next course of action. John Malkovich was an irresponsible man, and Pfeiffer decided to call it quits. Fortunately, the scenes of the two of them have already been filmed in sevens and eighties, so it won't hinder too much.

  In addition, Limato used his influence in the agent circle (director Stephen Frys is a client of WMA), or bought or threatened multiple crew members who knew about it.

   After Limato finished chatting with Pfeiffer, he was going to the hotel to make arrangements. Seeing that Ronald was still at the car door, he made a lamenting expression and pulled Ronald aside.

"Michelle's husband, with...you get the point. The movie 'Dangerous Liaisons' is about a chaste dame who, because her husband isn't around, gets tricked by a playboy's sweet talk. Michelle is too involved It's time...you go to see her, she needs you at this time."

   Ronald thought to himself, what does it mean to need me at this time? But the trailer door opened again, and with Michelle Pfeiffer watching him from behind, Ronald had to get in too.

He looked at Pfeiffer, not knowing what to say, and out of nowhere, Ronald said: "Can you continue to act? ... Uh, I mean, you are still interested in my 'Steel Magnolia' ?"

   "Puff..." Michelle Pfeiffer laughed out loud, and Ronald's words made her let go of her worries.

   "Of course, I like this script very much. I invited you here just to chat with you. Can you be the director?" Michelle Pfeiffer returned to normal.

"If you agree to play, then I will seriously consider it." Ronald is also thinking, Michelle Pfeiffer's box office appeal is very good, coupled with the new Oscar winner Olympia Dukakis, and the movie After Shirley McLean, this movie seems to be a bit of a head, now I am a master of feminist films, is it safe to wear it?

  The two were friendly and tacit and did not talk about any unexpected things. Ronald said goodbye, leaving Pfeiffer a private space to calm down this messy emotional dispute.

   "Why did you come out so soon?" Limato was in the lounge, communicating with Ronald's agent Richard.

  The bad thing about this matter is that the personal relationship between Pfeiffer and Malkovich was broken by Ronald. No matter how the two get along afterwards, as long as there is a leak, Ronald's name will definitely be involved in the tabloid media.

   And this kind of large costume drama crew of hundreds of people, leaks are almost certain to happen.

Fortunately, the filming location is in Hair Country, and Limato still has time. When he returns, he will mobilize the power of William Morris, take precautions with the major media and some small reporters, and immediately suppress any unfavorable news. Live, although it is impossible to limit it 100%, but it can also be controlled within a certain range.

  And Richard is most concerned that Ronald will not be involved in this matter, especially the two protagonists who have an affair. Anyone must make sure that Ronald's name will not be spoken. John Malkovich was originally a client of CAA, so it was easy to handle, but for Limato, the two parties had to reach a tacit agreement.

  The two had a good talk, and Richard felt that he was very sure to help Ronald handle the matter satisfactorily. Unless, Ronald himself has other ideas?

   Fortunately, Ronald didn't have any ideas. "I finished talking with Michelle about the new film. She already liked the script very much, so it didn't take long."

   "Thank you," Limato didn't say much. After paying his respects to Ronald, he went to speed up the arrangements.

   "Huh..." Ronald and Richard both heaved a sigh of relief at the same time, "What happened to Michelle?" Ronald asked, and realized that this kind of thing is not easy to discuss with his agent.

   "Ed (Limato), I had a chat with me just now." Richard didn't think there was any problem with this. In his opinion, what Ronald wanted to know had to find out the truth.

"Miss Pfeiffer has been a strong box office performer, but critics have been less than positive about her acting skills. It wasn't until she appeared in Jonathan Demme's Join the Gang that Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times gave a She has a good review.

   This is the progress and results she has achieved after years of continuous acting training. But the side effect is that she is now more and more likely to fall into the role and cannot extricate herself. "

   "Method school?" Ronald sighed, sometimes it's like this, if you want to perform well and let the critics speak well, you have to give up something.

  In fact, this kind of problem is not necessarily limited to the method school. This kind of film shot abroad, as well as the daily costume and makeup, are immersed in this kind of plot. Actors are all sensitive people, and they are easy to get caught up in the situation, and can't tell the difference between the plot and life.

   "Michelle's manager is her friend. There is no immediate discovery and guidance. Limato will use some means this time to fire her. Change to someone who can really stand on the same line of interest as him."

   Ronald nodded, obviously the absence of the manager was to create opportunities for Pfeiffer. For actors, sometimes the manager is too obedient and there is a problem.

Finally, the casting of the new film has been finalized. Ronald feels that he is not interested in continuing his vacation in Paris. He wants to go back to Cannes to meet his colleagues and pay more attention to the company's business. However, after talking with Richard Before leaving Versailles, he suddenly thought of one thing.

   "Hey? Why didn't you see Annette (·Benin) in the crew?"

  Richard was a little stunned by the question, not knowing how to answer.

   "I promised her at the beginning and introduced her to an audition opportunity. Could it be that she didn't get it?" Ronald was a little unhappy. He has a good reputation in this kind of thing. In the future, I don’t want to promise to fail to do so, and ruin my reputation.

"No, it's not right, she doesn't have a role here." Ronald thought it was wrong, there are three main female characters in this movie, a virgin played by Pfeiffer, and a virgin named Uma Thurman And there's Glenn Gross as the villain. "

"No, she went to audition for another movie with the same theme, Orion released it, and it's all adapted from the stage play 'Dangerous Liaisons'. This film will be stepped up and will be released at the end of the year. That film won two Oscars for Best Director Winner Milos Forman (Mozart and One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest) directed."

   "Oh, this is... really outrageous."

   Ronald understands that this stage play was released in the West End of London and has copyright. But the novel was written in the 18th century. No matter who gets the copyright of the stage play adaptation, the other party can say that their adaptation is based on the novel.

Moreover, these two films happen to be the two typical methods of adapting masterpieces in Hollywood. This Warner Brothers film tries to invite all kinds of stars to participate, while the other Orion film is carefully selected by famous directors to choose the most suitable actors instead of fame. The biggest thing is, I really don't know who will win the box office.

  However, no matter who it is, the box office will be less than when only one movie is released.

   It’s no wonder that the Writers Guild is still on strike. Producers have fierce competition for this kind of script that has proven successful on the Broadway stage. If it is not filmed, it will definitely suffer a big loss next year. No blockbuster film may be due to the bad luck of the executives. If no movie is released, it means that there is a problem with basic ability.

  However, in such a brutal competition to the point of cutting throats, Warner and Orion are playing against each other. This is not so good for the career prospects of executives. Ronald looked at Richard. If this fails at the box office, there is no other reason to shirk. The filming on both sides is equivalent to the same script.

   "Orion urgently needs blockbuster films to prove that it has no financial problems," Richard explained to Ronald. This company is a medium-sized producer, and it relies on blockbuster films one after another to maintain the company's cash flow. They were suspended from script development for several months, and now there are many rumors in Hollywood that they, too, have problems.

  So we need to find the right opportunity and show everyone that Orion’s strength is still there. Otherwise, if there is no such blockbuster, it will be bad if investors withdraw their capital.

  Sometimes, it is not that you really have a problem, but that the market and the industry think you have a problem.

   "Which movie do you think will be more successful?" Richard was also curious and asked Ronald, an expert, what he thought.

   "Hey, I don't know, it's hard to say." Ronald didn't know how to predict.

  …

   Ronald is back in Cannes, halfway through the festival. Natasha Kinski has already begun discussing the Palme d'Or behind closed doors with the rest of the judges. This year's Cannes is a small year, and there are no sensational movies.

  Ronald watched Bernstein and Cannold make a few small-budget European B-movies, and was going back to test whether the video market was interested in European movies. feel satisfied.

   In the past few days, there is also a movie that Ronald is familiar with, which is released by Weintraub's company and "Blue Sea and Blue Sky" directed by Mao Guo. The film is beautifully landscaped and has a slightly European eerie feel to it.

  He felt uncomfortable after watching the ending, as if the director deliberately made things difficult for the audience at the end. The hero did not reunite with the heroine, but dived into the deep sea by himself, not wanting to live anymore. The heroine is Hollywood actress Rosanna Arquette, who was once also very promising to be promoted to a top female star.

  However, the competition in Hollywood is too fierce. It seems that this time Arquette's efforts to change the track in Europe will not be successful. The film did not enter competition, and this kind of anti-dramatic ending is also difficult to achieve box office results in America. Her dream of returning to Hollywood with this is probably dashed.

   Just as Ronald was thinking about his thoughts, he saw an actress with a Chinese face in a cheongsam among the audience exiting in front of him. Isn't this the heroine in "Red Sorghum"?

   "Hello, Ms. Gong. This is Ronald. Director Zhang didn't come to Cannes this time?"

  Ronald stepped forward to say hello. Although he was wearing a cheongsam, Gong Li's inland temperament could be distinguished at a glance.

   "Ah, Director Luo. Bonjour, ah, no, you are from America, hello." GongLi saw a foreigner who could speak Chinese and was very kind.

   "Hello, hello. Let's find a place to eat." Ronald knew that these actors did not earn much, so he thought of treating them to something good. Cannes is very expensive during the film festival, don't go back to eat instant noodles later.

   "Haha, good!" Sure enough, the Chinese were very happy when they heard that someone invited them to dinner.

"Yimou is in China, someone wants to ask him to make a commercial film, and this time in Cannes, it was arranged by the manager of Xiangjiang. The money is not much, and only one person can come. Last time Yimou won West Berlin, so I'll come this time."

"Aha, commercial films are good. Director Zhang's artistic aesthetic is very high. If he can use the techniques of making author's films and apply them to commercial films, he will definitely succeed." Ronald felt interesting. It seems that the filmmakers over there , are also embracing commercialization, which is a good thing for their own business. There are also more opportunities to sell copies.

   "I don't know what subject it is?" Ronald was also curious about what type of commercial film Yimou would make. Judging from his first two films starring and directing, innovation may be needed.

   "It's about hijacking, do you know? It's about hijacking a passenger plane and then going to rescue the hostages. I heard that a boss watched a Hollywood video, and paid 90,000 yuan for Yimou to make a similar one."

   "Ah, it can't be...", Ronald felt bad. This plot, it sounds like it was directed by Minahan Golan.

   "The name is Delta Special Forces. I heard that it was filmed in the desert of Israel. The actor also acted in a movie with Bruce Lee. It's called...well, it's called Norris."

   "Eh...", Ronald covered his face, isn't Norris the Chinese name of the action star Chuck Norris signed by Minahan?

  (end of this chapter)