Extracting skills from movies

Du Sheng shrugged and said:

"I'm not as beastly as you, nor am I violent and crazy."

Leonardo rolled his eyes:
"By the way, you are one of the investors of this play. Do you think I have so little money?"

Du Sheng knew about Leonardo's romantic anecdotes:

"I earned this money through hard work, but you are different. You can just talk and make money. You are very slippery."

Leonardo: "..."

Nicholson suddenly said faintly:

"Don't you know that some journalists are so bad that they would put eavesdropping devices on their seats?"

The two of them fell silent.

When the screen lit up, Du Sheng turned his eyes away.

This gangster film full of American street culture is completely different from the Hong Kong version of "Infernal Affairs".

The Hong Kong version is as cool and delicate as an ink painting, with a lot of narration and emphasis on 'fatalism'.

This "The Departed" is as rough and realistic as street graffiti.

The style is straightforward and bloody, with a large number of violent scenes and foul language dialogues throughout the film.

Director Martin also focuses on the living conditions of the lower classes of society.

From police officers to gangsters, everyone uses foul language and their characters are unrestrained and uninhibited.

Although Leonardo and Du Sheng have the most important roles, the real soul is Frank played by Nicholson.

"This guy is a genius born for acting!"

Du Sheng secretly admired.

Nicholson has already achieved success and fame, so he doesn't care about winning another Oscar.

But if the other party were to nominate him for Best Supporting Actor, he wasn't sure if he could win the competition.

But in the eyes of the audience, it is a different feeling.

Comparable!

Especially in the scenes opposite Leonardo, her acting skills were almost overwhelming.

"Du's performance puts Leo to shame!"

Hugh Grant lowered his voice to Daniel Craig:
"Leo never managed to solve that old problem."

Daniel Craigno took a sip of whiskey and thought:
“This Chinese boy has great talent and his acting is smooth and fluent.

Although I am not as talented as Jack Nicholson, I may be better than you and me in time. "

They have been popular in Europe for more than a decade as first-tier artists, and their words are of great value.

Daniel Craig shook his glass:
"Director Martin made this film very interesting and it is the most entertaining of his works."

Hugh Grant nodded in agreement:

"The box office should be good. Maybe it can break Leo's personal record."

As an art film director, Martin's films have always been lukewarm at the box office and often have to rely on offline channels to make a profit.

But this "The Departed" is obviously different, with many thrilling scenes.

From the beginning to the end, the audience was always filled with a tense atmosphere.

The moment Ding Genan pulled the trigger, the entire theater held its breath.

At the end of the movie, the audience unexpectedly applauded as they watched both male protagonists being killed.

Different from the tragic tone of "Infernal Affairs" of "falling into endless hell and unable to be reborn", the American version ends the story in a direct and cruel way, reinforcing the idea of ​​heroism.

Or perhaps this personal style that emphasizes "I am the only one" is exactly in line with the mainstream mentality of European and American people.

After the premiere, the main creators came on stage to express their gratitude, which was a complete beginning and an end.

“This is the most enjoyable movie I’ve ever watched.”

Director Martin spoke to reporters at the theater entrance and then got into a waiting black sedan.

Behind the car was a van carrying an orangutan, which was to be sent to Martin's farm tonight.

After Du Sheng and his group briefly accepted the interview, they got into another luxury car.

Nicholson smiled and said to Du Sheng:

"Old Martin seems to be in a good mood and should be very satisfied with this premiere."

Du Sheng sighed and silently took out a bottle of red wine.

Nicholson's cigar ash fell on the edge of the whiskey glass, and he smiled:
"Why, do you think that old Martin's lens has tarnished your noble oriental aesthetics?"

Du Sheng shook the amber vortex in the glass, as if shaking the dirty snow in the slums of Boston:

"Two hundred and thirty-seven 'FUCK's, forty-nine 'SON OF A BITCH's, don't you think we look like a bunch of rap robots stuck in a vending machine?"

He tapped the oak bar with his fingertips, sending out a Morse code rhythm:
“The rage of the ghetto should not be a repeater.”

Leonardo suddenly laughed and sprayed tequila, and the liquid drew a galaxy under the neon light:

“As accurate as a damn speech recognition AI!”

He wiped the wine stains off his Armani shirt:
"But seriously, Frank deserves a Grammy for Best Improvised Swearing when he calls my mom names."

"Art?"

Nicholson pulled off his crocodile leather tie and revealed the same evil smile from The Shining:
"Boy, dirty words are the gunpowder in the barrel of a gun—"

He suddenly slammed the bottom of the bottle on the table:
"Bang! Blast the audience's souls out of their bodies!"

Before I finished half a bottle of whiskey, my cell phone started to ring.

Du Sheng slid open the screen, and Warner's good news jumped out like a carnival elf.

“The premiere audience gave it an A+!”

Leonardo shook his champagne glass and chuckled:
"This score is likely to make the Oscar judges lose sleep."

Du Sheng stroked the condensed water droplets on the wall of the cup:
"I'm more curious about how many laurels the audience will give me in film reviews."

Nicholson's gold-rimmed glasses flashed a cold and mocking light:
"Thanks to Leo's performance as the dumbest villain of the year, your chances of winning are indeed higher."

Leonardo gave him the middle finger.

The crisp sound of the three people clinking glasses woke up the London morning mist outside the window, and each of them melted into the dim morning light.

When the Rotten Tomatoes website spit out a bright red index of 95%, "The Departed" had already conquered the bastion of film critics like a virus.

MTC's rating bar chart tap dances on the 89-point mark.

The title of the editor-in-chief's column pierces through all doubts like a bullet:
"Director Martin's criminal universe is crowned at this moment!"

The headline of the Los Angeles Times, however, put the microscope on Du Sheng.

The editor-in-chief's pen praised it generously in his column:
"This oriental man plays Detective Colin as a walking contradiction - a beast in a suit and a pious saint.

When he wanders between the police badge and drugs, the cool soul in "Baby Project" actually coexists perfectly with the evil ghosts of the gangsters! "

“Hollywood has never lacked outstanding global actors, but Du Sheng is undoubtedly one of the most noteworthy Asian rising stars.

He brings magic to Martin's new film and he deserves a statuette this awards season!"

At this moment, in the Los Angeles Film Critics Club, those moralists who once questioned whether commercial films tainted art were muttering to themselves in front of Du Sheng's close-up shot:
"Damn it, even this guy's pores are acting!"

Even some Oscar judges had to watch the movie out of curiosity.

Then, the impression was even deeper.

Du Sheng looked at the report sent by Li Yixin and others, and the corners of his mouth rose slightly.

He knew that the competition for the Oscars had just begun.

.........

Amid the hustle and bustle of the streets of London, a grand publicity campaign is in full swing.

Leonardo stood in the middle of the crowd. Although he was smiling, his eyes drifted away from time to time.

He was counting the passing pigeons out of boredom when he suddenly saw a staff member running towards him, panting.

"Leo, this is the newly arrived Los Angeles Times."

The staff handed over the newspaper, and the fragrance of ink wafted in the air.

Leonardo took the newspaper casually, glanced at the front page, and suddenly looked at Du Sheng who was taking photos with fans, and said jokingly:
"Tell me the truth, did you make any asshole deal with the editor of this newspaper?
That old man has always scolded me in the newspapers, but to you?
Tsk tsk, it's like writing a love letter!"

Du Sheng stopped what he was doing, shrugged and said:
"Don't be jealous, this is the highest realm of art." "Jealous?"

Leonardo rolled his eyes:
"I guess you're more ambitious than Oscar, right?"

Du Sheng smiled slightly:
"What's important is that the judges think I have artistic talent, and that's enough."

"Are those judges crazy?"

Leonardo suddenly became excited:
“I looked down on the Oscars back then, they said I had no art.

Later, I took the initiative to participate in the competition and tried my best to win the award every year. They said I did it deliberately. What do they want?"

Du Sheng looked at Leonardo's frustrated expression, and a playful smile appeared on the corner of his mouth:

"They're not wrong, they just don't like you.

It's like there's a black, ugly, poor person who keeps pestering you. No matter what she says, you have dozens of reasons to reject her, right? "

"I...I am dark, ugly and poor?"

Leonardo was stunned for a moment and pointed at his nose:
"Why am I black, ugly, and poor?"

"I did not say."

Du Sheng shrugged:

"But look at Charlize Theron. She knows how to be the perfect match for the judges."

Leonardo looked down at his slightly fat belly, then touched his slender face and sighed helplessly:
"This is the sign of a mature man, okay? These people are blind."

At this time, Nicholson came over unsteadily and patted Leonardo on the shoulder:

"Leo, what are you afraid of?

Even if you become what I am now, the people who are supposed to pursue you will still pursue you. "

He glanced at Du Sheng and continued to support Leonardo:
"Although you are famous for being fast, and not as big as Du, but you are better than him..."

"stop!"

Leonardo interrupted Nicholson hastily:

"Jack, if you keep talking like this, we'll no longer be friends."

Du Sheng couldn't help laughing when he heard this:
"Jack, how could you say that about Leo?

You should say Leo is like a 20-meter sprinter in seconds, slow work produces fine results. "

Leonardo bared his teeth and looked at the two of them, threateningly:

"On my birthday, I will let 20 black, ugly and poor guys take turns to serve you!

Even if you cry and scream, you have to finish this work!"

Not far away, a passing photographer captured this 'heartwarming' scene.

The moment the shutter sounded, Leonardo made a face at the camera, Du Sheng shook his head helplessly, and Nicholson was smiling like a naughty boy.

The scene was forever frozen in the camera, becoming the most vivid footnote of the London Film Festival.

…………

Los Angeles, Miracle Pictures.

Amanda tapped the rhythm of her high heels and turned gracefully during her meeting with MGM General Manager Theresa.

Her assistant trotted after her, holding a stack of documents as if she was holding the secrets of all Hollywood.

"Ms. Amanda, you need me to prepare you for what's next..."

The assistant just opened his mouth when she gently raised her hand to interrupt him.

"Let's go to the tea room and make a cup of coffee first."

A mysterious smile appeared on her lips:

"Today's meeting went much more smoothly than expected."

When I walked into the elegant reception room, Hades was staring at the Los Angeles River outside the floor-to-ceiling window.

Hearing the footsteps, he turned around suddenly, his eyes shining with excitement:

"Did you hear? The premiere of The Departed was a blast!
Critics were all praising Du crazily, and even those old-fashioned judges began to praise him at the party.

Now is the time, shall we…"

"Strike while the iron is hot?"

Amanda chuckled and sat down on the leather sofa, tapping her fingers lightly on the coffee table:

"Brother Sheng's performance is indeed commendable, but we need a more precise strategy."

She suddenly stopped smiling and her eyes became sharp:

“You have been managing the relationship with critics, and this time you will continue to be responsible for creating public opinion.

As for the Academy judges..."

She paused meaningfully:
"I have my own arrangements."

Hades immediately leaned forward:

“You mean the 1300-plus judges?

According to past experience, as long as we can get 200 nomination votes..."

"Yes."

Amanda interrupted him:

“But not every judge will watch the film seriously.”

She gently shook the coffee cup in her hand:

"They prefer to vote for 'the familiar.'"

"Those key figures you mentioned..."

Hades took out his notebook:

“I have already negotiated with them.

They will not only support Du Sheng, but also inspire more people.”

"very good."

Amanda nodded with satisfaction:
"but--"

She suddenly showed a sly smile:

“Be careful with Harvey Weinstein and his gang.

Today’s PR battles in the entertainment industry are much more complicated than before.”

Hades smiled knowingly:

“Du is ready.

He has been very busy lately, even attending three Film Critics Association receptions.”

"not enough."

Amanda stood up and walked to the window:
“We have to make his name stick like honey on everyone’s lips.

Ari Emanuel agreed to attend the preview, but we need more eye-catching news."

Ari Emmanuel is the president of ICM, one of the top five talent agencies in Hollywood, and has a great influence on Oscar nominations.

Hades continued:

"Du has already arranged a series of charity events and is also preparing to do an exclusive interview with Vanity Fair."

The two discussed these strategies further.

In today's Hollywood, public relations is not just the icing on the cake, but the key factor that determines success or failure.

Ever since Harvey Weinstein used "dirty water" to discredit his opponents several times, the entire rules of the game have changed dramatically.

Public relations is no longer as simple as publishing a few positive reports, but a game involving money, connections and moral bottom line.

For example, the sensational "city-wide smear campaign" incident two years ago is a classic case in Hollywood's public relations war.

At that time, a highly anticipated war film was suddenly faced with overwhelming negative reports on the eve of the Oscar selection. From conflicts between actors to inappropriate behavior of the director, all kinds of rumors came like a tide.

Ultimately, this film, which was originally considered a favorite to win an award, was overshadowed by the pressure of public opinion, but Harvey's manipulations behind the scenes are still talked about today.

………(End of chapter)