Generation Z Artists

Chapter 264: Appealing to both men and women, ticket sales soar!
The next day, entertainment news across the United States was almost entirely dominated by "Hero".

"Catch Me If You Can" premiered at noon today, so the morning news only featured one main character—the Supreme God Card SR!

Stephen Hunter's column in The Washington Post —

[Action Unleashed! Star River delivers the greatest action sequences in film history, a must-see for action movie enthusiasts!]

With highly professional analysis, he provided the audience with a detailed explanation of the ingenuity and complexity of the action scenes in "Hero," and passionately proclaimed it as "the greatest film in history."

In the Washington area, newspapers sold out in less than an hour.

Hollywood action movies are constantly producing classics, from the highly anticipated "The Matrix" to the record-breaking "The Lord of the Rings," to the kung fu films by Jet Li and Jackie Chan, and the tough-guy fights of stars like Sylvester Stallone...

However, the action scenes in "Hero" are on another level.

Its most distinctive feature is its splendor. SR, who also served as the martial arts director, used his boundless imagination to show us the limits of human movement.

Before him, no one could have imagined such a move.

After him, it will be difficult for anyone else to make such a move.

That spear-splitting action was filmed entirely without any protection, performed by SR himself, on location, in one continuous take.

He showed us the ultimate power and beauty of cold weapons... No, perhaps I should describe it more accurately: he showed us the ultimate power and beauty of the human body itself.

The action of mounting the gun is done in one smooth motion. First, the player jumps to a certain height with super jumping power and pushes the gun upright, rather than relying entirely on the elasticity of the gun barrel.

In this scene, the large gun used by SR is clearly made of a low-elasticity material, making it difficult to gain leverage. Therefore, the actor himself had to provide the kinetic energy to keep the gun upright.

Because the highly elastic material makes the gun difficult to control, causing it to bounce around and resulting in less aesthetically pleasing footage, the difficulty was deliberately chosen for the sake of visual appeal.

I can't think of anyone other than SR who could do such a thing.
Anyone filming this kind of scene would have to use auxiliary means, then use editing to achieve the action intention, and finally freeze a close-up of the gun to create atmosphere.

It's not that this kind of shooting is not aesthetically pleasing, but this shooting technique can never bring the kind of profound shock that SR delivers.

In a single, panoramic shot, SR uses incredible leaping ability, arm strength, core strength, flexibility, and coordination to dissipate kinetic energy and stabilize the gun with a single jump and pull, achieving complete unity between man and weapon…

Stephen Hunter meticulously analyzed frame by frame the film's most climactic fight sequence, the one where the character flips over and slashes while holding a spear.

It was described as "an insurmountable peak in action history".

As a true action fanatic, he disdains action effects that can be achieved through special effects, but he absolutely adores that fight scene.

Actually, his preference is very niche. Ordinary viewers don't care how it's achieved; they only care if he looks handsome.

But coincidentally, Fang Ge looked so handsome in this scene that it made people want to pee.

His reputation adds a layer of legendary aura to this "cool and handsome" image.

What kind of action would it be if no one else in the world could do it?
Many viewers who weren't particularly interested in action movies were ultimately persuaded to go to the cinema to see them for themselves because of his strong recommendation.

On the morning of the 25th, in Washington and the surrounding areas, the attendance rate for "Heroes" was significantly higher than on the West Coast. In this era, any professional has to acknowledge the role of film critics.

Of course, only the most enthusiastic hardcore movie lovers will be "tricked" into going to the cinema by the advertising. Most ordinary people don't have a strong desire to watch movies and have different viewing preferences, so they don't care much about the advertising and can only rely on word-of-mouth to drive the audience in.

Then, in just about a day, Heroes became a hit in the Washington area.

Quality rating: A; Audience satisfaction rating: B; Action rating: A++!

This is a remarkable achievement, meaning that the first group of viewers who went to the cinema were quite satisfied with the film, and were even so excited that they couldn't calm down for a long time.

Sony's publicity department collected questionnaires non-stop, then sent them to headquarters as good news, and then Nakamura personally delivered them to Fang Xinghe.

"Fang Jun! Great news!"

Fang Xinghe took the summary report and glanced at the two questions that Nakamura had highlighted in red.

Q: Would you be willing to watch this film repeatedly?

1. Unwilling; 2. Maybe I'll watch it again; 3. Definitely will watch it again; 4. I will watch it multiple times.

82% of the men chose option 4, and watched it multiple times.

Another 11% of men chose option 3, "At least look at it again."

Only 1.2% of men chose option 1, "unwilling," with the majority citing "dislike of the story's ending" as their reason.

Then there's the women's side.

77% of women chose to watch it multiple times.

15% chose to watch it again.

6% chose "unwilling," with the main reason being "I can't accept SR's death."

Whether male or female, there are few ambiguous situations, and the willingness to watch the film repeatedly is extremely strong.

Q: Would you recommend this film to a friend or family member?

[1. Unwilling; 2. Will talk about it with friends; 3. Very willing; 4. I would strongly recommend]

The percentage of those who strongly recommended the product reached 91%.

In this respect, men are still more willing to share, almost 7 percentage points higher than women.

"pretty good."

Fang Xinghe nodded, and asked without hesitation, "Does this mean that our film has the potential for a long run that goes beyond what is commonly believed?"

"more than!"

Nakamura's excitement hasn't subsided yet.

He pointed to the female data on the report and explained it in detail.

"You may not be familiar with the North American film industry. Our six major distribution departments have a relatively precise model or framework for the market and audience of each film."

For example, family-friendly comedy films are the most widely appealing subgenre.

For example, overseas films represent the smallest audience segment.

Different film genres require different distribution strategies, which in turn limits our predictions for the final box office to a certain range.

However, such predictions are subject to many unexpected factors. Therefore, when "Titanic" was released, the prediction departments of the six major film studios made consecutive errors, ultimately resulting in a result that no one dared to believe…

Fang Xinghe listened carefully, without rushing to ask any questions.

He is a semi-expert in the field of propaganda—only semi, because the scope of trolls is ultimately too narrow.

His understanding of the film itself is far from sufficient.

Nakamura didn't keep anyone in suspense and quickly got to the point.

"Through long-term research, we have found that women have an extremely high desire to share, but a relatively low willingness to recommend movies. They usually only like to share two types of movies—"

One type is artistic enough and niche enough.

But such sharing is usually meaningless. The recipients know what they need, and they often just offer a few compliments, and then both parties tacitly forget about it…

Fang Ge was sweating profusely as he listened.

Good grief, you actually dare to say such a blunt truth?
Nakamura, oh Nakamura, if this were 10 years from now, you would already have a way to die!
Of course, his analysis was extremely valuable, making Fang Xinghe suddenly realize something was amiss.

"The second type, of course, is romance films. Only a sufficiently poignant love story can inspire them to truly recommend the film. The box office miracle of 'Titanic' is inseparable from the repeated viewings by women all over the world."

You know, they would never go to the movies by themselves, not even the most reclusive person…

Stop! Get to the point, stop courting disaster!
Nakamura has absolutely never been beaten by an iron fist; every word he utters hits the mark, and he repeatedly dodges between being a jerk and a loser.

However, his analysis is becoming increasingly reasonable, which is indeed the case.

"In Hollywood, we never expect to take into account the power of recommendations from women. Although women are the main audience for many types of films, the fact is that their willingness to recommend is not strong, and the effect of their recommendations is not good."

However, there are occasional exceptions, such as "Titanic," and... our own films!

At this point, Nakamura became so excited that he gestured wildly.

"Mr. Fang, you don't understand. It's been so long since Hollywood has seen an investigation of this caliber!"

《指环王3》18号上映，首周末票房6200万美元，5日票房高达1亿美元，打破了由《哈利·波特与魔法石》保持的12月开画纪录。

Even so, the survey showed that no more than 40% of women were willing to recommend it!

This is a blockbuster entirely supported by male viewers.

And us!
Your masterpiece, "Hero"...

It completely shattered the myth that kung fu films lack a female audience!

Please see this additional report line…

Fang Xinghe stared intently and saw a survey on the percentage of female comments. A total of 8000 questionnaires were sent to female viewers, and 7200 were returned, of which 4500 had comments.

"Generally speaking, American female movie fans don't like filling out questionnaires, but they wrote far more for you than usual, well, although most of it was a bit... "

Fang Xinghe flipped through the stack of questionnaires that Nakamura had brought, and well, they were indeed a bit... something.

I randomly picked one, and it said at the bottom: "Fuck me, please!"

Of course, there are also normal ones, such as a 16-year-old girl named Anna who wrote a lot of things.

“SR, I heard from the staff that this batch of questionnaires will eventually end up on your desk. I don’t know if it’s true, but I’m writing this down with a glimmer of hope.”

My name is Anna Malfoy, I'm from xx High School in DC, I'm 16 years old, and I'm a 36D (crossed out).

I'm a decent girl, and I just wanted to tell you that I absolutely loved your performance in "Hero".

You are so powerful, and so kind. You possess invincible skills, a handsome face, and the noblest character. You have fallen hopelessly in love with Prince Yu, an ancient prince who has never appeared in any American film.

When you died, I was in tears and sobbing uncontrollably, my heart aching in waves…

Skipping over long stretches of rambling nonsense, the last sentence is—

"When you look up and smile, I feel my world come alive again. I think I won't be able to sleep tonight. I have so many things I want to tell someone, but I don't know who to tell, or who can understand."

Perhaps I should encourage all the girls in my class to watch "Hero." I don't care how amazing the scenes are; I just want to know if anyone else will be completely destroyed by you in the movie, just like I was…

Fang Xinghe pondered for a moment, then felt he understood completely.

"so……"

He asked softly, "The character arc of Prince Yu has a powerful appeal to women aged 13 to 43, which is why our film, despite lacking romance, still evoked a strong desire among them to recommend it?"

"Hi! Hi!"

Nakamura Kuku bowed, indicating that he was right, brother.

"Your performance as Prince Yu is so captivating! Especially that smile at the end, you have no idea how many female viewers in the theater were screaming! This is from the just-released issue of COSMO this morning, which includes a description of your performance in the film."

Cosmopolitan is currently one of the top four women's magazines in the United States, consistently ranking among the top three in circulation and advertising revenue.

In the latest issue of the magazine, in order to join the fun or, to ride the wave of popularity, they published an article focusing on Fang Xinghe's appearance and his performance in his first film.

It reads:

"SR knew exactly how to use his appearance to carry out mass slaughter."

In the final scene of the film, he revealed a relieved smile that was completely out of character for his age. The slight upturn of his lips, the faint dimples, and the clear champagne-colored eyes together created the greatest eye contact of the 21st century—the eye contact between a film actor and the audience.

The fourth wall was broken without warning. I was completely unprepared for it, and I can hardly describe the surprise I felt at that moment.

I had absolutely no idea what he was trying to tell me. Sorry, I didn't have time to think about such trivial questions. I just screamed and hugged my arms, feeling the goosebumps throbbing in my palms—proof that I was completely in love with the scene.

Those men were only excited about the fighting; yes, they liked this kind of violence. But I'm different. I went to the movie theater just to see his face.

Now, the results tell me that SR not only has a face blessed with good looks, but he also possesses incredible acting talent.

My goodness! What a wonderful surprise!
His nuanced and realistic performance led me into the world of a born saint's generous sacrifice, and then an unexpected smile pulled me back to heaven. I suddenly realized that I had lost Prince Yu forever, but I still possessed SR.

A story has ended, but it doesn't need to be on the ice.

Star River will use that face, those eyes, and those various expressions that are rarely shown in real life to lead me into one dream after another.

Sisters, the most fortunate thing of this century has happened before our eyes—SR chose to make movies instead of continuing to play that crap basketball!

You have to believe me, he's even more handsome in the movies, a million times more handsome than on the basketball court!
I know you're not interested in kung fu movies. Yes, I know, because I'm the same way.

But you absolutely must watch "Hero." Every minute of the 30 minutes with him is an immense pleasure.

As a rising star, I can't allow you to miss his important debut film. Trust me, go see it, and then tell me in my comments—who is this generation's American heartthrob?!

After reading it, Fang Xinghe's first question was—

"Nakamura, did you spend money?"

"Cosmopolitan?"

Nakamura was taken aback, then quickly waved his hand in denial.

"No, no, no, COSMO is not within our marketing scope. As you know, it's a women's magazine, while Hero was initially targeted at kung fu enthusiasts..."

OK, the reasons are very valid, so it seems this wasn't a press release bought with money.

This means that, thanks to Fang Xinghe's performance, the character of Prince Yu has achieved the most dreamlike ending in the film and television industry—character transcendence.

Looking back, there's Brigitte Lin's Invincible East; looking closer, there's Leonardo DiCaprio's Jack; looking further back, there's Gao Qiqiang's Zhang Songwen... These are all good examples of how roles transcend reality and bring tremendous benefits to actors.

A classic character can transcend the film and television drama itself, live on forever, be remembered by the audience, and thus evoke strong empathy, projecting their emotions onto the actor.

Now, Fang Xinghe also has such a role.

Although men judge women based on their looks and the reasons are completely different, this is precisely the ideal situation.

—Build a movie-going appeal in the hearts of men, and set fire to the hearts of women. Both sides recommend the movie for different reasons, maximizing the box office of "Hero". Isn't that wonderful?
Nakamura brought bad news in the morning: box office results in cities other than Washington, D.C. were not particularly good.

This is normal. No matter how good a foreign film is, its potential in the United States is not high.

But now, the questionnaire that Nakamura brought reveals another possibility.

That possibility is called...

It appeals to both men and women, leading to a surge in votes!
(End of this chapter)