Generation Z Artists

Chapter 266 A sudden turn of events
$4.2 in box office revenue per theater! SR sets a new record!

—The Washington Herald.

The record for a foreign language film's single-theater box office is nothing to brag about; the real record in film history is the $5.7 opening day box office in Chicago.

—Los Angeles Times.

"Heroes Achieve Great Success, Action Scenes Are Groundbreaking"

—The New York Times.

The ending is unacceptable; "Hero" is a time-wasting, gorgeous piece of garbage.

—The Boston Morning Post.

……

From the very first day of the release of "Hero", the media has been divided into three major camps.

The sycophants, the smearers, and the neutrals.

In the United States, competition among publishers has always been this simple: throw money at the media, and then the media nitpicks and lies through their teeth.

"Chicago" was only shown in three theaters on a small scale, and the record-breaking single-theater box office of $57,000 was purely an exceptional case.

Of course, The Washington Post also exaggerated the reality. Heroes only achieved a single-theater box office of $4.2 in one theater in Washington, D.C., while the average box office per theater in Los Angeles was only about $2.8, and even lower in the Midwest.

As for the Boston Morning Post's so-called "glamorous dog shit," even local Boston movie fans disagree.

“Bullshit!”

Some fans even called the radio station and launched into a tirade of abuse.

"Are you blind? Hero is a classic in film history, you guys are the crap!"

However, it was not very meaningful. Heroes had a very low attendance rate in non-urban areas of Boston, with a single theater attendance of just over 8000 on its opening day, which was almost the lowest.

Then, as Fang Xinghe appeared on Toutiao every day, the situation gradually improved.

Meanwhile, the smear campaigns from New Line Cinema, Miramax, and Universal Pictures have intensified.

By the 28th, three days after the premiere, the situation had not become clearer, but rather more and more chaotic.

The box office results were either very good or very bad, and film critics' analyses reflected the same sentiment. Meanwhile, fans of the heroes and the Lord of the Rings were engaged in heated debates offline, launching a head-to-head confrontation.

"Don't worry."

Fang Xinghe, on the other hand, tried to stabilize the morale of Sony's team.

"We are a long-term foreign language film production company. We don't care about short-term wins or losses. We just need to wait for word-of-mouth from moviegoers to develop."

Nakamura's head was visibly balding again.

"Hey! We'll do everything we can to get some space on the page!"

They couldn't win them over. All six major media partners had their own, and Sony was the weakest in this area—their implicit hostility from local forces had never let up, leaving them in a rather isolated position.

The same applies to "Hero". As a Chinese kung fu film with great potential, none of its competitors wanted to see it take away a share of the market.

The only exception is "Catch Me If You Dare". They tasted the sweetness of teaming up to trend on social media, and therefore firmly tied themselves to Fang Xinghe.

Brother Fang cooperated when necessary and did not place all his hopes on reputation.

In the United States, if you expect to do nothing and let quality things naturally blossom and bear fruit, you're simply dreaming.

Calling a deer a horse and distorting the truth are their basic skills. However, being criticized is better than remaining silent. This is a country where people will die if they don't exaggerate and go crazy if they don't act crazy.

Therefore, after they met during the promotional tour in New York, Fang Ge immediately created a second wave of buzz.

SR is probably going to be led astray; the first thing Leonardo did upon arriving in New York was take him out to sea for a supermodel party!

The comments section under the news article on the webpage was filled with a deluge of mournful cries...

The style is roughly as follows—

NO!!!!

Just a glance is enough to see their despair.

American girls don't actually like perfect idols; if you're a bad boy, that's actually better.

The reason they reacted so strongly was mainly because the change was too sudden and they couldn't accept it in a short time.

"Promoting a movie? NO, indulging in debauchery!"

The related topic went viral, and when the party photos were finally released, most of America burst out laughing.

On the left is Gisele Bündchen, and on the right is Natalia Vodianova. Both beauties are only wearing bikinis, sandwiching Fang Xinghe in the middle.

Fang Xinghe, however, was dressed in a formal shirt and vest, huddled up in a ball, shivering.

She was also holding a glass of fresh milk in her hands... holding it with both hands.

If you look closely at his expression, you can clearly see that he is weak, pitiful, and helpless, which contrasts sharply with the two sassy women next to him who are flirting with him.

"Wow! So cute!"

The fans were completely satisfied, filled with pride and...amusing pride in their idol's self-discipline.

But in fact, after taking this photo, Fang immediately stood up indifferently and went to communicate with the photographer about the angle and composition.

Natalia Vodianova really wanted to flirt with him, and followed him around several times to strike up a conversation.

Fang looked back calmly and asked, "Is there anything else, ma'am?"

Her aura of keeping people at arm's length, combined with her clear and distant eyes, quickly deflated Nata.

She waved her hand and ran away: "No, there aren't any more."

Gisele and Leonardo DiCaprio whispered to each other, "Your little friend is so arrogant! He seems to look down on us completely."

“Don’t overthink it,” Leonardo shrugged. “He’s just… a kid.”

This kid continues to stir up trouble.

"The underage SR is entangled in a world of women, and Anne Hathaway flies straight to New York!"

Anne Hathaway: We're just friends. I dropped him off at his hotel and left immediately that day.

Leonardo DiCaprio: Yes, I made him drink that day, but I swear, only one! And it was a fucking low-alcohol cocktail! Hell no hell!

The hotel scandal has continued to escalate until today, with the parties involved finally coming forward to respond.

Coupled with the photo from the yacht and the timeline evidence of Anne Hathaway's four-minute journey from entering to leaving the hotel, the truth is revealed, but the story is full of twists and turns.

Anne Hathaway definitely benefited; she became Fang Xinghe's only confirmed rumored girlfriend in the United States, and even secretly touched his abs twice when she helped him into the house...

Fang Xinghe also benefited from the role, playing a "pure white flower coveted by sexy older women," which suited his age and added a touch of approachability to his overly aloof demeanor.

In Europe and America, if a celebrity has no scandals, the public will not admire their integrity, but will only suspect that the person has some problems or lacks charm.

These two charges are far more serious than "being unfaithful".

Different cultures require different behavioral patterns, and this is the correct methodology.

As the controversy raged on, the 30th arrived, and all the data for "Hero"—including its opening day and opening weekend box office, highest and lowest single-theater box office, average occupancy rate, and regional occupancy rate—were released.

The result was... unexpectedly good?
The American magazine Filmweek compiled various data and wrote a fairly objective and detailed analysis.

The film grossed $404 million on its opening day and $1679 million over its opening weekend (the first Friday to Sunday). The highest single-theater gross was $4.2, and the lowest was negligible. The average occupancy rate was as high as 38.8%.

The reason I used the term "Gundam" is because the screening schedule for "Hero" was indeed not good enough. There were a lot of midnight screenings and morning screenings, and very few screenings during prime time.

The best screenings were given to "The Lord of the Rings" by theaters, followed by "Catch Me If You Can", then "Gangs of New York". "Hero" is on par with "Austin Powers III" which was released in July and "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets" which was released in mid-November.

Even so, it still achieved a commendable third place in its class.

With 1000 opening screens, compared to 3622 for "The Lord of the Rings" and 2460 for "Catch Me If You Can," it seems both pitiful and exceptionally valuable.

The article highly praised the achievements of "Hero" and lauded Fang Xinghe.

"For a foreign language film to achieve such success in the United States, especially given its relatively small opening screen size, 'Hero' has achieved a breakthrough success and possesses immense potential that is difficult to assess."

Star River's appeal played a decisive role in this.

Every cinema in every region is packed with young girls who weren't originally interested in kung fu movies. As of the time of writing, the average age of female moviegoers has risen from 18 to 24, and more and more urban white-collar workers are going to the cinema for SR (Street Fighter)...

SR's performance was of an artistic level. The character of Prince Yu may seem to only require fighting and has no performance difficulty, but in reality, the difficulty of playing the role can be ranked among the top of this year.

Beneath his proud and unrestrained exterior, he was always a sad and melancholic child with a tragic fate.

This underlying personality trait is deeply hidden beneath the great action scenes, making it difficult to detect. However, if the performance is not profound and nuanced enough, it cannot give him the charm that makes him so popular today.

When leading his troops into battle, he was both heroic and sorrowful.

With only one city left in Korea, the country is on the verge of collapse, and all their loved ones have perished. Crown Prince Yu must fight with the last glimmer of hope.

When Prince Yu decides to leave after missing his target with two arrows, director Zhang Yimou gives two close-up shots of details—

One instance is the hesitation when he grips the gun again. His Highness the Crown Prince spurs his horse forward, grips the gun, and takes a step forward, the veins on the back of his hand bulging, clearly indicating that he wants to charge forward again and attack the royal carriage in close combat.

We all know that he couldn't possibly break in, and he knew it himself, so this subconscious action fully exposed that Prince Yu already possessed a strong tendency toward self-destruction at this moment.

But in the end, he only glanced deeply at the royal carriage before turning his horse around and breaking through the encirclement.

Because he still had a responsibility to bring the last of South Korea's elite troops home.

The second close-up is of his eyes.

Hatred, pain, resentment, struggle, loss...

In a fleeting moment, an overwhelming array of emotions assaulted the audience's defenses. Then, as his eyes revealed only unwavering resolve, we knew that he had given up the chance to die on the battlefield for the sake of his duty.

On his second appearance, Crown Prince Yu was leisurely enjoying tea in the courtyard.

He didn't drink, nor did he show the slightest weakness or pain. His shoulders and back were straight, proud and calm, but if you looked closely at his eyes, there was no fire in them, only a deep emptiness.

In contrast, at the moment before his death, Crown Prince Yu finally came back to life.

In the close-up, the moment the nameless sword slashes at the prince's neck, his eyes are bright and smiling, filled with joy at the finally arriving relief and hope.

Why did the death of this character make so many viewers shed tears?
Because Star Rivers' performance was authentic, nuanced, and perfect, it truly gave Prince a soul, moving and evoking empathy.

To this day, I still find it hard to believe that Star River, at only 17 years old, could portray the liberation of dying so skillfully and profoundly, as if he had truly found relief from suffering.

My father was tormented by illness and was bedridden for several years. When he passed away, his face could no longer express any emotion, but his eyes were filled with joy and happiness.

SR delivered an incredible performance; he's a genius I can hardly comprehend.

If it weren't for the profound despair that runs throughout the character, Prince Yu would just be an arrogant young man with superb martial arts skills. But now, he is a fully fleshed-out character, both captivating and deeply regrettable.

SR contributed a character capable of dragging any woman into hell; he is so classic that he transcends reality, possessing unparalleled beauty, breathtaking power, and a profoundly sorrowful core.

I don’t know how to describe how special this character is; I can’t find a corresponding example, but I have personally witnessed the frenzy of female viewers.

A 1000 yuan opening screen, the worst screening time, a story from faraway China, actors with yellow skin...

Despite a confluence of unfavorable factors, it still sold $1679 million in its first weekend.

This is a miracle.

I have a feeling that ASSR's miracle in the film industry has only just begun.

I'd raise the box office potential of "Hero" in North America to $1.5 million—maybe more, but with my limited imagination, that's the best I can predict.

"It's time for the Oscar and Golden Globe judges to acknowledge the existence of such a brilliant actor..."

The film that ranked third in the same period would not normally deserve any media attention, but Fang Xinghe's presence combined with the influence of Prince Yu successfully attracted a lot of praise and criticism.

Since Fang Xinghe's performance was impeccable, the opposing media disregarded the content and focused their attacks on ideology.

Kenneth Turan, the top film and television columnist for the Los Angeles Times, was the first to fire a shot in this field.

"This is a terrible movie filled with inexplicable self-indulgent fun."

It's neither artistic nor commercial enough; it stands awkwardly in the middle, looking left and right, wanting this and wanting that, resulting in a hodgepodge that's annoying.

I completely fail to understand Zhang Yimou's thinking. He spent a full 110 minutes extolling the righteousness of this assassination, and then in the last ten minutes he produced a stinking pile of dog shit.

I am extremely angry about this; I feel like I have been fooled.

No, perhaps he is trying to fool us.

Where exactly does the necessity and correctness of a unified dynasty lie?

Why use such absurd reasons to change Wuming's attitude?

The moment I saw the subtitles, I no longer hated the cowardly and weakling Wuming—at least he swung his sword—I began to hate the director and screenwriter's affectation, hypocrisy, and disgust.

Yes, Nameless's failure angered me, but the scene where Nameless and the Crown Prince finally let go disgusted me.

Come on!

That's your enemy!
He destroyed your country, slaughtered your family and friends, and displayed your heads in public, and you forgave it all?!

Why?!
In the simple thinking of normal people, revenge is necessary, tyrants deserve to die, and no matter how grand or noble the reason, it cannot undermine our freedom.

Yes, revenge is our right, hatred is our freedom, but never forgiving him should be our bottom line.

However, director Zhang Yimou crossed this line, turning everyone's efforts into an absurd performance in the most ridiculous way.

Because Qin Shi Huang unified the six kingdoms, he is a national hero.

What a twisted mind!

The great Eastern nation has suffered greatly from the poison of cultist ideology. Its people have been completely brainwashed into being ignorant masses, and have begun to sing praises to the most brutal rulers. It is truly tragic.

What exactly is unification?
Essentially, it's about the most ruthless ruler killing all his rivals and then announcing to the survivors: From now on, we are one family.

But are you really?
Different ethnicities, different customs, different languages, different cultures, all mixed together under the force of violence, with no room for opposition, resistance, mention, or investigation...

What kind of family are you?
In the truly renowned world, the British would never consider the French as family, nor would the Germans consider the Poles as family.

Once war and massacre have occurred, things can never be the same again.

No matter how grand or impressive the reason, it cannot distort wrong into right.

I can't help but feel a deep sense of sorrow for how morbid and cruel this country is!

They lack everything that we Americans are accustomed to today: freedom of speech, personal safety, independent thought. They only have the label of "unified ancient civilization" hanging high on their heads, blocking out the sunlight. Unfortunately, it leaks when it rains.

At first glance, "Hero" seems like a brilliant drama, but its ending fully exposes the lingering feudalistic thinking in the minds of the director, screenwriter, and other core creators. They seem to still be living in the Qing Dynasty; although their queues have been cut off, the queues in their hearts remain forever..."

Kenneth Turan's sudden outburst was like opening Pandora's box, turning a normal hype into a chaotic attack.

The situation began to spiral out of control.

(End of this chapter)