Nobody knows movies better than me

Chapter 123 A Unique Aura

The premiere gave "Bad Genius" a good reputation, but whether it will be loved by audiences remains to be seen in the theater market.

Following the premiere, the episode of "Bad Genius" featuring the cast and crew on "Happy Camp" was also broadcast.

The show itself was fairly standard, but Zhang Jun's performance unexpectedly went viral.

The incident stemmed from the boring and childish games on the variety show "Happy Camp," which prompted Zhang Jun to display various disgusted and helpless expressions, sparking a discussion online.

"Hahaha, Director Zhang's expression is really hilarious."

He thought to himself: What kind of ridiculous game is this? I've made four movies, and you're playing musical chairs with me?

"Director Zhang Jun's expression made me laugh until my stomach hurt. That 'Are you guys serious?' look in his eyes was priceless."

"To be honest, the games on Happy Camp are indeed a bit childish, and it's embarrassing for adults to play them. But what's even more embarrassing is that Director Zhang doesn't hide his dislike at all."

Some people on Tieba even took screenshots and made a set of emojis.

Zhang Jun, with a crooked mouth, watched He Ling explain the rules—"What are you talking about?"

When Zhang Jun was dragged to play musical chairs, he looked utterly hopeless—"Why did I even come?"

There's also Zhang Jun's vacant gaze as he watched Xie Na's frenzied performance—"This world has finally gone mad the way I wanted it to be."

These emojis quickly went viral, and the popularity of "Bad Genius" also surged.

He Xuan had people monitor the data every day and discovered that the pre-sale box office surged again after this episode aired, exceeding 18 million.

"Your expression is more effective than the trailer," He Xuan said to Zhang Jun on the phone.

Zhang Jun was speechless: "I'm a director, not a comedian."

"But now you're the 'meme director.'"

He Xuan suppressed a laugh: "But the effect is really good. Now even people who don't watch movies know that 'Bad Genius' is coming out."

.

Zhang Jun sighed; there was nothing he could do.

Serious publicity has limited effect, but things that unexpectedly go viral spread much faster.

Fortunately, the outcome was good.

On the Hunan TV side, the leaders were in a good mood as they looked at the ratings and online buzz surrounding this episode.

In the past, when "Happy Camp" invited directors, they were basically just supporting characters; the audience's attention was on the celebrities. But Zhang Jun is different; he can bring his own audience.

"We can invite more of this person," someone suggested at a meeting at the station.

"But that look of disgust on his face—"

Another planner hesitated: "Won't it make our show's games seem too lowbrow?"

The leader waved his hand: "What's so low about it? As long as there's a topic to discuss, that's enough. Look how lively the online discussions are; we haven't seen this kind of effect in years."

The planners thought it made sense.

Moreover, although Zhang Jun looked disgusted, he still cooperated as required and did not really give up.

This shows that they are sensible and know they are there to promote the movie.

"Let's switch to a different game then."

Another planner said, "Now that it's being criticized for being childish, we can take this opportunity to revamp it. I've watched a few foreign variety shows, and some of the games are quite interesting; we can take inspiration from them."

The leader nodded: "Okay, you guys come up with a plan. Next time Zhang Jun comes, don't make him look like that again."

.

It was several days later when these words reached Zhang Jun's ears.

He Xuan told him.

"Mango TV contacted me and said they would like to invite you to be a guest on their shows more often."

He Xuan said, "And they want to change the game show, saying it's to match your level."

Zhang Jun laughed: "To match my level? They're doing this for ratings, aren't they?"

He Xuan laughed too: "Anyway, the result is good. Are you going or not?"

Zhang Jun thought for a moment: "We'll see. I'll go if I have time. But if they ask me to play musical chairs again, I really won't go."

""

He Xuan wrote it down and went to reply.

The release date of "Bad Genius" is getting closer.

It will be released nationwide on June 28th.

The publicity department made a final push, covering all kinds of channels.

Posters for "Bad Genius" are everywhere: bus stop signs, subway stations, newspaper pages, and portal websites.

On the poster, Yang Mi is wearing a school uniform with a sharp look in her eyes, next to the text: "Exams are a war."

This slogan was chosen by Zhang Jun; it's simple, direct, and impactful.

He Xuan initially thought it was too exaggerated, but Zhang Jun said, "You'll see when you watch the movie, it's not exaggerated."

Now that He Xuan has seen the finished product, she feels that the promotional slogan was indeed not exaggerated.

On the evening of June 27th, Zhang Jun and Yang Mi were at home. The movie was officially released the next day, and Yang Mi was a little nervous, pacing back and forth in the living room.

Zhang Jun leaned back on the sofa, watching her spin around.

"Could you please stop spinning? It's making my eyes dizzy."

Yang Mi stopped and looked at him: "How much do you think the box office will be?"

Zhang Jun thought for a moment: "I don't know, but it shouldn't be bad."

"What if it doesn't work out?"

"Then let's try harder on the next one."

Yang Mi looked at him and suddenly burst into giggles.

"Why aren't you nervous at all?"

Zhang Jun said, "What's the use of being nervous? The film is already shot, the publicity is done, and the rest is up to the market."

He waved, and Yang Mi came over and sat down next to him.

"And I believe that good movies will not be buried."

Zhang Jun affirmed, "This is the best performance you've ever given, and it's also the one I've put the most effort into making. The audience will see that."

Yang Mi leaned on his shoulder and hummed in agreement.

The night in the capital is deep; everything will be revealed tomorrow.

On Friday, June 28th, "Bad Genius" will be released simultaneously in major cinemas across the country.

Wu Bin, the manager of Ping An Grand Theater in Guangzhou, arrived at the theater at seven o'clock in the morning. Although it didn't open until nine o'clock, he wanted to check the situation in advance.

When they arrived at the entrance, they found that there was already a line. They were all young people, standing in twos and threes, holding drinks and chatting.

Wu Bin paused for a moment, then walked over and asked, "Are you here to watch a movie?"

A boy wearing glasses turned around: "Yeah, watching 'Bad Genius'."

"9

"So early?"

"It's too late to do this now. I checked online yesterday, and the tickets for prime-time shows are almost sold out."

The boy said, "I quickly grabbed two tickets, but they were only available for the morning session."

Wu Bin nodded, understanding the situation.

He went into the cinema and asked the staff to prepare in advance.

By 8:30, there were already more than 30 people lined up at the door. When the door opened at 9:00, the crowd poured in.

Wu Bin stood next to the ticket counter, watching the machine that kept issuing tickets, silently calculating in his mind.

Judging from this momentum, today should be pretty good.

The scene in Guangzhou is bustling with activity, and the same is true in Shanghai.

Gong Heng and Xie Qing arrived at the movie theater early in the morning. The two met through Zhang Jun's movie and are now a couple, with a pretty good relationship.

Furthermore, since they are both loyal viewers of Zhang Jun's films, Gong Heng and Xie Qing would support him whenever he had a new movie, especially since "Bad Genius" had already made a name for itself.

"So many people."

Xie Qing looked at the crowd in line with some surprise.

Gong Heng said, "Zhang Jun's movie is bound to be a hit."

The two lined up to enter and found their seats.

Before the movie started, Xie Qing asked, "Have you seen the trailer?"

"I watched it, and it was quite exciting."

"Me too, I heard the premiere got really good reviews."

Gong Heng nodded: "Anyway, Zhang Jun has never disappointed."

They certainly didn't disappoint; the two of them were completely captivated by the movie as soon as they entered the theater.

At first, Gong Heng and Xie Qing thought that a movie about cheating could not be made into anything, and if the content was not enough, they would probably have to use campus romance to make up the story.

Of course, both Gong Heng and Xie Qing believe that Zhang Jun is a master at filming romance movies, as evidenced by "About Time." They are also looking forward to seeing what kind of story Zhang Jun would tell if he were to film a campus romance movie.

Unbeknownst to them, they had already touched the threshold of youth films.

The concept of youth films is still relatively niche, but in a few years it will become one of the most popular film genres in the Chinese market.

However, after watching the film "Bad Genius," the two realized they had misunderstood. Zhang Jun had taken such a simple thing as cheating and made it so sophisticated and large-scale.

Xie Qing especially admired Yang Mi's portrayal of Lin Wei. After leaving the movie theater, she was still telling Gong Heng, "The actress who plays Lin Wei previously played Guo Xiang in Zhang Jizhong's version of 'The Legend of the Condor Heroes'."

I thought she was incredibly talented at acting and that she would soar to great heights with the help of a great director.

And sure enough, she gave a fantastic performance in this movie.

Gong Heng said, "If I had to pick the best, it would be Wen Zhang. The complexity of the character Chen Qi is something that most young actors would find difficult to handle, but he did a great job."

"If I had to pick, Director Zhang Jun is the best."

Xie Qing expressed her deep admiration: "I dare say he is the most unique among Chinese-language film directors. He not only has imaginative ideas, but also the ability to turn those ideas into films, and to make those films entertaining."

With a director like this in the industry, the hope for the development of China's film and television industry is very high.

Not only Gong Heng and Xie Qing praised the film highly, but most of the audience members who saw the movie on the first day came out of the theater with excited expressions.

The feeling is indescribable; it's like having experienced a vigorous and exciting group activity, feeling physically tired but mentally exhilarated.

Viewers who have seen several Chinese-language films will immediately notice the uniqueness of "Bad Genius"—it is a film with a very international perspective and a high degree of commercial appeal.

Although the overall investment was not large, the quality it demonstrated was even stronger than that of films with investments of over 100 million yuan.

With the pre-release publicity and distribution efforts of China Film Group and Guanzhi Pictures, and the fact that the film met or even exceeded audience expectations, "Bad Genius" saw a surge in viewership on its opening day.

Chengxin Cinema in Beijing's Chengxin Plaza is one of the first cinemas in China to be aligned with the best cinemas in North America. It was renovated by professional cinema chain personnel sent by Warner Bros. from North America.

Although Warner Bros.' staff left, they left behind the equipment and theater management system, and the theater became a well-regarded cinema in the area.

The film "Bad Genius" was produced by the company of the daughter of the owner of Chengxin Cinemas, so Chengxin Cinemas gave it the greatest guarantee in terms of screenings.

This was one of the reasons why Zhang Jun tricked Ye Xiaoyi into joining the industry.

It's important to understand that the competition in the film market isn't limited to film quality. Sometimes, the outcome is already decided outside of the film itself, with the most crucial factor being screen time allocation.

It's a very simple principle: if the quality of a film and its appeal to the audience are roughly the same, a theater chain will inevitably increase the number of screenings of films produced by its sister companies.

Films produced by other companies will see a decrease in screenings, thus reducing their chances of being shown in theaters.