Exploiting Hollywood 1980.

Chapter 1474 The First Lady Asks Ronald for Help
"This is really good...but the villain Goro didn't have enough scenes at the end..."

After watching the finished film of "Mortal Kombat", Ronald was impressed by the special effects and action scenes in this film, which greatly exceeded his expectations. Compared with other directors' debut works in Hollywood, Paul WS Anderson's directing level is very mature.

Ronald increased the marketing budget for the movie adapted from the game and invested more in allowing the crew to appear on various TV shows for pre-release promotion.

The director is undoubtedly the one to be thanked for this, but after learning more about the situation, Ronald found that every actor had put in a lot of effort. Almost every actor completed the action scenes by himself, rather than relying on stunt doubles.

For example, Cameron Diaz, who played the female special police officer Sonia, dislocated her shoulder during the filming of the fight scene. She managed to complete the scene after it was relocated. Qiu Yunbo, who played the male protagonist Liu Kang, broke two ribs when he was hit by a pillar. He also asked the actor who played Scorpion not to kick the injured part and continued to complete the film.

Originally this was a B-grade action movie, but Ronald invested in Hollywood's top computer special effects team to restore the special moves of Thor, Scorpion, Shang Tsung, etc. in the game.

The villain Goro with three heads and six arms was made into a mechanical puppet in accordance with Spielberg's filming tradition, with the extra arms controlled by a human.

Of course, Paul WS Anderson was inexperienced after all, and the space inside the Goro model was very small. When the operator was inside, he could only shoot for two minutes before coming out to get some fresh air because of the lack of air circulation.

This also resulted in the film's budget being unable to cover a more exciting final battle. In the end, some scenes in the script were cut, and some love scenes between the protagonist Liu Kang and the alien princess Kitana were added, making the ending fulfill the dreams of many game fans.

March is a box office low point for the entire year, but it is a good time for movies like "Mortal Kombat" which has a fixed audience of game fans, because there is often no heavyweight competition among the movies released during this period, which allows movies with considerable quality or marketing advantages to get good box office.

Sure enough, Ronald was quite satisfied with the box office in the first week. The film was shown in about 1,500 theaters and earned 15 million in the first weekend box office. Moreover, in the two weeks before the Oscars, there were few film reviews from critics, and the reviews of Mortal Kombat were all good.

In addition to praising the use of special effects and its suitability for audience viewing, there were also many compliments for the hard work of many of the main characters.

The public relations expenses that Ronald invested in this movie did work. In addition to Cameron Diaz, Qiu Yunbo and others who received high praise, Hiroyuki Tagawa, who played the villain Shang Tsung, unexpectedly received the most praise.

Many people say that he has his own aura, and any scene with him will involuntarily pull the audience into that imaginary world, making them forget that this is a B-level exploitation film.

The most surprising thing was that the Chicago-based TV film review program by Cisco and Ebert called the film "the only half-decent video game adaptation I've ever seen," and said that the action, performance, and special effects were all very interesting.

During this period when movie fans are focusing their attention on the Oscars which are about to begin, Mortal Kombat has received the highest attention and media discussion.

"Cinema Score gave it an A-, which is unprecedented in both video game adaptations and B-grade action exploitation films..."

This box office prediction made Ronald particularly happy. After the unfortunate death of director Emilio Adorino, Daydream finally had a successful commercial film director trained by itself. Ronald was very satisfied to be able to make such a successful film adapted from a video game, and he was ready to give Paul WS Anderson more resources.

"I think my ability has been recognized by Hollywood?" Paul WS Anderson is now refreshed. It is a very proud thing for a new British director to be able to win praise from the two most famous American film critics, Ebert and Siskel, with such a typical commercial exploitation film.

"Of course, more than just recognition, you see, there are a bunch of movies adapted from games, and they all actively invite you..." There was a stack of scripts on Ronald's desk, including Double Dragon, Crimson Fortress, and even the invitation to adapt Mario Bros., the Plumber.

"I just feel that I am more interested in science fiction, especially movies that can reflect some deeper emotions and humanity..."

As soon as Paul WS Anderson came out, Ronald knew that something was wrong. This is a common problem for foreign directors who come to Hollywood. After they have achieved success with one or two commercial films, they think Hollywood is a place to pursue art.

"Why do you have such an idea?" Ronald had no choice but to ask him why he had such a strange idea. Wouldn't it be better to strike while the iron is hot and make a few hit commercial films?
"I have been watching movies released at the same time in the cinema recently. I was deeply moved by these two movies..."

Paul WS Anderson shared his thoughts. As a foreign director, it is exciting to have your work screened in America. Especially when your film is cheered and applauded by the audience.

However, he soon felt a little annoyed, because after leaving the cinema, these audiences seemed to have forgotten the plot of Mortal Kombat immediately. At most, they talked a few words about the sexiness of Cameron Diaz who played Sonia, and the amazing martial arts of Qiu Yunbo who played Liu Kang.

However, he was very moved by several movies that were released at the same time. One of them was also a movie imported from Britain, "Four Weddings and a Funeral"

This romantic film was actually released in the UK last year, but it only found a distributor in America this year. The audience of this film is completely different, especially the female audience, who kept discussing after watching it, who the lead actor Hugh Grant should be in true love with.

In the end, he and Carrie, played by Andie MacDowell, did not marry him but lived together. Did this make their relationship more stable?

At the end of the discussion, they often bring up their own lives. That handsome boy who lives with them, or has lived with them before, never proposes to them. Do they wonder if they can live together forever? In modern society, it seems that marriage is not a very necessary thing, but it will make boys afraid and run away.

Another film, The Chase, is a collaboration between Charlie Sheen and the beautiful actress Kristy Swanson. The story is also very anti-type.

This movie is about the protagonist Jack, played by Charlie Sheen, who was wrongly imprisoned by the police and prosecutors and sentenced to 25 years in prison because the evidence proving his innocence was rejected by the court. After escaping from prison by chance, Jack robbed a convenience store and wanted to hijack the car of a shopper, Natalie, to flee to Mexico.

Unexpectedly, this Natalie is the daughter of a billionaire, and she ran away from home because her father married a stepmother.

The news caused a big stir in the news media, with helicopters dispatched to search for the hijacked BMW and live broadcasts of the manhunt on the highway.

Jack and Natalie gradually get to know each other and understand each other in this absurd live pursuit. Natalie complained to Jack about her stepmother in the car, and now she has a man who can understand and listen to her complaints.

Natalie developed a crush on Jack and suggested that he pretend to kidnap her so that they could flee to Mexico together. In the end, they were surrounded by police at the checkpoint. In order to prevent Natalie from being in danger, Jack surrendered himself, preferring to be killed by the police in a gunfight.

Finally, Natalie hijacked a news helicopter and fled to Mexico with Jack.

This movie goes against the genre in every way. Audiences who came to watch a police chase movie found themselves deceived. Audiences who could appreciate this kind of love story of a pair of thieves did not receive the corresponding information and did not come to watch this movie because they did not know that this was the story.

The film was a complete box office failure and will probably be out of theaters in two weeks. The careers of both Charlie Sheen and Kristy Swanson will also be severely hit. One will have to go back to acting in nonsensical comedies, while the other will continue to sink into B-movies.

For some reason, Paul WS Anderson actually resonated with this movie. He wanted to make a movie like this that would have a profound impact on the audience, which made Ronald very angry.

"It's terrible. No one watches your movies. How can you say they have a profound impact on the audience?" Ronald showed him the Cinema Score of "The Hunt," which was only C+. Directors with such a score are often on the verge of being blacklisted by major Hollywood studios.

"Even if it only changes one person's life, I feel that such a movie is meaningful."

"It makes sense, you horse shit," Ronald was so angry that he threw the script that invited Paul WS Anderson heavily on the table...

"Let me tell you, Paul, there is only one rule in Hollywood, which is to make money for the producers. If you continue to make two commercial films like this, or movies adapted from games, then you will have some bargaining power. If you want to shoot your own script, then you can find big-name stars to act in it, and there will be enough budget for you to do special effects and post-production. Only then can the movie you want to shoot make money at the box office..."

"Oh, I really want to try it..." Paul WS Anderson was still very stubborn. Once these British guys have a successful movie, they immediately start to have an artistic attack, which makes it impossible to communicate with them.

"Go ahead. Remember, if you still want to direct a movie adapted from a game, Daydream will always have a script suitable for you..."

Ronald shook his head. When a person gets angry, he won't listen to advice. Shouldn't he let the facts teach him a lesson?
……

"Nirvana's lead singer Kurt Cobain attempted suicide in Rome. He overdosed on drugs and fell into a coma, but was rushed to hospital and was successfully treated.

Bophuthatswana, South Africa's last apartheid-era "homeland", was reincorporated into South Africa, marking the official end of apartheid.

The news these days are very explosive. In addition to what NBC reported, President William went to Moscow to discuss the issue of nuclear disarmament with President Boris.

First Lady Rodham was running around the country, appearing in the news constantly, trying to pass the health care bill she led.

However, the reality is contrary to expectations. Most Americans are not very satisfied with the first lady's behavior of stealing the spotlight. Even in New York, a city where gender equality is most recognized, there are many complaints about her.

This is mainly because there are still many traditional middle-class families living in the suburbs in New York, and they never object to a wife doing some work. But women like Rodham, who take advantage of her husband's business trip to stir up trouble in her husband's field and steal his limelight, are still not acceptable.

In addition, Rodham was a person who did not practice what he preached. He went to Arkansas to live with his classmate William because he failed the bar exam in New York. There, he lost the pride of a traditional New Yorker, wore conservative clothing like a Southern woman, and stood by his husband when he cheated on him.

New Yorkers have all kinds of characteristics, but they still don't accept women who openly show that they will do anything to succeed.

On the contrary, those working women in Manhattan looked down on this woman who couldn't be a lawyer in New York. New York has always been the stage for successful people from all over the United States and even the world to compete in the big leagues. She couldn't even get a lawyer qualification in New York, which was worse than that of the former President JFK's son, John F. Kennedy Jr.

Her behavior of getting promoted through her husband and then engaging in political work also annoyed these working ladies who relied on their own abilities to work hard. In the process of their own promotion, they have encountered countless women who relied on sex to get promoted.

As for how voters in another big city, Los Angeles, feel about her?
Not to mention, when will Los Angeles people be fond of a woman from New York who expresses her opinions and promotes legislation in the political field? Our female politicians here are discussing how to introduce a panda to please children.

In the end, Congress once again rejected the bill called Rodham Affordable Care from entering the discussion, and Democratic lawmakers also expressed dissatisfaction with this, believing that it would have an adverse impact on the midterm elections in the second half of the year.

Finally, this Rodham health care legislation still failed to compete with the anti-smoking bill also pushed by the Democratic Party, which would expand the current smoking ban on airplanes to all commercial public places.

Mrs. Rodham, who had been performing in front of the media since November last year, suffered a great setback. One of her assistants suggested that she find a Hollywood director to package her health care bill and sell it to the public.

Just as Ronald was arranging the Oscar campaign and preparing a new award-winning dress for Diane, Richard transferred the call to him from Mrs. Rodham.

"Madam President..." Ronald responded carefully, "I wonder if we will be so lucky as to invite you to the annual Oscars ceremony in Hollywood. The last First Lady to attend was Nancy... If you can come, it will definitely be a grand event for Hollywood."

"Oh, hahahaha... I'd love to come, but I'm still busy with the health care bill. Did you see the interview I gave?"

"Of course, how can I help you?"

"Well, I wonder if you can do an ad to promote the concept of universal health care to the public?" Rodham did not mention President William to Ronald, but just said that she was happy to serve him. Now almost everyone mentions the President when they see her, which makes her, who was originally on an equal footing with her husband in the political arena, very dissatisfied.

"I'd love to help, but it's Oscar season now. If I wait until after the ceremony..." Ronald thought of a way to shirk his responsibility.

"Of course, of course..." Mrs. Rodham hung up the phone and was busy with the award ceremony. These directors are really troublesome. They can't respond to my requests in time, and I have to find a producer.

"Connect me to Harvey who often comes to the White House and ask him to help me with this matter..." Rodham thought of the Jewish producer who often came to hang out with her husband William, and decided to give him a chance this time.

(End of this chapter)