2001 Media Godfather

Chapter 82 I will buy a ticket to see it
Nicolas Cage is the director of The Godfather trilogy, the nephew of Francis Ford Coppola, and the cousin of Sofia Coppola.

When he was young and naive, Cage wanted to break free from his family's shadow and make his way in Hollywood through his own efforts, so he changed his original name, Nicolas King Coppola, to the name Nicolas Cage that people know.

It's easy to see from this that this guy is ruthless!
And the facts proved this point; he was willing to do anything for filming.

He swallowed cockroaches alive and drank heavily for three weeks straight for a role that only paid him $240,000, almost drinking himself to death.

Not to mention the subsequent continuous bankruptcies, which earned him the title of "King of Bad Movies".

Many people might think that "King of Bad Movies" is a derogatory term?

Wrong! It's a compliment when used to describe him. The nickname comes from the fact that between 2010 and 2020, Cage took on 78 B-movies to pay off his debts.

Note that he took on so many B-movies alone, and a significant portion of them were turned into blockbusters thanks to his acting skills.

Of course, that's all hindsight. At least in 2002, Nicolas Cage was at the height of his fame in Hollywood.

He won the 96 Academy Award for Best Actor for his role in "Leaving Las Vegas," which nearly made him drink himself to death.

Subsequently, she starred in a series of critically acclaimed and commercially successful films, including "City of Angels," "Con Air," and "Face/Off."

Cage is now a guaranteed box office draw and a top Hollywood star.

Faced with Su Manqing's proactive greeting, Cage could only shrug helplessly and point at Sophia, jokingly saying, "Let me make it clear beforehand, I was kidnapped by this guy."

Su Manqing then looked at Sofia Coppola with suspicion. "Miss Coppola, you've come to see me?"

Well, compared to her cousin and father, Sofia isn't that famous in the United States.

But Sofia possesses a very special quality, completely different from the gentle and reserved nature of Asian women. It can be said that she has brought women's independence and confidence to the extreme.

Faced with Su Manqing's question, Sophia remained calm and composed, "Won't you invite us in for a seat?"

Su Manqing had no choice but to step aside and let the two of them in.

I was going to tell Chu An on the other end of the phone that I would call him back later.

He picked up his phone, but heard Chu An's strange tone, "Don't hang up, I want to hear why they came."

This made Su Manqing, who was already somewhat reserved in front of the two Coppola family members, feel quite at ease.

When people feel insecure, they always hope to have someone with them.

Without making a sound, he put his phone aside and even secretly put it on speakerphone.

After Sofia was seated, she immediately got to the point, "First of all, please allow me to introduce myself. I am a director."

To be precise, she was a new director; Sofia had just completed her debut film, "Girls Forward," in 99.

The performance was quite good, and it won two relatively unknown film awards.

Sofia was originally preparing for her next film, Lost in Translation.

However, the project has been stalled because the male lead has not been agreed upon.

Therefore, apart from the Coppola family name, Sofia is now just an unknown director.

"Just now, I heard Mr. David Lynch mention that Miss Su has a very good female-centric script, so I am taking the liberty of visiting you. Please forgive me."

Su Manqing understood, and had a good impression of Sophia. "So, you're here to discuss the script?"

Sophia smiled and said, "Of course, if Miss Su is willing to share."

“Oh, right!” Sofia said seriously, “What if there’s a possibility of cooperation?”

Push Nicolas Cage forward, "I'll cast him as the male lead!"

Su Manqing, “.”

Acting alongside Cage? This was something Su Manqing dared not even dream of.

But Cage was clearly unwilling to become a bargaining chip for Sophia to abduct the Eastern lady, and quickly denied it, "Oh! God."

"Ms. Su, please don't listen to this young lady's nonsense. I'm not available."

"The rest of this year has been dedicated to your compatriots, to a project called 'Windtalkers'."

Before Su Manqing and Sophia could speak, a broken English sentence suddenly popped out from Su Manqing's phone: "Give up on that lousy movie! Director Wu Yulin is not suitable for making war films."

These words stunned the three people in the room.

Cage and Sofia were clearly unaware that there was another person on the other end of the phone.

Su Manqing didn't expect that Chu An would not only listen, but also get involved.

For a moment, feeling somewhat embarrassed and at a loss for words, he could only explain, "This is Mr. Chu An, the creator of the script for 'Heart Fire,' and also a friend of mine. We were just discussing it."

Before she could finish speaking, Cage spoke into the phone with some displeasure, "Mr. Chu, Wu is a very good director, and the script is excellent. It is not a virtue for me to slander your compatriots."

Such a question was very impolite, making the atmosphere in the room somewhat tense.

Nicolas Cage collaborated with director Ng Yu-lin once before, and the film "Face/Off," which propelled his career to new heights, was a product of their collaboration.

Instead of answering, Chu An on the other end of the phone asked, "Mr. Cage, are you sure you want to take that role?"

Cage frowned even more deeply, but still answered truthfully, "Not yet! But everything has been settled. After returning from Park City, I think the Paramount contract will be ready as well."

After hearing this, Chu An said, "Give up that role! I'll tell you why."

Next, facing a Hollywood movie star, Chu An spoke eloquently, “First of all, Director Wu is indeed a very good director, but his violent aesthetics are more inclined to small-scale police and gangster routines. His transformation into an A-list war film was a gamble in itself.”

"In fact, Hong Kong directors themselves do not have the ability to handle large-scale scenes."

Chu An's words were so certain that both Cage and Sophia looked at Su Manqing with questioning eyes.

Su Manqing also sighed, "Hong Kong Island, limited by its geographical environment and market size, really isn't very good at this."

Chu An hadn't finished speaking when he added, "Secondly, both of Director Wu's highly successful films in Hollywood were crime thrillers, told from the perspective of ordinary people with meticulous storytelling. This is very much in line with his personal style."

"But epic, grand narratives—if Mr. Cage is an expert, he should know that those are two completely different things!"

"If Director Wu doesn't completely abandon his original style, then he'll definitely run overtime because he's shooting too much detail!"

"And according to Hollywood's usual practice."

Before Chu An could finish speaking, Cage blurted out, "They'll take away his editing rights and drastically shorten the runtime."

Chu An: "I judge that Paramount will not give him the editing rights."

"And another thing!! Windtalkers is a film based on the story of indigenous codebreakers during World War II."

"And Mr. Cage, as a non-native democrat, haven't you realized something yet? You should have read the whole script, right?"

Cage was momentarily confused. "What do you mean?"

"What I mean is that the indigenous people are just a gimmick, and the scriptwriter was creating with prejudice from the start!" Cage was shocked. It seemed to be true, as the indigenous characters in the script had very few lines.

Chu An said, "This kind of incongruous setting will eventually be resisted by the indigenous community. This will touch on the political correctness of America's attitude towards indigenous people!"

Cage, “.”

For a big-budget production with an investment of 1.2 million, if it touches on politically sensitive topics and is in an opposing position, Cage knows very well what that means.

Having already suppressed her dissatisfaction with Chu An, she asked, "So, you don't think this film has a good future?"

Chu An unleashed his trump card, "A mere imitation of 'Private Ryan' can still draw you in droves. I never imagined that Mr. Cage had fallen to such a low level."

Nicolas Cage was utterly crushed, leaving not a trace.

You can say he's a bad actor, you can say he's extravagant, but before he went bankrupt, Cage would never admit to being corrupt.

I was starting to doubt myself, but then I thought, wait a minute!
"Mr. Chu!! The script has always been kept secret, how did you know such details!?"

Without even thinking, Chu An replied, "I have my own channels, and it's not convenient for me to tell Mr. Cage."

Okay, now in Cage and Sophia's eyes, Chu An has become an Eastern screenwriter with comprehensive market insight and great abilities.

In the end, it can only be said that Cage is still too naive. He said seriously, "I will seriously consider Mr. Chu's suggestion."

Sofia finally had a chance to interject, clapping her hands, "Alright then, let's take a look at the script!"

Su Manqing had no objection; she was there to promote her script.

He showed the script to Cage and Sofia for their critique.

After reading the script, Sofia absolutely loved it!

Throughout her directing career, she has focused on female-centric themes, and the story of Elizabeth and Godwin is very much to her liking.

As for Cage
Domestic audiences are mostly familiar with him from commercial blockbusters, but little do they know that Cage made his name through art films.

Before winning the Oscar for Best Actor for "Leaving Las Vegas", he mainly starred in art-house films.

Therefore, he could tell at a glance that it was a good script.

And
In Chuan's revised version, Godwin is portrayed as a "little man" who is completely dominated by Elizabeth.

He was always in a passive position. If other male actors saw this, they would avoid playing such a frustrating role if possible.

But Cage didn't see it that way; the more challenging it was, the more interesting it became. He was already envisioning how to use his "methodological" structural approach to bring this pathetic character to new heights.

However, Chu An's outburst was ultimately only one side of the story. Cage wasn't so impulsive as to abandon the big-budget "Windtalkers" and go on to make other films just because of a few impolite words on the phone.

Sofia initially just disliked David Lynch, but after reading the script, she genuinely wants to direct it.

He said solemnly to Su Manqing, "Su, can you give me a chance? I love this story so much."

Su Manqing was a little hesitant. Although she had a good impression of Sophia, and Cage was also tempting her.

But to give up working with David Lynch for a new director would clearly be unwise.

On a sudden inspiration, he passed the buck to Chu An.

He smiled at Sofia and said, "Firelight is Chuan's story, so I think he has more authority to speak on it. Besides, he knows Hollywood better than I do."

“OK.” Sophia could tell this was just a perfunctory response, but she didn’t want to give up. She spoke into Su Manqing’s phone, “Mr. Chu An, if you really understand Hollywood and David Lynch, then you should know that that dirty old bastard will definitely make ‘Heartfire’ into a pornographic film that no one can understand!”

He glanced at Su Manqing and said, "I swear, he'll make Su Tuo completely naked and show her passionate scenes with Godwin to attract attention!"

"So, do you really think David Lynch can make a good movie?"

There was a moment of silence on the other end of the phone, as if someone was thinking, which made Sofia a little nervous.

Even Cage was curious about what choice this all-knowing Eastern screenwriter would make.

"If David Lynch were to direct it..."

Chu An finally spoke, "As a man, I think I will buy a ticket to see it."

On the other end of the phone, all three people were stunned and didn't react for a moment.

Chu An, "Cage, what do you think?"

Cage gave Su Manqing a lewd glance at her face and figure, which were considered stunning by both Chinese and foreign standards.

“Okay!” Cage decided to be honest. “As a man, I also spend money.”

“You two bastards!!!” Sofia cursed.

They both rolled their eyes and exchanged bitter smiles.

The tense atmosphere eased considerably after Chu An and Cage made a joke, and Su Manqing complained, "What are you men thinking?"

Chu An, clearly smiling, continued his assessment, "And as a friend, screenwriter, and professional..."

This made Sophia and Su Manqing hold their breath and listen intently.

Chu An: "If Miss Sophia were to direct, I think I would invest!"

Sophia didn't react at first, until Cage nudged her and she understood what Chu An meant.

"Oh God!" With a sigh of relief, she pointed at her phone, "I think I've fallen in love with this guy!"

Su Manqing smiled to herself, thinking, "Do you even know what it means to be an old ox eating young grass? You're not really a good match for Chu An!"
He didn't dare give Sophia a definite answer at the moment, only saying, "Sophia, I think we'll need to see each other more often for a while."

But in the eyes of Americans, this is tantamount to agreeing in disguise.

Sofia was overjoyed and turned around to punch Cage hard on the shoulder. "My dear brother! I'll get you a huge contract, so generous you won't believe it!"

Cage scoffed, "Come on, Sophia! Your big contract won't exceed $100,000!"

He knew his sister too well; she was very poor and unwilling to use the family's resources, so she couldn't attract much investment.

However, he really needed to think carefully about Chu An's evaluation of "Windtalkers." If he really had to give up that role, Cage was indeed very interested in the script for "Heartfire."

Of course, he didn't come up with this idea on his own; he naturally had to discuss it thoroughly with the production company Paramount and director Wu.

After leaving Su Manqing's place, Cage couldn't wait to call director Wu Yulin.

"This is how a Chinese screenwriter named Chu An described the film."

He still had some humanity; he didn't reveal Chu An's comments about Director Wu, but only shared Chu An's opinion on the indigenous gimmick.

This left Director Wu puzzled. Was this Chu An, who had caused such a stir in the mainland entertainment industry not long ago?
How did he get involved with Hollywood again?

.

(End of this chapter)