China Entertainment Times 1999

Chapter 191 Four people died while making a movie? (Please subscribe!)

"Big Shot" is a comedy full of black humor.

International director Taylor is preparing to remake the classic movie "The Last Emperor".

He wanted to make a documentary about his work experience in Beijing. His assistant Lucy found You You, a laid-off photographer from the film factory.

After getting along for a while, Youyou and Taylor became friends.

The two also talked about the topic of funerals, and Youyou mentioned a word called "happy funeral"!

At that time, Taylor interpreted it as a "comedy funeral" and joked that he would ask Youyou to help him organize the funeral.

Because Taylor had no inspiration, the filming progress was very slow, so the producers replaced him.

Taylor couldn't withstand the blow and fainted.

On his deathbed, assistant Lucy remembered Taylor's last wish and asked Youyou to organize his funeral.

You You immediately agreed, and then asked his friends to help. Unexpectedly, the two people's plan was so unconstrained.

First, the funeral opened with the classic song "What a Beautiful Jasmine" from the Italian opera "Turandot".

In order to ensure quality, the opera must be directed by Zhang Yimou.

Then, the famous cross talk actor Feng Gong Niuqun appeared on the stage and said a cross talk eulogy.

Then there is Zang Tianshuo's song "Friends".

Finally, Chen Kaige and Gong Li appeared at the funeral together, representing all the judges of the Golden Rooster Awards, and awarded the Golden Rooster Lifetime Achievement Award to his body.

You You also made up for it, asking Zhang Ziyi if Gong Li didn't come.

The key to the plan was that there was no money, so the two began to attract investment.

Mr. Zhang, the boss of the film and television company, took a fancy to this plan and was willing to invest.

But he must have the female star of his company stand next to Taylor's body throughout the whole process, and be known to the outside world as Taylor's lover.

However, Taylor has no lover at all. Mr. Zhang did this just to attract attention and increase exposure and topicality.

With these two things, female celebrities can become famous overnight.

Youyou rejected his investment and turned to advertisers.

As an international director, Taylor's funeral will definitely attract many businesses.

The two found Sogou, the person in charge of advertising and distribution, and You You asked, "You and Sohu are not from the same company, are you?"

The employee laughed and said: "We are Sogou and they are Sohu. Everyone searches for their own thing."

At present, Sohu is still the dominant Internet company in mainland China.

Later, Sohu launched the Sogou search engine in 04, and the name "Sogou" came from this movie.

Advertisers for the funeral were doing well.

There are breast enhancement creams, beer, cigarettes, drinks, contact lenses, tea, shampoo...

From the carriage of the hearse to every inch of skin on the body, Youyou arranged for advertisements.

But just as they were preparing for the funeral, Taylor woke up and wouldn't die for a while.

Their dreams of getting rich were shattered, and they were even admitted to a mental hospital.

But You You was just pretending to avoid harassment from advertisers.

From the beginning to the end, he had no intention of making money from this, but his friend was really crazy.

The camera goes to a mental hospital, where a group of "lunatics" are talking about the international situation and ways to make money.

Zhang Hanyu said that if you want to run a successful website, you have to spend money.

First recruit a group of people who want to curse, and then find a few celebrities as targets. Whoever is popular will be scolded.

When the number of clicks on the website increases, you don't have to worry about no one taking over. You can sell it to the next buyer for how much money you put in, plus zero.

Another example is when Li Chengru talks about real estate.

When selling a house, you need to choose the best location, build the highest-grade apartments, and build a noble school and a top-level hospital in the community.

Children in school can learn aristocratic sports, and even going to the hospital to treat a cold costs [-] yuan.

The most important thing is that the house price must be expensive.

You have to study the hearts of rich people. They don't care about this little money at all. What they want is status and status.

Not seeking the best, but seeking the most expensive!

…………

The original title of the movie was "The Funeral of the Big Shot".

The origin of the story comes from a joke at a dinner party.

One time, Chen Kaige lamented at a dinner that the funeral of Akira Kurosawa, the Japanese director who had won the Academy Award for Best Achievement, was very lavish.

Feng Xiaogang then joked that if Chen Kaige is willing, he can leave the funeral to him.

I dare not say anything else. As long as the funeral is commercialized and "The Funeral of Famous Director Chen Kaige" is used as a gimmick, it will definitely attract a lot of advertisers.

He promised to make the funeral even more grand than Akira Kurosawa's and make Chen Kaige's wife and children make a fortune.

Feng Xiaogang started chatting about this part of the story over dinner, and later adapted it into a movie.

It is said that Feng Xiaogang wants Zhang Yimou to play the role of a great director.

However, due to the taboo of the Chinese people, it is unlucky to hold a funeral for a living person during the Chinese New Year, so this was abandoned.

The name of the movie was changed from "The Funeral of the Big Shot" to "The Big Shot" because Feng Xiaogang suffered a serious heart attack during the filming of the movie and almost failed to survive.

What's even weirder is that they held four funerals during the filming of "Big Shot".

They were the death of Yingda's father-in-law, the death of his friend Liang Zuo, the death of Feng Xiaogang's mother, and the death of Wang Zhongjun's mother.

Faced with the above-mentioned unbelievable experiences, Feng Xiaogang was able to insist on finishing the film. Lin Xuan sincerely admired him.

After the movie ended, the audience burst into applause.

Lin Xuan also applauded. There is no doubt that "Big Shot" is a very good comedy movie.

It is also one of the few movies that, if you watch it twenty years later, it will be even funnier than it is now.

The lights in the screening room chattered, and the crew and crew stood up to thank the audience.

The staff came over to arrange the seats, and the reporter set up the machine and prepared for the interview.

According to the rules, the media interviews the main creator first.

Feng Xiaogang said that the role of the big shot has a low reputation, and the most suitable candidate is actually Zhang Yimou.

He is the only one who has enough weight and is suitable for this role. Chen Kaige is not enough, and Donald Sutherland, who plays Taylor, is not even interesting.

He told another interesting story that was ironic.

While the crew was filming, someone pretended to be a crew member of "Big Shot" and went around in the name of recruiting actors.

Those victims pointed the finger at the crew, forcing Feng Xiaogang to call the police.

After the interview with the main creator, the media invited guests to comment.

The people named are all big shots and their status in the circle is very important.

Not surprisingly, Lin Xuan didn't escape either.

The reporter asked: "Director Lin Xuan, could you please comment on this movie?"

Lin Xuan saw this and quickly waved his hand to refuse.

Feng Xiaogang picked up the microphone and said: "Then let's ask Director Lin Xuan to comment. Speak freely. It doesn't matter if you think it doesn't look good. It's okay to curse."

The audience laughed out loud immediately, and the crew and creators in the audience also looked at him with smiles on their faces.

Han Sanping and other big boss friends beside him also coaxed him to say a few words.

The reporter passed the microphone over, but Lin Xuan couldn't refuse, so he could only take the microphone and said:

"Well... I think Big Shots is an excellent comedy movie."

"It mercilessly satirizes current social phenomena."

"For example, celebrities who have become famous through hype, the proliferation of pirated images, pervasive advertising placement, and unscrupulous copycat products..."

"But the most interesting thing is that Director Feng is extremely satirical about advertising placement in the movie."

"But when the subtitles were playing at the end, I saw a sponsorship advertisement for BMW."

"There is also the slogan 'It's good to be a woman' in the film, which also appears in the sponsor credits at the end of the film."

"I think this is the real black humor!"

After hearing what he said, everyone reacted.

"Ha ha ha ha……"

The entire screening room burst into laughter, followed by cheerful applause.

Feng Xiaogang also laughed and clapped, then picked up the microphone and laughed at himself without embarrassment: "Actually, I am You You in the play..." What he said is true, Feng Pants is a typical person who has breasts and is a mother.

They do one thing in front of others and another behind their backs, speaking righteously and criticizing this and that.

While satirizing advertising sponsorship, "If You Are the One", which was filmed a few years later, attracted more than [-] advertisers for the first time.

…………

After the premiere, Lin Xuan attended the dinner arranged by Wang Zhongjun and had a brief chat with several crew members.

The next day, he flew back to Hengdian to continue filming.

After landing at the Zhejiang Province Airport, the assistant bought a newspaper and Lin Xuan sat in the car and read it.

The news of the release of "Big Shot" was published on the front page of the entertainment newspaper.

The article was full of praise for the film, and even Lin Xuan's comments were taken out of context, with only the first half of it cut out.

You can imagine with your buttocks that Huayi has connections with these newspapers.

Arriving in Hengdian, the crew was filming outside.

Lin Xuan didn't go to the set and stayed in the hotel to rest.

Not long after, Qian Ze knocked on the door and came in.

"Boss, the Spring Festival Gala director team has contacted the studio to invite you to participate in this year's Spring Festival Gala."

With his popularity so high, it’s no wonder that the Spring Festival Gala program team let him go.

Lin Xuan calculated the time it took for the crew to finish filming: "There should be enough time, so just agree first."

"The director team also asked, what show are you planning to perform this year?"

Lin Xuan scratched his head: "Hmm... I can't think of it at the moment."

Qian Ze suggested: "If it doesn't work, just sing a song."

Lin Xuan shook his head: "Last year it was singing and martial arts, so it became a hit of the Spring Festival Gala.

It would be too boring to just sing this year. You tell the directing team that you will get back to them with the content of the performance in two days. "

"Okay boss." Qian Ze turned and left the room.

Lin Xuan was lying on the sofa, thinking about what to perform in this year's Spring Festival Gala.

Crosstalk sketches and dances require rehearsals, and he definitely doesn't have the time.

Preferably a performance that can be completed by one person, except for singing.

Starting from this year's Spring Festival Gala, he recalled the Spring Festival Galas of previous years and the works that left a deep impression on him.

Soon, a classic line came to his mind.

"The next moment is to witness the miracle!"

In 2009, the ratings of CCTV Spring Festival Gala have declined significantly.

The program team of the Spring Festival Gala that year hoped to make innovative breakthroughs in the performance format.

Among the many submissions, they saw Liu Qian’s magic show.

At that time, there were no magic performances on the Mainland Spring Festival Gala stage.

Because compared with art forms such as songs, dance, cross talk, sketches, etc., magic cannot be put on the stage at all.

Finally, after intense internal discussions, CCTV leaders decided on Liu Qian’s program.

That year, Liu Qian's performance at the Spring Festival Gala was amazing.

The coin in your hand enters the glass out of thin air, the ring enters the egg...

He used the most common props to perform a magic trick that amazed everyone.

Overnight, people all over the country knew his name and his catchphrase: "The next step is to witness the miracle."

This magic show sparked a huge discussion and started a craze for learning magic.

After many years, Dong Qing is still considered by netizens to be Liu Qian's trustee.

Since that year, magic has become a repertoire of the Spring Festival Gala.

But at this time, Liu Qian was still dawdling in Wanwan, and Lin Xuan wanted to be the first to eat crabs.

Although he doesn't know magic, he has a system.

With systematic cramming teaching, it is easy to learn a few magic tricks in a month.

With this thought, Lin Xuan opened the system panel and began to select the appropriate magic course.

After Liu Qian, many professional magicians have come to the Spring Festival Gala, but none of them are as popular as Liu Qian.

Because in addition to his magic skills, Liu Qian's humorous conversation is the key to his popularity.

Two days later, Lin Xuan's magic was slightly successful.

He took the initiative to call and communicate with the Spring Festival Gala directing team and described his ideas in detail.

When the director team heard his answer, they were about to reject it on the spot.

In 09, the Magic was still regarded as something that was not on the table, let alone in 01.

There was no other way, Lin Xuan could only persuade him with kind words.

What program innovation, guaranteed ratings...

After all, the director team finally decided to give him a chance to report this matter to his superiors.

Two days later, Lin Xuan received a reply from the Spring Festival Gala director team.

The leadership and director team agreed with his plan.

However, whether you can be selected in the end depends on the effect during the Spring Festival Gala rehearsal.

So in addition to the magic show, Lin Xuan must prepare a backup show.

Once the magic fails, use backup programs to top it up.

Lin Xuan nodded in agreement, but if it didn't work out, he would go on stage to sing a song.

Anyway, the Spring Festival Gala is all about lip-syncing, and even the singing practice can be skipped.

This is how things for the Spring Festival Gala are decided.

Lin Xuan started practicing magic during his break from filming.

…………

The time has come to the end of the year, and the filming of the crew is coming to an end.

"Big Shot" made a crazy 2000 million box office in one week after its release. It is expected that the total box office in the mainland will exceed 6000 million.

Huayi made a lot of money, and Feng Xiaogang successfully defended his title of "King of Lunar New Year Movies" with this movie.

In the original time and space, the total box office of this movie was less than 5000 million.

A considerable part of this extra box office was supported by Lin Xuan's fans.

Feng Xiaogang and Wang Zhonglei are both people who want to make money and don't even have to face their faces.

After the movie was released, they participated in TV interviews everywhere, often talking about Lin Xuan's evaluation of the movie.

Of course, they must have chosen something nice to say.

Fans didn't know the truth. When they heard their idol praising "Big Shot", they really thought Feng Xiaogang had made a classic movie, so they rushed to the cinema in droves.

Although this movie was indeed well made, it was definitely not as good as Wang Zhonglei and others claimed.

Fortunately, no fans found fault in this aspect, otherwise the label of "false propaganda" would have fallen on him.

However, fans are not fools. It is okay to watch Feng Xiaogang's movies, but they cannot give all the credit for the box office to him.

So after watching the movie, they casually posted the review to an online forum, not forgetting to reveal the identity of Lin Xuan's fans.

The comments all started with, "I am a fan of Lin Xuan. I was recommended by my idol today and went to see Feng Xiaogang's movie "Big Shot"..."

There are even fans with deep pockets who directly book the movie with banners.

This incident was photographed and reported by the media, which caused widespread heated discussion and also made Lin Xuan's status in the circle rise again.

Just one sentence can affect the box office worth tens of millions, which is rare among mainland actors.

Feng Xiaogang was quite critical of this. He believed that the box office success of "Big Shot" was mainly due to himself.

As a result, Lin Xuan took half of the box office credit for no apparent reason.

On the contrary, Wang Zhongjun called specifically to express his gratitude.

He also said that he would give him a big red envelope when the movie is released.

(End of this chapter)