Conquer America, Start with a Boxing Champion

Chapter 428 Good Box Office (3/10)

After a brief promotion, Mr. Tree was screened in four theaters in the United States in early June.

Preview is equivalent to testing the waters, a small-scale screening, and the market trend is judged based on the results of the preview.

If the preview results are good, the number of screenings can be increased next week. If the results are poor, in order to reduce losses, the distributor will consider ending the screening early.

Of course, sometimes the preview results are average, and the theater chain is optimistic about the film, so the preview time can be extended.

For example, My Big Fat Greek Wedding did averagely during the preview, but the theater chain felt that it had great potential and insisted on screening it. Later, the film cost five million and earned 370 million box office worldwide, becoming a dark horse at the box office in 2002.

The first week box office of Mr. Tree was 230,000 US dollars, with an average attendance rate of 82%.

From the attendance ranking, the top three literary and artistic films in the same period had a higher attendance rate than the box office champion Cars 2.

Just considering that the first week box office was mainly due to the popularity of Link's new song MV, this data is very watery, and the theater chain lacks confidence.

In the second week, the film was only shown in 26 theaters.

This week, many clips and film commentaries of "Mr. Tree" appeared on video websites such as YouTube.

There was also a video blogger who edited a video of a Hollywood big-name actor smoking in a movie.

There were powerful male actors such as Marlon Brando, Clark Gable, Harry Fortson, Gregory Peck, Brad Pitt, etc. In the video of these people smoking, there was only one foreign actor, that is, the male lead of "Mr. Tree".

Although Mr. Tree's smoking action is also very cool, it is very eye-catching and even annoying among a group of Hollywood big-name actors, which makes people remember him immediately.

The number of views of this video exceeded 2 million in five days.

In addition to the video commentary, some reviews of "Mr. Tree" also appeared in newspapers this week.

Most film critics used the theme of magical realism to describe the type of this foreign film, saying that this is a film that is not easy to understand. If you can understand the plot, it is also a film worth watching for audiences who like niche literary films.

Movie Variety commented that it is a "textbook-level" film for understanding Chinese folk culture.

The Los Angeles Times called it one of the best foreign films this year and is expected to be shortlisted for the Best Foreign Language Film at this year's Academy Awards.

The Chicago Tribune called this film the Chinese version of "Joker".

"Isn't this a bit exaggerated?"

Link was a little amused when he saw the publicity in the newspaper.

The task he gave to the publicity department was to use the media to praise the film more and arouse the curiosity of the audience. As a result, the publicity department directly touted the film to the level of the Oscar.

Although "Mr. Tree" is not bad, it is not at the level of the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film.

"Chairman, this is the basic operation of promoting a movie. If you want to promote a movie, you have to praise it to the extreme, so that people will be curious and go to see the movie, and let opponents go to see the movie for criticism, so that the movie will have attention."

Lionsgate Operations Officer Brian Goldsmith said.

Link nodded and asked the publicity department to proceed according to the plan. Although such publicity may be suspected of being embarrassing, as long as the movie can be hyped up and more box office can be earned, it doesn't matter if it is a little embarrassing.

After handing over the company's affairs to Eva Ka and other executives, he continued to train at the Muscle Beach Club to prepare for the next boxing match.

In the second week of its release, "Mr. Tree" earned 840,000 box office in 26 theaters, with a cumulative box office of 1.07 million.

In the American film market, there are more than 700 movies publicly screened each year, 774 last year, and only more than 400 movies have a box office of 1 million.

"Mr. Tree" sold 1.07 million US dollars in two weeks, which is better than most foreign-language films.

In view of the good box office performance last week, the number of theaters showing "Mr. Tree" in the third week has expanded to 204.

This week, many veteran actors have come out to praise the acting skills of the male lead of "Mr. Tree".

For example, Cliff Robertson, the 41st Oscar winner, and William Holt, the 58th Oscar winner, praised Stan Wang, who plays Mr. Tree in the movie, for his superb acting skills and called him a "genius" actor in an interview with reporters from "The Hollywood Reporter".

His acting skills are better than 99% of the current male actors on the screen, and he is expected to be nominated for this year's Oscar for Best Actor.

Although some people later revealed that Cliff Robertson would stand up for Lionsgate and publicly praise Stan Wong only after he took on a role at Lionsgate, this news caused quite a stir in the American film industry when it was first reported.

Many people went to the cinema to watch this niche Chinese film with curiosity.

Some praised it, while others cursed it.

The media's overall rating was 82 points, and the Rotten Tomatoes website scored 76% freshness, with 42 people supporting and 18 opposing it; Yahoo's film critics scored B+.

Word of mouth has a polarized trend.

Professional media generally have a high evaluation of the film, believing that it is a good movie that is suitable for calming down and watching slowly.

Ordinary audiences commented that they could not understand it or hear it, and that this movie was not suitable for watching in theaters.

Both sides held their own opinions.

However, what Link did not expect was that Joaquin Phoenix was bored and went to watch "Mr. Tree". After watching it, he boasted to the media, praising Stan Wong's acting skills for being really good, and that ordinary actors could not perform at this level, and said that Stan Wong's performance gave him a lot of inspiration.

Seeing the news, Link called Brian Goldsmith and asked him if he asked Joaquin to help with the platform.

Brian said no, and said that not only Joaquin, but actors such as actor William Holt and Michael Keaton also spoke publicly for "Mr. Tree" without being contacted by their public relations.

Link asked Brian what was the reason, these people wanted to befriend Lionsgate in this way?

Brian Goldsmith said not necessarily and told him a piece of news.

There are currently many film critics in the media praising "Mr. Tree". Some of them are people hired by the company, but a large part of them are not the result of the company's public relations. They are film critics who felt good about the movie and took the initiative to publish it. Positive comments.

"Does this mean the movie is not bad?"

Link was a little surprised.

"Yes, from an artistic point of view, this movie is considered to be top-notch in the world. The only problem is that the Chinese background and the theme are too profound, which makes many people unable to understand it. Those who can understand it will find it good. , believes that the movie explores human nature and society, involves profound themes, and is a niche masterpiece. "

Brian said.

Link nodded. He seemed to underestimate the movie and the audience's appreciation level.

At the time of its release, he was worried that the language of the film would be incomprehensible and the story would not be easy to understand, so he did not have high expectations for the film.

It’s just that art has no national boundaries. Good works of art will break through all kinds of barriers and arouse people’s resonance. For example, Asian movies such as "The Kite Runner", "Little Shoes", "Rashomon" and "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" won 100 awards when they were released in the United States. Lots of compliments.

In its third week of release, "Mr. Tree" took in a box office of US$2.337 million in North America, ranking 15th in the box office rankings during the same period, with a cumulative box office of US$3.41 million, far exceeding expectations.

Link's original goal was 1.5 million, which was 10 times the copyright fee.

Excluding his public relations and publicity fees, the company invested about US$1.8 million in copyright fees, production fees, publicity and distribution funds for this film, and it has already been paid back.

"Damn it, how can this kind of movie have more than two million box office weeks?"

Harvey said solemnly.

This week Weinstein Films also released a Chinese film, "Martial Arts" directed by Peter Chan, which was shortlisted for the non-competition "Midnight" section of the Cannes Film Festival not long ago.

Harvey paid $650,000 to obtain the North American distribution rights for the film.

He has released Chinese action movies such as "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon", "The Promise", "Kung Fu" and "Shaolin Football" in 2003. He has a certain understanding of this type of movies and feels that "Martial Arts" will also have certain box office potential.

The results were very unsatisfactory.

"Martial Arts" was screened in 8 theaters for three days over the weekend, with a box office of US$107,000, far lower than expected.

The attendance and average daily box office data are not comparable to "Mr. Tree" that Link bought randomly.

Harvey was very unhappy about this.

It is also a Chinese-themed movie. The potential of the Chinese kung fu movie "Martial Arts" is obviously greater than that of the local-themed "Mr. Tree", but this is not the case at the box office.

"David, is there any way you can improve the box office of "Martial Arts"?"

Harvey put down the newspaper and looked at David Glaser, the company's chief operating officer.

"Chairman, I suggest additional publicity funds."

David Glasser thought for a while and said.

If you want a movie to do well at the box office, it requires both word-of-mouth and publicity. "Martial Arts" is a foreign film, and the quality is not particularly high. It is difficult to accumulate a high reputation and form a person-to-person communication effect, so you need to spend money to make it. Promote, spread the word.

Just like Lionsgate, that "Mr. Tree" was very niche, and no one liked the movie when it was released.

However, with the continuous promotion and operation of Link and Lionsgate Pictures, it actually sold US$3.39 million in box office within three weeks, more than three times the budget.

"Complete Movies" analyzed that there are three reasons why this movie is a hit.

The first is Link.

Link's popularity led to the first wave of movie fans watching the movie, giving the movie a good screening score.

The second is publicity. Lionsgate has a good publicity strategy and is willing to spend money. When the market prospects are uncertain, Lionsgate spends more than one million for publicity. This is undoubtedly a big gamble. Gate Pictures won the bet.

The second is that the film is of good quality and can withstand praise.

If "Martial Arts" wants to imitate "Mr. Tree", it must first keep up with the promotion and be willing to spend money to increase the popularity of the movie.

"Mr. Tree" had Link's new song to help promote it, which attracted a lot of attention.

"Martial Arts" does not have top-notch sales, so it needs to pay film critics to hype it up and find ways to lure audiences into theaters.

"Throw money?"

Harvey frowned. He could also think of this method, but the prerequisite for throwing money was having money. The company's current financial situation was not suitable for this method.

"I give you one million to use for publicity, how much can you get back?"

"this"

David Glasser shrugged, "Investing in a movie is like betting in a casino. No one can tell whether it will make money until the end. I don't think Lionsgate had much certainty before releasing "Mr. Tree". They're taking a risk by recouping their investment."

Harvey thought about it seriously, should he take a gamble? If you win, you can recover your costs, if you lose, you will lose more.

"What's the opinion from the marketing department?"

"They believe that the film's prospects are average, and even if they increase publicity, it won't have much box office. They suggest that the screening be ended early and released on DVD, which may allow them to recover part of the cost."

David Glasser said.

Harvey thought about it with a sullen face, and found no other good solution but to accept the marketing department's suggestion.

If he had just started in the industry, he might have taken the gamble, but not now.

After decades of success in Hollywood, he has seen too many film companies go bankrupt due to gambling mistakes. He knows how risky it is to do so, and to be on the safe side, it is better not to follow suit.

Although I knew that this was the right thing to do, I felt very unhappy when I thought that Link and Lionsgate had made the right bet this time and made millions of dollars more.

Harvey thought about finding someone to ban this movie, like he did with "Bridesmaids", but "Mr. Tree" is already a niche movie and not well-known. Banning it is also increasing its exposure, which is undoubtedly helping Link. movie promotion.

He would never do such a stupid thing.

After thinking for a while, I didn't think of any good way to deal with Link.

Harvey pulled off his tie and asked David Glasser to go to work. He picked up the phone and called Bob, asking him to find a way to trick Link. He didn't want to see Link for a moment now.

Bob comforted him by saying that the good box office performance of "Mr. Tree" showed that Link had a good vision. The "Master" might be a big hit and the company could make money, which was not a bad thing.

In addition, Link spent more than one million to promote this movie for the sake of face, which shows that Link has a great gambling habit, and he can make a fuss about this in the future and cheat him.

Harvey thought for a moment and thought it made sense.

Accepting Bob's opinion means having to endure Link for a long time, which makes him very uncomfortable.

Bob continued to persuade that he was a top producer and was good at making movies. He should use this expertise to produce more blockbuster movies. As long as the company's movies were blockbusters, there was no need to envy Link.

Bob also reminded him that during this period he was too focused on Link's affairs and wasted a lot of time and energy, which was not good. He hoped that he could spend more time on film production.

Harvey snorted and hung up the phone with a dark face.

After sitting in the office for a while, I felt that Bob was right. To deal with Link, we should start with movies. He cursed Damn Link, called the female secretary and the driver, and said he would go to the studio to check it out. .

Originally, he would never go to the set in such hot weather.

Because of Link, he had to live with this now.

——

"Link, in order to promote the movie, you wrote a number one single specifically. This is amazing."

Casey Affleck said, sipping a beer on the beach.

"Yes, Link, sometimes I feel like you are an alien. You are much stronger than ordinary humans."

Paul Walker patted Link on the shoulder, a bit harshly, not sure if he was jealous.

Link smiled softly. In order to promote "Mr. Tree" a few days ago, he copied a 2020 hit song "Blinding Lights". The lyrics are somewhat close to the plot of Mr. Tree. The MV for this song was first released on YouTube. , the playback volume exceeded 30 million times in one week.

By the second week, the recorded version of this song was officially available on paid/free music platforms such as iTunes, Amazon Music Mall, Spotify, etc., and on the premise of free resources, it still sold 1.45 million copies on major platforms in the first week, becoming "Billboard "The singles chart champion song.

This song became a hit, which also increased the exposure of "Mr. Tree" and contributed some box office to the movie.

"This song is from the second album. It was not written for the movie. Because the style is different, it was not included in the second or third album. This time to promote the movie, there is a lack of a gimmick, so I put this song out. , but the effect is very average.”

Link said.

The quality of this song is good, but the style of that song is more pop, mixed with soul music, and has a strong rhythm. It is actually not in tune with the rural movie "Mr. Tree" as the MV.

Some people joked that the video was about dressing a country bumpkin in top-notch fashion. Although it was eye-catching, it was not very coordinated.

After "Blinding Lights" was officially released, fans asked him to remake the MV with a modern background that would be cooler.

It's just that Link has been busy recently and has no time to shoot the MV. The new MV script is still being designed.

"Hey, Joaquin, why do you have time to come over? The movie is finished?"

Cassie patted her butt and stood up from the beach.

This is the beach at Casey Affleck's Malibu villa. Link was invited to hang out. James Franco, Tobey Maguire, Summer Phoenix, and Zach Efe were also present. Long et al.

Seeing Joaquin Phoenix coming, he waved and said hello.

"I heard that you guys are drinking here. I have nothing to do in the afternoon. Come and have a drink. Hi, Link, it's really rare to see you here."

Joaquin laughed.

Link picked up a can of beer and handed it to him, "Joaquin, I haven't thanked you for helping me promote the movie. You helped me get a million dollars at the box office with just one sentence."

"You're welcome! What I told reporters at the time was all true. The Chinese actor's acting skills were indeed very good. If he hadn't acted in his true colors, he could have been nominated for the Oscar for Best Actor based on his acting skills."

Joaquin said while leaning under the palm tree and drinking beer.

Help Wang Baoqiang publicize the Oscar for Best Actor?

Link raised his eyebrows, not to mention that the probability of success was too low.

If it really happens, on the day of the Oscars, Wang Baoqiang will be sitting among Leonardo, Johnny Depp, Brad Pitt and others. The scene will be a bit novel when you think about it.