Exploiting Hollywood 1980

"Is this your final version of the script?" Ronald held his forehead with his hands to prevent his frown from being seen by his good friend Cameron Crowe.

After several months of constant communication with Ronald, Crowe rewrote the "say anything" script several times. Originally a romantic love story, many fresh details have been added.

But Cameron Crowe was still dissatisfied in the end and bought a lot of Billy Wilder videos that he admired most and watched them at home constantly, looking for inspiration. Finally, after drinking a few glasses of beer and smoking a few cigarettes, he felt determined and rewrote the script.

This time, Crowe no longer cared about Ronald's opinions, but moved forward indulgently according to his own inspiration and thoughts. For a time, my thoughts surged, and all kinds of wonderful plots emerged one after another. By the time he finished writing the last period on the computer, it was already late at night the next day. Relieved, he slept for a day and a night, then came to see Ronald with the printed and bound script.

"Yeah, this is the version I feel most satisfied with. I wrote it all day and night without sleep, as if the story ran out of my pen. My wife read the entire script while I was sleeping. She also thinks it is the best work I have ever written.”

Cameron Crowe was very happy. During these days, Ronald had maintained weekly communication with him and gave him a lot of opinions and inspiration. Ronald promised himself that he would invest in filming for himself after the script was written.

Ronald felt a bit difficult to handle. There are a lot of rough and unreasonable things in this script, and it's even an anti-genre plot. For example, the male protagonist is an ordinary high school boy who practices karate, and the object of his admiration is a girl with excellent grades, good looks, and a wealthy family.

The girl has never been in love in high school (this is unlikely), and then actually accepts the love of the male protagonist (this is somewhat possible). Of course, the resistance to love comes from the woman's father, a successful investor.

The girl was persuaded by her father that such a boy who practiced karate casually a few times and dreamed of winning the championship in the karate competition was ordinary in all aspects and was not suitable for the girl's future. (Ronald was a little suspicious that this episode was a spoof of his own Longwei boy), and the girl returned the boy's gift.

The boy felt that his first love would end in vain, so he held a dual-card large-speaker tape recorder and repeatedly played the songs from the couple's love dance in front of the girl's window, and finally moved the girl (this is also a bit unlikely). The girl wants to break up with her father and fall in love with the boy.

Of course, the wealthy investor father would not give up like this. He used many tricks, such as cutting off his daughter's college tuition, to let the girl see clearly the boy's mediocrity and incompetence.

How to overcome the father's obstacle in the end? Cameron Crowe used a miracle trick here,

It turned out that the girl's father's wealth was not obtained through investment. He absorbed many people's pensions and started a Ponzi scheme. In the end, his true colors were exposed during the stock market crash and he was prosecuted and sent to prison.

In the end, the girl got a scholarship from the University of British Columbia. On the plane flying to London, the boy gave up his "karate career" and accompanied the girl to face unknown life challenges.

This kind of romantic love movie actually needs a certain amount of cliché. How to arrange such obstacles, how the hero and heroine overcome the obstacles and finally come together, this needs to be carefully arranged. Although Crowe's book is coherent, the plot arrangement is not very good and the rhythm is a bit inappropriate.

"Cameron, the love between these two people will go through many tests... and the final ending will be on the flight..." Ronald tried to remind the other person in less intense language. He has also written scripts himself and knows that this kind of experience of inspiration from heaven is rare. And once the screenwriter has this experience, he will definitely feel that God has taken care of the script, and he doesn't think there are any flaws anymore.

"Yes, I put the last note on the plane. The two of them looked at the seat belt indicator light. After a ding, they can release the seat belt. This symbolizes that the two of them have finally left the shelter of the family and officially Entering adult society.

The girl kisses the boy and says no one thinks the two of them can get together. The same goes for my wife Nancy and I. At that time, no one thought that she, a popular rock singer, could get together with me, a screenwriter with no successful experience, but it was still beyond everyone's expectations..."

Crowe's eyes shone with light. This script was different from the "fast-paced Richmond High School" he had written for Ronald before. It included many of Crowe's own experiences and emotions. So he especially wanted to make this film his directorial debut.

"This is precious creative passion," Ronald thought to himself, and could not destroy Crowe's passion. "In the end, the father gave up interfering in his daughter's love affair because his investment scam came to light. Isn't this a bit too tricky?" Ronald was inclined to accept the script, but he still made some comments in certain places.

"Isn't life stranger than my script? Look at those people who went bankrupt in the stock market crash. And the Naples movie tycoon De Laurentiis, who once made very good movies, now can only survive. .”

Cameron Crowe is excited, the muse is taking care of him, and this script is the best.

Ronald was also attracted to this passion. In an industry where few people understand what movies make money, such passion and confidence are very rare, and therefore worthy of some cherishment.

"I can initiate a project and I will invest in this movie, but the audition of the male and female protagonists requires my consent. After all, the most important thing in a romantic drama is the chemical reaction between the male and female."

"Of course, even if you don't tell me, I still want you to choose. Your vision is the best. The love between men and women is as matched as Dirty Dancing. Who would have thought that Patrick Schwytz could also play a couple with Jennifer Gray. They are in Red Hated each other so much at dawn.”

Ronald and Crowe agreed that Daydream would spend $5 million on the shoot, with another $1 million in reserve. In terms of distribution, we began to look for a distributor. It would be a pity if this movie only went to the low-end theaters of Daydream.

"This script doesn't seem to be very good?" David Simkins, the manager in charge of the production, raised some objections. The film's script was flawed and it seemed that it would be more suitable to be shot as a low-budget film.

"A script is a script after all, and a movie is a movie after all." Ronald waved his hand, indicating that the other party didn't understand. After all, Simkins has no directing experience, and the scripts of many movies are not very good, but there are directors who can turn it into pictures and actors who contribute wonderful acting skills. It can be said that after many wonderful movies are made, it is impossible to tell whether the script is So mediocre.

David Simkins had a blind admiration for Ronald's vision. Seeing that Ronald was so determined, he stopped arguing and went to make plans with colleagues in the production department.

Ronald is actually not very sure that this movie will be successful. But Cameron Crowe's determination and ecstasy moved him, as if Crowe had already seen the wonderful finished film, and the images and sounds of the entire movie were already in his mind. It's like dreaming about the film, it's worth giving it a chance. Besides, five million U.S. dollars isn’t a lot.

However, Crowe, a new director, needs to be paired with an experienced producer. Ronald thought to himself that he would be the most suitable candidate, but he might not be able to spare the time to stay on the crew since he still has many movies to focus on.

Well, Ronald was flipping through his Rolodex and saw the name of Polly Platt, the artistic director of "Working Girl" and Bogdanovich's ex-wife. If Polly helps me watch this movie, I won't have any worries.

"This script is very interesting and unconventional." Polly Platt, who accepted the invitation, read Crowe's script in Ronald's office. She admires the innocent love of the hero and heroine and their courageous attitude towards facing unknown life.

"I'm glad you like it, and I want to ask you to be the producer of this movie, Polly. You promised me that if there was a movie you liked, you would be the producer for me, right? Bar?"

Ronald quickly climbed up the pole and pulled out the words Polly had promised half-jokingly, so that she could share her worries.

"I remember what I said at the time was, and a fat check." Polly Platt asked for her salary with a smile.

"Of course, I won't let you suffer." Ronald wrote down a salary that was 30% above the market price on a piece of paper, and also included a small amount of box office share and video share. Folded it and handed it over.

"Deal!" Polly Platt saw the number on the note and immediately stood up and shook hands with Ronald, for fear that the other party would regret it.

"Hahaha, I finally got some good news these days." Ronald stood up and hugged the old lady, then asked his secretary to print out the contract and send it to the lawyer for review.

"I think you are a little troubled, Ronald." The old lady noticed that Ronald was troubled and wanted to give him some relief.

"Hey, it's not about the new film Steel Magnolias." Ronald picked up a newspaper from the document basket on the table and handed it to Polly.

"John Malkovich and his wife Glenn Headley are in a cold war... The husband is suspected of being cheating"

Below the title is a still from Malkovich's slightly bald "Dangerous Liaisons" and then goes into a bit about the filming of the film, as well as the fact that Malkovich's wife, actress Glenn Headley, has been seen in and out of her famously divorced photo of lawyer's office.

"Love on set?" Polly Platt was not happy about this kind of thing. The same was true for her ex-husband Peter Bogdanovich at the time. He fell in love with the heroine Sybil Shepherd on the set and later abandoned his wife and son, making himself very embarrassed.

"I can't tell you who it is, but this matter caused a lot of trouble in the casting of the new film Steel Mulan that I invested in."

After all, Polly is a person behind the scenes and is no longer active on the front lines of Hollywood. Recently, rumors and gossip have spread everywhere in the industry.

It is said that there was a local gossip newspaper in Los Angeles that wanted to use a special feature to publish the affair between Michelle Pfeiffer and Malkovich. It includes interviews with many crew members, as well as some stories about the partners of Malkovich and Pfeiffer.

However, Pfeiffer's agent Limato, a partner of the old Italian-born William Morris Agency, has been monitoring news in this regard. After getting the tip from the newspaper's insider, he took a two-pronged approach. On the one hand, he conducted public relations for the owners of the newspaper, and on the other hand, he took measures against Pfeiffer and Malkovich.

Michelle Pfeiffer was placed under a gag order. This kind of emotional gossip, the more you talk about it, the more it will heat up. What is needed now is to grit one's teeth and refuse to admit it, no matter how exaggerated the rumors are in the industry, to hide at home and never leave the house, not to say a word to anyone.

Pfeiffer's husband, Horton, was also a client of William Morris. He was promised a lot of benefits, and he knew that a big scandal with a big star like Pfeiffer might not be good for his future, so he also filmed movies on the TV station honestly. , every reporter asked about Pfeiffer's scandals, they were all refuted.

But in fact, the two have already started talking and decided to break up peacefully. Have started to seek help from a lawyer to divide the property. Michelle Pfeiffer has developed much better than Holden over the years. In this divorce, Pfeiffer, as a wife, has to pay alimony to Holden.

If both parties can resolve it coldly, there won't be any problems. But there was a big problem with John Malkovich, the other party to the extramarital affair.

Malkovich seemed to be emotionally moved. He was cut off from all contact with Pfeiffer and all phone calls were rejected. Ovitz, who originally hoped that he would make a bigger splash, had to accept that this male star, who had a poor reputation in terms of relationships between men and women, suddenly turned into an innocent man!

Michelle Pfeiffer, and John Malkovich both, seem to be cursed by the show "Dangerous Liaisons."

In the play, Count Valmont is also a bad guy, seducing all kinds of women easily. Marie de Tourville (played by Michelle Pfeiffer), known as a chaste woman, was finally moved by him and started an unethical love affair with him, but Valmont was also moved by the love of this chaste woman. I was also moved by my true feelings.

I don’t know if the love reaction in this drama is too immersive, and both actors have symptoms of their characters in the drama. Madame de Tourville finally returned to her family, while Valmont was obsessed with love and finally died in a duel.

John Malkovich had some symptoms of Valmont. When he returned to America after filming, he soon discovered that Michelle Pfeiffer was avoiding him. Unwilling to lose the favor of beauties, he continued to launch offensives, but always received a rejection.

Malkovich, who could not see his lover, developed severe depression and even cried in front of his wife and called Mrs. Tuvel. His wife, Glenn Headley, initially thought that something was wrong with him due to filming, so she took good care of him. Later, I peeked at the letter he wrote to Pfeiffer and learned that he was dumped by the beautiful woman Pfeiffer, which was why he was so sad.

Glenn Headley was furious, moved out of the home, and sought help from a divorce lawyer. Although rumors spread, and after being exposed by the media, she received threats and benefits from CAA and stopped speaking a word to reporters, Markovich's problem did not get better.

Now Malkovich's wife is divorced and his lover ignores him. He is alone at home crying every day. caa His agent felt that the problem was serious and had to hire a psychiatrist for treatment.

Malkovich's depression had reached the clinical stage. When he went to see a doctor, when the psychiatrist mentioned Pfeiffer's name, he burst into tears and couldn't hold a conversation at all. We can only postpone the discussion until the next treatment session.

But Malkovich still showed the same behavior in the next session of treatment, and the psychiatrist had to notify the CAA of the severity of his symptoms.

Although psychiatrists abide by the privileges of doctors and patients and do not disclose information to unrelated people, CAA is not a place where secrets can be kept. Soon, rumors spread like wildfire that Malkovich was in tears every day because of the beautiful woman he was opposite. It made both him and Pfeiffer very stressed.

Whenever he goes to see a psychiatrist, he is surrounded by reporters. And Michelle Pfeiffer was also implicated and couldn't go out. Everyone is waiting for an opportunity. As long as Malkovich collapses in public, they can get a suitable reason and seek Pfeiffer's explanation head-on.

I couldn't go out, meet with director Herbert Ross, and talk about the script with Ronald. Gradually, Herbert Ross also got an excuse and kept raising the idea of ​​changing the starring role.

But for this kind of film project, the production rights do not entirely belong to Ronald. The screenwriter also had an investment, and Ronald knew he had to resist at times like this, otherwise Herbert Ross would get the heroine and continue to interfere in other castings.

But it's not an option for Pfeiffer to continue avoiding the media like this, which makes it a little difficult for him.

"Ha... some women are like this. All the men in the whole crew are fascinated by her. It's hard to avoid falling in love with the characters in the play." Polly Platt patted Ronald shoulder and let him figure it out on his own. "But it usually ends after filming. I originally thought Sybil (Shepard) and Peter (Bogdanovich) were like that, but they obviously had true feelings. The only way is to wait for time for the passion to extinguish, and the minimum is six months. Months, up to a year and a half, they will always fade away from their passion."

"Six months?" Ronald covered his face. Isn't my "Steel Mulan" going to die in six months? The screenwriter still has the right to produce the film. If he is still unable to start work, then he will find someone else (such as Herbert Ross) to kick him out. This is a daily routine in Hollywood.

No, we have to find a way.