Hollywood Drawing

When the crew of "The Dark Knight" finished all their scenes in New York and got on the flight to Los Angeles the next day, someone was secretly observing their movements.

In a high-end club in Malibu, Los Angeles, Harvey Weinstein looked at the bowling ball rolling towards the end, shook his head in disappointment, took the towel handed by his female companion, wiped his hands, and walked towards the rest area.

The main purpose of big fat man Harvey Weinstein coming to a place like this is of course not just for fun, but because this high-end club is the best place to talk about something.

"Harvey, listen to me."

Anthony Minghella, who had been waiting in the rest area for a long time, saw the tall fat man approaching and immediately stood up with a look of urgency on his face. "The box office potential of "The English Patient" is still huge. What we lack now is a big screen to show it. As long as you can compete with the theater alliance, the film's performance will definitely rebound... "

"Bounce?"

Harvey Weinstein snorted and glanced sideways at the British director. He was too lazy to continue explaining to him what the laws of the Hollywood market were.

"The English Patient," which Miramax has high hopes for, can be said to have been well-received upon its release in November. Note that it was well-received by film critics representing professional ratings.

Just before the film was released, Harvey Weinstein felt confident in the face of the many positive reviews after test screenings. After all, in order to avoid this year's chaotic summer schedule, he deliberately moved the film to November. From this point of view, he made a very wise move, otherwise this film will definitely be like "Until Dawn" Same, chewed into crumbs by Warner Bros.

However, despite the film's overwhelming professional reputation after its release and very high ratings from moviegoers who have watched it, the box office figures for the first weekend were unbelievably low. 14.5 million US dollars, this is the number Miramax obtained after borrowing the Disney marketing network for publicity.

When the working day arrived, the box office performance plummeted. Starting from Monday, the box office in a single day did not exceed one million US dollars. With a high professional reputation and poor market performance, the theater alliance reacted very quickly. In the second week, the theater chain that opened "The English Patient" was reduced from 2,700 to about 1,900.

It can be said that the reduction in the number of screening theaters is completely a normal law of the market. Even if Harvey Weinstein shamelessly cultivated relationships, it ultimately failed to stop the market behavior of the three major theater chains.

There are now less than three days left before Christmas, and the screening scale of "The English Patient" has been continuously reduced for more than a month. Now it has been reduced to less than a thousand theaters, which are still showing the film.

The current scale of screenings can be maintained only because Harvey Weinstein used his relationship with Disney to retain so many films.

For this film that he has high hopes for, he basically no longer has any expectations for its performance in the theater market. I am afraid that only director Anthony Minghella is still naively thinking that he shot it. The work still has hope for a comeback. After all, the movie is full of the so-called artistic flavor, isn't it?

Harvey Weinstein has watched the film "The English Patient" countless times. He knows that the film's slow narrative rhythm and retro shooting methods are more in line with the taste of the academy, so he wants to recoup his investment in the film. , or even make a profit, now the only way to go is the academic award.

This was originally his original plan. The reason why he would try his best to maintain the scale of the film's screening was to delay it until the awards season. As long as "The English Patient" can win a significant statuette, with the powerful marketing of the Oscars, With the ability, the film will continue to expand the scale of screening, and the copyright can also be operated at a higher price. Not only can Miramax's investment be recovered, but there is even a great hope of making money.

"Listen, the film will be submitted for this year's Oscars. During this period, you'd better not cause anything to happen to me."

Harvey Weinstein's eyes became particularly sharp as he stared at the British director sitting opposite. He knew that despite the fact that this Englishman looked humble in front of him, he was actually not a peaceful master. "Now I need you to keep a low profile and don't let any scandals affect the film! When the awards season starts, there will be an opportunity for you to be high-profile."

"But I heard..."

Anthony Minghella's throat moved. He looked at the big fat man's hand opposite him, kneading his female companion's erection without hesitation, and swallowed quietly. "But I heard that Wayne Greenberg is bound to win this Oscar. With Warner Bros.'s domineering style, there is a high probability that he will try his best to win the two heavyweight awards of Best Picture and Best Director. Help him fight for it!”

He is no longer a newbie British director who just came to Hollywood. The longer he stays in the Hollywood circle, the more he understands Wayne Greenberg's status in Warner Bros. and his value to this media group.

In addition, the other party has had several experiences of running with him before. Even though he is not very old, it is definitely not a flaw. As far as he knew, Warner Bros. had already started a series of actions in advance in order to build momentum for the other party, such as the Congressional Gold Medal right in front of him.

"You don't have to worry about those things, just do what you should do."

Speaking of the young competitor, Harvey Weinstein's eyes flickered, his hand on his female companion paused, then he tilted his head and looked at the beautiful young actor beside him, and ordered: "Kathy, go now Contact your besties and call all the pretty ones, I need to have a party tonight!"

"No problem, Harvey, I swear, those little bi**hs will dress themselves up beautifully."

The little blond actor named Kathy Katherine, with a warm smile on her face, did not shy away from Anthony Minghella, who was sitting opposite, and kissed Harvey Weinstein's fat face gently before twisting. He stood up and walked out. For big fat people, these little actors who come to Hollywood to pursue their dreams are far more likable than those models from party companies. They are eager to get an opportunity, even if it is a slim possibility, these little actors will work hard to fight for it. And he is the one who can bring them opportunities.

"I'm going to have a reception tonight. If you have nothing else to do, go back first. Remember, keep a low profile!"

Seeing Anthony Minghella who was still sitting across from him, Harvey Weinstein frowned and started to chase people away without politeness. His current attitude was completely different from when he invited him to direct "The English Patient" It’s a different place, but this is Hollywood, and this is the reality of Chi Luoluo. For collaborators who cannot create profits, the actual value is not as good as a piece of toilet paper.

But Anthony Minghella seems to have gotten used to it. In fact, since the box office performance of "The English Patient" was not satisfactory, he has gradually become accustomed to the other party's attitude. Now he is particularly curious about who the other party is entertaining, and what exactly is this big fat man? Is there any way to face the well-prepared Warner Bros. public relations team?

In fact, if he hadn't been hung up by the Oscars, he might have returned to the UK long ago. Although there is not much hope now, if he can win a statuette, it means that he still has a chance in Hollywood. The marketing effect of the Oscars is not just for Videos are the biggest bonus for participants.

Even in winter, the temperature in Los Angeles is still pleasant. When night comes, in a private villa in Beverly, Harvey Weinstein holds a glass of champagne, waves away the sexy girl around him, and sits on the sofa Go upstairs, looking at several old men with cold eyes, each holding two girls in his arms.

"Is this a heavyweight member of the academy?"

A voice full of disdain came from beside him. "Are you sure it's okay to do this? I just discovered that those old men not only drank a lot of strong liquor, but also smoked a lot of exciting things!"

"Hollywood has always been like this!"

Squinting his eyes slightly, Harvey Weinstein had a sneer on his face. "Although their time has passed, when they were young, they were all jerks. Don't worry, these are nothing to them."

After speaking, he turned his head and looked at a middle-aged man in a suit and tie sitting next to him. "Roger, if you have something to say, you can't say it over the phone. You have to fly over in person."

"You know, ever since he found out he had cancer, he's become more and more paranoid."

The visitor was Roger Ebert's agent, Lloyd Connor. He shrugged awkwardly and explained again. "The phone is never safe, isn't it?"

"Should we change places?" Harvey Weinstein turned his head, looked at the young girls who were already high, and asked, shaking his head slightly.

Lloyd Connor glanced at the girls and said nonchalantly: "Forget it, it's probably impossible for them to hear anything in their current state."

Thinking of his previous client's instructions, and carefully recalling the entire plan, the living room fell into silence for a while.

Neither of them said anything first until three or four minutes passed, when Harvey Weinstein's deep voice broke the other's thoughts. "I have definite news that Wayne Greenberg has finished shooting all the footage and "The Dark Knight" is about to enter post-production work. The crew members will most likely have disbanded at the airport after the plane lands... "

"you sure?"

Lloyd Connor's eyes sharpened and he confirmed again: "The timing must not be wrong, otherwise our plan will not have enough impact."

If it weren't for the generosity of his client, he really wouldn't want to get involved in this mess. Once the matter begins to ferment, it will definitely not be a trivial matter. No one wants to stand on the opposite side of a media group.

Even his client who was suffering from cancer was killing someone with a borrowed knife, asking the fat man next to him to step forward and take action? But I have to say that this fat man is really bold in order to disrupt the opponent's preparations and make money.