Exploiting Hollywood 1980

"This asking price is okay, I can agree to it."

Ronald signed the contract, and through David Simkins, Daydream plugged the holes in the script. The movie script will be signed "Based on the story of Jeffrey Powers" so that his family won't sue for compensation after the movie is released, claiming how much of the story is based on their late relative's real experiences. .

With the script issues resolved, Ronald contacted Mike Medavoy of TriStar Pictures. It is conceivable that this movie will be very controversial, and only veteran studio executives like him who pay attention to the artistry and social impact of movies are most likely to take over the distribution.

Mike Medavoy was very excited when he heard the news, and he immediately came over to discuss with Ronald.

"Why are you suddenly interested in this kind of subject?"

"Emil, you know," Ronald told the whole story, "it happened that no one wanted this script, so I bought it at a low price."

"Oh, Shxt, in the past two years, Hollywood has simply become a slaughterhouse for this stuff." Mike Medavoy As a senior executive of a large company, when many people in the industry die, the union will send a message.

"Huh?" Ronald usually didn't read this kind of communication. What he didn't expect was that just last year and the first half of this year, several heavyweights had already died.

Anthony Perkins, who played the killer in Hitchcock's "Psycho," Freddie Mercury, the lead singer of Queen, and Robert Reed, the famous TV star of the sixties

"I have to remind you that this script is still very controversial, so you have to be prepared." Mike Medavoy is a veteran producer after all, and he agrees with Ronald's approach of using movies to influence social perceptions. , but also reminded Ronald to be prepared.

"I still did some processing. I asked people to modify the script. I didn't express an opinion on the right or wrong of the matter, but just stated some scientific facts. In this way, both the pros and cons can find their own supporting arguments." Ronald also felt that this The matter is relatively hot, but I have to do it for the sake of my friends. Besides, being controversial is also a marketing tool.

"One more thing. Recently, this matter has become an important issue in the general election. Both parties are debating it. If you can..."

"That's impossible. I'm currently busy with a sugar-coated trap project. How can I finish filming, editing, and releasing it before the election at the end of the year?" Ronald waved his hand.

"You hear me out, I mean it's coming out before the end of next year," Mike Medavoy explained.

It turns out that this year’s election is an important issue. Although it is not directly related to this, it is also deeply connected. This is a matter of whether the army accepts soldiers with different orientations.

Conservatives think that these people are easy to get, so if they are allowed to spread, America may not have enough soldiers to fight in a few decades.

The liberal side thinks this is all slander. Magic Johnson has proven that liking women can also lead to discrimination and bullying in the military.

This is a huge issue, and now both parties are using it to call for votes. Many voters who have strong stances on this issue are so-called one-issue voters. As long as this one issue satisfies their preferences, any other policy will not matter.

Now the governor of the Donkey Party is saying that if he is elected, he will be recognized by the military, while the current leader of the Elephant Party is opposing it. The donkey party and the elephant party, the big cities on the east and west coasts, and the small towns in the central and southern parts, with weak religious beliefs and piety, seem to have formed a very sharp division in America.

This also makes it unlikely that this issue will become a showdown only in this year's election. It will become an important issue in many subsequent elections. As for the new commander-in-chief, about a year after taking office, it is time to fulfill the promises he made during the election campaign.

The former Commander-in-Chief Jimmy and the former Commander-in-Chief Ronald Sr. both encountered economic changes within a year or so of taking office. However, one continued to suffer from economic depression and alarming inflation, while the other fulfilled his promise to revive the economy. Everyone has seen the results of controlling inflation.

"Okay, that's a good idea."

"Then it's settled, I'll leave next year's prize-winning schedule to you."

"I may not be the director," Ronald touched his nose. As a producer and owner, directing such a controversial movie is a very good investment. But as a director, it is impossible for a film on such an issue to be nominated.

"You, this is a film and television name, forget it." Mike McDavoy knew what Ronald was feeling. Although most of the stars who are still active in Hollywood support the liberal stance and oppose discrimination against those people. However, more than half of the Oscar judges are retired celebrities, and there are quite a few antiques among them.

If this incident had registered in their hearts, Ronald's dream would have to wait until these people died before it could be realized.

"Then who do you think is more suitable?"

"I'm still looking. Can you recommend anyone to me?" Ronald didn't have a suitable candidate either.

"What about Jonathan Demme? He's got a really good handle on this genre," Mike Medavoy reminded Ronald.

"I don't think he will touch it. Maybe he will have to find a new director." Ronald smiled. Anyone who has the ambition to win an Oscar will probably not touch this movie.

"Ronald, Diane, Tom"

Fast forward to the day and it’s time for the premiere of “Pink Alliance”. Under the fast-paced editing of director Penny Marshall, the film was produced and released at breakneck speed.

In internal test screenings and audience test screenings, it achieved unexpectedly good results. For this reason, Columbia temporarily moved some of the theaters where "Basic Instinct" was showing, which had been in theaters for sixteen weeks. The number of theaters opened exceeded 1,900.

In order to cooperate with the promotion, Ronald also accompanied Diane and attended the premiere with Tom Hanks, who took leave from Seattle.

"I like this movie very much. Diane is so beautiful in it. I didn't know she could play baseball so well. Tom's performance is also top-notch. I have full confidence in the box office of Penny's director's work. If you like baseball, you If you like women to be free to choose the role they want to play, whether it’s a career girl or a housewife, you have to watch this movie.”

With so many female stars starring in this movie, Ronald would not be a qualified producer if he didn't take this opportunity to make a splash at the box office.

"Madonna, Madonna, what do you think of your performance in this movie? Who is the person next to you? Is it your new lover? Have you officially come out as gay?"

Ronald and the others were soon overshadowed by Madonna. She arrived in a black convertible luxury car today and was surrounded by a group of black bodyguards. Moreover, the person who came with her in the car was a woman, and her chubby face appeared happily in front of the camera at the same time as her.

"What! You guys are really boring, this is my colleague, Rosie O'Donnell who made this movie with me."

"Don't write nonsense, the man of my dreams is Tom Cruise with flowing blond hair."

Rosie O'Donnell is also a master who knows how to mobilize media publicity. With one sentence, the photographers really start clicking the shutter on her. The text reporter has already thought of the title, Madonna's same-sex couple, transference and falling in love with Tom Cruise Sri Lanka

"Oh, shit", Ronald was also defeated by Rosie's shamelessness. This fat bitch really knows how to promote herself.

The photographer also took the opportunity to take a photo of the two of them. Madonna was wearing a see-through top, with all the black underwear underneath clearly visible, and a pair of ultra-short denim shorts, which made the whole person seem to be much taller.

Rosie O'Donnell wore a black coat with high shoulder pads, gold embroidery, and a masculine hairstyle with a 70-70 parting. If you want to say that they are not a couple, some people will guess so.

"Why did they come together?" Ronald asked Tom Hanks and his wife Rita who came to the scene one step behind them in the theater.

"We met at the airport. Madonna's private jet arrived right behind you."

Tom Hanks came this time only after Ronald personally called Nora Ephron, the director of Sleepless in Seattle.

Nora Ephron had a lot of fun making the film, she was very demanding on all kinds of details, and she also gave the actors some room to improvise on their lines. This made the crew run at high speed, but also slowed down some progress.

Nora Ephron also seems to have triggered a desire to create, and she is constantly generating new ideas on set. Fortunately, her efficiency has really improved. Many bad ideas can be corrected in just one shot.

Ronald would watch samples every two or three days. The quality has also improved visibly, so I will not stop the delay in this high quality. Instead, I happily wrote a postcard to Ephron to express my congratulations.

"I need to take a good vacation next," said Tom Hanks, who has already shot two movies for Ronald, "Sleepless in Seattle" and "Sleepless in Seattle" with his wife Rita Wilson holding hands. Be sure to take a good rest after shooting. He didn't have many film appointments in the past two years. This year, his cooperation with Ronald has made good progress, but he can't go without a break.

"I should, I'm going to take a break after filming this movie." Ronald also held Diane's hand, he also wanted to take a rest.

"If you want to rest, you shouldn't start so many projects," Diane complained.

"Okay, honey, I promise to take a vacation with you after I finish filming this film."

However, this was heard by Tom Hanks, and he became interested again. The scripts were very solid and the market would not be bad for him to work with Ronald, so he really wanted to tie Ronald to make a movie together again.

"It's not suitable for you. This is a relatively controversial work. My colleague hopes to find an actor who is thin and weak." Ronald explained that the male protagonist of this movie is terminally ill, and thinness and fragility are important appearance. type conditions. When Tom Hanks filmed Sleepless in Seattle, he completely portrayed the image of a fat middle-aged father, and the whole person didn't fit in well.

"Actually, I can also lose weight very well." Hanks was slightly complained by his wife Rita again. In fact, celebrities don't have much time in their private lives, and they all owe their partners a lot of time together.

After the premiere, the audience responded enthusiastically and were surprised that there was such an all-female baseball league more than 40 years ago. I am also dissatisfied that women are less independent now than in the past.

After the screening, they were still shouting the names of the leading actors, asking them to come up to accept congratulations.

However, when answering the questions, some viewers expressed dissatisfaction and were unhappy that the protagonist finally returned to family life and did not continue to participate in the women's baseball league.

This is a commonplace question. Does the so-called autonomous choice of women include women's autonomous choice to return to the family and give priority to having children and family? Conservatives believe that women can make such a choice as long as they are sincere. Progressives believe that this is the society's discipline of women. As long as this culture is broken, women can still do outstanding work as well as men.

"Ha, you are right. Marriage is a burden to me. Look at me." Director Penny Marshall used herself as an example and made a joke.

"Hahaha", the audience who brought up this topic were also amused.

"Of course, this movie is adapted from real events. I only knew about this women's baseball league after watching a documentary. The prototype of Dottie played baseball for a year and returned to the family. This league also ended because the war ended and the men returned."

After the premiere, Ronald and Diane returned home. Because of the promise, Ronald had to really plan a vacation for the two. Since Sugar Coated Trap was going to be filmed in the Cayman Islands, Ronald wanted to kill two birds with one stone. Diane thought that filming would definitely take up most of Ronald's energy, so she insisted on going to Hawaii or Fiji after it was finished.

At this moment, an unexpected guest called to ask if Ronald was at home, and he wanted to visit.

"Jonathan, why are you here?" Ronald was a little surprised to see Jonathan Demme.

After filming The Silence of the Lambs, Jonathan Demme was filming a documentary starring his cousin, Bobby, a New Jersey pastor.

Generally, when a director becomes successful, he must look for investment opportunities for the movies he has not made before, but Demme is not an ordinary director after all. He actually started filming documentaries as his main project for the next stage. How could he come to Los Angeles to find me when he has been busy with this matter?

"Do you know Juan Suarez Bottas?"

"To be honest, I don't know him."

"He is a Spanish illustrator who works in Manhattan and draws illustrations for Time magazine and other publications. He is a good friend of mine."

"What happened to him?"

"Because he passed away. He was making a documentary before, telling the story of a patient mutual aid therapy group. I feel very sad. After watching the sample film he left behind, I feel very sad. These people are people who have one foot on a banana peel and one foot in a grave. You never know when they will be gone.

Anyway, I came here to ask you if it is possible to finish the documentary that he did not complete before his death and find a distribution channel? I have asked several major studios, and no one is willing to distribute a documentary of this theme, not even TV stations."

"Is that so?" Ronald did not expect that Jonathan Demme also lost a friend because of this, and also wanted to complete his unfinished documentary to commemorate his deceased friend.

"Is it okay? If not, I understand, Ronald." Jonathan Demme stood up and left.

"Wait, wait, let me ask you, if a movie on this subject is made, are you interested? I happen to have a script here, and I have already contacted Samsung Pictures to distribute it. I have another project of my own. If you are interested, your documentary can also be packaged for them to distribute."