Exploiting Hollywood 1980

"A!"

What appeared in the camera was a pair of black, gold-inlaid, very cheap high-heeled shoes. The owner of the shoes was wearing stockings on his legs, and a brown, cheap dress on top. He was twerking and dancing to the music. action.

"Cut!"

"Holly, that's wonderful..."

Seeing that the director of photography expressed satisfaction, Ronald smiled and congratulated the owner of this very vulgar costume, the actress Holly Hunter.

Because of Ronald's way of handling the details of actors' performances on the set, Holly Hunter was very happy to meet such an actor-friendly director. The previous film shot in New Zealand showed how to show inner emotions in the performance. The demand is great and the torture on the actors is quite severe. This time in Ronald's project, playing the role of the smoking secretary was a special kind of rest and comfort.

"It's not bad, is it?" Holly Hunter, wearing a Marilyn Monroe-esque blonde wig, put down her cigarette and asked Ronald in the kind of Southern accent the character needed in the movie.

"That's not bad. I have no complaints about actors like that. You could have used a stand-in..."

Ronald personally handed her a cup of coffee. The male protagonist Mitchell felt something was wrong, so he hired a private detective to investigate whether there was anything hidden about the lawyers who had accidents in the law firm. Holly Hunter plays the private detective's secretary.

This secretary named Tammy will have a more important role with the protagonists in the future. Her image of a very cheap imitation of Monroe formed a huge contrast with the adventurous and action-packed image behind her, which was very impressive. This was the effect Ronald deliberately wanted to create.

Just like Ronald told Tom Cruise, such a supporting role requires very exposed and explosive acting skills, because you don’t have much time on the screen. If you want the audience to remember you, you have to Acting like this is possible.

"Oh, that's not a problem. I think showing off sexiness is a natural impulse of human beings. This is the scene that humans like to watch the most. As a visual art film, how can it be missing such scenes?"

Holly Hunter doesn't care about this kind of thing. What she wants is to play interesting roles. Therefore, she did not sign any substitute clause with the crew like ordinary celebrities. Anyway, she decided to go into action in person for just a few provocative scenes.

"Okay, let's move the camera and take the mid-range shot later..." Ronald slapped his hands twice, and the shooting entered a very harmonious fast lane. The excellent crew did a good job in preparing all kinds of preparations. It arrived very well and was a joy to have the actors play.

And Tom Cruise seemed to suddenly have an idea. It turns out that he often expresses too strong emotions in his performances, such as his eyes full of "I want to fight" fighting spirit, or his ups and downs of tone, as if he wants to express his emotions. The actress filming the opposite scene shook her shoulders violently...

All of these disappeared during the filming of "Sugar-coated Trap". The soothing and relatively normal performance not only turned out well in the sample, but also made the supporting actresses, such as Bridget Fonda, Holly Hunter and others, perform exceptionally well.

Bridget is an actress who has just debuted, and Holly Hunter is an acting star who is favored by many directors who focus on acting. However, when they face Tom Cruise, they both feel like they are natural. , both of them acted without any trace of acting, and they praised Cruise's performance very much, saying that the reaction he gave them made them feel very comfortable, which was a strange thing.

After rearranging the scene, Ronald started shooting again.

"Have you ever tried putting this thing in a cup, but forgot to put water in it?" The secretary played by Holly Hunter still followed the rhythm of the music, posing while holding a hot pot that heated quickly and poured it into the mug. Put the water in, take a puff of cigarette with the other hand, and ask Mitcher, played by Tom Cruise, behind him.

"No..." Tom Cruise looked very impatient. His character had been waiting outside the private detective's office for a long time. This secretary is out of character and is doing something weird.

"Do you know what happened?" Secretary Tammy still asked a question that she thought was very interesting.

"I don't know..." Mitchell had already begun to wonder. After listening to the recommendation of his brother who was serving his sentence in prison, it was a wise choice to meet his cellmate, the so-called private detective? The secretary seems a bit mentally retarded...

But Tom Cruise did not show this emotion, he just showed an anxious look on his face and frowned slightly. Most people would not have any conflict with unreliable secretaries when they meet them.

"Eddie (the name of the private detective) has been waiting for you ever since he received the call that you were coming..." Holly Hunter continued to twist her buttocks slowly and widely, in a way that she never forgot to show off her words. The cheap and sexy gesture is really unforgettable.

Her grasp of this kind of performance can be said to be just right. If you are not a senior movie fan of hers, when you see this low-level imitation of Monroe on the screen, you will never think that this is another role played by Holly Hunter, such as the sexy and slightly neurotic character in Raising Arizona. Policewoman.

"Ring... Tammy!"

Gary Busey plays Eddie in the inner room. His voice calling his secretary was as hard and loud as a hammer knocking down an anvil, which came out from the inner room.

"Mr. Romack can see you now..." Holly Hunter said unhurriedly while still twisting her butt, waiting for the water in the mug to be heated to almost boiling.

"Cut!"

It's really weird, acting opposite Tom Cruise, it seems like all the supporting actors are performing at a higher level than normal.

Could it be that the few times I prompted Tom Cruise had such a strong effect? Ronald was not a very narcissistic person, but he couldn't help but be a little smug.

"Okay, let's take a rest, rearrange the lights, and let's take close-ups and close-ups of Tom..."

The conversation between Holly Hunter and Tom Cruise is rather strange. There is no Hollywood over-the-shoulder camera angle.

The secretary, Tammy, had her back to Mitcher and was chatting with him while heating the water. Mitchell, on the other hand, was leaning against the wall, not looking in Tammy's direction, passively coping with the boring conversation. He was thinking about what he should say when he saw Detective Eddie...

Because there are no two people talking face to face, there is no room for Hollywood-style over-the-shoulder shots. If we insist on filming like this, we have to modify the script and the background of the character. Moreover, when two people are talking, it is easy to cross the line and make the audience look a little confused. Where are the relative positions of the two?

Such dialogue scenes have always tested the director's camera skills and ability to design the editing in advance.

Fortunately, Ronald is a fan of Akira Kurosawa. Since visiting the old man several times, he has collected as many film copies as he can. When he has nothing to do, he watches early black-and-white films such as Seven Samurai and Nora Dog at home. , Kagemusha , and Ran , such late-color films.

The Japanese movies represented by Akira Kurosawa do not have the fast shooting standards of Hollywood's front and back over-the-shoulder shots. They and the old Chinese movies have a very unique way of handling character dialogue. Eastern filmmakers often use close-ups and close-ups to express dialogue scenes.

Therefore, Ronald copied this decisively.

The camera shoots a close-up on Tom Cruise's face, and Holly Hunter is on the side of the camera, talking to Cruise and assisting him in his entry and performance.

The conversation happened again, only this time the camera was pointed at Tom Cruise, capturing his face.

"Cut!"

Ronald shook his head and laughed. This time Holly Hunter was not filmed by a camera, and her performance was actually better than last time. Especially the feeling of being able to enjoy oneself in any situation, the acting is very natural.

Therefore, everyone said that Tom was good at acting, and the reason was solved. It's just because everyone is looking at his invincible handsome appearance, he is in a good mood, and he just needs to perform well.

…

One day later, Ronald woke up in the morning and saw the developed samples. In that conversation, Tom Cruise's close-up lasted for dozens of seconds.

A moderate chin, chic eyebrows, deep-set eye sockets, and a mouth that makes people feel happy just by looking at it. She is indeed a female killer on screen.

"How is it, is there some progress..."

Ronald looked at Paula Wagner beside him. Since she became the general manager of CW Production Company, she has been very concerned about Tom Cruise's screen performance. It doesn't matter if Tom's acting skills are not particularly outstanding, the important thing is that the close-up must be beautiful...

"Ronald, I don't know how to thank you..."

Paula let out a sigh of relief. The improvement of acting skills is very important to Tom Cruise's screen status. It is not that he can win a few awards, but that such improvement in acting skills allows him to broaden his acting career.

Moreover, Ronald, like a Zen master, not only awakened Cruise with his words, he was also a director who made him look particularly beautiful. The angles found are very precise, showing the eyes, ears, chin, and other good points while avoiding some blemishes on the nose.

"Just remember to ask Shirley Lansing to keep her promise and get me that script."

"Don't worry, if she doesn't help you accomplish this, she won't get Tom..."

The front and side close-ups of Tom Cruise are very sculptural, with good angles covering up some of the weaknesses on his nose.

What woman would not forgive such a person?

Denzel Washington expressed that he wanted to talk to Ronald, and Ronald told him that helping the disadvantaged means helping yourself. All disadvantaged groups support each other.

As for whether we can strive for equal status, it depends on how powerful the alliance is with the upper class.

…

Two weeks of filming quickly passed, and Ronald returned to Los Angeles for vacation with many of the principals. One of the benefits of being a famous director is that you can get this kind of privilege.

An excellent team and a group of actors with superb acting skills have prevented many low-level mistakes in the creative process, so directors, like actors, can also spend weekends reunited with their families.

Ronald also had a good time enjoying family happiness with Diane and Little Roger. Relaxed tense nerves.

But he was a busy man after all, so Jonathan Demme still came to see him in the evening to talk about "Philadelphia Story."

"Denzel Washington is the most suitable candidate for the defense attorney. Can you meet him?"

"Why, can't you talk to him?" Ronald was a little surprised. For such a big production, it's okay for you to have an Oscar winner for Best Supporting Actor. We all quote based on market price.

"He said it's not about money, it's about black people..."

…

"Black people are suppressed in Hollywood, there is no doubt about that..." Sure enough, when Denzel Washington came, he started talking about the equal rights of black people in Hollywood.

His argument is similar to Eddie Murphy's. There are relatively few roles for black people, and many of them are insignificant supporting roles under the ethnic quota system in Hollywood. Even if the boss of the protagonist is a black person, they still tend to arrange them as roles that are not as intelligent or charming as the protagonist.

Of course, his position is still not as radical as Eddie Murphy. The Oscars must give awards to black people every year, otherwise they will boycott. He just hopes that Ronald can use his influence to influence black movies in Hollywood.

Ronald also wants Denzel Washington to be responsible for attracting the controversy that "Philadelphia Story" may cause. It's not just a role issue. Denzel, who has some status, is indeed the most suitable candidate as Demme said, but he considers not acting but business and avoiding controversy.

So he first made his position clear: "You know, I have always treated black actors fairly. My Breakdance is one of the first mainstream movies to promote black dance and music, and there are no perfunctory roles for black people in each movie..."

"Yes, that's why I want to meet you and talk. We black people need our own stars in Hollywood, not those gags..."

"Well, interesting..." Ronald heard that it seemed that Denzel Washington didn't like the actors headed by Eddie Murphy very much. Their performances, to some extent, are just ugly, turning many black stereotypes into comedy plots, and then making white audiences laugh on the screen.

Of course, sometimes, this kind of irony can also promote mutual understanding between blacks and whites. It may not be all negative.

"In fact, I think there are too few black stars in Hollywood..."

"Hmm?" Denzel Washington frowned.

"It's the quality that's not good enough..."

"Oh?"

Ronald listed all the black stars in Hollywood history. The first black person to win an Oscar was Hattie McDaniel, who played the maid in Gone with the Wind. Her action of breaking racial discrimination was very precious in the era of racial segregation.

But the first person to break the racial barrier was Sidney Poitier. The first black actor in Hollywood history played a black man who was in love with a white woman in "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner".

Many of his fans are white. He may have surpassed the symbol of the black race and won widespread praise.

What Ronald is talking about is this kind of high-quality big star who can break racial prejudice and stereotypes. The roles played are all widely respected black people, and one can beat ten black comedians.

"Is that so?" Denzel Washington showed the black-style cunning on his face.

"Of course, we will promote you as a star on the same level as the male lead in Philadelphia Story." Ronald understood that all black people were fake, and what he wanted was his star status.

However, this is also a good thing. With the help of the new film, people feel that it is a court showdown between Tom Hanks and Denzel Washington. There is no harm. When the film is released and there are inevitable controversies, he can also help block half of the ammunition. He cannot just take advantage without paying the price.

"I believe you, but support for black people in Hollywood requires action..."

"How can I help you... I mean the development of black people in Hollywood?"

"Can you add some black characters to the movie you direct? We really need some non-Eddie Murphy-style stars..."

"Well, the movie I am directing now has a role of a girl who seduces Tom Cruise on the beach..."

"I will send the most beautiful black girl..." Denzel Washington was happy. Can Eddie Murphy still come up with such an opportunity? This is Tom Cruise, the American handsome guy that everyone loves. Eddie Murphy can only find a heroine for himself at most.

"Come to audition..." Ronald smiled. He just gave him a fair chance to compete.