Exploiting Hollywood 1980

"By the way, Chris, what did you say just now, did you encounter a problem with editing?"

Ronald asked guest Chris Columbus after putting down the phone.

Columbus has finished filming in Toronto, Canada, and has returned to Los Angeles to start editing.

When he became a director for the first time, he did not follow Ronald's advice and take a few weeks off. He was afraid that he would not work hard enough.

In fact, vacation is beneficial. It allows the director to forget the details of the shooting, so that when editing, he can look at each shot from a more objective perspective.

Editors and directors have inherently different ideas. When the director sees the footage, he may think of how difficult it was during filming and how many takes it took to get a satisfactory shot.

Editors treat all shots equally, and sometimes the shot that was unintentionally shot on trial is the most suitable to be used in a certain place.

So it is no surprise that Columbus did not go through the process of forgetting on vacation. He fell into a thinking trap during editing and argued with the editor for a week or two before he found the feeling of editing.

After adjusting to the director's way of thinking, Chris Columbus discovered a big problem that could only be solved with Ronald's nod. So he ran to Ronald eagerly.

"I missed a few shots."

"What?"

Ronald shouted.

This is a low-level mistake. How could this happen?

"We were shooting smoothly in Toronto, but in Chicago we only got a full day's use of the skyscraper. At 11 p.m., the Screen Actors Guild representative forced me to end the shoot.

The shooting plan was not completed in time, and the ending of an important villain was not explained well. I just shot an ending before the shooting time ended.

But Disney's production director refused to allow reshoots the next day. I had no problem with the ending, but the editing effect was not good and there were cuts wherever I put it. "

"Uh..." After listening to the details Columbus said, Ronald said to himself that it was the Screen Actors Guild's "credit" again.

Every extra day of filming means an extra day of work and venue rent. Disney is a poor studio to begin with. Under Eisner's rule, he was more concerned about the cost of the film and would not agree to an extra day of shooting. Especially since there were only a few shots in this shoot, but we had to pay an extra day's rent for the skyscraper exterior.

If the Screen Actors Guild hadn't fixed the time limit of 11pm, after which no minors could be filmed, the plot would have been shot on the same day due to overtime work.

"What does Disney say?"

"They said they wouldn't pay for reshoots..."

"I'll go to the editing room with you tomorrow to have a look."

Ronald said to himself, I am not willing to pay for this unjust money.

…

It was here that nanny Chris Parker rescued the girl Sara from the outer wall of the high-rise building through a rope.

The bad guy who chased here to kidnap the girl Sarah, but no one pulled him away in the end. He was left alone on the steep glass exterior wall and was left there forcibly.

The next day, Columbus pointed to Ronald the picture on the monitor.

The difficulty of editing lies here. This is an ending arranged by the screenwriter for the bad guy. He is trapped on the narrow outer edge of the glass exterior wall. If you take one step forward, you will fall off the skyscraper, and if you go back, no one will help you.

When the audience saw this, they were indeed very relieved.

But on the other hand, this is a side plot. To achieve this effect of letting the audience relieve their hatred, there must be some foreshadowing.

Otherwise, the nanny, Chris Parker, who has rescued all the children, will send the children back to their rooms to sleep a few minutes before the adults go home, and then grab a magazine and look like they had nothing to do tonight.

This bad guy's ending can't be inserted directly after the main ending. Otherwise the audience will be inexplicably unable to connect.

"What shots do you want to reshoot?" Ronald also felt that it was really difficult to handle.

"I wanted to add some shots of him struggling on the outer wall of the skyscraper, and his accomplices rushing to rescue him. In the end, I had no choice but to call the police. The good guys rescued him and caught the thief."

"Well, that's a good idea."

Ronald nodded.

"The Adventures of Babysitting" is originally a light comedy, plus adventures and a love story of the heroine. This arrangement actually fits the atmosphere of the entire film very well.

"But if you reshoot like this, it will be very expensive. You have to recall the actors and crew. They have been on vacation for several weeks, and Disney is even less likely to pay."

"What should we do?" Columbus knew there was no hope for reshoots.

"Use the existing footage and think about how to cut it together."

"This..." Chris Columbus adjusted his glasses, "I have thought of many ways in the past few days, but it is impossible for the audience to smoothly cut the ending of this main villain without causing drama."

"Now it seems that all I need to do is cut out his ending scene." Columbus also felt that at this point, the only option was to choose the lesser of two evils and simply cut out the bad guy's ending. In this way, the audience may not notice that after the protagonist escapes with the child in the movie, there is still an unexplained ending to the villain.

"Ordinarily, it's possible. Commercial movies are all about emotional ups and downs, and there are some plot flaws that the audience won't notice."

Ronald also felt that this was the only way to do it, "But you will be a little older next time. The thrilling rescue scene outside the skyscraper was too close to the end, and maybe many viewers will remember it."

Moreover, this kind of chase on the outer wall of a skyscraper and finally escape with a rope has not been seen by American audiences. It must be very novel and interesting. The shots you took are very thrilling. If you had enough budget, you should actually take more shots. "

Ronald sighed again. Columbus's director level was academic, strict and methodical. But sometimes, the director needs some street smarts and the courage to show his dominance at critical moments.

I filmed the footage at that time, and at most I was fined by the Screen Actors Guild, but the footage was already in hand.

"Let me ask the experts for you." Finally, Ronald thought about it and asked the masters of editors and directors how to deal with this situation.

…

"Is that so? My suggestion is not to forcefully cut this scene into the movie. The audience's thinking and attention follow the path carefully arranged by the director. Inserting a jumping shot rashly will destroy the audience's thinking, and the gain will not be worth the loss. .

As expected, Walter Murch did not support the idea of ​​cutting the ending.

"But if a main villain leaves a tail in the climax scene before the end, will there be problems if he doesn't explain it?"

"A lot of times, you can't have it both ways, Ronald. This is no longer a problem that can be solved at the editing stage. Unless you reshoot some scenes, it's better to just cut them out, unless..."

"Unless what?"

"Unless you have the screenwriting ability of Billy Wilder, you can unexpectedly turn the story around at the end."

"Is that so? Then I'll ask him."

Ronald had watched many old films directed by Wilder and knew that this immigrant director with a heavy Eastern European accent had a signature directorial characteristic of unexpected twists and false endings at the end.

The ending that had already come naturally, with his skillful tweaking, could create a new ending after the ending. Let the audience have an extra aftertaste after being satisfied.

This was his unique skill, and few people in Hollywood could imitate it later.

After making an appointment with Billy Wilder over the phone, Ronald came to visit him with the transferred videotape.

"The situation is like this. I don't have money to reshoot the scenes, and Disney can't come up with extra production funds. But we have to find a way to add the ending of the main villain.

I've seen a lot of your classics, and I feel like if there's anyone in Hollywood who can help us solve this problem, it's you. "

Billy Wilder put on his reading glasses and watched the videotape Ronald brought several times on TV. He sat in the rocking chair and rocked back and forth.

Chris Columbus, who came with Ronald, was much more nervous than Ronald. He also wore glasses and nervously wiped them with a lens cloth over and over again.

For his debut novel, he could actually receive personal guidance from a master whom he admired and admired in the university. If it hadn't been for Ronald, he would have never dared to think about it.

"You want to make a fake ending, right? This is really a way to please the film critics and awards." Billy Wilder doesn't look like he was the all-powerful man back then, he looks like a kind old man next door.

"If the big studio system was still there, you wouldn't have to worry about such things at all. Those actors and technicians were all long-term employees of the studio, and it was very simple to ask them to come back and reshoot some scenes."

Billy Wilder recalled his feat during the filming of "The Flat." The heroine Shirley MacLean learned how to gamble with several actors from the Rat Pack. She finally demonstrated her superb card dealing skills to everyone on the set, and then said a classic saying that gamblers often say, "Shut up and deal the cards." .(ShutupandDeal)"

Wilder thought it was so good that he asked the studio to recall the set, rebuilt the dismantled bedroom set, and asked Shirley MacLaine to reshoot the scene, which eventually became the ending scene of the peachy apartment.

But such a false ending, coupled with the lingering rhyme technique, still requires foreshadowing and coordination.

"That's right, Ronald, Chris. The method of switching from a false ending to a true ending requires a reversal scene between the two endings.

The audience's emotions are brought to a climax by the false ending. Suddenly switching to the real ending will make them ride an emotional roller coaster twice in a row, which is not a good idea.

So you need to set up a slow-paced scene between the two endings, in which the protagonist's success seems less successful. He paid a huge price for this ending. Just when the audience feels regretful, let the true ending come in.

The original regret is made up for by the true ending, which is like giving people two climaxes, and finally can be transferred to the third ending, giving people the aftertaste.

Your shot is like the third ending.

Just like in "The Apartment", Shirley MacLean came back after the false ending and saw Jack Lam opening champagne at home, thinking that he shot himself. After this true ending, the two officially confirmed their relationship while playing cards. This is the correct use of this kind of shot. "

"Yes, just like Marlene Dietrich in "Witness for the Prosecution", she saw her husband and lover walking out of the court, and finally stabbed to death the murderer who had finally set up a trap to save him in the court. The lawyer played by Charles Laughton finally said that he would defend Dietrich again. "

Chris Columbus was very excited. It was a rare opportunity for the master to teach in person.

Ronald almost laughed out loud when he saw it. Columbus was really an academic. He could forget his own problems when he saw the real knowledge in front of him.

On the other hand, Ronald, who was working at the bottom of the crew, knew that there was no chance of him as soon as Wilder said this.

For this multiple ending, there must be a relief after the false ending to allow the audience to relax mentally. The current material cannot be cut at all.

It seems that Billy Wilder's trick was the result of careful planning after careful consideration, not a sudden idea. "Adventures of Babysitter" still has to cut out the ending of the villain.

"Hey, no, he just wants a soothing rhythm, not necessarily the plot."

Ronald suddenly had an idea:

"Mr. Wilder, Chris, what do you think if I put the villain's final ending after the end credits?"

"Behind the credits?"

Billy Wilder adjusted his glasses, "This has been done in TV series before, but no one has ever done it in a movie. In theory, it should be possible, after the audience has passed the ending credits and lost some emotions in the ending. , you can insert this kind of ending."

"Yes, at the end, the heroine nanny Chris Parker is pursued by a handsome college student. The audience's excitement about the nanny getting love is washed away by more than a minute of subtitles. It is indeed suitable to join this villain ending. Let them smile again."

"Many viewers can't wait until the subtitles end. This is not a TV series. Many people leave after seeing the subtitles." Wilder has a deep understanding of the audience's psychology.

"That's it, there's no better way."

Ronald felt that this was the optimal solution under the current conditions.

"It can be used as a promotional stunt at that time. To watch this movie in its entirety, you must read the subtitles."

"It makes sense," Chris Columbus was excited again. "Just like Mr. Wilder's prosecution witness, on the last subtitle, there is a subtitle asking the audience not to spoil the ending to their friends. Although this cannot stop this It was a spoiler-like behavior, but it caused some discussion and indirectly made more people watch the movie.

Right? Mr. Wilder. "

"Actually, I wanted the audience not to spoil the story, but it didn't work. Instead, more people knew the ending. It's a good thing for the box office, but it's not in line with the habit of enjoying movies."

…

"What a great idea! It's like giving the audience another cookie after the credits."

Disney's marketing manager was also very happy when he saw this editing method. Disney is not prepared to spend too much money on the promotion of "Adventures in Babysitting". There is a gimmick for the audience to spread, which is a very good box office accelerator.

"Ending cookie? That's a good name, very good, so let's do it."

Ronald is happy to have solved the movie's problems and maybe make some more money at the box office.

He's back in his editing room.

The entire film "Moonlight Sultry" has almost been edited.

"I will not participate in the final assembly work."

After such an episode, Ronald also gained some new ideas about the assembly of his films.

Directors always tend to keep the shots they worked so hard to get. Only the editor can have an objective attitude towards the entire film and consider which shots should be removed from the perspective of rhythm, even if they spent a lot of hard work on the filming.

And Walter Murch is a connoisseur. Leave the movie to him and you won't have any problems.

"Okay, you can wait until I finish editing and watch the finished film. This will give a better effect." Walter Murch also thinks this is better. He has fully understood the content and rhythm that Ronald wants to express, and finally has overall control. At this time, the effect of one person's decision alone is better than that of two people discussing it.

Ronald let Murch work out the final rhythm issue.

He took the time to go to Tom Cruise and talk about the movie script he wanted to direct.

Scientology's technical center is in the Guaranteed Building in Hollywood.

When Ronald arrived here, he felt as if he had entered a physics laboratory for middle school students. Many people were walking around holding auditing instruments like multimeters.

Ronald greeted the beautiful woman at the front desk and went to the reception room, where Tom Cruise was listening to a tape.

"Ronald, you came just in time. This is the script I was talking about. It was recommended by Mr. Ovitz. He said that if I starred in it, I would have a good chance of getting an Oscar nomination."

When Cruise saw Ronald coming in, he quickly stood up and handed him the script. He also put down the earphones with the script tape that Mimi Rogers had recorded for him.

"RaMan?"

Ronald thought the name was good. It was catchy and made people curious to know what Rain Man was.

Of course, Ronald knew. He had heard of this script, and Rain Man was actually a name for the mentally retarded protagonist.

His name is "Rayn", but because of his slight mental retardation and poor pronunciation, he changed it to "RaMan".

"Hi, Ronald, you're here." Mimi Rogers walked in from the outside at this time, "This is a script recommended by Mr. Ovitz. It was originally planned for Dennis Quaid and his brother Randy to star together. The brothers in the script.

Later, Mr. Ovitz believed that the script had the potential to win an Oscar, so he urged CAA clients Dustin Hoffman and Bill Murray to star. He knew that Tom was not nominated for "The Color of Money" at the Oscars this time, so he specifically asked him to participate. "

"If you are willing, it would be very nice for you brothers to make it together."

Mimi Rogers briefly talked about the process of getting the script to Tom Cruise.

"I have to read it a few times before I can give you an answer." Ronald nodded and accepted the script.

"Would you like to visit the Scientology Technical Center? There is an upgraded version of our teachings here. We don't show it to ordinary people. They have to audit it to a certain level. But Ronald, you have Confucius." Educational literacy, our president David Miscavige promised to make an exception to show it to you.”

"Well, I won't read it. Read the script first." Ronald rejected Mimi Rogers' enthusiastic solicitation.

"Sorry, Ronald is not interested in this. I also want to accompany Tom." Mimi went back to report the situation to CEO David Miscavige.

"You concentrate on being with Tom, I have prepared an actress for him to guide him."

…

Ronald went to CAA with the script.

He took the script and asked Niceta, "Wasn't this book in preparation last year? Why is it still in the preparation stage now, and the stars have been changed several times."

"Rain Man is Ovitz's leading project, so I can't participate," Nicita shrugged. "Tom Cruise only got it recently. Before him, Bill Murray hesitated for a long time and refused.

Dustin Hoffman, on the other hand, has not had a successful movie since My Fair Lady. He now needs this movie to turn around in order to continue to receive a salary of 5 million US dollars. "

Niceta gave a general introduction. This movie is very interesting. Many stars fall in love with the script as soon as they see it, but as time goes by, they start to shrink back. The same goes for the original Dennis Quaid brothers.

"Oh?" Ronald became even more curious about this script. Is it so magical?

"By the way, who was the previous candidate for director? It's impossible for Ovitz to just look for a star but not a director, right?"

"Stephen Spielberg and Sidney Pollack both made serious preparations, but after a while, they also withdrew."

"Oh?" Ronald was even more curious. These two are both heavyweight directors. Not to mention Spielberg, Sidney Pollack won the best director for "Out of Africa" ​​the year before.

but……

"It seems that Ovitz has put me in a lower position as a film director?" Ronald said half-jokingly, "Or are they all Jews?"

"Half and half, you take a look first. If you are interested, I will arrange a meeting between you and Ovitz." Niceta also smiled. This observation is accurate, as both directors, as well as Dustin Hoffman and Drama, are Jewish.

If they hadn't given up, Ronald and Cruise wouldn't have had their turn.

"Okay, I'll go back and take a look first."

Ronald didn't know if this movie was worth directing, so he went back on vacation to relax and try to dream of the finished film as a reference.