I’m in Hollywood

Catherine Bigelow temporarily stopped eating, her originally erect waist leaned forward slightly, her hands on the dining table, and her eyes showed curiosity. After Rick made some of his own ideas, he mocked the young man in front of him with a sense of rejection. ↖↖, when it comes to movies, everyone has to admit that what Eric has done in less than three years has surpassed the achievements of most filmmakers in their lifetimes, so Eric said that she Catherine also got serious about the filming of Point Panic.

Eric said slowly: What I see is loss and struggle, a kind of intense despair after some people are unable to break free from the constraints of the rules. Because of despair, the people like Bowtie are unscrupulous and burn themselves madly, Then went to destruction; because of despair, Angelo Pappas became unmotivated, like many numb people, occasionally recalling the glory of the past, and then dying cowardly in a certain action; because of despair, Johnny . Utah locked himself in the pursuit of Bowtie, like walking dead, and eventually he found Bowtie, and then went lost again.

It's... surprising, Kathryn Bigelow said with slightly widened eyes, I asked Jim more than once how he felt about this script, and he just said: oh dear , the story is fantastic.

So you see, even the people around you can't understand the script and the deep meaning, let alone ordinary audiences. Their attention is more often only those adrenaline-pumping surfing and skydiving scenes. , after watching it. They will think. It's a cool story. As for the dissatisfaction with the rigid social system that the film is trying to convey. The desire for change, 90% of the audience can't understand.

Catherine Bigelow frowned and looked thoughtful. After a while, she asked in despair, Why... this?

It's very simple, because you don't have enough influence.

Catherine glared at Eric: I know I'm not as good as your little fellow, right?

I'm serious, if you have enough influence, people will naturally pay more attention to your work. There will be a deeper deconstruction and analysis of your work, and then the ideas you want to express can be seen by people. I understand. Take Jim's Terminator for example. In the eyes of many fans and media, this sensational work, under the appearance of science fiction, expresses the indictment and criticism of mankind's endless development of nuclear weapons. The worry of nuclear war is a very pitiful theme, isn't it? But many people know that this is not the case at all. The inspiration for Terminator is actually just a nightmare that Jim had in a small hotel in Rome because of a high fever. .

Katherine nodded her head at first, talking about The Terminator. The woman thought what Eric said was very interesting, and couldn't help laughing: I will definitely tell Jim what you said today when I have time.

Eric said in his heart that you must not have much chance.

The early stage of Terminator 2 has been completed, and it will be launched in early September. After Eric came back from New York, he also participated in a meeting of the creators of Terminator 2. Judging from the look of Cameron and Linda Hamilton on the scene, the cliché between the romantic director and the sexy heroine The story has already kicked off, and it is estimated that the day when the filming of Terminator 2 is finished will be when Cameron and Catherine break up.

Of course, Eric didn't mean to tell Catherine about this in advance, otherwise it would become a provocation. Even if it was Cameron's fault, it would definitely arouse women's disgust.

I think Jim will definitely agree with me, Eric replied with a smile, and returned to the topic just now: So if you don't want to be a high-profile filmmaker, you need to expand your influence as much as possible. There are many methods, such as shooting controversial movies, making high-box-office movies, or directing award-winning movies, etc. But shooting controversial movies is very risky, and if you don’t pay attention, it will backfire and cause public disgust. So I think, The latter two methods are more practical.”

Catherine Bigelow shook her head, with some envy in her teasing tone: These methods are easier for you, you are a little monster.

Eric smiled: Okay, I'll take you as a compliment, actually, I just want to say, I have a script here that can bring you enough influence, if you finish this film Movies, I think any movie you make next will attract enough attention, I just don’t know if you dare to continue.”

Dare...don't...dare? Catherine Bigelow asked back and forth, staring at Eric, Little guy, are you discriminating against me as a woman?

Eric said: At least in my memory, no female director has made a similar subject.

Stop, let me guess, Catherine Bigelow became interested, thought for a while with her chin propped up, and asked tentatively, Female directors rarely touch it, um... like your screenwriter's Instinct, love丨Color chips?

Of course not. Many female directors in Europe are much more open-minded than Instinct.

So, Westerns?

No, that's right, I deliberately watched the MV you shot for . I really like your western cowgirl look in it. It's cool and makes people...

Shut up, don't tease big sister, Catherine glared at Eric angrily, but there was a faint smile on the corner of her mouth. Obviously, she was not disgusted by Eric's words: Let me think about it again. think.

Eric shrugged and said, Okay, let me give you a hint. What do you think Americans and even the entire Western society are most concerned about in recent months?

Of course it's the Middle East, there's going to be a war, eh, don't you mean you want me to make war movies?

Eric snapped his fingers, ignoring the curious glances around him, and said, Bingo, and it's definitely not that kind of war movie, but an epic World War II movie, no investment limit, do you want to? You can spend as much as you want. There's enough time. I'm going to release it on June 6, 1994. That day happens to be the 50th anniversary of D-Day. So, do you dare to take it?

Catherine Bigelow hesitated for a while. If Eric is serious, then the investment in this film must be several times the amount of Scary Point in front of him. She is different from Cameron. Compared with Cameron's desperate fanaticism, Catherine Bigelow is more obsessed with movies. She likes to make movies and uses movies to convey her views. But she also understands that if she takes over this big production. Failure to do so, for a female director, is likely to mean a long period of silence, or even leave Hollywood permanently.

Eric, why don't you talk about your script first? Catherine finally couldn't resist the temptation, but she still asked this question first, if Eric's script did not meet her appetite at all , then she can also naturally push down the invitation.

Eric had a panoramic view of the changes in Catherine's expression, for this script to choose. Eric is still very confident that Catherine can get in, so he will use Catherine Bigelow's previous works. As well as the Oscar-winning The Hurt Locker and the subsequent Hunter in my memory, I have carefully analyzed it.

Many of Catherine Bigelow's works have a very strong personal style. Whether it is the early Relentless or the latest Hunting** in Eric's memory, they all carry a calm despair, although There is a 20-year difference between the Hunting ** in my memory and the current Terrorist, but the two protagonists of the two films, one male and one female, ended up in the same way. They both completed their tasks, a discarded badge. , a shedding tears of joy, even if it was The Hurt Locker, which won the best director, William went around in circles and set foot on the battlefield again.

And Eric chose a story about hope. Despair and hope seem to be two extremes, but they are often as closely connected as brothers.

It's a story of eight saving one, Eric said. On June 6, 1944, after D-Day, three of the four Ryan brothers died on the battlefield at the same time, and their mother died on the same day. Received three death notices, and the youngest son in the family, James Ryan, also went deep into the enemy's rear with the airborne troops, and his life and death were uncertain. In order to leave a glimmer of hope for this sad mother, the military executives dispatched Mi A team of eight, headed by Lieutenant Le, went deep into the war zone, trying to find James Ryan and take him off the battlefield...

Eric's eloquence is not bad, plus there is a complete film in his mind, so the whole story is told, Catherine has always maintained an attitude of listening carefully, and the people in the restaurant have not noticed it. Much less. The assistant director in charge of arranging the shooting schedule saw that the two were very engaged in their conversation, so he did not step up to remind the two that it was almost time for the shooting.

In Eric's view, Saving Private Ryan is not a complete American theme movie, at least it's very different from the theme movies he's seen.

The film truly shows the cruelty and tragicness of the Normandy landing scene, and depicts a group of ordinary soldiers with distinctive characters. Regarding their mission, the group of eight people are full of doubts and disputes from beginning to end. Some of the characters may be asking why until they die. .

This kind of film with the torture of war and the portrayal of human nature obviously makes Catherine Bigelow, who is still a young woman in literature and art, very moved, and she also understands that as a woman, if she can make such a war movie Epic movie, the sensation caused is sure to be worldwide. As a female director who has been discriminated against in Hollywood, Katherine Bigelow has a strong personality and desires to prove herself stronger than many others.

Facing the woman's tempting expression, Eric said cohesively like a salesman: How about it, Catherine, do you want to take this script? Although you haven't made such a big movie, it's not a problem, because the plan Released on the 50th anniversary of D-Day, between now and June 6, 1994, you have nearly four years to focus on making this film, four years, oh well, that's enough time to get everything ready.

Catherine Bigelow didn't answer immediately, but instead asked: According to what you said, the investment in this movie is estimated to be more than twice that of Fright Point. Are you not afraid that I will screw up this project?

If you screw up, pay for it, Eric thought evilly, but said, Of course not afraid, I believe in your ability, not to mention me.

If you were always interfering with filmmaking like a lot of Hollywood producers, I wouldn't have taken this film.

As long as you approve the script I wrote, then I will not interfere too much with the production of this film. I just say that when the film production encounters difficulties, I will help in a timely manner. But I believe that four years is enough. solve all problems.

Then you'd better write the script and show it to me first, Catherine Bigelow noticed that there were few people in the restaurant, stood up and said, It's time to work.

Then I will write the script as soon as possible, Eric also stood up, and the two walked out of the restaurant side by side.

In the days that followed, Eric often appeared on the crew of Point Panic. The script for Saving Private Ryan was successfully completed a week later, and Eric gave the first draft of the script to Catherine.

The woman was obviously more excited after reading it, and she also put forward a lot of suggestions for revision. Eric was also happy to agree to some innocuous details, but Eric would not make too much of the core connotation of the script. Concession, but argue with Catherine.

Therefore, during the filming of the film, the crew members often see the director and the producer discussing something in a whisper, and occasionally get into a dispute. This situation makes many people a little nervous, afraid that this kind of dispute will affect the film. Filming, but their worries were obviously superfluous. Until the end of September, the filming progress of the film had come to an end, and neither Eric nor Catherine had any sharp conflicts.

For a month, in addition to paying attention to the filming of Shocking Point, Eric also paid attention to things in New York almost every day, and flew to New York two or three times during the period.

The time comes to October. After two months of deployment, the number of US troops arriving in the Persian Gulf has reached 500,000. A war is almost inevitable. The international crude oil price has successfully exceeded 40 US dollars in a few days in early October. high. However, with the gradual increase in the military strength of the US military in the Persian Gulf and various measures to stabilize crude oil prices jointly introduced by the United States and Saudi Arabia, the growth of crude oil prices has also fallen into stagnation after reaching a high of $40.

By convention, most people feel that the next surge in crude oil prices should be at the moment when the war breaks out.

However, Eric knew that after the outbreak of the war, the price of crude oil not only did not rise, but fell with the offensive of the United Army. But this should already be next year, and now, it's time to count the first round of harvests. (To be continued..)u