Fooling Huayu for Thirty Years

Chapter 500 Yuan Yuan Jing Wen Ye Quan Zhen, "Soldiers' Assault" has no women!

In Ma Xun's opinion, "Me Before You" is definitely one of the better European and American romantic movies since 2015.

Well, it wouldn't be wrong to even call it the best.

The reason is simple: looking at the global film industry since 2015, it seems that overnight, we humans have stopped making romance movies.

Ahem, the romance movies I'm talking about here are proper romance movies, without any action elements.

This phenomenon is strange, but it seems to have happened.

The reason I added "seems" is because many people don't acknowledge this, but these people would probably also have a hard time finding any successful romance films since 2015.

Actually, it's not hard to understand if you just look at the surface.

Romance movies, after all, have to feature a man and a woman, and the men and women can't be too unattractive.

But look at what Europe and America were doing back then?
Right? They're practically obsessed over there, and the big Hollywood studios are even more politically motivated.

It's not just movies; games have also been greatly affected.

For a considerable period of time, the games produced by Western game developers didn't have many normal characters.

Let's not even talk about beautiful women; there are hardly any women who are even remotely attractive.

Well, if there is one, then maybe she's a lesbian.

For example, that female character in Overwatch who can teleport seems normal at first glance, but when you click in to look at her character profile... oh my god!
It's important to understand that games are primarily about 'role-playing'. That is to say, many domestic developers think it's unlikely that WoW will become popular because: who would want to play as an orc?
But it became a hit!

This was a slap in the face to many domestic manufacturers.

But later Western games would directly change the factory settings... It was really disgusting, you couldn't even play the role while holding your nose.

Games and movies have a lot in common, especially in Europe and America, where they followed almost the same path.

It's not political politics, it's just creating some kind of antagonism.

In short, it was really disgusting.

Of course, there is another impact, which is probably on real life.

Love will be too expensive in the future.

Marriage rates are extremely low in Europe and America. As for the reasons, just look at the homeless people in America.

Especially white homeless people.

France is even more impressive; men are taking on responsibilities one by one.

Given this reality, would there be a market for a heartwarming and romantic love story made by a European or American film director?
They know this in their hearts, so they simply won't film it that way.

This situation has also affected Japan and South Korea, especially South Korea.

Of course, perhaps the internal divisions in South Korea are too severe, even to the point of being obsessive.

Originally, South Korea's popular romance films almost disappeared later on.

All the movies they release are the kind with fighting, killing, and dark revenge themes.

The most interesting thing is that after these dark revenge-themed Korean dramas and movies came out, many of our domestic content creators on the internet started by criticizing our domestic films and television dramas.

Many people may not know that, in terms of international reach, Chinese films and television dramas actually surpassed those of South Korea long ago.

Yes, it's true that people in China are always praising how great Korean dramas are, but in reality, they are very niche overseas, and they can't even compete with some of our domestic dramas in the Southeast Asian market.

Especially in terms of TV dramas, some of the brainless romance dramas and fantasy dramas produced in China that we criticize ourselves are actually very popular overseas.

To be honest, Ma Xun also really wants to criticize our domestic romance dramas, because they are indeed quite mindless. The plots are so ridiculous that they are edited out and used as clichés, which is not unfair at all.

However, these shows are really addictive once you start watching them.

This is not actually a special case, but rather a very common phenomenon.

In Southeast Asia, Latin America, North America, and other regions, there are soap operas that can be filmed for a very long time and have a very wide reach, such as a show that takes 10 or 20 years to film...

Soap operas, on the other hand, are generally poorly produced, have melodramatic plots, and the actors' performances are just so-so.

It's really popular.

So, does this mean that humans simply enjoy watching bad shows?
I want to deny it, but reality will slap me in the face.

Let's not talk about the future; Ma Xun should just focus on the present.

"Me Before You" can truly be considered a high-quality romance film of the future, and its perspective is very unique.

Unconventional.

The key character is the female lead, Daenerys Targaryen.

She... when Daenerys Targaryen isn't smiling, she's incredibly beautiful.

Daenerys smiled... Holy crap!
This woman's appearance varies greatly, but Daenerys Targaryen is indeed a good actress.

In this movie, she always appears with bizarre fashion sense and styling.

Actually, this setting is quite good, forming a stark contrast with the male protagonist.

The male protagonist in the movie can't even be described as a wealthy businessman; he should be considered an aristocrat.

They're very rich; they live in a castle.

The female lead comes from a very low social class.

Such a huge class gap can easily generate dramatic conflict.

However, it also allows screenwriters and directors to use a little trick.

That is, such films can be used to brainwash the lower classes.

Look how powerful and glamorous that nobleman was, but he still suffered an accident and became paralyzed from the waist down, didn't he?

They were not happy at all.

Look, those poor people at the bottom of society, even though they have no money and they work hard every day, they are so happy.

This... it's quite obvious that it's conveying something.

It's almost like hypnotizing the lower classes.

Of course, this problem does exist, and it is even prevalent in Europe and America, meaning that the lower classes have accepted this arrangement.

They wouldn't see anything wrong with it.

In fact, from this perspective... what do Europe and America resemble?
India?

Do they look alike?
It's just caste, what's the difference?
Therefore, it is quite reasonable to say that the United States is a larger version of India.

Even though the story of this movie takes place in Britain, it's actually pretty much the same.

Foreigners think differently from us. They don't really have the concept of equality for all people. Their education system no longer teaches these things.

They're all having religious lessons over there.

Okay, back to the point.

Ma Xun will certainly make many changes to this movie, such as the characterization of the male lead.

The character could be a successful athlete, whose family is a small business owner.

This should be sufficient for our country.

And so, this question arises.

After chatting and laughing with Yuanyuan and Jingwen about the script, Ma Xun moved on to the crucial issue of casting.

By the way, Jingwen will definitely be in this movie too.

Ma Xun gave Jingwen two choices: the male protagonist's ex-girlfriend or the female protagonist's sister.

Upon hearing this, Jingwen had nothing more to say.

"Of course I want to play Yuanyuan's older sister!"

After saying that, he hugged Yuanyuan.

Yuanyuan nodded vigorously, but she also felt some pressure and had some difficulty breathing.

A look of self-consciousness inevitably appeared on his face.

Ma Xun couldn't help but find it amusing.

Yuanyuan's face showed even more bitterness, but this time she was, after all, the female lead.

"Okay, so what about the male lead?"

This is considered a normal procedure for Ma Xun.

But as soon as this was mentioned, it triggered a complaint from the two sisters.

"It seems like Yanzu didn't succeed before, was it Yuanyuan?"

"This, this... it's alright, I guess."

"No! We absolutely have to change the person this time! That Daniel Wu is acting strangely."

"It is a little strange."

Jingwen's first shot was quite impressive, but it also touched on a crucial point. Yanzu is indeed a rather strange person, perhaps because his upbringing was different from ours; anyway, he seems normal, yet somehow not quite.

What Ma Xun thought of was that this guy seemed to like posting some strange pictures on certain holidays or something.

Also, it seems that Daniel Wu later settled down in mainland China for a long time, and he would take on all sorts of business projects, including some not-so-great little brands.

Rumor has it that this guy's friend is Cheng Kang, who apparently lost a fortune frying pancakes.

Of course, this is just a rumor, but the degree of plausibility is too high.

In short, this guy is weird.

However, when Ma Xun chose him as the male lead, one of his considerations was to promote "The Banquet".

It didn't play a significant role later on.

In addition, Daniel Wu is indeed a top male god right now.

That face is really something.

But now, both sisters are strongly demanding a change of personnel.

Who should we replace?

Ma Xun said, "The male lead should have a unique temperament, a noble air, like a prince."

Now that he says that, it seems like finding the right person was really quite a challenge.

Yuanyuan was quite confused, but Jingwen thought for a moment and suddenly burst into laughter.

"what happened?"

"There's someone who seems like a good fit."

This piqued Yuanyuan's curiosity. "Who is it?"

"There was a movie last year, did you see it?"

What play is it?

"Oh right, it hasn't been released in mainland China yet, but it's very popular in Taiwan."

Jingwen's words made Yuanyuan even more curious, and not only Yuanyuan, but Ma Xun also became curious.

What show is it?

Oh right, who is it?
Jingwen wanted to keep her in suspense, but Jiayuan simply started arguing with her.

The two joked and laughed for a while, until they were both out of breath.

"It's that 'The Prince Who Turns into a Frog,' the one with Shan Junhao, oh right, his name is Mingdao."

Good heavens, it was him!

Upon hearing this, Yuanyuan said she had heard of it too, "It seems that this show became quite popular where you are."

"Of course!"

After considering it over, Ma Xun realized that this idea of ​​Mingdao might indeed be feasible.

He really does have a prince-like air about him.

Some people are like that; their appearance naturally exudes an air of nobility.

It's like, our character can't exactly go looking for a tall, Russian guy, can he?

Is that right?

In this respect, Ma Xun is indeed clever.

He immediately said, "Then I'll leave the casting to you two, especially Jingwen, how about that?"

A hands-off manager?

Yuanyuan and Jingwen were quite happy.

But Jingwen was a bit more quick-witted. "Then why don't we be the directors?"

In our production team's case, Jingwen's request is actually not a problem.

Casting is usually the job of the assistant director in the Chinese entertainment industry.

This is the case for most film crews.

If you go to Hengdian, the so-called "group leaders" who get into the production team are actually just "assistant directors" in the team.

The assistant director also has the title of director, so Jingwen's request seems quite reasonable.

But Ma Xun was well aware of Jingwen's little scheme, and simply shook his head with a smile.

"You really have the skills to direct? I don't think you can even control the camera."

These words made Jingwen a little embarrassed.

"But I...I..." she began, trying to whine.

Yuanyuan chimed in, saying, "We just want to try a few more things."

Ma Xun listened but still wouldn't budge, and said with a smile, "If you want to work behind the scenes, then start as a producer. As for directors, it's best if you don't interfere with things like camera work."

Yes, this film still needs Ma Xun to be the director.

Yuanyuan and Jingwen were at their wits' end; it seemed they had no choice but to settle down and become actors.

However, they could go to Taiwan this time... oh, maybe they won't need to.

It seems that this guy, Ming, also really wants to develop his career in mainland China.

He's quite interesting; he's very similar to Chen Qiaoen, the female lead in "The Prince Who Turns into a Frog."

They all started by making travel programs.

But the program is different.

Chen Qiaoen mainly travels to mainland China, and she even calls herself "Little Hong En".

They eat everything, including fried scorpions.

The movie "The Prince Who Turns into a Frog" was quite popular, but its popularity also caused trouble, namely the scandal involving Chen Qiaoen.

That Sanlih TV station is no good; the boss is planning to get rid of it.

She seemed to disagree, so she was sidelined for three years.

That's roughly how things went. After all that, Ming wanted to develop his career in mainland China, and he did indeed come.

So, finding him now shouldn't be a problem.

There's also a business opportunity to be made here.

"You two should go find your sister Ye, and you'd better bring this idol drama over with you too."

Ma Xun's one sentence was a huge business deal.

"The Prince Who Turns into a Frog" was also well-received when it aired in China.

Moreover, there is another important reason, which is...

"I understand! After this TV series airs, Ming will become famous in mainland China, which will benefit our 'Me Before You'!"

Jingwen's eyes lit up; clearly, she was quick-witted.

Yuanyuan was a little slow to react, but she understood.

He admired Ma Xun even more.

Ma Xun didn't say anything more, just smiled and nodded, because he had finished arranging things here and still had to go to Yunnan.

Yuanyuan, Jingwen, and Ye Quanzhen went to work on the movie "Me Before You".

Ma Xun, on the other hand, went south to work on "Soldiers' Assault".

Isn't this arrangement brilliant!
Just for now...

Yuanyuan and Jingwen just stared at Ma Xun.

The meaning in his eyes was all too clear.

……

The TV series "Soldiers Sortie" is currently still in a state of suspension.

Sitting on the plane, Ma Xun couldn't help but look at the relevant information several more times.

some of……

"Brother Ma, isn't this movie too monotonous? There aren't any women. How about adding some female characters?"

Bai Xiaohang also came along, but that was his understanding of the script.

Ma Xun smiled and shook his head, "If this film is to succeed, then no women can be added!"

That's right, "Soldiers Sortie" is a pure man's drama!
(End of this chapter)