Fooling Huayu for Thirty Years

Chapter 527 Taking Down Martin Scorsese! Is Ma Xun fighting himself this Lunar New Year?

In the United States, a movie goes through many procedures before it can be released.

There is also a review process here, but it's called 'grading'.

Many people have probably heard of the term PG13.

This 13 refers to a 13-year-old child, and you can imagine what comes after that.

Later, many people in China called for our domestic films to follow the American example and implement a rating system as well.

However, it has never been done.

This matter... many people don't really understand it. Sometimes, ambiguity is what constitutes power.

If there is a clear standard, then it's like playing a game; you level up when you reach the required experience points.

The system basically doesn't care, right?

It must be emphasized that while setting standards and grading systems does have its advantages, not setting standards also has its advantages.

Be flexible, cough cough... I can't say more.

Other procedures for the release of an American film include screenings and previews.

Actually, we have similar practices in China. After all, our film industry has indeed been learning by doing from foreign examples.

The film "Infernal Affairs" held a screening today.

Those who came were, of course, managers from American theater chains, as well as several well-known film critics.

Naturally, the cast includes renowned director Martin Scorsese, as well as leading actors Leonardo DiCaprio, Jack Nicholson, and Matt Damon.

It should be said that their names are very well-known in the world of cinema.

Martin Scorsese has essentially won Best Director awards at all the major international film festivals and awards.

The only thing missing is an Oscar!
Today, I'm looking at his latest masterpiece.

Many media reporters... In fact, many film critics in the United States write articles for newspapers, and sometimes they simply act as media reporters.

They surrounded director Martin and bombarded him with questions.

But it was obvious that the famous director was overjoyed by the question.

As a specially invited guest, Ma Xun was greeted by director Martin's beaming smile upon his arrival.

Indeed, he should have laughed.

When the two met, they embraced.

"Ha... Mr. Ma, I really have to thank you."

"Oh, Director Martin, what are you thanking for?"

"This film was able to be completed entirely because of Mr. Ma's initial support."

"Director Martin, you're too kind."

Their small talk was mainly a mutual compliment.

This scene delighted many media reporters, and many of them knew that Mr. Ma Xun was a remarkable figure.

He is a well-known film investor.

In this way, quite a few photos were taken.

But was Ma Xun just here to promote this movie?
Actually, Ma Xun already knew what was going on before he came.

Of course, all of this is based on the premise that the great director Martin Scorsese filmed the movie in the original timeline in the same way.

But I guess it won't change.

And so, Ma Xun followed Martin and the others into the theater.

They sat in rows, all very properly, and then "The Departed" began.

Ma Xun only needed to watch for five minutes to fully understand it.

Still the same!

Of course! They're all American versions directed by Martin Scorsese, so how could there be any changes?

The key point is that this is how it turns out...

Ma Xun laughed instead.

The movie "The Departed" has a fairly good length, and the actors in it are...

Leonardo DiCaprio's performance was just average.

Matt Damon, to be honest, is just so-so.

Jack Nicholson is actually the character played by Eric Tsang.

But in reality, the American version is just so-so.

Well, many people might think that's nonsense, because this movie is going to be a big hit at the Oscars.

But Ma Xun was even more certain that the Oscars, once you see through them and remove the filters, are a different story.

It's really not that complicated.

But I won't go into those details.

After the movie ended, many film critics were full of praise.

Martin was naturally overjoyed; all he was missing in his life was an Oscar.

He really wanted to win the Oscar for Best Director.

I've already lost several times.

And this time, based on this movie alone, it should be a sure thing.

As a result, I had a very good conversation with the film critics.

As for the managers from the North American theater chains who came this time... well, it doesn't really matter whether they come or not.

Martin Scorsese's film, a key production for Warner Bros., also stars Leonardo DiCaprio, Matt Damon, and Jack Nicholson.

This film definitely deserves a high rating.

That's why only managers come.

It was decided a long time ago.

In fact, this situation often occurs at film screenings held by domestic cinema chains.

Even these frontline film screening managers are very professional and have their own opinions on movies. In other words, they can distinguish which movies will be big hits and which movies are garbage.

but!

Their opinions actually had little to do with the final screening schedule.

Ultimately, theater chains look at who the director is, the star power of the actors in the film, and the number of their fans.

This is why there were actually more bad movies in theaters later on.

They even give more screenings to bad movies.

Moreover, China is different from the United States. In the United States, it is not allowed for film production companies to also be theater chains.

The antitrust law at the time led to the breakup of MGM, which was the most powerful company at the time.

But in China, it's possible; many film investors are actually the cinema chains themselves.

So, you really have no idea what kind of films to release.

Come back.

Director Martin Scorsese is in an absolutely wonderful mood right now, as if he can already see the Oscar statuette beckoning to him.

In such a good mood, of course, we can't forget Ma Xun.

"Ladies and gentlemen! This film is an adaptation of a Hong Kong movie, and this Mr. Ma is the key figure who brought this matter to fruition."

Martin was giving Ma Xun a very flattering compliment.

In fact, the reason Ma Xun was able to come was mainly because he was in New York; otherwise, it should have been Lin Jianyue who came.

But Ma Xun actually knew that Lin Jianyue hadn't been invited back then.

Even those guys in Hong Kong could only watch helplessly after the film won awards.

Even when the Oscar host said that "The Departed" was adapted from a Japanese film, they couldn't do anything about it.

They can only vent their frustrations on domestic social media.

Hong Kong filmmakers have always been rather timid, especially when facing Hollywood.

But Ma Xun is different.

He stood up and said, "This movie is absolutely excellent."

At this point, he made a turn and even used Chinese.

"But Director Martin, do you want me to tell the truth?"

Chinese?

What does it mean?
Although many of those present were writers,
There really wasn't anyone who understood Chinese.

Fortunately, Martin was a smart man, and he understood Ma Xun's meaning to some extent.

"Mr. Ma, how about we have a drink together after this is over?"

Ma Xun nodded. "OK."

The two of them burst into laughter.

……

The screening of "The Departed" has ended, and the film has naturally become the focus of attention.

The theater chains are very pleased and will definitely give it a top priority.

Needless to say, the media is another story.

After that, Ma Xun and Martin did indeed have a drink together. Of course, Director Martin is getting on in years, so he couldn't drink much.

He held a glass of whiskey in his hand, but his expression was somewhat serious.

Ma Xun laughed. He hadn't been drinking either. He looked directly at the famous director and said, "What I meant just now was: Do you want to hear the truth?"

Goodness, that one sentence is enough.

Of course, Ma Xun is now using English.

Director Martin frowned, and said with obvious displeasure, "So what if you tell the truth?"

Ma Xunxiao said casually, "It's very simple. Your film is far inferior to the original 'Infernal Affairs'."

These words immediately enraged director Martin Scorsese.

"impossible!"

Yes, he's a great director. How could his movies be worse than others'?

Even if it's the original!

But Ma Xun was calm and composed; he had been prepared all along. “Mr. Martin, I hope you can look at your work as you would look at God.”

That's a brilliant statement!

Martin was momentarily stunned.

Ma Xun then added, "In the original film, what was most appealing was the psychological battle, but what about your film?"

Besides the gore and violence, and the endless stream of profanity, what else do you have?

"This……"

That's right! Absolutely right!
The real brilliance of "Infernal Affairs" lies in its 'psychological' aspects.

This film could even be described as a 'psychological film', because the psychological scenes are outstanding, and many shots are very clear.

In other words, this is not a traditional gangster undercover film; otherwise, it wouldn't have been so successful in Hong Kong.

After all, there are too many gangster movies in that area.

Martin Scorsese's "The Departed" has virtually no psychological drama.

They're all too straightforward.

But is this the only flaw?

Ma Xun didn't give Martin a chance to refute and immediately said, "You don't understand Chinese culture, so you can't actually understand the original movie."

Mr. Martin, speaking of the final scene, I want to say that they took the elevator down together.

Do you know what's in the original version of this scene?

"Yes, what is it?" Martin was sweating.

Ma Xun gave a direct answer: "Don't you think that taking the elevator down is actually going to hell?"

In an instant, Martin panicked!
He didn't realize it.

He didn't take any pictures!
In fact, there is another version of "Infernal Affairs" that was shown in Malaysia, in which Andy Lau played Lau Kin-ming, who was arrested by the police.

It's just that justice prevailed over evil; that's how it was when he stepped out of the elevator.

This is different from Hong Kong.

But let's leave that aside for now. This elevator is connected to hell, making it a very symbolic scene.

It was a shot taken from the top of the elevator car, showing the elevator descending.

The US version doesn't have it at all.

Therefore, even the great director Martin Scorsese didn't realize it.

In fact, many movie content creators on the internet have later interpreted this.

Interestingly, quite a few of them are actually sycophants of Hollywood, and they even say that America doesn't have a hellish culture.

Dude, what are you guys talking about? Do you even know what you're saying?
Does America not have a hellish culture? Is this some parallel universe America?
Well, it's actually quite obvious that those guys who fawn over America don't really understand America at all.

Anyone who truly understands America would be surprised if they didn't criticize it.

Returning to the film itself, director Martin Scorsese simply failed to capture this implied meaning.

The key is!
Later, Japan adapted "Infernal Affairs," with Lau Kin-ming playing Owada. In terms of looks, Owada lost by quite a bit.

Putting aside the appearance, just look at this version – they managed to capture the allegory of hell!
To put it bluntly, even Japanese directors understood it.

You, the great director Martin, don't even understand... Is this a small problem?

"What, what exactly is your purpose?"

Martin Scorsese realized the seriousness of the problem, and so he... panicked.

Ma Xun laughed and said, "You don't think I'm going to find a famous film critic after this movie is released and tell him all these meanings and stuff, do you?"

Wow! That's really something!

They said 'no,' but actually...

Martin broke out in a cold sweat. "Mr. Martin, tell me, what's the settlement...?"

Ma Xun knew he had the big director under his thumb, because he knew that the old man Martin just wanted an Oscar, and he had probably already taken care of everyone involved.

While it's true that the Oscars are based on voting, those votes can be manipulated. Later, Hollywood had many lobbying firms that did this kind of thing. The reason why "Parasite" won several awards was because it found a good one of these firms.

So, the Oscars are really just that kind of thing.

“Mr. Martin, I assure you I won’t say anything inappropriate, but I hope we can build a genuine friendship, for example, when my film needs awards…”

They've already gone this far.

Martin isn't stupid!

“Mr. Ma, aren’t we best friends? I’ve seen your movies before, they’re all excellent works, the one called ‘Cloverfield,’ right? It’s so creative!”

All done!
This world-renowned director was thus completely manipulated by Ma Xun.

He helped me build a good reputation and hopefully win some awards in the United States.

This is a good deal.

After all, Ma Xun didn't pay any price at all.

However, after next year's Oscars, Ma Xun will need to further work on understanding and controlling this veteran director.

But at that moment, a crisp sound rang out.

The two clinked glasses and downed the amber-colored whiskey amidst laughter.

……

Through Fenbei.com, Ma Xun's financial resources in the United States have become even more substantial.

This gave its film companies more ammunition.

Moreover, Fenbei.com has now also connected with Tencent.

This further strengthened Ma Xun's voice.

Of course, with this website so successful, the next step is to kick Zheng Li, the founder, out of the company.

This guy is completely useless.

In addition, Ma Xun also instructed Yang Yuying to sign more musicians.

What JJ, and that Dao Lang, right?

Anyway, we have plenty of money now, so let's sign it with great enthusiasm!

This is money from American stock market investors!
If you don't spend it, you might as well.

In short, the domestic music market really did take off after that.

And so, Ma Xun returned to China.

After all, the summer movie season is over.

However, before returning to China, I received a call from Dashan.

They said that Masami Nagasawa had a wonderful time in mainland China, promoting her movie, but unfortunately, she was unable to meet Mr. Ma Xun.

That's quite a statement... To be honest, Ma Xun really likes Masami Nagasawa... She's truly a beauty.

She has an incredibly long and straight leg that is incredibly white. In fact, there are rumors in Japan that Masami Nagasawa is considered the number one "hidden bear" in Japan.

Yes, that means it's actually quite big, but it doesn't usually show up; in fact, it even looks like a bamboo shoot.

Ahem... I won't say more.

Isn't Ma Xun a lecherous man?

If you miss it this time, there will be another chance next time. Yamei is only 20 this year, right?

Forget about all that. As soon as Ma Xun returned, he immediately began to make his plans.

The Lunar New Year film battle is about to begin!
How did it suddenly jump straight to the Lunar New Year film season?

Absolutely, because there are some really great movies in this year's Lunar New Year film season.

"Fearless" and "Curse of the Golden Flower"... The former was delayed because "The Banquet" was released earlier.

"Curse of the Golden Flower" is a very impressive movie. In the original timeline, this movie once held the number one spot on the domestic box office chart!

And on our side... Cloverfield 2 and Me Before You.

These two films had much smaller budgets.

Therefore, we must plan carefully for this Lunar New Year film season battle!

However, upon closer examination, those two films are actually quite closely related to Ma Xun.

He had a role in "Huo Yuanjia".

"Curse of the Golden Flower" had an even greater impact, so much so that the script was rewritten.

So, is this a case of fighting back against oneself?
(End of this chapter)