Fooling Huayu for Thirty Years

Chapter 625 The Battle of Reputation! Bingbing's "Guanyin Mountain" Meets Yamei Again
"The number of one-star reviews for the movie 'Red Cliff' has suddenly increased a lot!"

"This is indeed a strange thing, but I guess it's just that many people have a problem with Wu Yusen."

"But, didn't this movie not use Wu Yusen's original script?"

"It might be an accident. Many people are unaware that this movie wasn't filmed according to Wu Yusen's script."

"It's hard to say, but this film is probably just so-so."

Douban is currently the most authoritative movie rating website in China.

Of course, there is that movie website, which is official and belongs to China Film Group Corporation.

However, this movie website is indeed not as good as Douban. There is also Mtime, but Mtime's influence is not enough.

Currently, Douban is indeed very popular.

And now, suddenly so many one-star stars have appeared.

This naturally sparked a lot of speculation among netizens.

However, as of now, netizens have not considered the possibility that someone might have sabotaged the process.

In fact, many people still feel that this was an accidental injury.

Perhaps because many mainland netizens now dislike Wu Yusen, this old guy, they also gave this film "Red Cliff" a one-star rating.

This matter has indeed put considerable pressure on Ma Xun's side.

So, what countermeasures does Ma Xun have?

2009 is just around the corner.

The box office performance of the film "Red Cliff" so far is quite satisfactory.

Ma Xun knew that if the film's reputation collapsed, Han Sanping would definitely put a lot of pressure on him.

An $8000 million project, a key project for China Film Group.

The box office performance of this movie has little to do with Ma Xun, but box office is a standard for judging the success of a movie.

Another criterion is reputation.

If this attempt fails, will China Film Group still seek out Ma Xun as an "outsourced" agent for future projects?

Must be taken seriously.

Ma Xun had prepared two plans.

Let's connect with Wang Changtian first.

"Boss, there are so many one-star ratings, it's actually quite simple, we can just change the data in the backend."

This guy really thinks things very simply.

Ma Xun immediately rejected this idea, saying, "If we do it that way, it will be easy for netizens to spot, and then the credibility of Douban.com will plummet."

"This..." Wang Changtian's phone was basically out of power.

Ma Xun had already thought it through: "You should be able to tell that many of the scores are actually manipulated, right?"

"Of course." It's obvious, and upon hearing this, Wang Changtian immediately offered another solution, "Let's just eliminate all these obviously manipulated scores!"

I must say, that is indeed a tactic.

We can accuse them of cheating and even ban their accounts.

Ma Xun shook his head again and said, "You're wasting a lot of resources."

"Huh?" Wang Changtian was very puzzled.

Ma Xun laughed and said, "If we report the data now, even if it's manipulated, it will still be counted, right?"

“Yes.” Wang Changtian nodded in agreement.

"Isn't this also a form of traffic? Since they're giving it to us, why shouldn't we take it?"

That...makes sense.

Ma Xun then offered a solution: "It's very simple. Why don't we do this? Let's set up some activity criteria. We've set up some 'film critics' before, and those film critics are definitely active accounts."

Therefore, the comments and ratings of such active accounts or such outstanding film critics should carry more weight.

understand?
We lower the weight of accounts that engage in fraudulent activities, while increasing the weight of active accounts.

You should understand now.

Great! This tactic is indeed quite effective in the current climate.

"Boss! That's brilliant! Those accounts used for boosting activity are almost never active, so that solves the problem!"

Wang Changtian also saw the benefits of this method, but whether he was just flattering the team, or whether he had already thought of this with the technical team, is unknown.

Ma Xun didn't care about these things. His method was actually the one that Douban used later, because of a movie that was criticized by too many one-star reviews.

That being said, from a technical standpoint, there is absolutely no problem with this kind of control.

Moreover, we also managed to catch that traffic.

You pay to boost traffic, we get the traffic – isn't that great?

But there's another key point here.

"I'm sure you understand, next year is 2009, and our Douban website..."

Before Ma Xun could finish speaking, Wang Changtian himself became excited.

"Boss, can it be listed on the stock exchange?"

Ma Xun nodded.

Of course!
Why not seek an IPO now?

Moreover, with IPOs starting next year, many business owners are already gearing up.

Ma Xun also needed to be prepared, but he was well aware of this.

With so many people focused on the IPO, it's clear that the path to listing will be anything but easy.

Therefore, Ma Xun needs to make more plans.

As for the details, let's leave some things unsaid with Wang Changtian.

Therefore, Ma Xun simply gave a brief nod to the matter of going public.

Wang Changtian was a sensible fellow; he knew he shouldn't ask too many questions.

That's all for now regarding the Douban issue.

Ma Xun is not the kind of guy who only knows one move; he has other tricks up his sleeve.

However, to achieve this, he would need to travel to Tokyo.

In fact, going to Tokyo was originally part of Ma Xun's plan.

Naturally, he couldn't possibly bring along Liu Tao, that country bumpkin.

Liu Tao's visit this time, in fact, is, according to the agreement between the two of them, to 'repay a debt'.

She owes 400 million yuan, which she can't possibly pay back all at once. Even if Ma Xun only offered her a chance and a plan to repay the debt, she's still not worth that much in one go.

Of course, the agreement was that she would be available whenever needed, but Ma Xun really didn't call her this time.

The reasons are not detailed here.

Although Liu Tao said he wanted to go with Ma Xun to Tokyo, Ma Xun wouldn't take him along.

Ma Xun has serious business to attend to; he's not going out for fun.

So Liu Tao left with great reluctance.

But just before Ma Xun set off, another uninvited guest arrived.

"Brother Ma, where are you going this time?"

It was Bingbing!

Her appearance was really... just like a little girl.

Clearly, she has been in very good shape in recent years.

"I'm planning to go to Tokyo, so you don't need to come with me."

Ma Xun was indeed going to take care of serious business, which made him sound quite serious.

But he was serious, while Bingbing wasn't serious at all.

"Brother Ma, are you going to Tokyo to see the Japanese girls?"

She said those words.

Am I, Ma Xun, that kind of person?
"What are you saying? How could my seeds be sown in a place like that?"

I must say, Ma Xun's words were quite insightful.

Bingbing blushed upon hearing this, "So, I'll go with you."

The meaning is quite clear; she probably has something on her mind.

But Ma Xun teased, "So you really want the seeds, huh?"

Bingbing was really going all out this time, saying, "Brother Ma, you know, it's not impossible for someone to have another child for you."

too direct.

Of course, there's nothing wrong with being so direct about their relationship. Since things have come to this point, Ma Xun might as well be straightforward.

"Tell me, what exactly do you want?"

Hearing this, Bingbing became a little embarrassed again, "Well, we can talk about it in Tokyo, that's fine too."

Ma Xun simply pinched one of her fingers and tossed it aside, saying, "Let's talk about it first. By the way, didn't you go to film that sequel with Zhang Ziyi?"

That's right, the movies they made together before were quite good.

Moreover, the two of them walked the red carpet together at this year's Golden Rooster and Hundred Flowers Film Festival.

I must say, the two of them make a pretty good pair; they're very pleasing to the eye.

But now, it's clear that the problem isn't with that movie.

"Brother Ma~ I recently met a really amazing filmmaker."

"Who?"

"Her name is Li Yu."

Good grief, this woman still ran into Bingbing.

Ma Xun frowned slightly. "What kind of film do you want to make? It's not going to be anything too explicit, is it?"

Upon hearing this, Bingbing immediately shook her head. "That's definitely not it. I'm Brother Ma's man, so of course I won't show it to others. It's a movie called 'Buddha Mountain.' I've read the script, and I think it has some substance."

Huh? It's this one...

Honestly, if you remove some of the explicit scenes, the plot of "Apple" still has substance.

This movie is a dark comedy. Just the part where Tong Dawei later cheats on Jia Hui's wife is quite dark and funny.

But now that it's this movie, "Buddha Mountain," it's not bad.

Ma Xun laughed and said, "It seems you really want to win the award."

Upon hearing this, Bingbing nodded emphatically.

“Brother Ma, you know, what I’m missing right now is a prestigious award.”

After hearing this, Ma Xun no longer refused, "Okay, I like Bingbing who is ambitious!"

These words made Bingbing extremely happy, and she immediately wanted to snuggle into Ma Xun's arms.

And so, the two of them went to Tokyo together.

……

Let's leave aside for now how Bingbing displayed her allure.

After arriving in Tokyo, Ma Xun immediately began his work.

That was meeting with Dongbao's Dashan.

Back then, Ma Xun was able to secure the role in "Red Cliff" thanks in part to Da Shan's efforts.

Now, seeing Ma Xun arrive, Da Shan is naturally very welcoming.

He bowed at a perfect 90-degree angle.

Ma Xun didn't stand on ceremony and directly stated his purpose for coming.

"Red Cliff is about to be released all over Japan, right?"

"of course."

The way this question was phrased struck Da Shan as somewhat strange.

The original plan was to release it in Japan very soon.

Actually, at the beginning, Ma Xun planned a simultaneous global release.

This global market, of course, excludes the European and American markets.

However, in this day and age, as long as a Chinese film can be shown in an overseas location, it can be considered a global release.

Just bragging.

I understand everything I understand.

Because things are a bit strange in Japan, their movie scheduling is quite different from ours.

In other words, if a film is released in December, it will be considered as a film released in the following year if it is for an award.

Yes, in Japan, almost all award selections are held in November as the last month.

Daiyama and Toho thought that since this film was a major production about the Three Kingdoms period, it might win some awards.

International films can win awards too.

So, very reluctantly, the film was scheduled for release in January 2009.

If it were held in December of the year before last, the time gap would be too long, which would be detrimental to winning the award.

Hollywood is the same way; their Oscar-contending season is November.

The closer the better.

But Ma Xun insisted that the release date be as close as possible to that in China.

And so, that's how it is.

But now...

Ma Xun bluntly stated his request, "Dashan-san, I need to add one more step."

"What part?"

Ma Xun pulled out a novel he had bought on a whim and said, "This is a Japanese novel, right?"

“Of course.” Da Shan nodded.

"So, what's on this cover?"

This is a question that anyone with eyes can answer.

The so-called "middle cover" is a strip of paper that covers the physical novel. It is usually white because white is easier to write on.

In novels, especially Japanese ones, most of the covers are 'recommendations'.

These are just recommendations, but don't underestimate them; these recommendations come from well-known Japanese novelists!
That's right, this is a marketing tactic for Japanese novels. In particular, if a new author can get a 'recommendation' from a well-known author, his novel will definitely sell very well.

Ma Xun used this novel as an example, and Da Shan understood instantly.

"Mr. Ma, do you want recommendations from many famous Japanese filmmakers?"

Ma Xun nodded, "I want the most famous people, and the more the better! Like Takeshi Kitano, Nagisa Oshima, and the like..."

It's top-notch!

Da Shan was immediately in a dilemma.

However, Ma Xun said directly, "You didn't do these things? Such an important publicity stunt, and you didn't even do it?"

Yes, getting film industry celebrities to endorse it is something that's done all over the world.

Da Shan could only say, "I just couldn't find one that famous."

awkward.

Ma Xun laughed heartily, "Go and search as much as you can! If they're unwilling, then let me talk to them."

Should we let Ma Xun speak to him?

Is this good?
Da Shan could only force himself to say, "Please rest assured, Ma Sang! I will do my best!"

Seeing this, Ma Xun realized that his provocation had worked and immediately offered benefits in return.

"I have a new movie, a collaboration with director Satoshi Kon. If you do a good job on this..."

Needless to say, Da Shan's eyes lit up.

"Hai! Please rest assured, Masang!"

This thing is now fully powered!
Ma Xun was naturally overjoyed; sooner or later, they would be negotiating with Toho about distributing "Inception" in Japan.

I remember this movie did very well at the box office in Japan.

It's not simply because the original version had many Japanese elements; the real key factor is actually Leonardo DiCaprio.

That's right, Leonardo DiCaprio has a huge number of fans in Japan.

Back then, Titanic was incredibly popular in Japan, and Japan is a country that loves 'handsome' men.

In any case, Ma Xun easily took control of Da Shan.

In that case, let's head home and spend some quality time with Bingbing.

Unexpectedly, while he was discussing business at the Takarazuka Building in Toho, he encountered a girl on his way out.

"Oh, is this Mr. Ma Xun?"

The name Ma Xun is still written in Chinese.

"Oh, Ms. Masami Nagasawa?"

Ma Xun should be more decisive.

That's right, I actually ran into Masami Nagasawa.

(End of this chapter)