The Meritorious Crew
When he saw the speeches of two people on Oprah's talk show, Levi had a smug smile on his face.
Edward Norton said on TV that it doesn't matter if one more movie is nominated or one less. This kind of confidence is not because he thinks it doesn't really matter if there are no nominations but because, in his opinion, the number of nominations for this movie may be very large. It doesn't make much difference whether one actor is nominated or two actors are nominated.
It seems arrogant to say so, but it makes sense if you consider it carefully and take it apart slightly.
The success of a film is always manifested in multiple aspects. There are multiple Oscar awards because movies have a clear division of labor, and everyone has their own part. And a classic, often every part is very important.
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The script of this movie is something that people talk about now. When the original author was interviewed, he once said that this movie was inspired by Face/Off, but now everyone has to admit that this movie completely surpasses that movie by John Woo.
The characters' entanglements and the changes in mentality in this film are all just right, and the film's model has inspired many people.
What the script is most afraid of is falling into a cliché and following a routine model. Repeatedly shooting movies according to the same pattern, and even summing up a routine for this, and following that path, is very repulsive to the screenwriters.
And the ingenious mode of this movie allowed the screenwriters to see the different shooting methods of the film, so they were naturally praised.
When people heard that the copyright of this movie was bought from Hong Kong, and the copyright of the Hong Kong version is still in the hands of the original author, the Hong Kong people already started to prepare for the filming.
It was similar to what Levi remembered, though even grander.
Because the American version was the most successful, the Hong Kong people spent more manpower and material resources. They recruited almost all the outstanding actors in Hong Kong to act in this movie.
The success of the script is already apparent.
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And the soundtrack to the movie is just as good. In the film, some excellent musical compositions are used. For example, when the police captain and Colin died, the music "Amazing Grace," a song that Americans are familiar with, can be considered therapeutic. The desolation and helplessness of the piece when people hear it are very shocking.
And the other song, 'Mad World,' a song by 'Tears for Fears,' was used by Levi in the movie. This song was originally something from 20 years ago, but this time using it again after making a simple change immediately made the song go viral.
Other than these two songs, the other songs are all good too. It is telling that the soundtrack sold out after the movie aired.
In terms of the soundtrack, the movie is equally excellent.
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And in terms of shooting, many parts of the movie are just as good; those shots need to be followed or zoomed out suddenly or shot in the mirror. Reflection is a shot from a special angle to express the character's psychology. Those places need to adjust the focus and transform on two different characters to reflect the character's heart and character changes; these details are handled very well by the movie.
And there's no shortage of originality in the film, either. If it is a real set of wind chimes, the reflection in the wind chimes will definitely not be able to shoot such a scene; it is the effect that can only be shown after special effects processing.
In one of the few shooting scenes in the movie, the shooter's gun muzzle was shot instead of shooting the bullet hole of the person who was shot. This shooting method is also unique. It is a great initiative to use innovative shooting methods to show the characters' emotions in the movie.
Although some people say that these shooting techniques have long been used in Hong Kong movies, no one has used them in the United States, and they can attract people's attention.
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Of course, this movie's editing, art design, sound design, and other aspects are equally excellent.
It is incredible to edit a two-hero film in a clear and orderly manner without any chaos and to design a gangster movie full of aesthetics; the control of the tone and lighting of the movie also needs to be excellent.
In the movie, the sound of bells, wind, footsteps, and these details are also important contents of the film to create the atmosphere.
In these aspects, the movie The Departed is also very commendable.
***
And behind these things, Levi is naturally even more successful as a producer and director. As a producer, being able to find such a good script when he was traveling in Asia and bringing it back to the United States to make a movie, such success is enough to make many people envious.
There are many producers in Hollywood, but who will notice the potential of every script when they go abroad? And even if they saw the potential of these scripts, how many people dared to spend a lot of money to shoot them?
Even without mentioning the director's identity, Levi's courage as a producer is enough to amaze many people.
And as a director, he is undoubtedly successful.
The success of a movie, the script, and the actors are, of course, part, and the director is also part. Sometimes the director's own intentions can play a significant role.
For example, which character the director likes, it is not impossible to deliberately add drama to a particular character. However, Levi's control is quite good, and this is his excellence.
Whether it is a Godfather-like boss or a patriarchal police captain, a protagonist who has been undercover for many years, or a character hiding in the depths, each character has its own charm and demeanor.
They all showed their own characteristics in the movie.
Levi's control over the life and death of the characters in the movie is excellent. Everyone's role was taken care of, but when it came time to die, they all went through the impermanence of life and death without delay.
Reflecting the mood of the character, these are the controls.
These things together make this movie a classic.
***
"Maybe, we should give the crew a bonus to reward them." Thinking of Norton's words, Levi also thought of something.
If you have meritorious service, you will be rewarded. No company in Hollywood is big enough to cover all aspects. In many cases, it has to cooperate with other companies.
If you are too stingy, it will have a negative impact on the next cooperation. In this regard, Levi was never stingy.
"No problem. Our movie has been released in North America for four weeks, and our film's box office has exceeded 150 million. It seems that it should not be difficult for the film to surpass Gladiator in North America. Our film is definitely a success."
Inside the Enigma company, Alexander looked at the movie's box office and seemed quite relaxed when talking to Levi.
In the fourth week, the film's box office was only 30 million, but even so, it can be believed that the film's box office in North America can challenge the 200 million mark.
200 million box office is not easy for a movie. Even for the star-studded The Departed, it is not easy to get this box office.
It can be said. The movie was a box office success.
"In the UK and Japan, the response to the movie is very good. The British box office is expected to be close to 30 million, and about 50 million in Japan. In addition, considering other regions, this movie's overseas box office results could reach more than 100 million dollars. Nick, I didn't expect your film to get such a box office. It seems you're not bad at shooting commercial films either."
Alexander and Lavi joked, and the mood was quite relaxed.
"If I shot it early, I definitely wouldn't have such a high box office. My movie is all driven by stars. Where did I find so many stars to film two years ago?" Levi continued, "300 million is average, not as good as Gladiator... But if you count the peripheral revenue, the movie's box office is not bad, right?"
Levi's question made Alexander nod.
A commercial film can often have high peripheral income. This kind of peripheral income, on the one hand, refers to the advertisements in the movie: for example, in the film, the sunglasses that the police captain always wears, the windbreaker on Colin, the suit of William, the watch as a birthday present, these things, all are soft advertisements.
On the other hand, the so-called income refers to the movie scenes promoting the sales of related items.
Some people have already argued this point: If someone sells clothes with a unique style on the street, not many people will even look at them — not everyone can appreciate exotic garments. However, if the sales place is near the movie theater and the clothes worn by the characters in the movie are sold, the situation is quite different.
After watching the movie, many people will feel that since the character in the film looks handsome in a specific dress, they should also be handsome in it, and then buy one without thinking...
This case is also applicable to some concerts. Undoubtedly, the cultural industry can promote the development of surrounding industries.
And not only these but some other things can also be sold. For example, after the movie is shot, the adaptation rights of games, comics, novels, and TV series, the imitation of some movie props, and the sales of soundtracks and CDs... and these things, Alexander has been doing very well.
"Alex, you should also get a reward. You have done a lot for the movie." Thinking of this, Levi spoke again.
"This is our own company; what are you talking about?" Alexander shook his head, "I would like to be a little tired. As long as you can make a good movie, what's the big deal if I am a little tired?"
*****
Thanks and kudos for my patreons
Cherif Doghri
Scott DePaepe
MMMCMXCIX, or 3,999
Britanna
Mandy G
Adam LV
The Main Man
Marcelo Maia
Danny York
You can read advanced chapters on my Patreon account: https://www.patreon.com/Sayonara816.