Chapter 72: Jennifer's Comedic Talent
Like the premiere of "Chicago", the premiere of "Pirates of the Caribbean" also invited well-connected film critics from all over the United States, of course, since it was held in Los Angeles, the local media in Los Angeles naturally received the most resources, in addition to local film critics such as Kenneth Turan of the "Los Angeles Times", and Alan Morrison of "Empire", based in London, England, and himself based in Hollywood, Roger Ai Bert himself was recently vacationing in Malibu, Los Angeles, and his extended family is now playing in Disney, and he himself happily attended the premiere, while his partner, Richard Rope, waited for the local premiere in Chicago, or watched the film after its official release.
Although it is an A-level production, but generally speaking, there are not as many critics as "Chicago" this time, and if it is not coincidental, it is difficult to invite Roger from Chicago, which is not surprising, because the critics and major box office forecasting agencies are not optimistic about Disney's attempt, and many people even use crazy to describe Disney's investment, including the internal news of the film viewing before the premiere is not optimistic- It is said that Disney executives who have seen the internal preview think that the film is 'confusing, and they don't know what story it is telling', and even CEO Michael Sner said directly to Johnny Depp after watching the sample, "I don't know if your role is alcoholic or gay, you ruined the whole story." "
Although this is just industry gossip, and even only circulates in a small area, and no gossip tabloids publish it in its own newspaper, but many film critics have heard the news, and are even less optimistic about the performance of "Pirates of the Caribbean", whether it is the director or the starring role, it is difficult to give them confidence, Johnny Depp is of course a very good actor, but there are few excellent mainstream commercial films, and they have been mixed Cult, Verbinski? He may be a good director, but he is far from excellent, and the performance of his previous works at the box office can only be said to be unsatisfactory.
Roger rationally agrees with these analyses, but disagrees with the other trend in the film critics' circles – many people think that the choice of Jennifer Jefferson, an unqualified newcomer, as the female lead actress also shows the desperation and madness of the film crew, and some even suspect that there may be a scandal behind the casting. But Roger thinks that choosing "Pirates of the Caribbean" is a crazy decision for Jennifer Jefferson, this girl has good acting skills, and the conditions are also very good, and she can accumulate popularity and recognition through low-budget films and literary films, if a big production like "Pirates of the Caribbean" fails, it will be almost devastating for her future, and the efforts to try to reach the sky in one step will have a great chance that she will return to Broadway to star in musicals in the end, and this is a regrettable loss.
As a film critic, Roger doesn't have a close relationship with gossip in the circle, but he has also heard of Cesare Viggeri's name, and today it was he who personally brought Jennifer Jefferson to the premiere - although he avoided the media camera, the audience screams that this handsome young man received when he appeared was actually only inferior to Josh Blanche, and he is now sitting not far from Roger's front row. Roger looked at his side face, wondering what his plan was, and Vijerry picked up Jennifer Bell in one hand, the notable newcomer who will also be on the pitch this year for Tales from the Night, but the two are said to have parted ways.
After Jennifer Bell, he spent more than a year cramming his new recruits into the leading actress position of A-list productions, and there is no doubt that he is very energetic and ambitious. Roger is no longer too worried about Jennifer Jefferson's performance in this film, and he is now more curious about how Vijerry will arrange Jennifer's next film, after all, the big productions are always very limited every year, and the competition is so fierce, even Vijerry can't guarantee that every one of Jennifer's plays will be A-grade productions.
In his imagination, the film has already begun, countless sparks are fleeting, in the flying sparks, the title appears in front of people's eyes, and soon, the camera sinks, and a classical sea ship appears in the vast sea fog, this preemptive shot and unevasive bravery, so that many film critics secretly nod their heads - unlike the average audience, they still pay attention to these details, at least the set team and special effects of "Pirates" are well done.
As the camera progresses, a delicately dressed little girl appears in everyone's field of vision, she hums a pirate ballad in her mouth, but is quickly stopped by the adults, and with the conversation, everyone quickly figures out the identity of this group of people, this is the governor and his daughter who have gone to a certain place, and of course, the captain of the fleet who escorted him.
Seeing the young captain scaring the young Elizabeth Swan, many people smiled knowingly, and the dialogue at the beginning of the film roughly explained the background of the times, it is clear that this is not the 16th century when the British navy and pirates worked together, the navy and pirates have become incompatible, and pirates are a symbol of the perpetrator through and through.
"Captain Norrington, I think you'll upset my daughter if you continue. The Governor stopped the conversation about pirates in time, but the young Elizabeth naively said, "Actually, I find it fascinating." "
"yes, that's exactly what I'm worried about. The Governor replied. elicited a knowing smile from the audience - it seems that Elizabeth has always had a wild temperament.
Soon, Elizabeth spotted an umbrella that had fallen on the sea, followed by a floating boy, and she immediately turned back to inform the adults, because she had run too fast, and stumbled several times, which seemed a little clumsy, and added some joy to the tense atmosphere. And the atmosphere of the film immediately became tense, many sailors appeared in the picture to nervously save people, pull sails, and then rescue the little boy and find the burning merchant ship The camera scheduling makes people nod secretly - the scenes of "Pirates of the Caribbean" may not be as spectacular as "Titanic", but the level of special effects is obviously very good, and the audience can naturally devote themselves to the plot without being made by false special effects.
"The pace is a little slow. The Los Angeles Times' Kenneth shifted his seat, "a very clichéd opening with very little information and too many meaningless empty shots... Let's see how the first 30 minutes are. "
Perhaps the editor was aware of the problem, but the childhood scene didn't last long, and Elizabeth, after asking the boy's name and spotting the skeletal gold coins on his body, went to the boat and rubbed the gold coins thoughtfully.
When she looked beyond the gold coin into the distance, an all-black pirate ship mysteriously appeared in the sea mist, and the sound of music changed, and the atmosphere immediately became tense, but at this moment, the camera turned, and the adult Elizabeth Swan woke up from her dream.
After the opening three or four minutes of bland drama, Elizabeth Swan's beauty enlivened the atmosphere of the theater, although she was a typical Germanic beauty, and the identity in the film was British, but the American audience didn't care so much - anyway, the British royal family still has Germanic ancestry, as long as the person is good-looking, these can be ignored.
"Well, it's a shot from the trailer, and she's beautiful. Although he also watched "Chicago", for Kenneth, who had never been to New York to see a musical, Jennifer's beauty was still fresh enough for him to immerse himself in it, rather than discovering the shortcomings in his appearance. "It's really pleasing to the eye, well, for the average viewer, even just looking at her can go through two hours. "
Awakened from her dream, Elizabeth remembered the past, got out of bed and picked up the candlestick, walked to the table, accidentally kicked her little toe on the way, and after a few screams of pain, jumped to the table on one leg, took the gold coin from the dark compartment, and limped to the mirror.
When she woke up, there was a silent silence in the theater, and although Elizabeth's painful scene just now did not provoke laughter, it also made the audience smile knowingly, and felt a little closer to Elizabeth, but now, the expression of life on Elizabeth's face faded, her eyes stared directly at the gold coin, and her expression was also empty and indifferent, with the soundtrack, the audience could easily feel that Elizabeth was now being bewitched— Or the temptation of fate, whatever, anyway, this state is not normal now.
In this strange atmosphere, Elizabeth saddled the gold coin around her neck, stared at herself in the mirror, and in the pulsating light, her face was also clouded, and her face, classical dress, and dark lighting, intricate rococo decorations... Although the ordinary audience in the venue couldn't find out why, they could still feel that there was an addictive beauty in this scene, and even after knowing that the director would cut off the close-up soon, they were reluctant to take a few more looks.
"Wibinsky has made great progress. Roger felt mediocre about the first few minutes, but not to the point of hate, but this shot made his eyes shine, "The contrast between light and dark, complexity and simplicity in the scene is very good, the lighting is also very comfortable and natural, the whole composition is very simple and beautiful, Jennifer can't take his eyes off his lens... Why didn't this shot make it into the trailer? It could be included in this year's top 10 shots. If he had this level in "Dangerous Lover", the box office of that film would definitely be higher. "
After a brief close-up, a knock on the door abruptly shatters the magical moment, "Elizabeth, are you up, are you dressed?"
When Elizabeth returned to reality, she grabbed the gold coin in surprise and looked down at it, obviously not understanding why she was wearing it, and then hurriedly put on her morning robe, tucked the gold coin into her petticoat, and at the same time gave a very calm reply, "Yes, father. "
This kind of pretentious tone, as well as the contrast between sound and picture, for the first time in the theater, inspired a gentle laugh - this Elizabeth is obviously a girl who can 'pretend' and 'pretend'.
The following dialogue also validates the audience's opinion, although it is only a simple homely dialogue, nothing more than a doting father giving his daughter new clothes from London, and incidentally hinting that Captain Norrington, who appeared in the opening film, is about to be promoted to brigadier general, and is likely to propose today, but Elizabeth's face-changing trick still makes the audience look very interesting - when the governor turns around, Elizabeth always rolls her eyes and sighs silently, and makes it frequently Strange appearance, expressing her disapproval of London fashion and Commodore Norrington, but when her father was face to face with her, Elizabeth was able to put on the expression of a lady in an instant, and continued the conversation politely, of course, in a very ladylike tone throughout the whole time, speaking with the standard upper-class aristocratic accent.
"Interesting. Roger was also amused by this simple funny approach, "This is supposed to be her first girly role, but Jennifer's performance is very smart, which is really surprising, it seems that she is not only good at the role of a young woman delinquent." "
Kenneth, who had been unable to keep his spirits up, also chuckled, "Well, this is the privilege of beauty, although the technique is cheap, but Wibinski is better than finding a good actor to perform." "
He doesn't averse to simplistic approaches, and for commercial blockbusters, visual effects are also a very important part, no one wants depth, and a smooth storyline and vivid characters are qualified. Although the technique just now was simple, it immediately set up the character of Elizabeth.
While Elizabeth was changing her clothes, the maid knocked on the door to inform the Governor that there was a visitor, and the camera also turned to the first floor of the Governor's mansion.
Seeing Will curiously break the lamp, but break one of the corners, and somehow look back and forth at the lamp handle and lampholder, the smile on the audience's lips also deepened - it seems that "Pirates of the Caribbean" has a very funny component, and both Will and Elizabeth have a certain sense of joy.
This is of course good news, for a group of dirty pirates fighting around and constantly dying films, everyone is not too interested, and they definitely prefer to watch handsome men and beautiful women play treasures, of course, provided that it is not too excessive, and the plot is gripping.
Will came this time to present the Governor with a new sabre, and Josh's dialogue with the Governor appropriately hinted at the audience that although the Governor praised his master, he was the main maker of the saber. However, the Governor didn't seem to care, he seemed to have some special emotions towards Will, and his expression was also very playful when he looked at him.
While the two were talking, footsteps came from the stairs, and Elizabeth, accompanied by the maid, slowly walked down the stairs with great grace, "Ah, Will. "
At this moment, she is dressed in a gorgeous dress, her blonde hair is meticulously combed, her green eyes have a mysterious smile, her expression is subtle, and she seems to be smiling but not smiling, and the whole scene and lighting fully indicate the director's intention - this is Elizabeth's amazing moment.
"It works well, Jennifer is very expressive, the girl's eyes are playful, and it's clear that she's interesting to Will. Roger pursed his lips as well, "So in Will's presence, she's as alive as a peacock." "
Once again, he realized Wibinsky's affection for Jennifer, "Strangely, Wibinsky seemed to be particularly inspired when he photographed her, and in his composition and camera movements, Jennifer looked more beautiful than in Chicago." "
"Elizabeth, you look beautiful. The Doge complimented his daughter warmly, but Elizabeth ignored her father, and smiled kindly at Will as she descended the stairs.
"Nice to meet you. She walked over to Will, "I dreamed of you last night." "
Will, visibly overwhelmed by her beauty, said in a panic, "About me?"
The Governor furrowed his eyebrows, "Do you think that's the right word? Elizabeth?"
Elizabeth was so pampered by her father that she just smiled and threw a glance in her father's direction, and continued to concentrate on talking to Will, "Do you remember the day we first met?"
"Of course, Miss Swan. Will also looked at the Governor, who seemed to be much calmer.
A shadow flashed across Elizabeth's face, and she made an unhappy expression that a pampered eldest lady often does, and she turned her head coquettishly and said with some arrogance, "How many times have I told you to call me Elizabeth?"
Her willfulness didn't annoy Will, but instead gave him a little more smile in his eyes, "It's always one more time than this one, Miss Swan." "
The Governor was visibly annoyed by his daughter's behavior, "Come on, it's time for us to go, put on your hat, Elizabeth." "
Elizabeth buttoned her hat to her head, and as she knotted the ties, she passed Will, her tone cold. "Goodbye, then, Mr. Turner. "
Although she looked like she was angry with him, after taking a few steps, she turned back and wrinkled her nose at Turner with a slight smile and grimaced, showing her cute and funny side.
Will followed the Governor out of the house, watched her get into the carriage, and looked at himself through the window with a smirk, and then whispered, "Goodbye, Elizabeth." "
Although it is only a few minutes of confrontation, these few minutes have already made the audience's eyes shine, feeling a lot of information about the plot, as well as the chemistry between Will and Elizabeth, since the trailer and poster do not reveal the relationship between several leading actors, many viewers have begun to speculate about where Elizabeth is in love, whether it is Will or Captain Jack, who has not appeared so far.
"Josh's acting skills have improved a lot from Star Wars Prequel 2. Although he is still impatient with the director's unhurried narrative approach, Kenneth is still very sure of Josh and Jennifer's acting skills, "The three of them acted very well in this play just now, the dialogue and camera scheduling are also very rhythmic, and the most important thing is that the chemistry between the two actors is attractive enough." "
Although it is not explicitly stated, Will and Elizabeth are interested in each other, and Will is reluctant to express it because of his identity, so Elizabeth is a little disappointed in him, and the Governor knows everything, and this information is transmitted to the audience's mind through the actors' performances, and they understand these relationships without difficulty, and begin to look forward to the contradictions that follow.
At this time, the camera turned again, and came to the route outside the port, and the star of the whole play, Johnny Depp - he played Captain Jack appeared, and as soon as he appeared, it caused bursts of laughter from the crowd - if the audience was smiling before, then Captain Jack, who was wearing heavy makeup and dressed out of the ordinary, was happy enough just by his appearance, and his boat leaked, so that he could only bend down to scoop the water, and people couldn't help but feel slippery Humor, the soul of the whole movie seems to be alive at this moment, and the audience has thoroughly established this concept: this is a cold humorous nonsensical special effects blockbuster that is generally in line with social reality.
The pirate hanged in the harbor and the Governor's words and deeds towards Elizabeth and Will all express that this is the content of the film that roughly follows historical facts, and the hilarious performances of Will, Elizabeth and Captain Jack show that the protagonist group is a group of funny characters who are panicked and foolish, rather than the traditional heroes who are bitter and hateful.
"It's good, much better than Spider-Man, who is getting worse and worse. Roger also agreed with Johnny's performance, "I had a feeling when I saw the trailer that this joyful tone might be the key to the success of the film, after all, people should have had enough of tragic heroes full of heartache, and it's time to be funny." "
The film has been running for 10 minutes, and the atmosphere in the theater is very good, and the audience is focused - although the expressions are not clear in the dark, people can still recognize the emotional atmosphere of the crowd, and if it is a bad movie, it will probably be at this time when the audience's attention will start to drift away, but so far, Roger has not felt this emotion, but he has begun to expect what sparks will be sparked between the protagonist trio.
He was not disappointed, and the audience was easily attracted by Captain Jack's appearance, and chuckled as he bargained with the dock officer, and saw him sly steal the dockmaster's wallet with gold and silver dentures, and the audience let out a funny jet from their noses - this guy doesn't seem to like to lose.
With a few majestic shouts, the ceremony of awarding Brigadier General Norrington began, and although it was a distant scene, the audience spotted Elizabeth effortlessly, after all, her beauty stood out from the crowd. In the distance, one can only see her waving her fan, until the camera slowly zooms in, and the viewer realizes that her cheeks are covered with red tides, and she is fanning herself frequently, and it is obvious that she is about to be choked by the London dress.
Seeing Elizabeth just smile encouragingly at Brigadier Norrington, who had just come to see her, and Brigadier turned his head and fanned himself with a serious face, the audience laughed lowly: this girl is really cute.
Soon, the plot formed a line between Captain Jack and Elizabeth, as Captain Jack easily fooled the two Royal Navy soldiers into a daze, the audience also chuckled or lost laughter the whole time, and when Commodore Norrington tried to propose to Elizabeth, they couldn't hold back anymore and let go of their laughter.
It was a carefully arranged picture, and Brigadier Norrington was in a state of agitation, so he kept wandering back and forth, and when he turned around, Elizabeth always looked like a demure lady, but as soon as he turned his back, Elizabeth fanned the wind furiously, and it was obvious that she was about to die from the new dress.
"... I'm talking about this wonderful woman, that's you. Brigadier General Norrington was unaware of this, and continued his confession.
"I can't breathe. Elizabeth finally couldn't pretend anymore, she broke down and jerked at her collar and said to Norrington for help, but Norrington didn't know anything about it, and still turned her back to her, "I'm nervous too-"
Elizabeth rolled her eyes helplessly at his back, but the white of her eyes quickly turned into the whiteness of fainting, and she fell off the high wall.
- Such a tragic encounter provoked bursts of laughter in the theater, because the audience had established the perception that this was a funny film, and now began to look at these exaggerated expressions with understanding eyes, also because the audience did not believe that Elizabeth would have something happen at the beginning of the film.
Looking around at the audience, Roger touched his chin thoughtfully - he didn't know why Disney executives weren't optimistic about the movie, and for now, the ordinary audience who won the prize for the premiere liked it, and he couldn't help but say that it was a good movie.
"Of course, the bigger surprise was Jennifer, I never knew she had such a talent for comedy before today. "As for how well she suffocated... That's not news to her, is it?"
Usually about fifteen minutes, you will have some feelings about whether a film is good or bad, in the hearts of film critics, the evaluation of this movie has roughly taken shape, but for ordinary audiences, they are just igniting interest.
Several characters are funny, what will happen next? They thought expectantly, adjusted their spirits, and waited intently for the arrival of the little high tide, and a smile appeared on their lips - there is nothing more pleasant in the world than watching a good movie, isn't it?
The author has something to say: Notes: 1 "Dangerous Lover" is a directorial work by Verbinsky, starring Brad Peter and Julia Roberts, and the box office response is mediocre.
2 The film critics mentioned here are all real people, and then the evaluation of the Disney CEO is also true, and it is also true that the industry and Disney executives were not optimistic about it before the release.
3 I changed some of the plot, that is, the part of Jenny's own interpretation, if you are interested, you can compare the movie to see what has been changed.