Exploiting Hollywood 1980.

Chapter 680 The Price of Fame

Ronald had one last talk with Michael J. Fox at the airport before leaving for London.The friendship between the two is very good, and they talk more casually.

"Are you interested in that Spielberg-based movie?"

"My schedule is now first arranged for Denglongyoushu (Light of Day). If you direct, of course I am very interested." Fox smoked cigarettes one after another, without star self-awareness.After smoking, press it out on the sole of your shoe, and then light another one to continue.

"Um……"

Ronald understood what Fox meant. The premise of his participation in that movie was to direct it himself.

In Hollywood, if the three most important people nod to a movie, the studio can give it the green light.

Generally speaking, these three people are the actor, the heroine, and the director.If one of them is a star, then the schedule can be arranged very quickly.

If there are two stars, then more than the ordinary allocation will be given, and then they will be stationed in the best schedule.

If three were stars...

Well, then they'll fight and get one out first.

Fox's star status, after the blessing of "Back to the Future", has now faintly surpassed other members of the Boy Gang, becoming the number one male star among teenagers.Tom Cruise's popularity quickly caught up after "Top Gun" was released.

In Hollywood, a project with a star and a project without a star are two completely different things.If there is no star, then there will be a year or two of evaluation process waiting for you slowly. If there is a star who is willing to act, then the studio executives will quickly agree, in case the star changes his mind and goes to other projects in other studios.

Now this movie is a bit caught in a series of loops. As long as Ronald let go, Fox can join in immediately, and the shooting team will be formed according to this core, and the best candidates will be found quickly and efficiently.But Ronald was worried that the choice of heroine was not good enough, which would affect the overall effect.

I didn't dream of the finished film, and I couldn't evaluate whether it would be a big hit.

"Well, when I come back from London, I'll let my agent sign the contract." Ronald decided to take a risk. Not all movies have to be dreamed before they can be made, right?
Fox laughed, "If I hadn't been the director, I actually wouldn't want to make this kind of light comedy anymore. People always regard me as a comedy star. I want to change my image among the audience."

"That movie actually has traces of a light comedy, but it's more serious than your previous comedies. At least the content of the business war in it is very real. I checked with an entrepreneur friend. In theory, use the kind of anti-takeover The method is feasible."

Ronald did research on the screenplay for The Secret of My Succe$$.In addition to asking the assistant to go to Wall Street to find someone to interview, I also consulted the young Douglas Hansen.Aside from the dramatic parts of the film, the overall story has a very solid structure.

Finally, when the financial crocodile wants to acquire the company where the protagonist works, the protagonist uses the financial statements provided by the heroine to introduce financing from the banker and reverse acquire the other party's company.This is a big reversal before the ending, and it will be very interesting if it is shot reasonably.

"Are you going to attend the royal premiere this time?" Fox finished talking about the business and asked Ronald about the next arrangement.

"Yes, it is expected that Prince Charles and the princess will attend. I heard that the second prince will also come. He will hold a royal wedding soon."

"Hey," Fox stubbed out another cigarette, "I'll tell you a secret, the reporters on Fleet Street in London will grab stars who are going to America and ask them what they think of the royal family. You just have to say something nice."

"So that's the case." Ronald nodded.Since the last time the crown prince and his wife visited the White House, it was revealed that the glamorous princess was wearing a sexy evening dress and dancing with Hollywood stars, and the British media was somewhat unhappy.

They're sure to catch themselves and ask some questions to get back in the game.My own public relations consultant and Paramount's public relations manager also gave them a 10-minute training before departure.Praise the friendship between Britain and the United States a lot, such as the commander-in-chief and the prime minister, and everyone speaks the same language.

When necessary, show a few words of Ronald's good British accent, which will greatly arouse the favor of the other party's media.Hollywood people will imitate the British accent, always to please the down-and-out cousin.

"Also, when attending the royal premiere, don't drink too much water or coffee." Fox added with a grin.

"Why?" Ronald was surprised.

"You don't know, in order to show closeness to the people at the premiere of the royal family, the main creators will sit in a row with the royal family. If you drink too much water, ask the crown prince and princess next to you to stand up and give you your seat, let you go to the bathroom, and then When you come back from the bathroom, do it again, this was written scribbled by the reporter."

"Hahaha".

Ronald finished his coffee, took the receipt, said goodbye to Michael J. Fox, and went to find his crew's plane.

Fox donned sunglasses and boarded a plane to the Illinois location of "The Way of the Dragon."

After "Back to the Future", Fox wants to change his positioning as a light comedy and switch to making dramas.So he directed "Light of Day," a movie about a rock band.

The film also casts the lead singer of the popular rock band, Joan Jett, to play Fox's older sister, a much more talented rock singer than Fox, who is trapped in her hometown because she has to support her younger brother. town.

When Fox's film is finished, Ronald can pull up a new crew to film the "Secret of Success" led by Universal President Frank Price.Just before the start of the new season of the "Family Bond" TV series, the filming ended.

Ronald hurried to the boarding gate and found that Tom Cruise had arrived early.He's being mobbed by a huge crowd of fans asking for autographs and photos.

Tom Cruise has been flying all over the country lately for his "Top Gun" marketing efforts.The smile on the obviously tired face is still very good, and he patiently satisfies the fans' requests.

Ronald nodded and greeted him, then quietly walked around him, boarded the plane, and found his first-class seat.This was specially arranged by Paramount president Ned Tanin.

"Hey, aren't you the beautiful instructor in Top Gun? Hehe..." A man's voice came from behind.

"Oh Shxt! I'm not, I'm not!"

"Stop being serious. I see you, like Charlie, are..."

"what……"

Ronald, who was dozing off, suddenly heard a woman's scream from the back of the cabin, and then a blonde curly-haired actress rushed over from the rear economy class.

After she saw where Ronald was, she sat down, put her arms around Ronald's arm, and buried her face deeply in his arms, like a child who had done something ashamed Same.

"What's wrong with you?" Ronald gently stroked McGillis's hair. This beauty has been very fragile recently, like a frightened deer, she doesn't speak, just wants to bury her head.

"Kelly, that bitch must have slept with the director and producer." A voice came from behind, it was the voice of the man who pestered McGillis just now.

"Hey, brother, she's working for a job, so don't say that." Ronald stood up, opened the curtain that divided the cabin, walked to the back and said to the man.

"Hey, are you the fucking onion? Isn't that what actresses do?"

It was a young man who was speaking, who looked like a college student going to the UK to exchange students, cursing uncleanly.

"I ask you to be more respectful. Whether it's an actor or a director, it's a job." Ronald saw that the passengers around him didn't like this young man very much, and the quality of passengers on transoceanic routes was relatively high.

So Ronald took his hand pushing his chest and told him to stop denigrating the actress.

"Hey, don't you put on a show...Ah! Let it go."

Seeing that he was still talking strange things, Ronald used a grappling technique he had learned in Huaguo from a folk wrestling master, grabbed the opponent's wrist and twisted it, making him beg for mercy on the spot.Then Ronald nodded apologetically to the surrounding passengers and went back to his seat in front of him.

"Don't be mad at this bastard."

McGillis saw it from behind and came over to comfort Ronald instead.Women always have a good impression of men who are willing to vent their anger on themselves. After the two sat down, McGillis couldn't hide his smile.

"Want to chat? Long transoceanic flight."

Ronald hooked McGillis into his arms and patted her on the shoulder to comfort her.

"Oh, Ronnie, you make me feel good. Nothing about me, it's just that I didn't expect this movie to make me so famous. I always thought it was just a big music video, popcorn, and now I don't care. Everywhere I go, people call me Charlie...

And I'm not usually a person who dresses up sexy. I used to work part-time as a waitress in a restaurant in order to act on Broadway. I didn't expect to be like this.Now my agent has received scripts, all of which are roles of sexy girls, and I don't want to play any of them. "

McGillis babbled about his troubles.

A star is a very strange creature. Before an actor evolves into a star, she is an ordinary actor like all other actors waiting to become famous. Every day, she either attends acting training classes, or goes to the crew to audition, and then goes home wait for news.

But sometimes, some actors are luckier than others, they get their chance, and all of a sudden, bang, a movie goes viral, the whole world knows her, and she's an overnight star .

Since then, no matter where they go, there are enthusiastic fans who will ask them to sign autographs and take photos with them.Her reputation suddenly skyrocketed, and many production crews would take the initiative to send roles that she had never even dared to think of, and desperately sent them to her agent.

But it can also cause problems.When she was an actress, she had unlimited possibilities and could play any role.For example, McGillis played the Amish widow in "The Witness" before taking on "Top Gun", or the college student in the previous film, or the Shakespeare play that used to be on Broadway.

But after she evolved into a star, the audience could no longer accept her unsexy look.As soon as they saw her, the audience would think of Charlie as a sexy teacher wearing hair-style stockings and twisting and twisting towards the pulpit.

There will be no producers and directors in Hollywood. When facing other types of female characters, they will think of her. Instead, sexy teachers, sexy doctors, sexy lawyers, and sexy beauties of various professions will be the first One thought of McGillis.

"Ronnie, Kelly." Tom Cruise arrived late, and it took him a lot of time to dismiss those fans. Paula taught him very well, never said anything bad to the fans, and was always polite. .

After Cruise arrived for a short time, preparations for takeoff began soon, and the evening sun shone through the window, which was a bit dazzling.After the plane entered high altitude level flight, Ronald closed the windows and put McGillis to sleep.

He gently asked the stewardess to bring a blanket to cover McGillis, then turned on the reading light in his seat, took out Eleanor's script, and read it slowly.

This play called "Dirty Dancing" is very interesting. It tells the story of a middle-aged Jewish woman (that is, Eleanor is the prototype) recalling an experience in her youth.

In the 60s and [-]s, Jews were discriminated against by mainstream Puritans just like blacks and other ethnic groups.They don't go to the Caribbean Sea or the places where the Puritans frequented on the outer islands of New York, but to Virginia and other places, some specially built resorts for Jewish vacations.

Anyway, most of the Jews have higher incomes, and more people are engaged in doctors, lawyers, accountants, and performing arts.

In these Jewish-only resorts, Jewish operators will find black jazz bands, some magicians, and talk show actors to entertain customers.

Another popular form of entertainment is to hire a group of professional dancers to serve as customers' dance partners, dance together when they are on vacation, and teach their young people how to dance ballroom dancing.

The protagonist of this memory, a little girl named Baby, fell in love with an Irish dancer in a resort area, and finally learned a dance that is not recognized by the mainstream with him, Dirty Dacing. They fell in love with each other for a long time when they were learning to dance together, and became Baby's first love.

The script was written very smoothly. It is worthy of being a script that has been rewritten countless times and continuously polished based on my own experience.But Ronald was still a little worried after reading it in one go.

This movie also, like "Secret of Success", has the "disappearing audience of the Sound of Music" problem.

Originally, the image of Jews in the movie is very inconsistent with this movie. They are always stereotyped as a group of greedy, ruthless, and murderous people who only care about profits. It is rare to see such a delicate movie about the first love of a Jewish girl.

Plus, it's a flashback story.In other words, the filming is a story from more than 20 years ago.How many teenagers who go to the movie theater now like this kind of old story of the Kennedy administration?

If it is aimed at middle-aged housewives today, will these middle-aged people really go to a movie theater they haven’t been to for many years because of a girlhood dream?
In the end, this is a movie with a lot of song and dance drama.Since his debut, musicals have gradually declined in Hollywood.No musical has been a huge hit since John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John's "Grease."

Although Ronald likes this story very much, it contains a mixture of unwed pregnancy, inter-ethnic couples, Jews being discriminated against, and a true love story, as well as many scenes of dirty dancing depicted by the author Eleanor.

But the prospect of the market still made him a little bit hesitant.For a while, he couldn't decide whether he should invest or not.

"Hey... ah... Let's talk about it when we go back." Ronald yawned, after reading the script for two hours, his eyes were a little sore, he closed the script, and he closed his eyes and fell asleep.

……

"Can you keep a secret? You are a guest here. I saw the boss's son dancing with you. This is where the dancers live. You are not allowed to come. If the boss knows that you are coming, I will be miserable."

A young man in a white T-shirt, holding three large watermelons in his hands, said to a girl in an old-fashioned sweater and skirt.

The girl didn't speak, and reached out to take a big watermelon, and the two walked towards a big house ahead.

"What movie is this dreaming of again?" Ronald fell asleep comfortably and changed his position, as if holding a big watermelon in his arms.

"This old-fashioned girl with a Jewish nose, but it's not too obvious. Wait a minute, isn't that the girl Michael J. Fox dated, called... Jennifer Gray?"

Ronald recognized the actress.

"Boom... boom boom... boom boom boom..."

The fast and enthusiastic drumbeat sounded, pulling Ronald back from his cranky thoughts.

The boy in the white T-shirt hugged two big watermelons and opened the door with his butt.

"Dong dong dong dong..." The voice suddenly became louder as the door opened.

Four drums beat, a black voice hoarse, singing the old pop song "Do you love me?"

"Do you love me?

I can really move!
Do you love me?
I'm in the groove."

Short and rhyming lyrics, like the rhythm of early black rock.

After the door was pushed open, Ronald suddenly felt the smell of male and female hormones rushing towards his face.

The light inside is an ambiguous red, and men and women hug each other and dance provocative dance moves.

Ronald, like the actor Jennifer Gray, looked stunned.

"How...how did this kind of shot be shot? Why does it seem that in addition to hearing and vision, I was also caught by rhythm and dance, which aroused the sense of taste and smell deep in my memory? The director of this movie is too good."

Couples of dancing partners were all photographed in close-up close-up.Their dance moves involve a lot of lower back, hip movement.Sometimes it is slow and lyrical, and sometimes it has a strong rhythm.

Arouse the audience's primitive and ambiguous desire.

Ronald felt his whole body heat up. "Well, here's the trick that Francis Coppola invented in 'Old Love, New Love', where the colored ambient light hits the actor's face directly, rather than the traditional Hollywood close-up light on the face, Does not stain the skin.

In this way, the ambiguous and enthusiastic emotions are directly conveyed to the audience.

The camera gave Jennifer Gray's facial reaction, she opened her mouth wide, looking at a loss and looking forward to it.

The male partner hugged the female partner's waist, lowered their upper body backwards, lowered their waists, and then the female partner's shoulders were full of rhythm and jumped back.

Ronald, like Jennifer Gray, was fascinated by the dance.

"oh oh……"

The dancers cheered, and two protagonists, a man and a woman, walked into the room
Under the red light, Ronald could clearly see in the camera a handsome guy with small eyes in a white shirt and black pants, and a beautiful blonde woman in a dress with rubber bands on her head.

"Boom, Boom..."

As soon as the two came in, the man took a bottle of beer to quench his thirst, and the woman started dancing immediately.At a glance, these two are the kings of the group of dancers, with the best rhythm and the most powerful movements in the pas de deux.

The man did not hold the female partner in his arms at the beginning, but let the female partner play by himself.

Not to be outdone, the female companion lifted up the hem of the skirt with one hand and waved it to the rhythm.

The back of her dress was fastened with straps, and she danced very sexy when the skirt was flicked up.

"Shxt!"

Ronald recognized it. Isn't this the dancer Cynthia Rhodes who played a supporting role in "Lightning Dance" and was harassed by Stallone's brother later in "Flying Dance"?
Is she the protagonist of the movie?No, she should be playing the hero's younger brother.

I didn't expect her dancing to be so sexy!Ronald sighed, dancing on the bar in the "Lightning Dance" back then was not as sexy, it was almost the same.By the way, that was to highlight Jennifer Beals and make Cynthia Rhodes look ugly on purpose.

Now she is at least treated like the second female lead, and she really dances very sexy.

Not to be outdone, the actor fell backwards and was caught by his companion, then his shoulders swayed to match Cynthia Rhodes' shoulder movements.

When the close-up was given, Ronald recognized it too.
"It's the same Patrick Schwytz who played the big brother in Coppola's 'Urban Boy.'"

I didn't expect his dance to be very sexy. How many women will be fascinated by these small eyes?
When the rhythm of the music changed, the two changed their dancing postures again.

This time, Cynthia pressed her back tightly against Schwytz's body, and her waist rubbed against the drums strongly.

Then the heads of the two began to shake violently, and Cynthia Rhodes' hair fluttered in the wind.

"As expected of Dirty Dancing."

This kind of dance full of Caribbean style is fascinating.

At the climax of the dance, Cynthia Rhodes danced lightly, and finally climbed onto the head of Patrick Schwyz. She sat on the head of her male partner, then pulled up her skirt and swayed from side to side, just like the popular Broadway back then. Cancan like that.

"Huh..."

Ronald felt that the blood was going to rush upwards, who could stand this dance?

"Um……"

Ronald felt that his waist was also being pushed back by a woman's buttocks, as if the two were hugging each other and dancing this kind of dirty dance.

"Uh...uh... Ronald, don't be here."

Ronald was woken up. He looked up and saw that McGillis, who was in his arms in his sleep at some point, was twisting his waist, trying to get up from his seat and go back to his seat.

"what……"

Leaving the opponent's clinging, Ronald quickly pulled the blanket and covered himself.

"Hmm..." McGillis winked, satisfied with Ronald's reaction to his body.

"Excuse me, how many hours are left to London? I'm at Heathrow Airport. Is there anywhere I can make an international long-distance call back to Los Angeles?" Ronald asked the flight attendant who rang the bell.

Ronald recalled the dance segment in his dream, and he felt that the two danced really well.Such a dance can definitely attract those housewives to the cinema to watch movies.

When he arrived at the airport, he wanted to call David, the script assistant, and Eddie, the general manager of Daydream, and ask them to get the script of the movie immediately.

(End of this chapter)