Chapter 54 Chapter 54
As one of the three major international film festivals, the influence of the Silver Eagle Film Festival is definitely much greater than movie fans expected.
When walking on the red carpet that day, many unexpected movie stars showed up, making the red carpet look star-studded and dazzling.
The media gave enthusiastic coverage to the "Mountain Soul" crew, which is composed entirely of Chinese people.
"After all, it's our local movie."
In the early morning, the official film festival announced the names of the most popular films. The names of "Mountain Soul", Director Gu, and Ning Su remained on the hot searches.
For some viewers who were unable to attend the Silver Eagle Film Festival to watch the film, the fact that "Mountain Soul" was selected as the "most watched film" did not seem surprising.
"This is a famous director, and it's in our country. If the Silver Eagle Film Festival organizers are a little sensible, they will do the same, right?"
"What's so strange about that?"
However, the critics and viewers who actually got tickets and watched "Mountain Soul" at the Silver Eagle Film Festival were filled with question marks after seeing this result.
"I can't understand, are the judges crazy or are we crazy?"
“The fact that they chose ‘Mountain Soul’ shows that the jury is seriously ill.”
"Am I seeing things? This is not the Silver Eagle Film Festival, but the Silver Dove Film Festival."
——Although both awards are silver, they are obviously different in nature.
The former is one of the three major international film festivals known for its niche and high-end nature, while the latter is a domestic water award that is box office-oriented. As long as a film has a little fame, it will just win the award.
There were limited seats for the audience on the premiere day of the Silver Eagle Film Festival, and most of those who were able to get tickets were relatively well-known film and television up-loaders and bloggers. Seeing some people complaining privately, some viewers also became curious.
"There is a melon, please tell me in detail."
"I hate the Riddler the most. He always stops talking halfway."
"Please, I've given you a reward. For the sake of the money, please say a few words."
The reason why bloggers participate in various activities is for traffic. Moreover, the Silver Eagle Festival is so large that it would be a waste not to take advantage of the popularity.
After being asked several times by fans and whetting their appetite, the bloggers finally explained the value of the "most watched videos" and then said half-heartedly:
“I can only say that this film is pretty good, but it doesn’t fit the style of the films I’ve selected before.”
"Of course, it doesn't match Director Gu's style."
The styles don’t match. How do they not match?
Is this movie good or not?
Perhaps because they had doubts in their hearts and observed the trends online, they felt that they could make a difference, so many crews participating in the Silver Eagle Film Festival came out and made meaningful comments online.
"That's really exaggerated. It turns out the judges' tastes can change, too."
"If I had known this, I should have recommended a few other films to participate in the competition."
The movies listed by the director of this film are all commercial films with box office success but no good reputation.
With the participation of the behind-the-scenes staff of the participating films, the public opinion on the Internet has become more subtle. Many people who watch the show are so excited that their eyes are shining.
"Come more, and fight head-on!"
"I love watching you guys tear each other apart!"
There was a lot of discussion online, and privately, many people, relying on their personal relationships with the judges, asked what was going on and often received some magical and puzzling answers.
"Don't ask."
"Asking is a sign of a blockage in your brain."
"...Do you want to hear the truth? The truth is, I don't know either."
So, when not many people saw the full movie of "Mountain Soul", but everyone's reactions were extremely different, many people's curiosity was aroused.
"No matter whether it's good or not, it's just a movie ticket. Let me watch it first."
Out of curiosity, audiences who originally did not plan to go to the cinema right away also bought tickets, resulting in the pre-sale volume counted by the ticket purchasing software to be frighteningly high just a few hours after June 1.
“Is this really the box office of an art film?”
“Director Gu’s influence is so great.”
"…It seems that we should increase the number of screenings tomorrow."
However, while everyone was paying attention to the pre-sale situation, some problems occurred in the systems of certain website ticket booking platforms.
In the pre-order of "Mountain Soul", many strange accounts appeared - in addition to having similar nicknames, these accounts were registered for the first time.
After registering, the other party only ordered pre-sale tickets for "Mountain Soul", and every account, without exception, booked five tickets.
These five tickets are often used to sit together, and some even don't mind sitting in the corners.
"...Manager, do you have any idea about these tickets?"
Because there are too many accounts with similar attributes, nicknames, and even similar registration dates, these accounts have been marked as abnormal in the ticket booking system.
Considering that there were too many accounts and the amount of money involved in the tickets booked was not small, the staff of the ticket purchasing platform could not help but report it to their superiors.
"Are these not fake tickets?"
It’s no wonder the staff are so suspicious, the logic of these accounts really doesn’t make sense.
Several years ago, in order to expand the market, several capital-invested film companies used price cuts to cultivate movie-watching habits among ordinary people.
At that time, the national economy was developing well and the audience had spare money. Seeing that the price of movie tickets had dropped to the same as a cup of milk tea, many people chose to register and take advantage of the discounts.
It was also during this period that the number of users on the ticket purchasing platform skyrocketed, reaching a terrifying number.
Although many users have uninstalled the client and no longer purchase tickets as ticket prices have risen in recent years, their movie-watching records are still retained in the system.
In contrast, the accounts that purchased "Mountain Soul" tonight are different - the system shows that they have never purchased other movie tickets before.
In other words, it was "Mountain Soul" that brought these moviegoers to the cinema for the first time.
What big capital failed to do, "Mountain Soul" did? That's ridiculous.
"...This can't be a box office scam, right?" The manager and the staff all had mixed feelings.
Although they have experienced a period of rapid development of the film industry, they have seen many outrageous operations in cinemas, such as stealing box office revenue and ghost screenings.
However, these crews that resort to such tricks are either of average quality, but have signed gambling contracts privately and are under tremendous box office pressure;
Or, it is the actor’s own request, wanting to get a good-looking number to avoid being ridiculed.
Either way, it has nothing to do with a film like Mountain Soul.
What's more, this manager and the staff are all die-hard fans of the movie, and they have a natural filter for directors like Director Gu.
"Director Gu, it shouldn't be that necessary." After thinking for a while, the manager of the platform said.
They didn't get any other gossip, and no platform was asked to cooperate in inflating the box office.
"But these numbers..."
The staff member clicked on an account at random. The other party’s avatar was an abstract rabbit, and the nickname was "Today the little rabbit is also working hard to make money."
Click on the other two, they are "Willow works hard to make money" and "Turtle works hard to make money".
When purchasing tickets, these people were so perfunctory that they didn't even change the format of their user nicknames.
In front of the account that seemed to be somewhat reliable, the manager could not help but remain silent.
Although he had confidence in Director Gu's character and credit, he could not guarantee it.
Perhaps, it was the pressure from investors that led to some manipulation of this film behind the scenes?
Does Director Gu know about these cheating behaviors?
Logically speaking, as a veteran in the workplace, the manager himself would not be bothered by these seemingly naive topics, but Director Gu's film back then was indeed the reason that led him into this industry.
The fire of idealism may seem small and ridiculous, but it once illuminated a small part of his life.
"No, what are you struggling with?"
The office responsible for monitoring ticketing on the platform is not big. Another colleague listened to the whole process, glanced at his leader, and picked up the phone helplessly.
"What?"
My colleague said, "Didn't all these registered users leave their phone numbers? Just call and ask them."
Their platform already has a task of returning visits to certain ticket-booking users. With this task in place, there is no need to even find an excuse.
The manager and another colleague were silent.
They did not stop their colleagues from making calls, but listened quietly to the sounds on the phone - if these accounts were not fake accounts, but real people, there would obviously be someone answering the calls.
After a short wait, the call was picked up.
Connected!
"Hello?" It was the voice of a young girl. Through the receiver, several staff members on the platform could hear the bustling noise on the other side.
"I got it, I got it, don't worry, I'll take a call."
"Even the rabbit has been grabbed, I want one too! Help me."
The manager couldn't help but cheer up, and simply signaled to the colleague who made the call: "Give a gift."
As a small person in charge of the platform, the manager has little power, but it is not small either. He can still give some gifts to lucky viewers.
OK.
The employee who made the call made an understandable gesture and interviewed the ticket purchaser according to the procedure.
However, unexpectedly, when the young girl opposite learned that she had received a ticket purchase gift, she was a little surprised, and then asked to exchange the gift for movie tickets.
"We don't want any gifts, we just want to watch Lord Ning's movie. Our internet connection is not good here. Can you help us book the tickets?"
Perhaps it was because the girl on the other end of the phone was so polite that this colleague, who prided himself on being calm, rational and sober, was unable to refuse.
"Okay, we'll order it for you from here."
Hearing her agree to his request, an enthusiastic scream came from the other end of the receiver.
After hanging up the phone, not only the manager and the colleague who made the call, but even the colleague who just realized the mistake, had a relaxed smile on his face.
"Thank you." The manager couldn't help but say.
Perhaps, figuring out the reasons behind this is more important for the manager than he thought.
The platform ruled out a speculation and the employees were in a very good mood. On the other hand, the little demons who received help from the professional human ticket booking platform also felt particularly happy.
"House demons, update the guide. Everyone go to this cat platform to order. The staff of this platform are very good and will help you book tickets."
If a human accidentally logs in to a website frequented by little demons, he may be surprised to find that this gathering place for little demons has been occupied by the movie "Mountain Soul" during this period of time.
Whether it is the moderator or the little demons who are familiar with the human world, they have been busy writing guides, answering questions, and teaching the little demons how to buy tickets and enter the cinema like a human being in recent times.
Also, how to avoid revealing your true form when you are excited while watching a movie and scaring other humans in the theater.
"If you want to meet Lord Ning in person, you should try to show your true colors."
The little demons who were frightened by the moderator shrank their necks——
They respect Lord Ning very much and want to contribute to his box office, but that doesn't mean they want to be taken to the Monster Bureau for education.
For this reason, many little demons asked the demons they knew to help buy tickets. It would be best if everyone bought tickets together and contracted an entire theater.
There are also many posts on the forum asking for help in buying.
These guys who could help buy the tickets were in a hurry to buy the tickets and were too lazy to fill in their nicknames, so they had to copy the format provided by the moderator. As a result, a large number of "XX works hard to make money" accounts came into being.
By chance, this aroused the suspicion of the platform staff.
With the help of the Miaomiao platform, many of the little demons have completed their ticket purchases. In addition, there are a large number of offline little demons who do not have the conditions to buy tickets online, so they find the working demons at the Caiyao Station.
"We want to buy tickets, please help us."
Caiyao Station is a semi-official institution. The working monsters who come to work are all informed of the purpose of serving the little monsters. After hearing the calls of the little monsters, the working monsters have no choice but to change their careers and become ticket-purchasing monsters.
Therefore, this was the scene that the landlady saw when she arrived at the Caiyao Station in her slippers.
During this period, she has enjoyed the convenient express delivery service and has long been dependent on the post station.
Seeing her, the work demon also had a headache - others could be driven away, but this human girl could not. Who made them rent someone else's house at a low price?
The landlady seemed to understand the staff's disgust. She smiled, took her own express delivery and ran away.
Before leaving, I accidentally saw the screen of the work demon.
"Friends, this is so exaggerated. There is actually someone who really wants to watch Chengzhou's new play." After leaving Caiyao Station, the landlady couldn't help but complain to her friends in the WeChat group.
"And there were people queuing up to buy tickets at the post station. It was really outrageous."
"...Gu Chengzhou, when I hear this name, I still remember the memory of being killed in the previous play."
The young girls and film and television bloggers are a completely different group of movie-watching people. They are not interested in the bloggers' boasting about their niche and profoundness.
On the contrary, Hollywood blockbusters known as popcorn movies are all their love.
Are Marvel superhero movies not good? Do I have to sit in a cinema for two hours and be beaten by the movie?
Reality is bitter enough.
The girls were chattering in the group. In the small group of three, only one person remained silent.
The landlady noticed something was wrong and asked, "Where's Xiaorou? Why isn't she talking?"
After a while, the girl named Xiaorou sent a shy expression: "Sorry sisters, I am going to betray you once."
"Then who invited me to watch Mountain Soul? He bought the ticket."
There are naturally some problems with "that person" not using his full name in the sister group. According to Xiaorou's wailing over this period of time, the other two girls also knew the identity of "that person".
I met him online. He is said to be a graduate student at a prestigious university, comes from a well-off family, has a gentle personality, and is good at playing games.
The two have been flirting online for several months and have finally decided to meet in person.
"...Okay, be mentally prepared."
"Also, if it's at night, remember to keep yourself safe."
Xiaorou typed an OK and then dived back to continue shopping - she couldn't wear old clothes to meet the person she liked, right?
On June 3rd, Xiaorou finished getting dressed, called an online taxi, and went to the cinema.
When she reached the door, she stopped and looked around. Apart from a short, acne-stricken young man standing next to a trash can, there were no other suspicious people.
Well, it shouldn’t be this person. Her online dating partner said he is 1.80 meters tall.
Xiaorou stood by the theater and waited for a while, then looked at her phone for a while. When she got impatient, the acne-prone man came over and asked tentatively:
"Rabbit Xiaorou?"
As luck would have it, these four words happen to be Xiaorou’s game ID.
"Quiet Island?" Xiaorou swore that she asked these four words with a trembling voice.
"Yes." With the acne-ridden man's answer, Xiaorou's last bit of hope disappeared, and she felt numb all over.
"Great, let's go in quickly, the movie is about to start." The acne-prone man said happily, looking Xiaorou up and down, and seemed very satisfied with Xiaorou's appearance.
Xiao Rou was urged to go to the cinema by the other party before she had time to consider whether to leave or stay.
It was at this time that she realized that the other party did not buy the tickets in advance, but purchased them on the spot.
Fortunately, two people had returned their tickets for the latest show, and they bought tickets for "Mountain Soul".
"Two tickets cost eighty in total. Just give me forty."
Xiaorou: “…”
The stingy man entered the cinema and kept urging Xiaorou, which attracted a lot of surprised looks. Xiaorou hesitated for a moment, but decided not to force herself and withdrew first.
However, this stingy man seemed to have noticed something, and before Xiaorou could refuse, he reached out to pull her.
“We finally meet, you don’t want to leave, do you?” The stingy man smiled, but there was a fierce look in his eyes and tone.
"You don't fancy me, huh?"
Xiaorou also doesn’t know why a well-mannered person on the Internet is like this in real life.
The tug of war between the two attracted some attention, but many people were trying to protect themselves, and when they heard that the two were in a relationship, they dared not meddle in their affairs.
Just when Xiaorou was about to be dragged into the bathroom by the stingy man and was feeling helpless, suddenly, a hand reached out and blocked the stingy man.
"stop."
Xiaorou looked up and was surprised to find a group of - elementary school students?
These elementary school students were dressed simply, even a little rustic in Xiaorou's words. Moreover, the other party seemed to be organized by the school and there looked to be a group of people.
"Rabbit... Rabbit, what are you doing?" They formed a team to watch a movie together, and the leading monster glanced at the rabbit monster who suddenly jumped away.
"This male human is bullying this young lady."
Although Xiaorou was curious about why the little boy's name was a bit strange, she still felt grateful for no reason.
When everyone else was standing by and watching, it was actually an elementary school student who saved her.
"Little boy, don't cause trouble." The stingy man threatened when he saw someone speaking up.
Xiaorou also hesitated for a moment. She didn’t know whether she should involve the children - they were all elementary school students...ah.
Before the word "ah" was even uttered, the stingy man started to attack. However, unexpectedly, the stingy man turned out to be a good-for-nothing who couldn't even beat an elementary school student.
The elementary school student named "Rabbit" kicked the stingy man to the ground with just one kick.
Xiaorou: “???”
Xiaorou: “!!!”
At this moment, the manager of the cinema arrived. With Xiaorou's testimony, he called the police and asked the stingy man to leave.
After this incident, Xiaorou was originally very disappointed with the movie and planned to leave, but who knew that the bunny elementary school student took a look at the ticket in her hand and became happy.
"Sister, come and watch Lord Ning's movie too!"
"Very good!"
The other elementary school students also started chattering happily, and some even praised the rabbit for its good kicking.
"How dare he bully Lord Ning's fans!"
Xiaorou was about to explain that she didn't know any "Lord Ning" and that she came to see the movie because she thought Director Gu's movie was high-end. However, facing the excited eyes of the children, she swallowed her explanation.
"Yes, I like it too... um, Master Ning."
She was not in a hurry to go home and planned to stay and watch the movie she had paid for. While waiting in line, she realized that she had bought the same movie as this group of elementary school students.
"Ah, my sister bought the ticket that Willow returned."
"It just couldn't come, so I refunded the ticket."
She entered the cinema with the hard-earned ticket. After a while, the movie started to be advertised, and then Xiaorou was absorbed in watching the movie.
Wait, with this style, is this Director Gu’s movie?
Is there something wrong with the style of painting?
Half an hour later.
How dare you bully Lord Ning? Why did you frame him and exile him?
An hour later.
Lord Ning is so handsome. He is so handsome after getting the golden finger, so handsome when he can communicate with animals, and so handsome when he fights back.
Two hours later.
All Xiaorou could see was the golden dragon shadow and Ning Su's figure in the movie.
Isn't this better than Hollywood movies?
We in China also have our own big-budget blockbusters.
As for Director Gu - I forgive you, but stop making those art films and make some commercial films to earn money.
"Family, the movie is really good, let's go and watch it!"
After coming out of the cinema, Xiaorou didn't bother to complain about the guy with her friends, but instead recommended her own movie and new male god.
"Wow, I will never fall in love online again."
Is the guy I met online as handsome as the male protagonist?
It’s better to chase stars.
The same conversations occurred in many regions and many places in China, to the point where one might think it was a fake.
"Tell me, how much did you charge?"
"How many naval forces are there for this "Mountain Soul"?"
Compared with the unanimous praise from ordinary audiences, what appeared in front of the public and occupied more visual focus was the grief and indignation of film critics.
The Fall of an Art Film Director
The erosion of art films by commercialization
"Chasing Profits: The Tragedy of the Film Industry"
Film critics cried out on the Internet, lamenting that Director Gu was infected by the market orientation, was not pure enough, and had fallen into self-degradation. However, in the circle of friends of ordinary people, one after another recommended the film to them.
"It's quite good, the pace is good, the director is very good at filming, the protagonist is very handsome, and the special effects must have cost a lot of money."
“It’s just that the plot is a bit simple.”
"It doesn't matter. It's just a way to kill time. It's good to look good."
Compared to film critics far away, recognition from people around them and those they know makes people feel more at ease, so many people also went to the cinema.
"Not bad, a very good commercial film."
So, in the month of June, audiences were surprised to find that "Mountain Soul", which failed to win the Silver Eagle Award, was not well received by film critics, and seemed to have suffered a disastrous defeat, was actually far ahead at the box office.
In the first week of the film’s release, the box office exceeded 300 million, breaking the Chinese film box office record since the beginning of this year.
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