Chapter 1001: Honest Advice Harms the Ear
Yu Zhan already knew that Liu? was good at dancing, and she was just bragging. Because the day she finished filming the dance scene, she went home exhausted. The consequence of overdoing certain movements that her body rarely did was that the next day, her whole body felt like it was crushed by a heavy object. When she walked, raised her legs, and reached out to pick up things, her muscles were all sore. Yu Zhan thought she was in trouble at the time and said he would take her to the hospital. Liu? had to tell him the truth, saying that she asked for it, and she would never make boasts again, and would never take on a job without a diamond drill.
According to the two Micros, the role of Yu Ji requires an actress who can play the piano, sing and dance, which is absolutely an all-round requirement. As for the name of the film, Harvey said that it is tentatively set to be "The Song of Gaixia". He wants to restore the love story of Xiang Yu and Yu Ji in the film. This story is almost a household name in China, just like Zhaojun's journey to the frontier. There are also many related film and television dramas. The same theme has almost been filmed to death by the Chinese. But the problem is that this is America. Do Americans know Xiang Yu? Yu Ji?
Yu Ji is not Mulan!
Hua Mulan is probably the most famous female figure in Chinese history abroad. Her story of joining the army to replace her father is a super IP that has spread far and wide in the Western world, mainly due to the early American animated image created by Disney. This image is very popular with Americans, so much so that Hua Mulan's name can almost be compared with Snow White.
If we conduct a survey on the streets of the United States now to ask whether people know about Mulan, I estimate that 90 percent of Americans would be able to talk about it.
If you ask about Wang Zhaojun, probably 30 percent of people can answer two sentences, and they will definitely say, oh, that is the role played by a princess of the Han Palace.
If you ask Yu Ji...
I think everyone has a black question mark face.
It seems that Harvey knows Chinese culture very well. He even knows "Gaixia Song", a Chinese poem which is very unfamiliar to foreigners.
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But Yu Zhan felt very strange, because he chatted with Harvey casually for a while, and the other party knew very little about China. Harvey had never been to China, and he couldn't name other cities except the capital, Shanghai, Hong Kong and Macau. Yu Zhan was sure that he was a genuine white man in his bones, even though his hair was quite black.
Perhaps Harvey had read the story of the Overlord of Western Chu somewhere and was deeply moved and wanted to film it. But the strange thing is that Harvey pronounced the names of Yu Zhan and He Lushen unclearly, but pronounced the names of Xiang Yu and Yu Ji, and even the three words of "Gaixia Song", very standard and clear.
Moreover, Yu Zhan believes that Yu Ji’s story may not be suitable for the mainstream American film market.
The reason why "Autumn Moon in the Han Palace" is loved by North American audiences is not only due to the early promotion of music and art on YouTube, as well as the hype of Liu Bei and Jason's scandal, but also a deeper factor - Wang Zhaojun and Hua Mulan are somewhat similar. They are not delicate or weak. One took on the heavy responsibility of saving the entire country on her own, while the other practiced martial arts in men's clothing and went through life and death on the battlefield.
They are stronger than men! This is also the mainstream concept of gender equality in the United States today - it can also represent the general perception of women in Western society: modern women should be self-reliant and independent, and should not be dolls that depend on men.
When searching for foreign film reviews about "Autumn Moon over the Han Palace" on the Internet, "brave" and "perseverance" are both high-frequency words.
But Yu Ji was different. She was Xiang Yu's concubine and had always been by his side. They were his vassal. In Yu Zhan's opinion, Yu Ji was a weak woman who needed a man's protection.
Will American movie fans buy into this kind of heroine?
Harvey found that Yu Zhan was a very cautious person. He looked gentle and polite, but in fact he was not as easy to talk to as He Lushen. He didn't seem to care at all whether his "Dream of the Late Ming Dynasty" could be released in the United States. He didn't ask any questions about this, but only asked about the movie "Song of Gaixia", as if he was Liu Bei's spokesperson.
The questions he raised about the subject matter of "The Song of Gaixia" were so sharp that Harvey didn't know how to answer them, especially why he made the film. He didn't want to give a direct response. His reason was, "I want to make it myself, I have enough funds to support it, I don't worry about the box office, I don't expect to make a profit from it, and I don't care about the market response."
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