Chapter 254: Red Cliff Collapses

No matter how worried or confident Wu Yusen and Zhang Jiazhen were, there was nothing they could do at this point.

As the saying goes, "Whether it's a mule or a horse, take it out for a walk", whether "Red Cliff" is a good or bad movie will ultimately depend on market reaction and audience evaluation.

On July 7, the long-publicized costume war blockbuster "Red Cliff" finally landed in domestic theaters.

Due to the Three Kingdoms theme, cast and publicity effect, there are still many audiences who go to the cinema to watch the movie.

Wu Yusen and Zhang Jiazhen dressed up in disguise and went to several cinemas in Beijing in a low-key manner. They found that there were quite a lot of people watching the movie, so they felt more reassured.

In the small square in front of a cinema under the China Film Red Cinema Chain, Wu Yusen was wearing a baseball cap, holding a cigarette in one hand and leaning against a tree with the other.

"Thinking back to when I was filming A Better Tomorrow, I was so nervous during the midnight preview. It's been 20 years!"

Zhang Jiazhen also said with emotion: "Time flies. I never thought that 20 years later, I would still be able to wait for the results of the preview at midnight!"

In the past, Hong Kong movies would be screened at midnight shows for about a week before they were officially released to gauge the audience’s reaction.

If it's good, we'll increase the publicity. If the response is not good, we'll take it back and revise it. During the heyday of Hong Kong films, the midnight show culture was all the rage.

At that time, directors and investors would usually go to the midnight shows, and sometimes they would bring actors with them.

It would be terrible if the audience didn't like the movie, and they would criticize it very vigorously.

Wu Siyuan, a big shot in the Hong Kong film industry, once said that he had seen several directors sitting there dumbfounded. When the show was over, the directors could not stand up and kept saying, "How could this happen? How could this happen?"

That was the case with "Days of Being Wild" directed by Wang Jiawei back then. The audience couldn't understand it and started cursing on the spot.

Deng Guangrong, who invested 40 million Hong Kong dollars, almost died of anger after watching the midnight show and was sent directly to the hospital for an IV drip.

So even though Xu is so awesome, he was afraid to go to the midnight show. Once he was carried in by several people, but he still managed to break free and run out. He would sit in the restaurant next to the cinema and wait until his colleagues had finished watching the movie before asking.

Only after making sure that no one was scolding me did I dare to sneak in and take a look the next day.

During the golden age of Hong Kong films, midnight shows were the litmus test for box office performance.

One of the important reasons why the Xiang brothers' Yongsheng Film Company came from behind and came to the fore was that their boss Xiang Huasheng often went to midnight shows and knew exactly what the audience liked to watch, so he was able to plan a series of box office hits.

By the mid-to-late 1990s, Hong Kong films had declined and the midnight show culture gradually disappeared.

After leaving Hollywood, Wu Yusen hasn't felt the tension of a "midnight show" for many years.

I didn’t expect that when “Red Cliff” was released this time, that nervous feeling came back again!
Logically speaking, he has worked in North America, the world's top box office market, and achieved remarkable results, so he should not be so nervous.

The only reason is Jiang Heng!
Special effects blockbusters are unique and have cultivated the tastes of domestic audiences. You won’t really think my movies are bad, right?
Wu Yusen couldn't help but think about it, but he really didn't have the courage to go into the theater to see the audience's reactions.

Besides, even if the audience has any opinions, it’s too late to change them now!
Wu Yusen and Zhang Jiazhen chatted for a while and then went back.

The next day, the first day box office results of "Red Cliff" were released, 3100 million, which was the same as the first day results of Jiang Heng's "Lion Camel Ridge" several years ago!
Upon learning of this result, Wu Yusen, Zhang Jiazhen and all the investors of "Red Cliff" breathed a sigh of relief.

With a first-day box office of 30 million, the mainland market should have at least 400 or 500 million, right?
This is just the first part. If the two films can achieve a box office of 800 million or 900 million, plus the overseas market, they will make a lot of money.

However, employees of the company said that the rating of "Red Cliff" on Douban is not very high, only 6.7 points.

After hearing this, Wu Yusen looked displeased.

Zhang Jiazhen asked, "That Douban website, is it under Jiang Heng's name?"

The employee said: "It was Jiang Heng who did it!"

Zhang Jiazhen said angrily: "This guy, it's fine if he just makes blockbuster movies. He also built cinemas to influence the film schedule and set up film review websites to manipulate word of mouth. Is he trying to build a movie empire in the mainland?"

After hearing this, Wu Yusen's expression became even more gloomy. "This means you are both an athlete and a referee!"

"He wouldn't deliberately slander us, would he?"

"Hard to say!"

In the morning, the two did nothing but study Douban and read the reviews of Red Cliff. As a result, their blood pressure soared and they were very angry.

The entertainment media in the mainland is different from that in Hong Kong, and there is more positive coverage on movies.

But the criticisms on the film review websites are more real and direct. The short review column is full of words like "bad movie", and there are so many complaints that it is impossible to complain.

As for the long reviews, they are written in a slightly more obscure way, with various connotations and sarcasm, plus one-star and two-star ratings.

"Oh!"

"Too deceiving!"

Zhang Jiazhen couldn't help it and threw the mouse, "Old Wu, we can't be bullied like this, go find the leader of the Film Bureau!"

Wu Yusen smiled bitterly, "I went to the leader and asked, what should I say? Have we been scolded by netizens?"

"This must have been done by someone named Jiang!"

"It's fine for us to say this when we're complaining. But when we go to the leader, we need to have evidence!"

Zhang Jiazhen was speechless. He couldn't prove that these film reviews and short comments were written by Jiang Heng, especially the many long reviews, which were to the point.

The problem is, he can't tolerate it!

"If this continues, the box office will definitely be greatly affected!"

"I know, let's call and ask!"

After Wu Yusen finished speaking, he called Jiang Heng. After the call was connected, he said that he hoped Jiang Heng could ask Douban to control the comments and delete the bad ones.

Jiang Heng on the other end of the phone was stunned after hearing this, thinking, "Are we so familiar with each other that you would let me help you control the comments?"

"I'm sorry, Director Wu. Although Douban.com is under my name, it has always been independently operated and I have never managed it. As for the film reviews, as long as they do not violate the rules, they cannot be deleted!"

"All right!"

After hanging up the phone, Old Wu was so angry that he smashed his phone.

After discussing for a long time, they decided to let the company's people register Douban accounts and give good reviews for "Red Cliff".

Unexpectedly, more and more negative reviews came in.

Just as Wu and Zhang worried, the appetite of domestic audiences has really been spoiled by Jiang Heng's special effects blockbusters.

The high box office on the first day was due to the good marketing of the film.

But starting from the second day, the single-day box office plummeted.

The second day, more than 2600 million.

On the third day, more than 1900 million.

On the fourth day, there were only over 15 million!

The decline in box office was so severe that it frightened the viewers.

In terms of word of mouth, it is almost at the extreme. The Douban score dropped to 6.1, and all kinds of negative reviews were flying everywhere.

Someone complained about Lin Zhiling, "Meng Meng, stand up!"

There are also people who complained about Sun Shangxiang's words "Every woman has her share of responsibility for the rise and fall of the country."

What is even more unbearable is that Zhuge Liang, played by Jin Chengwu, is too expressive with his eyes, which undermines the reputation of the prime minister.

In short, although the reputation of "Red Cliff" collapsed, it made the audience more and more looking forward to the performance of "Zhu Xian".

(End of this chapter)