"John Rabe", a similar biographical film adapted from "The Rabe Diaries", is finally released in the United States, no matter how much Angela looks forward to this moment, the Americans will not know, so they will only be based on their own Senses to comment.
Although there are some articles that are attacked for the sake of attacking, most people's opinions are relatively pertinent. One film critic wrote in his column:
"Angela
The second war-themed movie is finally out, and while the film has been as fraught with controversy from the start as it was before, the debates surrounding "John Rabe" are a lot messier, such as about John Rabe himself. Or how serious that humanitarian disaster was. However, the most debated is whether this film can surpass her previous work of the same theme, "The Pianist", to know that the reputation of that film is almost one-sided.
Today we can finally comment, and frankly, like a lot of people, I also think that it is difficult to surpass yourself, and this movie also proves that, but to say that "John Rabe" is better than "Piano" Home" is not so bad. Although they are the same on many themes, such as reflecting the cruelty of war or showing human nature, etc., but in a sense these are two different films.
"The Pianist" reflects a person's struggle for survival in that terrible situation, while "John Rabe" shows a group of people led by Rabe to help more people from the horrific situation. survive the war. There are no heroes here, just ordinary people who want to save more people. Although the name of the movie is "John Laden", it is more of a group play. We can see that there are many techniques that Angela has used, but they give people a completely different feeling. , she still maintains that surprising creativity.
In any case, Rabe and the others should be respected and should not be forgotten. "
As expected by Angela before, humanitarianism caught the attention of Americans, plus she walked the tightrope very well, as well as the delicate relationship between the two countries from 9/11 to the present, and the careful guidance from the very beginning. With the public opinion, the film received as much attention as "The Pianist" after its release. Even though critics have different opinions on certain places, there is still a strong consensus on human rights and humanitarianism.
"For two hours, all we saw was Rabe and the others running around like headless flies, the messy editing made everyone seem crazy, the pale plot, the contrived performance, only Meryl Streep's performance is slightly better. I have to say it was a failure, Angela completely chose the wrong subject." There are malicious comments everywhere, whether it is from those who have bad intentions The journalists who have been opposed for a long time are all aggressively attacking. But even so, they can't blame anything on the theme of the movie.
However, although Angela did her best, she could only remain silent about some comments.
"…As a member of the International Security Zone who has also helped many Chinese people, Lewis Smith almost cried when he saw this report. He never imagined that he would become the 'American' in the Chinese government's mouth. After the name is called, the Japanese will deal with 'that kind of people. Fortunately, his Chinese teacher comforted him, saying 'more than 100,000 people in Nanjing City know what you do', this is really ridiculous and funny …”
This is an article in the "Washington Post", which exemplifies various Chinese government's ideological opposition to smear those Americans who have worked in the international safe zone, and many sources also quote Alice. Zhang's book. Although the two countries have often smeared each other, there is really nothing to say about this matter. Angela herself also said at the press conference, "No matter what purpose they have, they have indeed saved so many people. people".
So when faced with this kind of problem, she can only say that she is sorry, and then divert the topic.
Of course, such reports will not appear in China's mainstream media, even if netizens already know through various channels that their energy is focused on promoting the film and winning unanimous praise from the American media.
It must be admitted that Huayi has done a good job in distribution and publicity, although it is inevitable that the big scissors will cut a few times, the impact on the plot is not very big. And with this kind of publicity, it's a rare movie to be released at the same time as the US side - knowing that other regions have not yet released, and according to the date line in the Pacific, China is even released earlier than the US. Therefore, many people who originally held a wait-and-see attitude could not hold back and entered the cinema for the first time.
and then? The opinion of the mainstream media in China is that it is a very good movie, not much worse than Angela's previous "The Pianist". In short, it is basically the sound of applause, except on the Internet.
"This woman is too useless to take pictures of the Chinese. She has no spirit and no hope. In her eyes, this is the virtue of the Chinese?"
"What do you say you like Chinese culture, but also sing Chinese songs, and the result is such a disappointment."
"What's the matter, Han Xianglin in history is like this, it's too useless and disgusting, isn't it? He even asked Jiang Wenna SB to play, what a fucking Miss Agnel, just like this."
"How bad the editing is, I admit that there were indeed many people who helped save people at that time, but where did the other Chinese go? The Chinese are just rescued? And the movie is obviously called "John Rabe", Those two Americans look more like leading actors instead! The so-called genius is nothing more than that, it's disgusting!"
Such remarks appear in an endless stream on the Internet, and even if they are refuted by others every time they appear, there are always people who are always happy to make such remarks and argue with the refutators.
Although this situation was expected long before the movie was released, Angela couldn't help frowning while browsing those Chinese web pages. It's normal, people are equal on the Internet, and anyone can post their own profile and show their individuality to the fullest - but in a sense, it's also selfish. Anyway, you can't see each other's expressions on the Internet. You can't hear the other person's voice, so just consider your own feelings.
Especially in this open world, as long as anyone's opinions and remarks are put on it, they may be seen by everyone in the world. A lot of people want to be different and unique, so it's not surprising that there are such out-of-the-box words and deeds, especially for the first time Chinese people find that someone listens to them.
Forget it, why care about these remarks, this kind of debate on the Internet will never end, I just know what I'm doing. Angela, who was reminded of some memories, said this to herself in her heart, but she still couldn't help sighing in her heart.
After the premiere, she quickly accepted an invitation to an ABC talk show—and Robert Eisner, the new CEO, quickly remedied it, and the partnership between Disney and Pixar became even tighter.
This made many people a little surprised. You must know that Angela basically attended the premiere of the movie before, and finally recorded some interviews about the production, and did not participate in any other publicity work.
Some people think that this is because of the unsatisfactory box office. Although "John Rabe" has a good reputation among film critics, the number of theaters released is only about half of "The Pianist". About 500, this is still communicated by Ed. For a long time and the owners of the theater chain, they got results for Miss Angel's sake. After all, it's hard to say whether the movies in other countries in the Pacific Ocean can make money.
This should be the first time that Angela's film has been released in so few theaters, so it is also the first time that the box office is so small, only $3 million in its first week. According to the analysis of some people, if this is the case, even if the final number of theaters can reach 1,500 to 2,000, the final box office investment will be about the same. In addition, as the most important overseas market for American films, Japan has refused to release the film. "John Rabe" is likely to be Angela's first loss-making film, so it will be such an exception to promote the film.
"What do you think about Japan's rejection of this movie?" the host asked.
"I can generally understand their feelings," Angela said with a smile, "although they only vaguely said that it is not suitable for release in Japan, but I can guess what they are worried about, after all, the previous movies related to the Nanjing Massacre also It has been released in Japan, so there is no problem in that regard. So I think they will refuse to release it probably because the movie involves the Japanese royal family, that is, the Prince Asakagami Hatohiko.”
"Just because of this?" The host was slightly surprised.
"Yes, because in the minds of many Japanese, the royal family is still sacred and inviolable. There are data showing that the previous Japanese movies only gave a vague back when it came to the emperor." Angela explained. , "So they refused to release 'John Rabe' in Japan, which I can understand."
"I can't believe that this kind of worship still exists in this era." The host sighed, with some mockery and some pity, "So there are no Japanese royal family in the previous movies about the Nanjing incident?"
"That's right, I think "John Rabe" is the first to raise questions in this regard." Angela spread her hands.
"What makes you want to try to re-display these neglected things?" The host suddenly showed a curious look.
"It's a responsibility," Angela replied briefly, and then made a gesture: "If you find a mistake, you must correct it, and you can't hide it because it involves something. Just like the Nanjing Massacre, how many people know how many A humanitarian disaster like this happened to our allies who fought with us ten years ago? How many people know what a group of people did to help people in disaster? We did forget it, but now we have found it It shouldn't be ignored anymore!"
Angela doesn't care about the box office or anything. The purpose of participating in the interview is only one - to get a few stabs in some places, it is not painful but uncomfortable, and people have to watch. In fact, this approach has achieved good results, and there is another debate about whether it is deliberately forgotten.
"Think about what those Chinese people have done!" someone said angrily.
"But it's a fact that we put these on the shelf and ignore it without touching it!" Someone retorted.
In short, this kind of dispute lasted for a long time, and Angela stopped talking about it after participating in the talk show, so more people went into the theater instead.
The most depressing should be the Japanese, who do not admit that they have survived the Nanjing Massacre? how is this possible! They differed in numbers at most, but as Angela said before, even if it dropped to 10,000, wouldn't it be a massacre? As for those surprised, mocking, and contemptuous glances from the Americans, although they were annoyed, they couldn't say anything. Could it be that they protested Angela's disrespect to the emperor and the royal family? She even dared to make a movie of the current Queen of England. So it's better to keep silent.
As for China, the box office has become popular all the way, all in Huayi's expectations and the like, and some things are still ignored.
Under such circumstances, Angela ushered in the Christmas of 2004, which should be the most boring Christmas she has ever had. Although the grandfather's manor is still very lively, she does everything alone, galloping around the manor on horseback, staying in the room alone, playing the piano or writing and painting. Even Anne, who is closest to her, is caught Shut out.
"Don't I think it's okay to be alone?" Facing her mother who asked her, Angela spread her hands innocently, so she spent most of her time in London like this.
Especially when Xia Xia came over as a guest like before, she ran out early and stayed outside the manor all day. Xia Xia was depressed about this for a long time, and was comforted by Lu Lu for a while before she felt better.
Only Annie knew what Angela was in. She remembered that Angela sat in front of the piano in a trance and said to her, "It's nothing, I just want to fill up my head, that's all."
Annie could only sigh helplessly in her heart, although Alizee told her more than once that Angela brought it on herself, but she could not rest assured, after all, she had a promise to her.
Finally, another 2005 came to Angela's life. After spending the New Year in New York, she hurried back to Los Angeles. As in London, spending most of the time in the room or sweating in front of the wooden pile, even though Liv and Scarlett had called her.
"I just want to vent." Facing Grandpa's question, she replied, "You know, I can't go out recently. Those reporters always want to take something out of me."
It did, presumably because of the endless arguments and the fact that the holidays were coming to an end and people could also find time to watch movies that didn't require the whole family to watch together, and John Rabe's box office started to creep up. stand up. In the past three weeks, the total box office was only about 30 million, but the box office suddenly increased by 15 million just after the new year, which has exceeded the expectations given by some people.
"This is the third time I've watched this movie. The first time I was just curious and wanted to see why Angela would travel all the way to a completely unfamiliar country to make such a movie. I was very surprised after watching it. And very curious, what exactly was that disaster? What else did Rabe, Wilson, and Waitlin do other than the ones in the movie. When I looked through countless sources to find out what we had forgotten, it was too much , how can we forget such great people as Wei Telin?!" This was the answer of a movie fan who was about 20 to 30 years old when a TV reporter was interviewing on the street.
Such an answer can basically represent the attitudes of many people, especially the attitudes of many young people. They support their idols in their own ways on blogs or other places. Angela's accumulated influence begins to be full at this moment. One media even wrote half-jokingly: "It's a pity that Angela didn't participate in last year's presidential election, otherwise she would be able to beat that cowboy to the White House. Those young people may not have enough votes, but they are likely to threaten themselves. My family voted for Angela together."
As for Angela, as always, she only responded briefly on the blog and was rather formulaic, even when she was blocked by reporters on the street, she kept smiling but never said much on the topic. If it is discovered by movie fans, as long as it is not excessive, I will try my best to meet it. When it comes to movies, I just say "thank you for your support".
Most of the time she still stays in her villa in Beverly Hills, and has been busy doing something. This made Annie a little more relaxed, because Angela was really busy with things, although she didn't know what she was busy with, but at least she didn't have the state of having nothing to do when she was in London or New York.
This situation continued until the end of January 2005, when the Oscar nominees were announced. When the list was announced, people couldn't help but cry out a little, even if they were expected.
The biographical film "John Rabe" has won a total of seven nominations for Best Art Direction, Best Screenplay, Best Score, Best Supporting Actress, Best Supporting Actor, Best Director and Best Film!
This is not only the seventh time that Angela has been nominated for best director, but also the second time she has won three or more Oscar nominations in a single session. In addition to directing "John Rabe" and responsible for the soundtrack, she also served as the Art Direction! What's more, she has been nominated for best screenplay almost every year since 1993 - whether it is an adapted screenplay or an original screenplay.
How many people can do it? This was the headline for Day Two of The Hollywood Reporter.