The Best Director

Chapter 181: Exciting Christmas Show

By mid-October, the editing work for “The Hangover” was all completed. The theatrical version had a running time of 118 minutes, which, with the opening and closing credits, totaled 125 minutes. These 125 minutes of footage were born amidst laughter from start to finish, with joyful film sets, happy editing rooms, and soundtrack studios being no exception.

Properly spirited music is very important for any type of movie, and many humorous moments in comedies would become quite boring without music. David Lawrence, who had previously worked on the soundtracks for the “High School Musical” trilogy and “Juno,” had in recent years focused on youth and campus films, crafting sunny and upbeat tunes. However, that didn’t mean he lacked a funny bone. If there might have been a future to consider, then the music for “American Pie” 1 and 2 would have been his handiwork.

Wang Yang’s requirement for the soundtrack was to treat it seriously; don’t treat those scenes like gag reels, but set the tone of the characters’ psyches and create different atmospheric settings in the movie, just as if it were a drama. Of course, it needed to be exaggerated a tad because the ultimate goal was still to make people laugh. Suspenseful parts should be thoroughly suspenseful, stimulating parts should go all out, and there was also a need for whimsical segments. For instance, for the scene where they were counting cards and winning money at the casino, and parodying “Rain Man,” they had to parody it thoroughly, even using the stylistic female screaming.

It seemed David Lawrence had been stifled for too long in campus films; now that he was free to play to his heart’s content, he enthusiastically released his silly and comical side, using musical instruments, electronic sounds, and even tiger roars… In terms of color grading, Harry and Wang Yang also gave free rein to their experimentation. As time quickly moved into early November, with Halloween just passing by, “The Hangover” was declared finished, with production costs precisely on budget at $25 million.

After sitting down in the company’s screening room to watch “The Hangover,” Wang Yang, Harry, David Lawrence, and others all laughed and found that this 125-minute film, which was created with countless people’s efforts, sweat, and laughter, had surprisingly turned into a “CULT film.” Many “chaotic” shots, editing tactics, and soundtrack methods, some even adopted from TV techniques, were used to try out innovations. If traditional academy types saw it, they would probably sigh.

Was this 125 minutes of film funny? Could it become a blockbuster? Regardless, while the team watched it, despite being fully acquainted with every detail, they still laughed out loud, then nodded and said, “Let it be a CULT film, as long as it’s fun and funny, that’s what matters!”

Whether it was just self-appreciation or not, the theatrical version of “The Hangover” was a done deal. Apart from sending copies to the MPAA for rating reviews as soon as possible, promotional activities had already started before the release. This time, Flame Films didn’t have any viral marketing plans, just resorting to an internet blitz; there were also magazine and newspaper covers and interviews, outdoor poster advertisements, cinema trailer screenings, TV 30-second spots and so forth.

However, the 2-and-a-half-minute theatrical trailer left many fans and movie enthusiasts quite disappointed. It wasn’t that it wasn’t humorous or anticipated, but the issue was that it hadn’t changed much from the teaser trailer. It had just a couple of additional gags, and the plotline remained unclear. Could it really be that, as some had guessed, all the laughs were squeezed into the trailer?

On the official website for “The Hangover” and Wang Yang’s blog, more and more fans started asking this same question. In his blog, a user with an avatar of a Caucasian girl’s smiling face named Crysosa left a comment, “The trailer is amazing, but there’s too little content! This couldn’t be a boring and sad movie, could it?” A user with an avatar of an eye named Jason said, “Magic Yang, you don’t think a few crude words and a butt flash are ‘laugh-out-loud,’ do you?”

This comment received many follow-up replies. A blonde girl named Immortlhc wrote, “That’s too old and too silly! Can’t there be anything funnier than butts?” Dute J, with a Garfield avatar, wrote, “‘Juno’ was humorous and fresh, I laughed many times, but an R-rated comedy isn’t ‘Juno’! MY, it would be such a regret and disappointment if you just understood it as crude words and butt flashes!”

“Young, are you still in ‘District 9’? I’m worried about you and ‘The Hangover’!” wrote Christie with an avatar of a girl with short hair; an Asian boy wearing a headscarf named DD-LI wrote, “My friends and I are planning to see ‘The Hangover’ this Christmas, please don’t waste our evening!”

Yet, there were many fans who had full confidence in “The Hangover” and spoke out in its defense. Tania Mi, with an avatar of a Hispanic girl, replied, “I laughed several times just watching the trailer! It will definitely be one of the funniest R-rated movies ever!” Simon John wrote, “I just feel that Magic Yang will surprise us, it doesn’t mean anything if the trailer doesn’t have anything new!” And RAW with a teddy bear dog avatar wrote, “Some things have already proven that MY’s butt flashes are always unique!”…

Seeing his blog’s comment section dominated by the topic and Zach Galifianakis’s butt, Wang Yang offered some replies. This was a common practice for him and one of the reasons why his blog was so popular: fans always enjoy having a conversation and contact with celebrities at zero distance.

He replied, “There’s a butt, but it’s not just about butts! We didn’t add content to the trailer because I hope to keep the plot confidential so that everyone can have the most fun watching it. Otherwise, if everyone already knows what happened on that night, why would they still go to the cinema?” This was exactly why he wanted to keep things a secret, like Will Smith’s role, which was indeed a “laugh bomb.” How could he reveal it in the trailer?

However, seeing this explanation from the blogger, many fans still weren’t convinced and expressed skepticism over the secrecy. They had already been fooled once with “District 9,” initially thinking it was a purely bloody and thrilling sci-fi blockbuster. Many people disliked spoilers and had avoided all reviews and reports only to be “tricked.” If they had known that it was a movie capable of leaving a psychological shadow, they would have thought twice before watching.

“To be honest, I’m now scared of secrecy. Who knows if it’s another scheme? Although Yang assures it won’t be sad, I don’t want to see him end up saying ‘Surprise, it was an April Fool’s joke!'” wrote Louisa with an avatar of a brunette girl. Christopher Foersten, with an avatar of a shrimp creature, wrote, “Here’s a hint for everyone. Both ‘District 9’ and Las Vegas are in the Mojave Desert.”…

In the bright screening room at MPAA headquarters, ten members of the committee responsible for rating “The Hangover” sat in their chairs, looking at the screen and diligently counting the number of profanities. An overwhelming number of FUCKs and a whole bunch of lowbrow, vulgar slang had long surpassed the R-rated standard. Amid the light, PAC-MAN-like electronic music, the four men watching the digital camera’s screen jumped in surprise and shouted with their mouths covered, “Oh my God…” The chubby one immediately laughed and yelled, “That’s classic!”

The credits rolled up: “Director: Young-Wang, Producer: Young-Wang…” On the left, there were some static pictures showing scenes of reveling at a party and dancing with strippers, the chubby Zack grinning foolishly while riding a tiger…

The committee members glanced at each other, some with smiles they couldn’t suppress, others with calm faces. The group leader, Todd Morris, continued to watch the pictures on the screen, saying, “It’s definitely going to be R-rated.” Beside him, Karen Wald, reviewing for the fifth time a film by Wang Yang, hummed in agreement. She looked at her notebook, saying, “No sexual content, no drug scenes, but there’s violence, a lot of lowbrow swearing…”

Remembering the contexts and specific meanings of those profanities, as a woman, Karen Wald couldn’t help but laugh. She looked at her colleagues, smiling broadly, “But it’s really funny, that wacky Wang Yang is back!” But across from her, Chris Rocky just shrugged calmly. Seeing a dentist on the screen pulling out his own tooth with pliers, Karen chuckled again and asked, “Don’t you think it’s hilarious?”

Chris Rocky shook his head, “Not really.” Perhaps he was too focused on the review process, just a bunch of swearing. Shrugging, he said, “Compared to ‘District 9,’ it’s way inferior—it’s like a dumb show.”

“Come on, this is an R-rated commercial comedy!” Matt Stark, who laughed the most during the screening, was reclining in his chair with his legs crossed. He had laughed so hard he nearly keeled over. Remembering watching “District 9” and the pain in his heart, he exclaimed with a chuckle, “It’s unbelievable, I cried tears! But they were tears of laughter, that Rain Man parody was just… too wicked!”

He rubbed his nose, which was still sore from laughing, saying, “Whoa! This guy wants to make us cry and laugh in the same year, insane!”

“Isn’t that a bit of an exaggeration?” Alec Haber, who hadn’t laughed much during the screening, just couldn’t get into it. Shaking his head, he said, “My opinion is the same as Chris’, just mediocre. The characters and story are pretty stupid. And those editing techniques, it’s not just shaky cam anymore, it looks very slapdash! I still prefer Wang Yang from ‘The Pursuit of Happyness.'”

Duane Elliott, all smiles, disagreed, “I don’t think so, those effects are too unique and funny! That’s the comedy behind the scenes.” He thought about the actors’ performances he had just seen and couldn’t help but praise, “Where on earth did Wang Yang find these people? I bet that fat guy is going to be famous, and that dentist, oh that handsome teacher, that Doug, they’re all going to be stars.”

Jericho Joe nodded in agreement, “Before watching this film, I really didn’t expect Michelle Rodriguez to be so funny; Charlize Theron, on the other hand, was a bit lacking.” Matt Stark laughed, “Will Smith was a real surprise! Biggest acting surprise of the film.” Karen Wald, however, had a different opinion, laughing, “I think Wang Yang acted very well, a perfect gambler.”

Watching them turn into die-hard movie fans in a discussion, Chris Rocky felt somewhat disdainful inside. Was it just a piss-and-vinegar movie? What’s funny about that? He glanced at the screen, which was about to end, just in time to see a shot of the teacher vomiting, and couldn’t help frowning, “Anyway, I think this movie won’t do well. Box office? Hm…Even 100 million in North America might be a problem.”

“Although I disagree, you should know its production cost was only 25 million, so 100 million in North America would definitely satisfy Flame Movies,” said Karen Wald with a smile, seemingly full of confidence in Wang Yang. Alec Haber shrugged, “That would be enough for a celebration for anyone else, but now it’s Wang Yang, don’t you know his movies average 200 million in box office in North America?”

“I think 200 million won’t be a problem.” After the credits and still images ended, Todd Morris, who had been silent the whole time, expressed his view. He looked at his colleagues with differing opinions and laughed, “Personally, I think this is definitely a classic movie. If we were to use IMDB’s ratings, guys, I’d give it an 8.5.”

The next day, the MPAA completed the review of “The Hangover” with no surprises—the rating was R, citing “a high frequency of profanity, crude language, and violence.”

As 2002 neared its end, the film industry was about to start its annual event—award season. The Oscars were still far off, and the awards from various guilds and film critics associations were not the first to come, with the media and public currently focusing on the first major award of the year, “the Golden Globe Awards for motion pictures and television.”

The 60th Golden Globe Awards would announce the nomination list on December 20th, and this year the media’s predictions featured many front-runners amidst the chaos. Drama films favored by the academy still dominated, but it was a mixed bag overall.

Directed by Roman Polanski and starring Adrien Brody, “The Pianist” was the biggest favorite. This WWII drama had already won several awards, including the Cannes Film Festival’s Palme d’Or for Best Picture, and was lauded by critics everywhere, with almost all of them giving it a thumbs-up. If it weren’t for Polanski’s past drug-facilitated rape of a 13-year-old girl, followed by his flight to France during his bail period, resulting in years of being sought by U.S. authorities for extradition, it would have been a flawless classic.

Directed by Stephen Daldry and starring Nicole Kidman, the lesbian-themed film “The Hours” is also a hot favorite. Although it won’t be released until December 18th, it has already proven its charm in film festivals and screenings with several major awards, including Best Motion Picture – Drama, Best Director, and Best Actress in a Drama, predicted by many critics to be “certainly this year’s big winner.”

At the same time, the musical drama “Chicago,” which is to be released on December 27th, is also considered one of the most important films of the year. Martin Scorsese’s “Gangs of New York,” Jack Nicholson’s “About Schmidt,” and the fantasy epic “The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers” are all in the running. Additionally, some voices support Christopher Nolan’s “Mr. Hughes,” starring Jim Carrey, released on December 27th, and regard it as a force not to be ignored.

Of course, the press and the public haven’t forgotten the film recognized as “the best movie of the summer of 2002,” “District 9,” which months ago was praised as though it would surely sweep all awards if they were given out semiannually; its genre as a sci-fi and cult film and Wang Yang’s credentials had become the huge stumbling blocks in its way.

Although in over 60% of the media predictions list, “District 9” has a spot for Best Motion Picture – Drama, Best Director, and Best Actor in a Drama, it now stands alone against a group of formidable academy films and a fantasy epic, leaving 0% of those media believing it would ultimately win Best Motion Picture, 10% for Best Director, and 10% for Best Actor.

What does 10% mean? It means no chance at all.

However, the Chicago Sun-Times, which predicts Wang Yang will be named Best Director, explained, “In recent years, the Golden Globes have consciously tried to break free from the Oscars’ influence, forging their own path, and Ang Lee’s win two years ago was a breakthrough. What could be more innovative than giving the Golden Globe to a 22-year-old director for a sci-fi cult film?”

But the 40% of media that didn’t choose “District 9” said, “Sorry, Wang Yang won’t even get a nomination, not because it’s not good enough, but because there are too many great academy films this year.”

Roger Ebert, who listed “District 9” as a contender for the three major awards, scoffed at that part of the media: “They seem to have forgotten that the Golden Globes and the Oscars both chase ratings. With five slots for the Best Motion Picture – Drama, three go to the academy films, one to the realm of fantasy, and the last to sci-fi cult. Isn’t that more interesting to watch?”

“With six slots for Best Director, how could Wang Yang not be included? Don’t they want to attract the teenage audience anymore? But I must say, even as an old fellow, I wouldn’t be interested in turning on the TV if all slots went to the academy films.”

Beyond drama films, in the Golden Globe categories for Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy, “Chicago” and “My Big Fat Greek Wedding” are strong contenders; “The Hangover,” which did not have any media screenings and maintained a veil of mystery, was not mentioned by name.

To drum up publicity for the Golden Globes and because getting a nomination could significantly boost box office results, Wang Yang agreed to the distribution department’s arrangement for critics’ screenings of “The Hangover” and invited some media critics from Los Angeles, San Francisco, and other places.

The initial responses were similar to those of MPAA members, with some critics giving thumbs up and smiling: “Fantastic, the best comedy in years!” and “Innovative and hilariously funny!” Others, however, gave negative reviews: “All foolishness and exaggeration, with only a few laughs in 120 minutes.” and “Disappointing! Can you imagine Wang Yang producing a bunch of vulgar fart jokes after ‘District 9′? But he did, and it’s not funny.”…

This only made the fans more curious; it seemed that “The Hangover” indeed had no “sad Easter eggs,” Wang Yang didn’t lie, but the question was whether it was actually funny? Now with opinions split between fresh and fun and silly and disappointing, one would have to go to the theater to find out for themselves.

However, in the box office predictions reported back to Flamethrower Films, most critics were “not optimistic.” With the stature of the never-failing magical director, “The Hangover” would surely recoup its costs, but could he continue his magic? Critics marked that with a question, with most predicting that the North American box office would fall below $100 million, with very few believing it would reach the “expected” $200 million.

This is because, aside from the film’s own quality, one must consider the overall market environment and historical data—the market is extremely thirsty for wedding comedies. The best-selling R-rated film in history is “District 9,” with $325 million in North America and $750 million globally. So what about R-rated comedies?

The former R-rated box office champ is “Beverly Hills Cop,” an action comedy that opened on December 1, 1984, with $234 million in North America and $316 million globally; the second is the romantic comedy “Pretty Woman,” released on March 23, 1990, with Julia Roberts’ breakthrough role, earning $178 million in North America and $463 million globally; and the third is “There’s Something About Mary,” which opened on July 15, 1998, taking in $176 million in North America and $369 million globally.

Then came the release on July 7th, 2000, North America’s $157 million “Scary Movie,” followed by last year’s August 10th release of “American Pie 2″… But those were summer releases; very few dare to put an R-rated comedy in the Christmas slot. Not counting the long-gone “Beverly Hills Cop,” the most recent hit was “Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo,” released on December 10th, 1999, with a production cost of $17 million, North America box office of $65 million, and a worldwide total of $92 million.

R-rated comedies have a tough time during the Christmas season. Does “The Hangover” have the potential to match “Beverly Hills Cop”? Another reason film critics are doubtful is that this year’s Christmas season is not going to be easy.

On December 6th, Warner Brothers’ $60 million R-rated crime comedy “Analyze That” hits theaters, confidently scheduled for the Christmas season, and it will go head-to-head with “The Hangover” in a battle for the comedy market.

On December 13th, Hollywood gets serious. In addition to the release of “The Hangover,” the box office monster “The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers” will premiere; there’s also Paramount’s $60 million sci-fi movie “Star Trek: Nemesis,” the $20 million budget musical comedy “Drumline”; and the romantic comedy “Maid in Manhattan” directed by Chinese American director Wang Ying (Wayne Wang), with a production budget of $55 million and starring Latin superstar Jennifer Lopez, similarly fierce in its arrival.

Also unreported in production costs is “The Hot Chick,” this fantasy comedy starring Rob Schneider and Rachel McAdams, which will join the fray for laughs.

On December 20th, there is the $60 million budget romantic comedy “Two Weeks Notice” starring Sandra Bullock, along with “Gangs of New York” and “The Wild Thornberrys Movie”; on December 27th, films like “Catch Me If You Can,” “Chicago,” “The Hours,” “The Pianist,” and Flame Movie’s “Mr. Hughes” will be released.

There are six comedy films of various types being released this Christmas season, two R-rated and four PG-13-rated, and the media has been eagerly anticipating this Christmas comedy battle—they certainly won’t be short of news this year.

Because just Wang Yang alone can stir up a bunch of topics, like the bandwagon school music film “Drumline,” two Chinese American directors who have both worked with Natalie Portman, a child and an elderly, and of course, the “showdown” between the incredible director and his protégé, Rachel McAdams.

“We’re in for a treat!” In the spacious editorial office of the entertainment section of the Los Angeles Times, Taylor Dell looked at the movie release schedule on his computer screen and laughed with his colleagues: “Guys, how about we place a bet on who will be this year’s comedy winner?”

“The Hangover,” said Emma Skaggs, who was fiddling with a pen at her desk opposite, with a smile: “Wang Yang is like a lion, and the other five are a bunch of sheep. I have a feeling that ‘The Hangover’ could sweep these movies and become the top-grossing R-rated comedy. Ha! I’m joking, but I still prefer ‘The Hangover’.”

David Klein, who was watering a lush spider plant by the window, joined in the conversation. He held the water spray bottle and said interestingly, “I bet ‘Two Weeks Notice’ will come first, ‘Maid in Manhattan’ second, and ‘The Hangover’ third. I heard it’s really bad and stupid.”

“Who said so? I heard it’s hilarious?”

※※

Watching the scenes on the big flat-screen TV and listening to the click-clack music, Joshua laughed so hard on the couch that his body shook. Clutching his stomach in discomfort, he stammered, “It’s so funny! I can’t take it… Jesus…”

Wang Yang and Jessica sat beside him, both looking at Joshua, who rolled around on the couch, with strange expressions. Wang Yang asked dubiously, “You think it’s funny?” Jessica also questioned, “What’s so funny about that scene?”

“Funny…” Joshua was almost out of breath from laughing. He wiped away the tears of laughter from his eyes and said, “It’s classic… Haha!” He erupted into laughter again, “I don’t know, everything! Hahaha, look at them, oh FUCK…”