Chapter 1458： foreign language movies

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In the United States, where English is used, French, German, and Italian are all foreign languages. The United States is the world's largest film market and music market, which also makes English-language films occupy an absolute major position in the global film market. Opening the film history, the box office can rank among the top 50 or even the top 100 African films. There are very few English-language films.

Taking the North American film market as an example, in the more than a century since the birth of the film, only one non-English-language film has been released in the United States with a box office of over 100 million. Yes, there is only one, "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon". When "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" was released in the U.S. in 2000, it was shown in more than 2,000 movie theaters and eventually made $128 million at the box office. 128 million. This figure is not even in the top 200 in North American box office history, but this is the best result of a non-English film in the North American market.

Outside of "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon", the top-grossing Italian film "Life Is Beautiful", which was released in the United States in 1q98, made only $57 million at the box office. In addition, the Chinese film "Hero", the French film "Amelie", the Chinese film "Huo Yuanjia", the Italian film "The Postman", the Mexican film "Chocolate", the French film "Fake Phoenix" , The Chinese film "Kung Fu", these works can rank among the top ten in the North American non-English-language film box office charts, but none of them can cross the threshold of 50 million at the box office.

This series of figures shows that non-English films are in a difficult situation in the American market. In addition to the United States, the world's largest film market, major film markets such as Japan, France, Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom, and Australia, no matter which language they use, have their limitations, and the box office of films has never been able to match that of English-language films. Manufacturing influence is on a par.

This is why when Bernard Isenger wanted to shoot "Perfume" in French for Evan Bell, the two had a heated argument, and even got close to breaking up. Because the global promotion of non-English-language films is too difficult, the $60 million investment in the film "Perfume", plus publicity expenses, will need to increase the cost. If the film fails, it will be fatal for Bernard Isenger, and it will be very serious for Eleven. French is really not a good choice.

But in the end Bernard Isenger was persuaded by Evan Bell for only one reason, and that was his dedication and love for the original work.

In addition to language, the reason why it is difficult for non-English films to achieve box office results in the United States is the scarcity of theater chains. Among the top ten non-English films in North America, the number of theater chains is the most prominent. "Hero", the film was released in 2,200 theaters, reaching a medium scale; while the least was "False Phoenix", which was released in only five theaters, and finally created a box office of 20 million US dollars, or In 1q7q, the currency was still inflated.

Non-English films have never been short of masterpieces. There are many outstanding works whether it is European films or Asian films, but only limited by language factors, it becomes very difficult to achieve good results in the global film market. "False Phoenix" was picked up in five cinemas, but it was able to get a box office of $2,000. This is the most vivid example, which directly proves that there is never a shortage of good works in non-English films, and even in the American market, there is no shortage of large audiences. 's approval.

This time, the release of "Perfume" in the United States also encountered huge resistance. Unlike the situation of "Brokeback Mountain" last year, "Perfume" is not too controversial topic. Works like The Passion"; in terms of blood, it can't compare with works like "Silence of the Lambs" and "Chainsaw"; in terms of horror, it can't be ranked, but "perfume" is limited by the French language. The big cinema chains are reluctant to release this work in its entirety, believing that there is no way for the film to achieve better box office results.

This resistance stems from deep-rooted ideas, but also from the status quo of the widespread use of English around the world, Kurt Laporte and Bernard Isenger in order to allow "Perfume" to be released in enough theaters , but did not spend less effort. Part of the reason why "Fragrance" finally chose to release in October was a compromise, because October is a low season, there are not many works released, and the competition is not strong, Kurt Laporte and Bernard Essien Grid took advantage of this advantage and worked hard to sell the "perfume".

In the end, "Perfume" was successfully released in 2,500 theaters. With this number alone, "Perfume" set a new record for the release of foreign language films in the United States, which was a very gratifying start.

When it comes to European films, the overall level of actors is excellent, and the average level of art films is not bad. This is the biggest impression. The film "Perfume" fits this impression very well.

In fact, there is only one controversy about "perfume": the moral standard. As to whether Jean-Baptiste Grenouille is an angel or a demon, how should he define the cold-blooded act of brutally killing twenty-six young girls in order to make perfume, and he, as an existence outside this world, is a sin to the social system How should disclosure be defined? This is a question where the benevolent sees the benevolent and the wise sees wisdom, because everyone has a different definition of moral standards.

To put it simply, when crossing the road, the light is still red, but there are no vehicles or pedestrians on the left and right, and it is completely empty. At this time, some people pass directly, thinking that this is normal; but some people insist on waiting for the red light to turn. Green light, this is the basic guideline. Or to take an extreme example, some people think that eating meat is a manifestation of killing, and it is heinous; while some people say that there is no love for meat, and carnivores are the product of natural selection. The moral standard is a system, including outlook on life, values, world outlook, as well as a sense of judgment produced by various factors such as religious belief, living environment, and professional personality.

Therefore, the controversy over "perfume" also arises in this way. Evan Bell does his best to tell the story from a neutral point of view, but the original novel itself leans slightly towards Jean-Baptiste Grenouille, who is, after all, a one-of-a-kind genius. Under the lens of Evan Bell, the depiction of Jean-Baptiste Grenouille is more inclined to the most special existence in the world, which is generally slightly more praiseworthy.

This has also sparked heated discussions and even debates in countless media, professional reviews, and audiences.

Aside from this controversy, whether it is Cannes, Toronto, or the United States now, judging from the general direction of the media, the quality of "perfume" is beyond doubt, from the use of lenses to color outlines, from novel adaptations to storytelling. , From character building to psychological transformation, from flat narrative to theme sublimation, Evan Bell has shown an unprecedented high level, which has won a lot of praise.

After the full release of "Perfume" in the United States, the professional critics suddenly became lively.

Continuing the mixed reviews of the Cannes Film Festival and the Toronto Film Festival, the reviews of "Perfume" in the North American market have not changed much.

There are a lot of good media, and the respect for the movie has reached a peak.

"The Hollywood Reporter" believes that "very smart in all aspects, and has superb acting skills and excellent technical performance throughout the film. Evan's portrayal of the male protagonist is perfect, and he will be the best contender for the best actor. By."

"Rolling Stone" commented, "Evan Bell's acting skills are perfect, every nuanced change of the characters in the film is so hearty, he fully presents the deadly but beautiful features of the original novel. Come out and be amazed."

The authoritative professional film magazine "Village Voice" also gave a good review, "Perfect. Evan Bell's free and unrestrained control is accurately expressed in the characters and the whole film, and it is easy to mobilize the audience's emotions. And then it's perfect to create a shudder from the soul."

"USA Today" was a little more restrained, and the comment pointed out, "In order to tell the story in an objective position, the film made the camera too cold-blooded, and the cold feeling hidden under the gorgeous colors made people shudder. This is a time A very bold attempt to challenge people's moral bottom line. But even so, Evan's attempt is still amazing!"

On the other hand, there are not a few media with negative comments, and there are quite a few allies in this "premier".

"Rearview Mirror" believes, "This film pays more attention to the picture and narration than expected, which makes the film feel a little top-heavy, coupled with the gorgeous and sharp style of the film, people can't integrate into it, and the rejection of morality has always been Let the audience drift away from the film. The theme of the UU reading film is thought-provoking, but unfortunately, Evan Bell did not show the touching of 'mysterious skin' and 'little sunshine' again."

The "Chicago Sun" commented more sharply, "Evan is too concerned about the whole psychological transformation and the deep meaning of the whole social background, but instead makes the whole film obscure and philosophical. It was a huge mistake and Evan lost his previous level of control."

Equally sharp is the New York Post, "The film's slow start could have been forgiven if it weren't for its slow progression and slow ending. It totally becomes a long, smelly bedtime story, and worse. Yes, the audience has no desire to finish listening at all."

In addition, "Variety" also said, "The cold feeling outside the moral level makes people shudder. The cold blood of the movie theme itself makes the whole work exude a sense of exclusion from thousands of miles away.

"

As expected, the whole comment was polarized, and the comment of the mean disappeared quietly, which also made the response of "perfume" among the audience continue the previous trend: those who like it are highly praised, and those who hate it are very repelled. In this controversy, the performance of "Perfume" at the box office also began a worrying journey.

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