1RomanceEB Chapter 145 The Wisdom of All-in
Chapter 145 The Wisdom of All-in
Chapter 145 The Wisdom of All-in
"Chinatown?"
Frank Albrans' eyes, which had been gleaming with anticipation, underwent a subtle change the moment he heard the name.
A stereotypical image immediately came to mind: narrow, dark streets, neon signs with traditional Chinese characters hanging on them, and Chinese gangsters with slicked-back hair wielding sharp knives clashing in a smoke-filled opium den.
The young man in front of me has just taken charge of "Enter the Dragon," and the kung fu craze brought by Bruce Lee is sweeping across the United States.
Riding this wave of opportunity, writing another crime action film with a gangster background is indeed a sure-fire way to make money.
"A very—commercially promising name." He put the cigar back in his mouth, his smile returning to its calm state.
As a businessman, he certainly doesn't reject commercially successful films, but there's clearly a significant gap between this and the "masterpiece that could shake the film industry" he had just anticipated.
Qin Han quietly observed the changes in Frank's eyes, a mysterious smile playing on his lips: Clearly, this big shot had completely misunderstood the entire film.
After all, it's very misleading for a Chinese screenwriter to say that name.
However, in reality, this film has almost no direct connection to Chinatown.
In its previous life, Paramount Pictures offered a staggering $175,000 to Robert Tohn, one of Hollywood's top screenwriters at the time, to adapt the famous novel "The Great Gatsby" for the big screen.
This amount of money is enough to buy a luxury villa with a swimming pool in Beverly Hills.
However, the aloof screenwriter rejected the extremely tempting contract without hesitation.
He told Paramount executives that if they wanted to reflect the stark social contrast between the "Roaring Twenties" and the "Great Depression," he would prefer to write an original story rather than copy someone else's work.
Ultimately, Robert Towne delivered a script that shocked the entire Hollywood industry—that is, "Chinatown".
Throughout the entire story, up to the very last few minutes of the final scene, there isn't a single scene in the film that relates to Chinatown.
The title itself became the biggest metaphor in the film—the Chinese cultural sphere is, to Westerners, a mysterious, chaotic place full of unknown rules.
When a foreigner enters Chinatown, he/she cannot understand the language, the signs, or the local customs and traditions.
He would feel a deep sense of powerlessness, feeling that he was tied down and unable to do anything.
This is the core of the film—in the chaotic Great Depression, everyone lived in fear.
The protagonist of the film, a private detective who wants to uphold justice, is like a foreigner who has wandered into Chinatown.
He thought he had seen through everything and uncovered all the truths, but in reality, he couldn't change anything.
The film's plot, full of twists and turns, its extreme exploration of human nature, and the cruel reversal that pushes despair to its peak have made this film, "Chinatown," which has no Chinese characters, a masterpiece.
In its previous life, this film, directed by Roman Polanski and starring Jack Nicholson, swept eleven Oscar nominations upon its release and won the 1975 Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay without any controversy.
It has been hailed by countless film critics as a "perfect narrative textbook" and is considered the greatest work of metaphor for our times.
Now, Qin Han, in this timeline, will personally write this work as a Chinese person, bringing it to life in the world ahead of schedule.
A Chinese person wrote a film called "Chinatown" to deeply analyze the corruption and despair of American society during the Great Depression.
This contrast itself is a highly explosive commercial gimmick!
Audiences may have developed a stereotype that Han's Films only produces kung fu movies because of films like "Fist of Fury" and "Enter the Dragon," but when "Chinatown" is released, it will completely shatter that stereotype.
They will be shocked to discover that Hans Films is capable of writing American stories that are even more profound and brutal than those of Americans themselves.
The original "Chinatown" film, with a production cost of three million US dollars, raked in an astonishing thirty million US dollars at the box office.
The tenfold return on investment made Paramount Pictures a fortune.
What the Qin and Han dynasties needed was precisely this "tenfold" record of victories.
With so much material stored in his mind, he won an Oscar with "Chinatown," demonstrating his strength in creative ability.
At the same time, the tenfold profit return perfectly balances commercial appeal, unlike those art films that are critically acclaimed but commercially unsuccessful, which are often too sophisticated for the general public.
This is the most perfect "debut work".
With this work as a foundation, no matter how unconventional or imaginative a script he comes up with in the future, the major Hollywood studios will accept it without question.
Because they firmly believe that the Han's Film Studio brand is a guarantee of both artistic value and commercial returns.
"In short, this script will definitely not disappoint Paramount." Qin Han kept the details of the plot a secret, ending the conversation with a smile.
"Once I finish dealing with my current tasks, I will immediately begin creating 'Chinatown.' I hope Paramount Pictures will offer me a good price then."
As the midnight bells rang, the banquet at Sunset Tower finally came to a close amidst the clinking of glasses and lively conversation.
Luxury cars drove off Sunset Boulevard, taking away Hollywood celebrities who had each gained something from the night.
The hall gradually quieted down, with only a few waiters silently cleaning up the leftovers.
Inside the executive officer's office on the third floor, the heavy curtains were drawn, blocking out the flashing neon lights from the outside.
The desk lamp illuminated the various financial statements and bank statements spread across the surface.
Michael Ovitz ripped off his tie, grabbed a red and blue pencil, and began rapidly calculating data in a thick ledger.
Qin Han took off his coat, casually tossed it on the sofa, and walked over with two glasses of ice water.
"How's it going, my head butler?" He pulled out a chair, sat down, and took a large gulp to wash away the effects of the evening's socializing. "How much 'ammunition' can the Han family still pull out of their coffers?"
Michael put down his pen, let out a long sigh, and pushed the ledger in front of Qin Han: "Boss, if we compare Han's company to a warship, our current firepower reserves probably can't even launch a single torpedo."
"The first North American box office revenue share we received from Golden Harvest for 'The Big Boss' was indeed a huge sum. However, this money was spent too quickly."
His finger traced the items on the bill: "First, there's the cost of renting office space in this Sunset Tower and purchasing and upgrading various equipment for the security company."
"Secondly, the unexpected events that occurred on Oscar night" necessitate substantial funding for the cleanup efforts.
"The consulting fees sent to General Samuel, the hush money paid to the Los Angeles Police Department and those underground intelligence donors, were staggering."
Michael turned to the next page and pointed to a large sum of money: "In addition, you insist on repaying Mr. Bruce Lee's personal loan to Hans with interest."
"After deducting all these fixed expenses, the company currently has less than $80,000 in cash on hand."
After listening to Michael's report, Qin Han nodded thoughtfully.
"Let's also factor in the cash we're about to receive. You've already seen the box office performance of 'Fist of Fury.' The latest news from Sidney is that the opening week's figures have far exceeded their expectations."
"Given the current frenzy of moviegoing, even by the most conservative estimate, a box office of 15 million US dollars is a sure thing."
Michael's eyes lit up; he certainly knew how to settle this score.
He grabbed the two-color pencil and quickly wrote down a series of numbers on a blank sheet of paper.
"The box office of 15 million US dollars—according to the previous contract with Universal, Golden Harvest and Han's will receive 15 percent of the total box office revenue."
"That means Universal will pay us $2.25 million."
Michael drew a heavy circle on the paper with his pen: "According to the original agreement between Hans and Golden Harvest, we will take 40% of the profits. Nine hundred thousand US dollars."
The young executive looked up, a fervent gleam in his eyes: "Boss, just wait another two weeks, and Han's will have nearly nine hundred thousand US dollars in cash on its books!"
Thinking about this, he couldn't help but marvel at how wise his decision had been.
Following this Chinese man for only a week, I have already gained access to decision-making power over "millions of dollars"!
Serving tea and water? Forget about it!
"That's right, we'll have nine hundred thousand US dollars soon." Qin Han smiled slightly as he looked at Michael, who was in a state of excitement. "Michael, immediately draft a mortgage agreement. I want you to use this upcoming dividend as collateral to apply for a short-term bridge loan from any bank willing to lend money as quickly as possible."
"No matter what means you use, I want to see a bearer check for $800,000 lying in my drawer by noon tomorrow."
Michael Ovitz's smile froze instantly.
He looked at Qin Han in disbelief, as if the person sitting in front of him was not the calm and wise boss, but a gambler who had lost everything.
"Boss, you're going to use the bridge loan?" His voice rose an octave: "This is insane! Once this money is in our account, Han's has countless safe and highly profitable stable projects to invest in."
"Now, you not only have to overdraw this cash, but also bear the high interest rates on short-term loans?"
Qin Han looked at the tyrant in front of him who would one day dominate Hollywood, but was now guarding his money bag like a timid accountant protecting his food, and couldn't help but laugh.
"I need you to prepare the funds because Francis Coppola will be here tomorrow morning at 10 a.m. with a young man and a roll of 16mm film."
"I want to use this money to invest in this work."
The office fell into a deathly silence, broken only by the ticking of the quartz clock on the wall.
Michael Ovitz thought he must be hallucinating.
Eight hundred thousand US dollars! Adding the exorbitant bridge loan interest, that's nearly nine hundred thousand US dollars in real money!
The boss is actually going to use the company's only huge cash reserve to buy a 16mm film that other major studios have refused to release?
"Boss—you, you haven't even seen that sample!" Michael stood up abruptly, his amber eyes filled with shock and confusion.
"A film rejected by MGM, even with Coppola's guarantee, is still just an underground film!"
"Gambling the entire company's assets on an unknown, failed film doesn't make sense in business investment!"
Seeing Michael's extreme confusion and resistance, Qin Han slowly stood up and looked directly at the young executive.
"Michael, back when you were serving coffee in William Morris's mailroom, weren't you taught this kind of 'business logic' by those executives in suits?"
"They tell you to avoid risks, to chase after established stars, and to never touch anything new that looks like trash."
Qin Han took a step forward, displaying the aura of a superior for the first time, causing Michael to unconsciously shrink back: "So, they can only ever be appendages of the studio, only able to pick scraps of meat from the bones left over by others."
"And I, Han's Film Company, aim to build not a brokerage firm that survives on commissions, but an entertainment empire that can define the next decade!"
His hands pressed heavily on Michael's shoulders, like two iron clamps: "The Han family has only one rule: I am responsible for seeing where the future wealth is, and you are responsible for putting the future wealth into our safe and bank accounts as quickly as possible."
"Now, go prepare tomorrow's agreement and the cash I need. Sometimes, going all in is a wise move!"
The next morning, at 9:30, on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood.
A slightly dilapidated Ford sedan crawled slowly forward amidst the congested traffic.
Francis Coppola sat in the passenger seat, enjoying a bagel covered in cream cheese.
In stark contrast to the director's relaxed and carefree demeanor was the young man sitting in the driver's seat.
George Lucas was wearing a plaid shirt, his thick black beard covering most of his face, and a pair of heavy glasses perched on his nose, concealing his lack of confidence in his eyes. He exuded an air of decadence.
The metal box in the back seat contained the original negatives of "American Graffiti".
"Hey, George, relax." Coppola swallowed the last bite of bagel, wiped the crumbs from the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand, and looked at his tense little brother beside him with a tone of comfort.
"Forget about what happened at MGM. Those old fogies don't understand what stories can resonate with young people."
-
He honked the horn a few times for Lucas, urging the slow-moving Chevrolet ahead: "The person I'm taking you to see today is completely different. He's the hottest playboy in Hollywood right now."
Lucas stared straight ahead, his voice tinged with deep self-doubt: "Francis—I really feel like this is a pointless ordeal. Maybe it's really like they say, that my film has absolutely no commercial value."
"The book 'Five Hundred Years Later' has proven that I am a complete failure. I not only botched the investment, but also made you share the debt with me."
"Shut up, George! I won't allow you to belittle your own talent like that!" Coppola raised his voice, interrupting Lucas's self-pity.
"Listen, I personally attended the opening ceremony of Han's Film Studio last night. You can't imagine what it was like—"
"In short, as long as we can convince him, he will definitely take your work to Warner Bros. or Universal Pictures to negotiate distribution! Your talent will definitely shine in theaters across the United States!"