The Best Director

Chapter 409: Chapter 409 Well Done!

Due to “500 Days of Summer,” the entertainment gossip media’s enthusiasm for unearthing Wang Yang’s past love life has surged, with some magazines even offering high prices for his handwritten love letters, photos, and other romantic items. They hoped his former girlfriends wouldn’t be able to resist the temptation and would step forward to provide more explosive details for gossip lovers. According to insiders found on the People-Magazine website, Wang Yang had officially dated about seven girlfriends and had rejected several other women’s dating invitations.

The initial market was three, but it has now risen to seven. Whether that insider is clear or not remains unknown, but at the very least, this has fully proven to fans that Wang Yang is a man who likes women, not a homosexual man who is into other men.

In recent days, the news that newly-crowned Emmy Comedy Actor “Sheldon Cooper” Jim Parsons might be coming out surprised The Big Bang Theory fans. The incident arose when the award-winning actor was spotted dining and shopping with a male friend, seemingly in great spirits post-award. Parsons and his boyfriend made no attempt to hide their affectionate behavior. Their intimacy was captured by the paparazzi, and the media took the opportunity to spread rumors of Parsons’ homosexuality, but Parsons and his team have not responded, which is tantamount to an admission.

Regarding Jim Parsons’ coming out, The Big Bang Theory production team has not made any statements, which is somewhat out of their control – they can’t restrict his freedom to date his boyfriend – but it won’t impact the viewership. After all, Sheldon isn’t George Clooney. Of course, the production team is also happy that Parsons hasn’t publicly acknowledged it.

“It doesn’t matter to me; I care about the show,” represents the attitude of a large portion of TBBT fans, as well as, “Respect him, wish him well!” Only a minority of conservatives have expressed feelings of disappointment and disgust. But the majority, who can distinguish between the show and reality, tuned in on September 28th for the SE2 premiere, and on the 29th for the airing of EP02 of The Big Bang Theory, which secured over twenty million viewers on average for both episodes, continuing to deliver laughs on Thursday nights.Nôv(el)B\\jnn

Coincidentally, another popular TV actor, “Michael Scofield” played by Wentworth Miller, who was also supported by magical promotion, faced suspicions of being gay because the media could never find evidence of a girlfriend! However, the paparazzi did photograph him on what appeared to be dates with male friends. Unlike Parsons, Miller quickly denied these rumors during media interviews, he claimed he’s not gay, just too busy with work to have time for a girlfriend.

Indeed, no one from the Prison Break cast had ever seen a woman come to visit him on set, but this doesn’t necessarily mean he’s gay. For now, only the person concerned really knows the truth.

“The 62nd Venice Film Festival Ends, ‘Brokeback Mountain’ Takes Home the Golden Lion Award”

This was news from early in the month, dated September 10th, Italy time. As usual, the city was bathed in starlight this year, with films like “Brokeback Mountain,” “Uniformed Lover,” “The Constant Gardener,” and “Good Night, and Good Luck” competing. Heath Ledger once again proved he was a wise man but also played the fool as the competing “The Brothers Grimm” became somewhat of a laughingstock, while the premiere of “Brokeback Mountain” swept the Golden Lion Award for Best Picture!

During the premiere, director Ang Lee attended with his wife and two sons along with the stars Heath Ledger, Jake Gyllenhaal, and Anne Hathaway dressed to the nines; Gyllenhaal’s ex-girlfriend Kirsten Dunst accompanied him, announcing their reconciliation; the star and Ledger’s fiancee, Michelle Williams, stayed in New York due to her pregnancy. As the celebrities’ limousines arrived at the venue, fans’ screams rose and fell, and the media’s flashbulbs never stopped flashing.

Brokeback Mountain ultimately did not disappoint; the film’s profound and agonizing portrayal of love between Jack and Ennis won over the entire audience. After the screening, the applause and cheers inside the venue lasted for nearly ten minutes. Anne Hathaway was so moved that she lost her voice and cried, unable to compose herself for a long time, while “Heath” Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal embraced director Ang Lee enthusiastically. Accompanying Brokeback Mountain these past two years were doubts, mockery, and ridicule. Even with the fiery support of a major movie studio and the protection of a magical aura, it would be false to say there was no pressure. With the film’s great success, tears shimmered in the eyes of all three.

According to Italian media, the atmosphere in the hall was warm and touching, arguably the climax of this year’s Venice Film Festival.

Brokeback Mountain, once its veil of mystery was lifted, was widely praised by European critics. Some said it was a superbly textured and heartbreaking love story; others said it was a subversive Western, in which Ang Lee transformed the austere original work and the West into a warm glass of water with his gentle and delicate emotional touch. Moreover, the film’s portrayal of the sexuality and emotional grip between the male homosexuals was presented as two men in love, different from the past treatment of homosexual relationships in films, which still followed the emotional processing methods of a man and a woman.

This gave the audience a very novel and authentic atmosphere; no doubt this effect had much to do with the performances of Ledger and Gyllenhaal, which were highly praised, especially the mesmerizing Ledger. Then there’s Ang Lee’s profound directing skills, the moving script, the photography beautiful enough to be compared to landscape paintings, the memorable score, and so on… all were key points of praise in the European film review circles.

The news that Brokeback Mountain swept away the Golden Lion Award and received rave reviews was passed back to North America, instantly causing uproar among the media and the public! Those doubts gradually vanished, unable to stand, and it couldn’t possibly be a joke by Italians, could it? Ang Lee made a spectacular comeback; Ledger and the other main actors seemed to have made a wise, not foolish, performing decision. Wang Yang once again proved he had an incredible mind before his brain was hit by the overhead compartment…

Although the film had this great success, Flame Films, which was yet to create a big sensation for Brokeback Mountain, still kept a low profile. The film wouldn’t meet North American audiences until December; before that, it would continue to participate in various film festivals.

But its prominence at the Venice Film Festival already caused increasing pressure on American conservative organizations. They would not stand idly by! Don’t expect Brokeback Mountain to be widely released in the United States – boycott, boycott, boycott!

However, film fans were more concerned with the 05-06 awards season layout; after spending a summer, only Firefly had the capability to campaign in the awards season, even to say that it had the absolute ability to dominate and sweep over. Now, following recent years’ lesbian film The Hours, the controversial Brokeback Mountain was bound to become one of the main characters of the awards season, and at that time, it was very likely that the Golden Globes and Oscars would see a Firefly VS Brokeback Mountain situation. Flame Films would certainly be the big winner, and fans wondered what Wang Yang was thinking?

Joyous events for Flame Films followed one by one. In late September, their fourth major release of the year, Step Up 2: The Streets, landed in 2,816 North American Cinemas on September 23 and took the North American box office champion for the week of September 23-29.

Two years earlier, the first film in the series, Step Up, had a rotten 35% freshness rating from critics, but with a 90% favorability and a surprising North American box office of $80.26 million ($138.3 million globally), along with considerable DVD and original soundtrack CD sales, it was no surprise that this dance film, costing only $15 million, would naturally have a sequel. Annie Fletcher continued as director, featuring new actors like Briana Evigan and Robert Hoffman. The production cost of Step-Up2 was only increased by $5 million to $20 million, mainly due to the pay rises of the crew members.

The fact demonstrated how worthwhile that increase was; Step Up 2: The Streets defeated Bovie’s new action thriller Aerial Crisis with $31.1 million (an average of $9,085 per cinema in 3,424 cinemas), taking the crown with $38.03 million at the box office (an average of $13,506 per cinema)!

However, it continued the trend of poor critical reception coupled with high audience approval, with Rotten Tomatoes freshness ratings hitting a new low of 30% (16/52). Wesley Morris from The Boston Globe gave it 2/4 stars: “Only the parts where people dance are watchable.” Claudia Puig from USA Today also scored it 2/4 stars: “The dance sequences felt nice, but the acting and dialogue of this story were pitiful, lacking any surprises or newness—a bunch of tired clichés.” And Elizabeth Weisman from the New York Daily News remarked, “Totally predictable.”…

Critics considered it nothing more than a tedious film that just keeps dancing overplayed, hackneyed tales, yet audiences flocked to theaters just to see the hot, explosive dance performances, with an 85% approval rating (26,834 rating users). Viewer critic Bethany Murphy said, “I love every bit of it!”

This was simply a repeat of “Step Up” from two years ago and ended the Flame Film’s “five-consecutive-wins streak” of positive reviews. Yet, without a doubt, “Step Up 2” was another commercial victory for FF. According to box office analysts and FF’s own distribution predictions, the film’s North American box office was expected to reach $60-80 million, with optimistic overseas markets potentially pushing the global box office into the hundred-million club in no time.

With such success, there’s no reason for the film series not to continue, and Flame Films has recently struck while the iron’s hot, announcing that “Step Up 3” is set to release in October 2007. However, what may sadden Step-Up fans is that Annie Fletcher will step back to take on the role of a planning producer, passing the director’s baton to the 26-year-old Chinese-American director Jon M. Chu, who has not yet turned that age. Jon M. Chu, a member of the University of Southern California alum, won dance and directing awards during his time in college. The FF team is fully confident in him, and this will be his big-screen debut.

And Annie Fletcher, brought up by Wang Yang after “Sweetheart” and “Step Up” 1&2, has already grown into a commercially popular director warmly welcomed by film companies and is one of FF’s best relations. Now that Fletcher is free, including major companies like 20th Century Fox, Walt Disney, and Sony/Columbia, all intend to discuss projects with her. However, it seems her sweet collaboration with Flame will continue. It’s revealed that both parties intend to make a mid to low budget romantic comedy, still seeking the right project, and one thing is for sure, it’s neither “Hachi: A Dog’s Tale” nor “Marley & Me.”

“CUT—!” As the sun sets and seagulls soar against the evening sky, a new weekend in October is near. On a beach near San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge, with waves gently lapping against the sand, the cast and crew of “500 Days of Summer” are filming their last scene before wrapping up.

The camera lens is fixed on the distant Golden Gate Bridge, with the setting sun casting hues of red and blue over the seascape, a truly spectacular and beautiful sight. As the director’s voice carries out from the megaphone, Natalie and Joseph in front of the camera, Harry George and the lighting and sound departments, Jessica sitting on the director’s chair on the sidelines, and Nancy with her papers and pen, all turn towards Wang Yang. He smiles and nods, then raises his left hand and shouts, “GOOD-TAKE!”

“YEAH—!” Everyone bursts into cheers of joy. Although the atmosphere on set is relaxed and happy every day, the mood of having completed the work is still exhilarating, similar to clearing a level in a game. After a month and a half, “500 Days of Summer” has wrapped! Led by the director, everyone has truly embraced San Francisco’s romance during this period, and now, under the spell of the beautiful sunset, everyone’s feelings are mixed. Harry is looking forward to leaving bachelorhood behind; Joshua is really missing Alexis and wishes he could rush straight into her arms…

“Big guy, GOOD JOB! Tough work,” Wang Yang hugged Harry George and then hugged Nancy. Another wrap! He looks around at everyone, as usual, making his end-of-shoot speech, and with a smile into the microphone says, “Thank you all for your efforts over the past month, very happy! There are people here I’m working with for the first time. Did you enjoy your ’50 Days with Yang’? Also, many old friends have been with me for maybe 5000 days, which is even longer than my marriage, and I’m almost fed up with it—can’t imagine how you feel.”

Everyone laughs, and Jessica, who walks up clapping lightly, has the most radiant smile; Natalie mutters to herself, “He just talks nonsense all day!” Joshua, who has been around longer than the cast of “High School Musical,” is wearing a happy expression. Though it’s not quite 5000 days, it’s about half, and it feels pretty good!

“So we decided to have a baby, and as long as we put all our time into the baby, we wouldn’t have time to argue,” Wang Yang said to Jessica, eliciting light laughter from everyone. He continued with a smile, “And a movie is like our baby, something everyone wants to be both healthy and beautiful! A year ago, I remember telling the ‘Firefly’ crew that there will be a fantastic movie next summer! Our names would be in the credits, and we did it, that movie now has a 1.7 billion box office.”

“Wow!” The beach burst into applause and cheers, along with distant whistles, as Wang Yang shouted, “At the end of the year, this movie will beat ‘Firefly’ at the Oscars and leave it with nothing! That’s what we’re going to do.”

“Hahaha!” Everyone couldn’t help but laugh, and Natalie shouted in agreement, “Obviously, we can take it down for Best Director!” The laughter grew louder, and Jessica, unable to help herself, held her belly in laughter. Wang Yang glared at everyone and spread his hands, saying, “Don’t laugh! I’m serious, don’t think I’m joking, we must have this belief, only then can we achieve it! We have ‘Firefly,’ and we have ‘Star Wars,’ how could we not do it?”

Listening to everyone’s laughter and applause, Wang Yang couldn’t help but laugh himself, “Ha! I just want to say, you all did so well, everyone contributed their maximum effort, and that’s a very cool and great thing! This movie is also definitely full of energy, not inferior to any of those classic films, and everything else.” He paused and shrugged, “Of course, comparing to oneself seems a bit immodest.” The crowd immediately burst into laughter again, and Wang Yang laughed, “Anyway, this Christmas, everyone will see Tom’s unlucky look after getting dumped, but I won’t tell you that I’ve also been through that before, OK, that’s a wrap!”

“Wow—!” As Wang Yang turned off the loudspeaker microphone and handed it to Nancy, the crew clapped happily again, then began to gather their things from the set with laughter and chatter.

Wang Yang went on to praise his colleagues and hugged Joseph who was approaching, “Buddy, really good! But honestly, you should go through a few breakups, it will make you better in romance films.” Joseph laughed cheerfully, “I’ll do my best!” Wang Yang continued towards Natalie, opening his arms to hug her, laughing, “Hey, the third time!” By now, Natalie’s expression had calmed, and she nodded, “Yeah, it’s so fast, definitely an unforgettable job.” Wang Yang nodded too, “Me too.” Natalie looked into his eyes and asked with sudden interest, “Got any jokes?”

“Oh, OK!” Wang Yang perked up his eyebrows, as island wrap party jokes were a tradition; he grinned, “It’s our tradition, isn’t it? Umm… the operation was a quick one, so the joke should be quick too.” Natalie was indifferent, “As long as it’s funny.” Wang Yang thought for a moment and then began, “A cruise ship passed a deserted island and saw from afar a man dressed in animal skins and full of beard, screaming and waving his hands! A tourist asked the captain, ‘Who is that?’ The captain, very impatiently, said ‘Who knows! Every year when our ship passes by here, he goes crazy just like that!’ The tourist said, ‘Nevermind then’.”

“Haha!” Natalie laughed uncontrollably, hitting his shoulder hard and laughing, “WELL! That’ll do, old man, have a great weekend.” She made a pouting gesture for him to look behind, and as Wang Yang turned, he saw Jessica coming toward him with a beaming smile.

Watching him walk toward Jessica and affectionately put an arm around her shoulder, the two sharing a laugh about something, Natalie pouted with a smack, shook her head and shoulders with a smile, took a few steps away then looked back a few times, and continued toward the beach outside the set. It had come to autumn.

Under the glow of the sunset, seagulls soared freely. (