Chapter 112: A Simple Noodle Story

Lin Nan is currently stepping up the filming of the latter half of *The Thieves*.

Outside the set, *The Treasure Hunter* and *The Storm Warriors* were released on the same day.

The opening day box office for both films was just over 10 million.

The financial outlook is worrying!

Because the next day is *A Simple Noodle Story*, and there will be two more major imported blockbusters this month.

Zhang Yimou's films are the focus of the entire industry.

On the day of its release, it easily took in 21 million at the box office.

From the next day on, the preceding *The Treasure Hunter* and *The Storm Warriors* were directly relegated to being mere foils.

Taking advantage of the break, many people from the crew went to watch *A Simple Noodle Story*.

They didn't discuss it much after returning, but almost everyone posted congratulatory messages on Weibo.

Over 100 million in box office in 4 days!

This is the audience's respect for the chief director of the Olympic opening ceremony; even CCTV News reported this brief update.

But the higher the expectations, the greater the disappointment.

A large number of complaints and negative reviews appeared online.

This time, a considerable number of media outlets and audience members stood on the same side.

"This film is purely that 'noisy' folk style of the Zhao troupe; it feels like the whole production is completely out of Zhang Yimou's control."

"This is just a stretched-out sketch, with a strong flavor of Errenzhuan..."

"Unprofessional, cheeky acting, jumpy narrative techniques, and a completely terrible and disjointed plot!"

"What on earth is Zhang Yimou doing? He's swindling money..."

"A budget of 28 million; sure enough, cheap things are never good..."

It is evident that Zhang Yimou has been thoroughly coerced this time.

Bad films by big directors often follow a pattern: the more they are criticized, the more popular they become.

*A Simple Noodle Story* is just like *The Promise* of yesterday; the box office climbs steadily amidst the cursing...

"Director Zhang, where exactly did this film go wrong?"

Several cast members came to consult Lin Nan, and he said a few words.

"The producer severely interfered with the director's creative process. I heard the script and actors originally decided upon were completely different from what we see now; there was a massive overhaul right before filming..."

Thinking of the overwhelming mockery from the outside world, Lin Nan felt that Zhang Yimou would probably reflect deeply on his partnership with Zhang Weiping this time.

"Everyone, prepare for the next scene; try to get it in one take."

"Understood, Director Lin."

As filming nears its end, major actors have been finishing their roles one after another, such as Zhang Yi and Wu Jing.

Both of these men are the type to get familiar quickly, especially Wu Jing, who specifically came over to chat with Lin Nan.

He wants to transition into directing, exactly the same idea Xu Zheng had back then.

"All these years in Hong Kong, I've almost always walked the path of a supporting actor. There have been many who have helped me, but the lead role never falls to me."

When Wu Jing said this, there was some helplessness; he must have seen the reality of the situation.

"Then how do you plan to map out your future?" Lin Nan asked curiously.

"I'll shift my focus back to the mainland and take a few years to ease into it. After all, I'm poor right now and don't have a girlfriend, haha..."

Lin Nan was amused; he is a free-spirited person.

"Well, if there are any suitable roles in the future, I will consider you."

Hearing this, Wu Jing was visibly delighted.

"Then I must thank Director Lin; I'll remember that..."

The more intense the box office for *A Simple Noodle Story*, the louder the criticism; it has become a tide of negative reviews.

Especially the gaudy costumes and makeup, and the vulgar, abrupt lines, which netizens described as "eye-searing" and "disgusting."

Over 100 million in 4 days, 200 million in 8 days.

When accepting a media interview, Zhang Weiping excitedly made a prediction.

"Hitting 300 million in two weeks, 400 million in three weeks; after a month, it will definitely be a new box office record..."

The result was not what Zhang Weiping predicted.

After the box office of *A Simple Noodle Story* reached 200 million, it was cut in half, then cut in half again, and the daily growth plummeted.

As the producer, Zhang Weiping did not consider the problems with the film itself.

He blamed the cause on the two imported blockbusters released at the time, *2012* and *District 9*.

Zhang Weiping first bombarded the issue of screen allocation, and then launched a blanket attack.

"China Film Group's monopoly," "abuse of power," "suppressing dissent," "the Huabiao Awards are a mess," "personality cult"...

Han Sanping came to visit the set of *The Thieves*, and Lin Nan jokingly brought this up.

"You don't say, the nickname Zhang Weiping gave is quite imposing: 'Mount Weihu's Vulture'!"

Han Sanping looked disdainful when he thought of Zhang Weiping.

"Interfering blindly himself, suffering the backlash of public opinion, and then blaming China Film Group's screen allocation?

He shifts the blame well, but wait until the day he no longer has Zhang Yimou..."

Lin Nan also admired Zhang Weiping; the imported films were scheduled in the first half of the year, and he could still drag them into this.

The nickname "Mount Weihu's Vulture" had thoroughly offended Han Sanping.

The crew members, seeing that Lin Nan and the others were discussing this topic, found it hard to interject, so they offered a greeting and didn't disturb them further.

Han Sanping walked around the set and nodded as he looked at Lin Nan.

"Everyone says you're learning from Hollywood this time, and it really looks the part. About how much longer until you wrap up?"

"About a week. However, the post-production and special effects for this film will likely take some time."

Lin Nan replied. He estimated that the release of *The Thieves* would have to wait until at least the second half of next year.

The filming of *The Thieves* has entered the final stage.

The scenes are mainly concentrated on Zhang Hanyu, Liu Dehua, Fan Bingbing, Yan Danchen, and others.

The final climax is Zhang Hanyu's action sequence.

A dedicated actor always commands respect; he refused a stunt double.

A long sequence of chase and fight scenes, smooth and flowing, actually only took one day to finish.

"Cut."

"We can rest now; the final action scenes for this film are finished."

Everyone understood what Lin Nan meant; this meant the film was only a few days away from wrapping up.

Unlike *The Thieves*, which does not allow media to visit the set, Lu Yang's *Brotherhood of Blades* crew is much more open.

From time to time, photos appear online, and there is constant news.

On the other side, Wang Jiawei's *The Grandmaster* has high-profilely started filming.

However, at the press conference, the person asked the most questions was Zhang Ziyi.

The latter is also having a run of bad luck.

First, she was asked why she was dumped, then questioned about losing all her Hollywood resources, forcing her to return to the country in disgrace, and finally, the "ink-splashing" scandal.

Throughout the entire press conference, Zhang Ziyi kept a dark face, barely holding on until the end, and the other main creators didn't look good either.

Many media outlets compared *Ip Man* and *The Grandmaster*.

Emperor Motion Pictures' spokesperson was very professional and took the opportunity to do some promotion.

"The former is a pure commercial film, but it is also full of patriotic sentiment. As for the latter, I am not very familiar with it, so I will not comment.

In addition, *Ip Man 2* is about to complete post-production, and it is highly likely to be scheduled for the first half of next year..."

*The Thieves* crew, the last few shots.

Fan Bingbing is in a swimsuit, chatting insincerely with Yan Danchen by the hotel's outdoor pool.

One is graceful and charming, the other quiet and elegant.

In the sub-shot, the disguised Zhang Hanyu becomes the final winner...

"Cut."

"I announce that *The Thieves* has officially wrapped."

The benefits of dual-track filming are reflected in the efficiency.

Lin Nan feels that he can film like this in the future.

In the story, the final winners are the two characters played by Zhang Hanyu and Yan Danchen; the others are either dead or captured.

"Director Lin, will there be a second part to this ending?"

Liu Dehua asked with a smile, and the others pricked up their ears.

Lin Nan shook his head, "Perhaps. I left a foreshadowing; maybe one day when I think of it, there might be a sequel."

When he wrote the script, he did indeed leave this foreshadowing in the ending. But he might not necessarily direct the sequel himself; perhaps he will give it to someone else in the future.

"Haha, of course we hope there will be a sequel, if Director Lin can manage the time."

Fan Bingbing, Yan Danchen, and others joked.

Since those who had finished filming earlier had already left the crew, Lin Nan did not plan to hold a wrap party.

After a hug, everyone considered their month-long life with the crew at an end.

"This film is about the story of a thief, but in real life, I hope none of us do anything illegal..."

As soon as Lin Nan finished speaking, he heard Yan Danchen say with a smile: "Director Lin is even offering mutual encouragement; he is truly a great director, haha..."

Liu Dehua, Fan Bingbing, and the rest of the crew also started laughing, appearing to agree.

Lin Nan saw it all, only hoping that these people would take it to heart.

Since the film had wrapped, Lin Nan was no longer resistant to the media.

Sina was guaranteed to get the first-hand information.

"《Thieves》 wraps today."

"Hollywood production model, the filming efficiency is evident."

"Director Lin Nan, filming concluded successfully."

Previously on set, reporters could not see Lin Nan.

Now that it had wrapped, the media blocked him to ask for his opinion on 《A Simple Noodle Story》.

The reputation of 《A Simple Noodle Story》 had hit rock bottom.

In just one year, Zhang Yimou had been dragged down from his pedestal, feeling as if he were being condemned by everyone.

Perhaps the veteran director was also holding back his anger, saying during an interview, "Go ahead and curse, you won't be able to bring me down..."

This only further incited public outrage.

"Director Lin, what is your take on the one-sided negative reviews for 《A Simple Noodle Story》?"

"Zhang Weiping accused Han Dong of being the Vulture..."

A barrage of questions was thrown at him all at once, and Lin Nan felt a bit dizzy.

"Filming was too rushed, I haven't had a chance to watch that movie yet..."

If he answered one question today, Lin Nan reckoned he wouldn't be able to leave.

After getting in the car, he heard Jiang Xuerou mention the box office for that film.

It broke 200 million in eight days, and now that nearly ten more days have passed, the box office hasn't even climbed to 250 million. To what extent must word-of-mouth backfire to cause this kind of box office trend?

"Director Lin, 《Peacock Feather》 has also wrapped..." Jiang Xuerou suddenly said.

Only then did Lin Nan remember this TV series, which he had bought in a package deal back then.

"Then let's do the post-production; we can use video website channels and retain the copyright..."

Jiang Xuerou actually wanted to talk about those actors signed to Zhouyi, but Lin Nan was not prepared to take the bait; he would not renew those people's contracts.

In an instant, Jiang Xuerou understood Lin Nan's meaning.

After resting for two days, Liu Yifei called to urge him.

"Have you left yet? When will you arrive?"

"Tomorrow, you'll be able to see me tomorrow morning."

"Don't lie to me, I'm going to wake up early tomorrow!"