Chapter 43: Chapter 43: Apocalypse Now
The test results of "Rock of Ages" were neither very good nor too bad. The two directors felt a bit disappointed. Roger Corman saw the test results, called a meeting on the spot, and decided to make only a dozen copies, which would be shown in each state in turn.
This outdated distribution model has long been replaced by the new "Jaws" model, where a movie is released in hundreds or even thousands of theaters and premieres simultaneously across the country.
The reason Roger uses the old model is that he is not optimistic about the box office performance of good films, so to save the production cost of the copies and reduce risks, he adopted the carousel model state by state.
A copy is a complete film, reproduced from a negative and can be shown many times. Instead of producing hundreds of expensive copies of a film, releasing it nationwide simultaneously, and then bombing at the box office and ending up losing money. Roger Corman's philosophy is always to put cost first. If the cost is low enough, it will be difficult for him to lose money.
Roger decided to show the film first in small states in the central and southern parts of the country, such as Arizona and Georgia, and then send the copies to the next state after screening in one state. This not only saves production costs of copies but also relies on local cinema posters for marketing, eliminating the need for costly television and newspaper advertising.
If the box office in the small states is high enough, some copies will be printed and released in major cities like New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago. If the box office is mediocre, then do not print more copies and let the film slowly complete its lifecycle.
It did not exceed expectations nor fell below the final outcome. Still, it could be released nationwide. Alan and Joe were a bit disappointed but also quite lucky. Ronald didn't know whether to console or congratulate the two directors.
Ronald went out to buy Chinese food and brought it to the two directors. Both liked this type of Chinese food that had been modified to suit Western tastes. Ronald himself, however, preferred the original version. He often eats at the Mong Kok restaurant in Chinatown.
The test screening was the first time the film faced a real audience. The director's mindset was probably similar to that of a player waiting for the result. Ronald started thinking about "Apocalypse Now" that night. He wondered what the great director Coppola would think of his own film's test screening.
Coppola was more nervous.
Francis Coppola has a big beard, black-framed glasses, and has gained some weight.
"Please, film critics and media friends, do not publish movie reviews after today's preview. What was shown today is still a semi-finished, incomplete product. We will go to China next month to participate in the Cannes Film Festival, and then return to China to perfect it. This test screening is a temporary screening by invitation from the Directors Guild and the Film Academy, so we ask that you do not publish reviews before the official release."
When Ronald entered, he also saw many members of the audience entering without an invitation and showing their membership cards. They must have been the film critics Coppola was talking about. All film critics for newspapers and magazines in the United States enjoy this privilege; no matter what the movie is, as long as you show your critic card, you can see it for free.
After a brief speech by a senior executive of United Artists, the lights went out and the screen darkened.
"Whir, whir, whir..."
There was a faint sound of propellers. The sound moved from left to right, strong and weak, and at one point seemed to come from behind Ronald.
The audience turned their heads in surprise, trying to see the source of the sound.
"This is a new technology called surround sound..." Ronald heard someone whisper.
Is this new technology? Ronald thought to himself; in the original movie, the sound was emitted from behind the screen, and the audience was accustomed to it. Today, the propeller seemed to float behind his head. It was truly an amazing experience.
In the dark screen, sad background music played...
The screen gradually lit up, revealing a forest of tropical coconut trees. The wind lifted the orange-red dust and swirled it around.
There was more and more dust, and the sound of the propeller grew louder.
The landing gear of a helicopter suddenly crossed the screen from left to right.
It was as if the world had awakened.
Suddenly there was a breeze in the coconut forest...
Napalm bombs dropped on the coconut trees one after another, and red-orange explosive flames rose one after another, much like the color of the dust now.
"Wow..." Ronald was really surprised. This beginning was unusual. He couldn't help but sit up straight, waiting for the movie's title and credits to be announced.
No movie title! No credits appeared either!
There was only a man's voice, and he began to sing softly. His voice was very special.
"This is the end..."
Why is the end right after the beginning?
Some people in the audience said, "Oh, this is The End by The Doors!"
Some people started to applaud...
Ronald did not understand the admiration these literary and artistic people had for Jim Morrison, the lead singer of The Doors. Morrison, known as the poet of rock, also has many followers in literary and artistic circles.
This is the end...
My beautiful friend
Beautiful friend
This is the end
My only friend, the end
Accompanied by poetic singing, the helicopter flew over the bombed coconut trees turned to ruins.
Sometimes the tail was exposed, sometimes the propeller, and other times the landing gear was exposed.
An upside-down human face began to appear on the screen, with confused eyes looking at the audience, as if asking, "Who am I and why am I here?"
The sound of the propellers came closer and closer to the audience...
Here is the translation of the text into English without changing any words from the original story:
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Just when Ronald was feeling weirder and weirder, the propeller turned into a ceiling fan.
The ceiling fan blew hard, and the camera began to slowly rotate 180 degrees, and the owner of that face began to appear in the field of vision.
The opening music "Ending" gradually faded away, and the audience saw the protagonist resting in bed in a tropical-style room, with a gun thrown beside the bed.
The protagonist finally got up, walked to the window, and opened the midnight window with his hand. A warm sun was shining outside.
The image finally no longer had that strange reddish-orange color.
A soft voice came to my mind.
Ronald jumped. The speaker seemed to be whispering in his ear. How is this done? Some members of the audience looked down to see if there were hidden speakers beneath the seats.
"Saigon, Shxt, I'm still stuck in Saigon."
It turned out to be the protagonist's internal monologue, so were the helicopter and the explosion now memories of the protagonist? This opening is truly brilliant.
The protagonist turns out to be Captain Willard, an officer in the U.S. military intelligence department. He accepted the mission and headed north along the Mekong River to investigate Colonel Coates of the U.S. Army, who had separated from his command and organized his own private army. If circumstances allowed, get rid of Coates himself.
Willard formed a special team and sailed by boat, encountering all kinds of strange people and things along the way.
The colonel who commands helicopter formations, flies in Valkyrie, and bombs villages, all he wants to do is surf.
The cover girl who flew in from the United States to work for the army wore a bikini and sang for the frontline soldiers. However, she was surrounded by soldiers. She wanted to spend the night and finally boarded a helicopter to escape.
The frontline soldiers put on a fireworks show. On the other side of the beautiful fireworks, there were service soldiers shooting machine guns in the trenches.
The team disembarked to rest and encountered a tiger in the rainforest... and they were scared to death.
The team that finally reached their destination found Colonel Coates with the help of a U.S. field photographer.
Coates had become an evil leader, killing and taking the lives of his subordinates. He hoped that Willard would inherit his status and career. The people celebrated a sacrifice ceremony and sacrificed a live bull. They all cheered for him and worshiped him as if he were God.
Captain Willard seized the last opportunity, killed Coates with a bull knife, and extracted the remaining team members from this strange place. Before leaving, he called in the bombers and destroyed Colonel Coates's camp.
The final music is again the ending of The Doors, and the whole movie seems to be about reincarnation.
"Apocalypse Now" has not yet been finished. There are still many copies of the test screenings that have not been processed. Either the screen suddenly goes black or there is a "stuttering" sound. The whole movie. There is only one shot on the wall. The words "Apocalypse Now" were written.
I don't know if it was because I didn't have time to do it or if the director did it on purpose.
The movie, which lasted about 2 hours and 20 minutes, ended, and the lights in the projection room came on. The audience began to whisper among themselves.
I don't know what others think, but Ronald was deeply fascinated by this movie.
The movie seems to tell a strange dream. The words that the protagonist Willard always narrates in his ears also seem to be those of a dreamer telling a story to himself.
The creative team was invited on stage, and some members of the audience began to applaud enthusiastically.
However, does it seem that not many people are applauding?
End of chapter
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