The bitterness behind Jackie Chan's decision, Lin Mingyang was also somewhat touched. Jackie Chan was paid $17 million when he took over "Rush Hour 2," which was the box office champion for three weeks when it was released in North America a few years ago, earning $230 million in the United States. By Hollywood's standards, this is a very successful commercial film.

But compared with the excitement of "Rush Hour 2" in the American market, the film has been very dismal at the box office in Hong Kong, and even set a record for the lowest box office for a movie starring Jackie Chan in recent years. This is also the main reason why Jackie Chan is more helpless than happy behind his success in Hollywood.

In fact, the box office income of Jackie Chan's Hollywood works in Hong Kong has not been very ideal: the box office income of the first Hollywood film "Rush Hour 1" in 1998 was more than 13 million yuan, and the box office income of the second Hollywood film "Dragon Whirlwind" in 2000 was 15 million yuan.

Jackie Chan himself is aware of this problem, which is the root cause of his distress. Although Hollywood can bring him greater fame and make more money, Jackie Chan does not have much sense of belonging to Hollywood in his heart, and Hong Kong is his roots. Having achieved success on the outside, only to be abandoned by your own family is the most uncomfortable feeling.

Because he didn't have too much vigilance against Lin Mingyang, Jackie Chan drank very happily at the dinner table, and took advantage of the strong wine, he told Lin Mingyang the biggest confusion he had always had in his heart.

Jackie Chan took the opportunity of toasting to move his body to the seat next to Lin Mingyang, and the exchange at the wine table brought the relationship between the two closer a lot, and even the title became more intimate.

"Amin!" Jackie Chan put his hand on Lin Mingyang's shoulder, "Brother Cheng will say something to you, I have suffered in Hollywood in the past few years, I have made money, and finally I have a reputation, but I have never figured out a question, do you think I am really the right choice to come to Hollywood?" ”

"For you, if you want to go further, the stage in Hong Kong is indeed a little smaller." Lin Mingyang said very implicitly, but such a scene is not what Jackie Chan wants to hear.

He shook his head with a smile and pointed his finger at him, "You, you were still a frank person just now, how did you learn to play tricks after drinking?" ”

Lin Mingyang looked at Jackie Chan seriously, "Do you want to hear the truth?" ”

Although Jackie Chan drank too much, he was only slightly drunk, and when he saw the serious expression on Lin Mingyang's face, he immediately sat up straight, and the hand on Lin Mingyang's shoulder was also put down.

"Hollywood has always been a sacred place in the hearts of filmmakers around the world, and it is regarded as an honor to be accepted and recognized by Hollywood. But that shouldn't be your personal ultimate goal. To put it mildly, Hollywood is like a production line specializing in the manufacture of canned products, and after the mold is pressed into shape, it is labeled as Hollywood, and then it is used to occupy new and larger markets. ”

"From the moment you appeared in Rush Hour 1 with a stern smile on your suit and leather shoes, the film has been made into a can of Hollywood, and you have to learn to adapt to Hollywood fun and stay in the can box. It's hard to break through, and the three movies you've made in Hollywood so far are all in the mode of an Oriental and a Westerner duo who have been making jokes along the way. Hollywood has always softened the dough to its liking, while Asian fans can only watch their first-rate actors being indulged by Hollywood's second- and third-rate writers and directors. ”

"You have to bow your head under the roof of people, and if you want to succeed in Hollywood, you have to follow the rules of Hollywood. Chow Yun-fat's acting skills are lost here, John Woo is reduced to an action technician and a model editor, and Tsui Hark and Lin Lingdong's talents are buried in vain, all of which prove that the rules of Hollywood are difficult to be broken by external forces. Hollywood can change you, but you can't change Hollywood. So the Jackie Chan I saw in the Hollywood era was a Jackie Chan who was deprived of his rights and lost his freedom. You can only be an actor who listens to the director. ”

Behind the clear division of labor in the Hollywood crew is the strict hierarchy, after all, there are only a few actors who can work against the director like Lin Mingyang, and Jackie Chan, who is a screenwriter, director, producer, and martial arts instructor in Hong Kong, has no editing rights in Hollywood at all, Lin Mingyang's words poked his pain hard.

I don't know if he drank too much wine, or because he was stimulated by these words, Jackie Chan's eyes were red, watery, and a little straight, Lin Mingyang's words just now were like pouring a basin of ice water on him, and it was like shooting at him for a while, in this moment, he was really a little dazed. After a while, his mouth finally moved: "So, I'm really wrong?" ”

Lin Mingyang also shook his head blankly: "This question is difficult to measure by right or wrong, it is just a process of relying on each other." Hollywood can't achieve your true dreams, but it also gives you lucrative profits and wider visibility, and Hollywood wants to use the influence of Hong Kong celebrities like you to help tap into the Asian film market. ”

Hollywood can help Hong Kong films speed up the internationalization process, but Hong Kong films have their own system and have formed a solid oriental film culture camp, in fact, there is not much need to rely on Hollywood. On the contrary, if Hollywood wants to maintain its long-term position in the global film market, it needs to constantly attract fresh blood from different cultures. Because of the existence of some preconceived notions, this change will only slowly change from within Hollywood, and outsiders can still only "succumb" to the powerful rules of Hollywood.

Seeing the script of "Baby Plan" from a Hollywood studio, Lin Mingyang felt that this was a rare opportunity to try. The theme positioning of the film's comedy dilutes the action component, and American audiences can't accept the humorous fights of Jackie Chan in an action movie, but from the perspective of a comedy, this kind of performance enhances the content of comedy.

Lin Mingyang used ingenious means to get the screenwriter in his hands, just so that he could control the development of the plot. As a comedy, he takes the traditional funny route of Hollywood comedy films, while Jackie Chan can return more to the humorous style of Hong Kong films.

When Lin Mingyang told Jackie Chan about his intentions, the lost and blank look on his face was swept away, and his eyes radiated a bright brilliance, he felt that he was not wrong, Lin Mingyang is indeed the key figure in this film.

"If this film is really made according to your ideas, then you are my lucky star!" Jackie Chan patted Lin Mingyang's shoulder excitedly, "Don't say anything, let's have this drink, don't get drunk tonight!" ”

---Lin Mingyang's revision of "Baby Plan" mainly focuses on the details, for such a film that focuses on comedy, in addition to Jackie Chan's funny tricks, the lines are also a highlight. Lin Mingyang considered that Jackie Chan's English was not too standard, so he did not design too long lines for him, and his dialogues were all very simple and short spoken words.

While carrying out "slimming surgery" on the original lines, Lin Mingyang also fully took care of Jackie Chan's identity when revising the script, and appropriately added some lines with Chinese flavor. In the plot of cooking noodles in the film, the original screenwriter took into account the habits of American audiences and used the word macaroni, but Lin Mingyang changed it to noodles that Chinese are used to calling.

Before the revision of the script was completed, the director of the film, Brian Levant, took the initiative to come to the door, he had read the previous script, and then some ideas needed to be exchanged with Lin Mingyang.

Brian Levant looks like he is in his early forties, but the years have not left too many marks on his face, his beard is neatly trimmed, and he still has long hair with a surname, although he is indoors, he still wears a pair of sunglasses, giving people a cool feeling.

The Hong Kong-made Jackie Chan movie is the second shock wave after the Bruce Lee movie detonated the Chinese kung fu craze in the world in the 70s, and Lin Mingyang's Brian Lewint is also a fan of Hong Kong kung fu films.

When talking about Jackie Chan's kung fu movies, Brian Lewin gets excited, and even in the dim light of the cubicle, you can see a dream-like glow on his cheeks that are not busy with his beard. He leaned back in his chair and talked about Jackie Chan's movies like a drunken first love talking about his lover to people, whether Lin Mingyang wanted to listen to it or not, just talking, sometimes waving his arms, sometimes closing his eyes.

"I love Jackie Chan's kung fu movies, especially the action movies he shot in Hong Kong with exaggerated action and funny details. Those things are Jackie Chan's signature, and if there are these elements in a Jackie Chan movie, then the movie will definitely be sought after by Jackie Chan fans. ”

In the face of a "hardcore" Jackie Chan fan like Brian Levant, the only thing Lin Mingyang can do is to listen to his surname patiently.

"I watched the films that Jackie Chan made in Hollywood, and they were all so stiff, that Jackie Chan was either partnered with a white blonde guy or with a black guy who was full of slang. I don't think this combination is very suitable for Jackie Chan. So in this movie, the real partner with Jackie Chan should be the little baby, this man with good kung fu takes care of a small baby, and there will definitely be a lot of interesting scenes in it. In this way, the film not only has jokes, but also allows Jackie Chan to bring out the joy in Hong Kong action movies. ”

When it comes to excitement, Brian Levant dances with his hands.

Lin Mingyang was somehow inspired by his thoughts, "Can you be more specific?" ”

"For example, if the baby is crawling on a high place and then falling, Jackie Chan is scrambling to catch him... I think that if such a plot is added to the script, the comedic effect created will definitely be more interesting than in "Home Alone", where the little boy spoofs two stupid thieves at home. Because the baby does not have a funny consciousness, all his actions occur in an unconscious state, but it is in this way that the comedic effect created will be more realistic. Seeing that Lin Mingyang was not resistant, Brian Lewinter immediately put forward his own idea.

"According to your thoughts, I should portray Mr. Jackie Chan in the script as a character who is responsive, witty and humorous, but has no shortage of funny behaviors?" Lin Mingyang asked along Brian Levant's train of thought.

"If all screenwriters can have the same understanding as you, Hollywood films as a whole can go up a notch. Hollywood's wonder boy, it's a pleasure to talk to someone as smart as you! Although he had already shaken hands once when they met, Lin Mingyang had to shake hands with him again at the strong request of Brian Lewint.

"What about me?" When Brian Levant returned to his seat and sat down, Lin Mingyang pointed to himself and asked, "In the script, what kind of character should I portray myself?" ”

"Forgive me for my frankness... I don't think your image and temperament are suitable for comedy. ”

Brian Levant said it very directly, and Lin Mingyang accepted it very calmly, "So what should I do in this script?" ”

"In fact, as long as you put on a pair of sunglasses like me, stand in front of the camera, and do nothing, there will be fans who willingly pay for tickets for you, and being handsome is such a benefit!" Brian Levant said with a sigh of relief, and there was no sarcasm in his tone, but instead a hint of envy, "If I had done this during the shooting, I guess you wouldn't have done it." You're not the kind of actor who has a natural sense of joy, I don't mean derogatory, you can interpret it in disguise as a compliment. ”

"But in a comedy movie, I'm just handsome and cool, and I don't do anything else, and I don't have to think about it to know that it's a stupid thing!"

Brian Levant clapped his hands and nodded affirmatively: "You have such an idea, which proves that you have to be more mature than most idol stars." In fact, there are many ways to make up for this lack of innate joy, but if you are abused in the film in a nonsensical way, like Mr. Bean, it is estimated that your fans will definitely not agree, which is embarrassing...... There is no better way, we can only work on the lines, you need to try to prepare some humorous lines for yourself, in this film, you are a stupid thief who loves to be in the limelight and loves to pick up girls. ”

"Although this is a comedy movie, you can also add some parkour elements to your performance to make the plot more exciting. I remember there was a scene in the script where the stroller was hung on the car, and then you and Jackie Chan chased it at the same time. This is just my personal suggestion, but maybe you can seriously consider it? ”

(To be continued)