RPAGF Chapter 97 Nomination and Steamed Bun
Chapter 97 Nomination and Steamed Bun
Chapter 97 Nomination and Steamed Buns (Guaranteed 10,000 words per day starting tomorrow)
Before anyone knew it, Hollywood's calendar had turned to December, and the annual awards season press conference had officially begun.
Public relations teams from major film studios, talent agencies, and artists drove around in cars with various decorations, passing by the residences of judges from various labor unions and film critics' associations, bearing signs that read "For Your Consideration (FYC)".
Visits were made with deluxe DVDs bearing the words "Consideration" and public relations gifts.
In early December, the National Board of Review (NBR) fired the first shot in the preliminary battle, followed by the New York Film Critics Circle (NYFCC) and the Los Angeles Film Critics Association (LAFCA).
Li An's "Brokeback Mountain" swept through film critics' circles with an almost devastating force, while George Clooney's "Good Night, and Good Luck" and Bennett Miller's "Capote" followed closely behind, fiercely competing in various preliminary battles.
Among them, Gong Li won the National Board of Review's Best Supporting Actress award for her role as Hatsumomo in "Memoirs of a Geisha," while Wong Kar-wai's "2046" took the New York Film Critics Circle's Best Foreign Language Film award.
Time quickly passed to mid-December, and the nominations for the 63rd Golden Globe Awards were officially announced.
Brokeback Mountain led Hollywood with seven nominations, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Screenplay, Best Actor (Heath Ledger), and Best Supporting Actress (Michelle Williams).
Zhang Ziyi, who had been holding back her anger, finally got her moment of triumph, receiving a nomination for Best Actress in a Drama Series for her role as Xiao Baihe.
"The Promise" and "Kung Fu Hustle," representing mainland China and Hong Kong respectively, have both made it into the nomination list for Best Foreign Language Film.
After the list was announced, reports about the Golden Globe Awards quickly spread from North America to the entire Chinese-speaking world.
While Hollywood media focused more on the sweeping success of "Brokeback Mountain," Chinese-language media took a completely different approach. The same nomination list was interpreted in drastically different ways in mainland China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan.
The Taiwanese media were the first to react strongly.
After all, the director's credits for "Brokeback Mountain" include a name that the entire Chinese film industry cannot ignore—Li An.
United Daily News: "Lee An makes history again! 'Brokeback Mountain' leads the Golden Globe Awards with seven nominations, and its path to the Oscars looks bright!"
Liberty Times: "From 'Pushing Hands' to 'Brokeback Mountain,' Taiwanese directors have reached the pinnacle of the world."
The Times: "Hollywood has officially entered the Lee An era."
Many columnists have begun to review Li An's journey from "Pushing Hands," "The Wedding Banquet," and "Eat Drink Man Woman" to where he is today.
In the eyes of Taiwanese media, "Brokeback Mountain" is no longer just a movie, but a cultural symbol, a sign of a Chinese director conquering the mainstream Hollywood industrial system.
Meanwhile, Hong Kong media focused more attention on Wong Kar-wai and Stephen Chow.
Ming Pao: "2046 wins Best Foreign Language Film from the New York Film Critics Circle, while Wuji and Kung Fu Hustle meet for Best Foreign Language Film at the Golden Globe Awards."
Oriental Daily News: "Wang Jiawei, Stephen Chow, and Chen Kaige will compete on the same stage, ushering in a golden age for Chinese-language films."
Apple Daily: "Can 'Kung Fu Hustle' replicate the 'Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon' phenomenon?"
Especially after "Kung Fu Hustle" achieved amazing box office results in the Hong Kong local market, Stephen Chow has long been regarded as a savior by the Hong Kong media.
Many media outlets have even begun to seriously discuss a question that almost no one had dared to consider before: what if "Kung Fu Hustle" ultimately makes it into the top five for the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film?
The situation in mainland media is more complex.
Because this year has seen so many people and events that are worth discussing.
The official media reports emphasized the overall breakthrough.
Renren Daily: "Chinese-language films continue to go global, with many films receiving international awards."
Guangming Daily: "The international influence of Chinese films has been further enhanced."
China Film News: "The Promise and Kung Fu Hustle have been nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Foreign Language Film, and the strategy of producing domestic blockbusters is beginning to show results."
Market-driven media, on the other hand, were clearly more excited.
Southern Metropolis Daily: "Zhang Ziyi receives Golden Globe nomination for Best Actress; International Zhang officially returns."
The Beijing News: "Brokeback Mountain sweeps the nomination list; is Li An just one step away from an Oscar?"
The Beijing Times: "Gong Li, Zhang Ziyi, Li An, Wong Kar-wai, and Stephen Chow all joined forces, ushering in the strongest year for Chinese-language films."
In the French-style classical elegance salon of the Four Seasons Hotel, Zhang Ziyi, who had just been nominated for Best Actress, sat gracefully in front of the cameras of The Hollywood Reporter and several key Chinese journalists based in the United States, wearing an Armani haute couture gown.
"Ziyi Zhang, congratulations on your Golden Globe nomination for Best Actress. This is a very rare achievement in the history of Chinese actresses."
"But in the East, especially in China, the casting of three Chinese-American actresses—you, Gong Li, and Michelle Yeoh—as traditional Japanese geishas seems to have sparked considerable cultural controversy. What are your thoughts on this phenomenon?"
Faced with the sharp, even treacherous, questions typical of Hollywood media, Zhang Ziyi slightly raised her chin, which Western media had praised as the "most perfect movie face," her eyes gleaming with an almost wild pride and ambition.
Years of experience in Hollywood have shed her early naiveté. She responded with a smile, "Thank you. First of all, I want to say that I am very honored to receive recognition from the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA). As for the controversy you mentioned, I believe art has no borders."
The reason why director Rob Marshall and producer Steven Spielberg chose us is because they saw our professionalism and versatility as actors.
In the film, we portray human struggles and love, not geopolitics. As an actor, my task is to captivate the audience through my performance, not to limit myself to a role based on my nationality.
After answering questions from Hollywood media, Zhang Ziyi turned his attention to the Chinese journalists stationed in the United States.
Facing her compatriots, she was clearly more relaxed, but there was also a sense of triumph after years of restraint: "I know there are some different voices in China now, even misunderstandings. But I want to say that being able to stand in the main cast of Hollywood's core studio blockbusters and let the world see the faces and acting skills of Chinese people is a breakthrough in itself."
During this awards season, Gong Li won the National Board of Review's Best Supporting Actress award, and I received a Golden Globe nomination. This shows that Chinese-language filmmakers are gaining more international recognition. I also hope we can go further in the upcoming Screen Actors Guild Awards (SAG) and Oscars. Please give Chinese-language actors more support and tolerance.
The shutters of cameras from various media outlets went off like crazy, and flashes shone on her exquisite makeup.
At this moment, Zhang Ziyi was very clear that this Golden Globe nomination was her strongest shield against all domestic criticism, and also the core capital for her to firmly establish her status as "International Zhang".
While the other side of the strait was immersed in the elegance and fame of the awards season, a dark comedy was unfolding in Beijing in late December, leaving the entire Chinese-language film and television industry dumbfounded.
One day after the Golden Globe nominations were announced, on December 15, "The Promise," a film with an investment of over 12 million yuan and hailed as a "milestone in the epic fantasy of the East" in Chinese cinema, was released nationwide.
With his grand narrative ambitions imbued with the spirit of a literary scholar, Chen Kaige attempts to prove to the entire Chinese and even global film market that he also possesses the ability to control top-tier commercial blockbusters, just like Zhang Yimou.
The good news of the Golden Globe nomination for Best Foreign Language Film was originally a huge boost to domestic cinemas.
In the official reports from the Film Bureau and China Film Group, the meeting of "The Promise" and "Kung Fu Hustle" was elevated to the level of "the initial success of the blockbuster strategy".
However, at the end of 2005, when the number of netizens was just beginning to explode, the speed of the internet's development and its destructive power gave this high-ranking director a resounding slap in the face.
An ordinary netizen named Hu Ge used movie footage from the film "The Promise" and the dubbing style of Chinese legal programs to create a 20-minute parody short film called "A Story Triggered by a Steamed Bun".
The short film spread like wildfire on Tianya Forum and the newly emerging video websites, and the netizens' jokes and ridicule instantly overshadowed the glory of "The Promise" being nominated for the Golden Globe Awards.
The short film spread like wildfire on Tianya Forum and the newly emerging video websites from the very beginning, and the netizens' jokes and ridicule instantly overshadowed the glory of "The Promise" being nominated for the Golden Globe Awards.