"No, No, No, No, Forrest Gump can't speak with such a strong southern accent. This is a nationally distributed movie, not a project for small-town cinemas in the South..."
On the third day, Shirley Lansing saw the material that Ronald had shot in the previous two days. Those shots had a sense of immersion. Although Lansing didn't understand film art, she also knew that the most important thing about commercial films was
Allow the audience to fully immerse themselves in the movie world.
The samples from the first two days really gave people a feeling of eagerness to know what will happen to Forrest Gump next.
But on the third day, when Ronald was filming some dialogue scenes between Forrest Gump, Jenny and other people in the town, she finally discovered the biggest problem. Ronald and Tom Hanks actually didn't communicate with her.
I decided that I wanted Forrest Gump to speak with a southern accent, a very strong one.
As soon as filming stopped, Shirley Lansing pulled Ronald into the trailer and "discussed" the matter seriously with him.
"I don't think there is any problem with this. On the contrary, it can make the movie unique... take a sip?" Ronald did not get into technical arguments, but just made a judgment with his mouth, thinking that Lansing's concerns were purely unnecessary. He
He took out a thermos cup, poured some black tea into the cup, and handed a cup to Shirley Lansing.
"I don't need to remind you, Ronald. The Southern accent is an accent that is not recognized by audiences on the east and west coasts and in the Great Lakes region. It is difficult for such a protagonist to resonate with America's three largest audience groups...
…”
Shirley Lansing did not take the black tea, but began to express her thoughts in a tone of "I am also doing it for your own good."
Her idea is also very simple. Dixies from southern states who speak with strong accents actually occupy a very small proportion of the American movie box office market. Therefore, there are very few protagonists in commercial films who speak with southern accents.
Generally speaking, it's either a New York theater accent, a so-called standard American accent near Michigan, or some kind of East or West Coast accent that makes the audience think "it's cool for people there to talk like that."
The Southern Dixie accent sounds very rustic. Whether you go to the East Coast or the West Coast to work, it won't take long for you to feel ashamed of this accent, and you will learn how the people there speak in a short time.
This way, completely forget this southern accent and integrate into the trendy urban life.
"This movie is different. Forrest Gump is not a larger than life person, he is a person around us, an uncle, cousin, friend, classmate that everyone has, and it may also be ourselves.
We can all be regarded as Forrest Gump in front of those who have super background, life experience, strength, and wisdom. What ordinary people can do is to move forward hard. Such an accent can make him better known.
Bring in.
Of course, I understand your opinion. As Forrest Gump grows up, I will keep his accent within an appropriate range. After all, Hanks is not a southern non-professional actor like Michael Jr., so long as he is recognizable
, will not affect the audience’s understanding of the lines..."
Ronald tried to be polite and explained his thoughts to Shirley Lansing. Unlike the novel, Forrest Gump in the script is a representative of ordinary Americans. His struggle is our struggle. What he has experienced
Things are things we have experienced...
The success that Forrest Gump achieved in the end was not the kind in other movies where the super protagonist comes up with a super idea and defeats the villain and wins the beauty...
Forrest Gump is the kind of person who is down-to-earth and uses the principles taught in kindergarten as life guidance. To a certain extent, he is an ordinary person in America.
"But, Ronald, think about the critics. What would they say? Think about the Oscar judges, what would they think? From day one of Hollywood, no movie with a Southern accent has won Best Picture.
of……"
"Shirley..."
Ronald was a little angry. Why did Shirley Lansing also have a typical producer temper?
Many producers actually don't understand anything on set and can't do anything. But they just want to show in front of professionals like directors, actors, and directors of photography that they know how to make movies better than they do.
The way to achieve this sense of superiority is to argue and insist on certain details, and the director must bow his head and approve.
To a certain extent, this is a typical mistake of producers. They want to use this method to "tame" the director and show their authority. And then use this as a universal reason to serve themselves afterwards.
If the movie is successful, then it is the "corrections" they made in the details that have worked. If the movie fails at the box office, then it is because the director did not listen to their professional opinions. If he had followed their ideas more, he might have succeeded.
.
"How's it going?" When Shirley Lansing heard Ronald calling her name, she thought he was about to give in. This was a very good sign. The next time she came to the set, she wanted him to start calling her Lan.
Ms. Xin... hum...
"I'm not going to teach you how to run a big studio, and you're not going to teach me how to direct a movie..."
"Of course, I won't come to the set often, as long as you can fix your accent... No, what did you just say?"
Shirley Lansing opened her mouth in surprise, almost not believing her ears. No matter how famous a director is, no one can challenge her like this!
"Didn't you mean..."
"I can say whatever I want. If you don't want to distribute the movie, we can re-draw the contract... I can buy the movie out from Paramount and try my luck with other distributors..."
"Forehead……"
Shirley Lansing drank the lipstick tea and just showed her authority. There is no need to be so tough, right?
This chapter is not over yet, please click the next page to continue reading the exciting content! "Ronald, I didn't mean that. If you think there is no big problem with the accent, then we will just do it. After all, you and Hanks
We are all taking risks, and I believe you will make the film well... I will come to visit the crew when I have time, and I will go back if there is nothing else to do..."
Seeing that something was not going well, Shirley Lansing immediately went back to make amends. However, the hand holding the tea cup trembled slightly, which still revealed the unwillingness in her heart.
"I'm going back to the set. My assistant will take you to the airport..." Ronald arranged for someone to take Lansing to the airport and walked into the set as if nothing had happened.
"It's break time, let's take on the next game..."
…
"What did Shirley Lansing tell you? She went back to Los Angeles without even returning to the crew?"
Tom Hanks still realized something was wrong. After the day's shooting was completed, he came to Ronald's room to inquire about the news in the name of discussing performance.
"That's not an important thing..." Ronald waved his hand, just the same old way of making trouble over nothing. "How did you feel about shooting today?"
What's important is how Tom Hanks feels about playing Forrest Gump. Although there is progress compared with the previous two days, Hanks still feels a sense of tension on the set. Forrest Gump's performance cannot be said to be bad, but it is always
There is a certain distance between Ronald and everyone's expectations of him.
"I'm still looking for a feeling. To be honest, the pressure of performing this role is beyond imagination..."
Tom Hanks found a sofa and sat down, raised his hands, and began to stretch. When playing Forrest Gump, he was always very nervous and even his muscles became stiff.
Ronald made him a cup of instant coffee, sat next to him, and listened attentively to Tom Hanks' rants.
The character Forrest Gump is actually a fusion of two characters with considerable differences.
One is the realist Forrest Gump. He is the slightly mentally retarded child who really grew up in Alabama. He has his troubles and his joys. Life is not too harsh on him and gives him a happy life.
A good brain compensates for a strong body.
He has a mother who loves him, his childhood best friend Jenny, and Barbu and Lieutenant Dan whom he later met in the army.
This role needs to be played in a more realistic way. Forrest Gump also has very obvious growth in the process from youth to middle age.
From the beginning, I didn’t understand the love between men and women, but later I gradually understood Jenny’s complicated mentality towards him. From the beginning, I was not aware of the tragedy of my IQ, but later, after I learned that I had a son, I already felt sorry for myself because of my low IQ.
I know very well the harsh treatment I received, and I am deeply afraid that my son will make the same mistake again...
The other is the symbolist Forrest Gump. This Forrest Gump is a standard specimen of ordinary Americans. He represents the mainstream type of people in society. He grew up in a small town and came to work and grow up in a big city, where he met
Meet the one you love, get married and have children, and experience various social changes in the past twenty years.
It can be said that Forrest Gump is a symbol of those Americans who have traditional conservative virtues such as persistence, hard work, trustworthiness, and innocence.
To play Forrest Gump, you have to adopt a symbolic approach and not stick to too realistic treatment of the character.
It can be said that there are many contradictions between the two. Coupled with a mentally retarded perspective, Forrest Gump cannot be symbolized and acted in a flat manner like Rain Man. It must have a sense of reality and a flat performance.
You can see from it how I feel as a person like that.
It is very difficult to find a sense of proportion in this. If you give too much, it will not look like a real person, and if you give too little, it will not be real enough.
It can be said that Tom Hanks was very anxious in the first three days after he started filming.
Ronald listened carefully to Hanks's thoughts, and he agreed with these performance issues. Tom Hanks also considered these aspects very cleverly and made a lot of preparations in advance.
Ronald has also worked with actors who are famous for their acting skills, or watched their performance on the set. Talented actors such as Jack Nicholson and Marlon Brando may not necessarily think as deeply as Hanks thinks.
.They act more instinctively. Although they can also perform complex aspects of the character, if you ask them to analyze it, it may not be so profound.
This may also be the key to Tom Hanks's success in transforming from a comedian to a drama actor. Ronald has full confidence in him. As for the difficult running-in in the past two days, it may be related to him being too nervous.
Maybe I talked to him too much about character analysis and lacked trust in his intuition?
Ronald thought of this and had an idea. He asked his assistant to go to the hotel bar and find a bottle of liqueur.
I also took out my aunt's special biscuits, and drank liqueur with Hanks and ate very delicious snacks.
"Tom, I have only one request for you..."
After drinking two drinks, Ronald saw that Tom Hanks was also feeling relaxed, so he took the opportunity to tell him his thoughts.
"When you acted in Philadelphia Story, you didn't think so much. I think your analysis of Forrest Gump has exhausted all aspects. All you have to do is relax and act with your own instincts.
I believe in intuition and subconscious mind. All you need to do is to relax and act. The preparations you have made in the past few weeks will come out at the appropriate time to help you find that Forrest Gump..."
"You think so?" Tom Hanks also felt a lot more relaxed. Ronald is one of the rare directors who is willing to calm down and listen to actors talk about their psychological anxieties.
He is not quite the same as Jonathan Demme. Demme tends to allow actors to maintain a certain level of anxiety, allowing this anxiety to burst out at specific times.
Ronald, on the other hand, likes to let actors relax. A good actor who is well prepared can then relax and give his best performance.
Of course, there is no superiority between these two styles. It is more due to the differences in scripts and characters.
…
"Action!"
On the fourth day, the shooting was really exciting.
Everyone at the scene could see that Tom Hanks had finally entered the state. His performance was more relaxed, and his performance was more of a natural reaction rather than something deliberately designed in advance...
The feeling is most obvious to Robin Wright. She has many scenes opposite Tom Hanks. Today, Tom Hanks not only performed brilliantly to the naked eye, but also stimulated himself a lot.
Many of the emotional reactions she needed to perform Jenny were just right when Hanks came over, and the performance was very comfortable and comfortable. Not only was the performance easy, but the effect was also better. Robin Wright was in a close-up position during the reaction shot.
When playing, a kind of self-confidence is exuded from the inside out. It’s hard to say whether the role of Jenny will win an award, but it will definitely be remembered by the audience.
"Cut!"
Ronald was very satisfied with the scene where Forrest Gump and Jenny were filming the scene in college where Forrest Gump met Jenny and her boyfriend by chance. Forrest Gump's ignorance of the love between men and women and his heartfelt love for Jenny were very expressive.
good.
Jenny's defense of Forrest Gump was also very sufficient. After Forrest Gump rushed to her wealthy boyfriend's car and beat him up, Jenny still defended Forrest Gump in her words and put Forrest Gump in a higher position than her boyfriend.
high position.
This tendency is not directly given to the audience, but is carefully cared for and hidden in the lines, actions, and plot trends of the two people.
This script is actually much better than the novel. The audience can understand many things from the performance, which will also give the audience a very comfortable feeling. I understand the director's subtext, and they will also pay attention to the film.
Heroes and heroines who don't know that their fates are entangled should be mentally prepared in advance.
"Very good, take a rest..."
Ronald saw that this part of the scene was progressing very well, so he held a meeting. After everyone agreed, he decisively revised the shooting plan and reshot everything that had been shot in the previous three days.
If the performance level throughout the film can be maintained at this level, then this film will definitely become a phenomenon.