Chapter 134: Enthusiasts

On the big screen, Terry and Carter erupted into a fierce argument, causing a commotion.

The atmosphere in the theater became stifling, and Eddie, gripping the armrest of his chair, subconsciously speculated how the Grim Reaper would claim the next life.

Terry, furious, turned and walked away. She stepped onto the road from the bus parked by the roadside, but as she reached the front of the bus, another bus came roaring by and collided with her, blood and flesh splattering into the air.

"Ahh!"

The girl's scream pierced the air, seeming to terrify everyone present.

Eddie, one hand tightly gripping the chair's armrest and the other clutching his chest, felt his heart pounding rapidly, as if it could burst out of his throat at any moment.

"That scared the life out of me! Damn, that scared the life out of me..." A bespectacled African-American guy beside him seemed to be shaken by the movie, "That scared the life out of me!"

Eddie took deep breaths repeatedly. This director was too good at scaring people. The Grim Reaper hadn't even shown his face once, yet he was almost scaring people to death.

But amidst the fright, Eddie also found it thrilling. Isn't this the feeling one seeks when watching a horror movie?

Indeed, the most terrifying aspect is the unpredictability of death.

In New York, Brooklyn, after finishing the movie, Tom walked out of the theater and stood at the entrance, gazing up at the streetlights and billboards above. A thought involuntarily flashed through his mind: "Are the billboards going to fall?"

"Let's go." Someone beckoned to his female companion, "Hurry up, or we'll miss the bus."

The girl's legs seemed a bit weak, and she exclaimed loudly, "Don't mention buses to me. Oh God, don't let me see billboards; they're too scary!"

As a car whizzed by, Tom instinctively covered his neck, but his mind went to poor Billy, the boy whose head was severed by the train.

And Ms. Lyndon, and Todd who died in the bathroom...

It's like a compendium of ways life can kill you!

This movie is not for the paranoid; watching it could exacerbate such tendencies.

For the average person, however, watching it has its benefits. At the very least, it makes people pay attention to safety details in life because accidents often start with small details: slipping in the bathroom, improper knife handling, electrical or gas leaks, car accidents, and so on.

Tom muttered, "It's dangerous for someone like me who's careless with electricity."

Looking up at the sky, he headed towards the parking lot. "The Grim Reaper should spare me."

In Los Angeles, at the AMG Theater in Santa Monica Business Square, Catherine Hager hugged herself, feeling icy cold all over, shivering with fear.

This was Catherine Hager's first viewing of the finished film, and she didn't expect it to be so terrifying.

Compared to "Final Destination," "Scream" wasn't scary at all.

Using simple everyday details to design various intricate methods of murder, this director, James Huang, was indeed quite twisted.

Combining the death scenes with the theme of the Grim Reaper in the film, Catherine Hager thought of her own actions in life and suddenly felt like she was a death-seeking princess.

Beside her, Ronan watched the screen with interest. James Huang had recently adjusted the film's dubbing, and Ronan hadn't seen the result of James Huang's adjustments. Now he was pleasantly surprised.

In this dubbing adjustment, James Huang had added a song to the film.

Although he had no expertise in music, the previous Anderson had listened to many songs, so when Ronan heard this song, he remembered its name and the story behind it.

The song, called ".high," ran through the entire film. Despite its cheerful rhythm, often used as a travel song, many people didn't notice that its author, John Denver, died in a plane crash.

Therefore, in a way, it miraculously matched the prediction of the plane crash at the beginning of the film and appeared before each person's death thereafter.

From another perspective, it was a contrast between the joyous melody and the tragic events, adding to the eerie beauty of the film.

Although it still retained the style of American horror films, overall, this "Final Destination" broke through all previous horror thriller film types and techniques. There were no monsters, no horror killers, no ghosts or spirits; everything was unpredictable, yet it perfectly reflected James Huang's philosophy that "the unknown is the most terrifying."

Beside him, Robert suddenly whispered, "Whenever I have water in my hand, I unplug the socket. I won't dare to do it next time."

"It's not that exaggerated," Ronan replied calmly, "just bad habits."

As the movie ended, enthusiastic applause filled the theater. As a horror film, "Final Destination" far exceeded the passing mark.

Guests and media reporters from the back rows came over to congratulate Ronan, and he responded to each one.

"Great job, James." Ronan hugged James Huang, "This is a masterpiece!"

He also hugged each member of the main crew, knowing that with the guaranteed promotion and marketing, the film's chances of failure were minimal.

Next, Ronan led the main crew towards the newsroom, preparing to start the routine premiere press conference.

However, he didn't appear at the press conference but let Andrew host it.

"People often see on the news that someone survived a tornado, a flood, or a collapsed building without a scratch, while others bizarrely drowned next to shallow ditches. The contrast between the resilience and fragility of life is the inspiration for 'Final Destination.'"

Standing in the lounge separated by a wall, Ronan listened to James Huang's calm answers to reporters' questions. With the success of "The Purge," this Chinese-American director was gradually maturing.

He couldn't treat James Huang as a novice director anymore; otherwise, there would definitely be problems with future collaborations.

Glenn Morgan's interview voice also came through, "Last month, I was on a business trip to Canada. While waiting at Vancouver Airport, I suddenly heard John Denver's voice. Because he died in a plane crash, I found it a bit eerie. Later, I suggested to James to add this song to the film."

So that was the decisive reason " .high" was used in this way in the film.

Ronan knew very well that Glenn Morgan and James Huang would hold considerable value for relativism entertainment for a long time.

Once Glenn Morgan finished the script for "The Purge" sequel, he could have him continue writing the script for "Final Destination 2."

As long as the conditions of these best friends were not excessive, Ronan wouldn't easily replace the director and screenwriter. The previous "Final Destination 2" was the worst among the first three parts.

After the success of the first one, the subsequent sequels could make money.

"Final Destination" horror mode could last for four or five parts.

Series films were preferred for this reason. Ronan was very clear about the various benefits that sequel films could bring.

Even if the company's development stalled, as long as he held the rights to multiple series films, he could still make money lying down, becoming a winner in life.

With "Final Destination" officially opening in North America, more audiences have seen this horror thriller film.

In the midnight premiere across 2000 theaters, "Final Destination" easily grossed $3.1 million.

This is quite a good performance for an R-rated horror film at midnight screenings. In recent years, among all R-rated horror films released, it's only second to "Scream 2," which earned $4.2 million. However, the latter is a sequel.

Those who attend midnight screenings are undoubtedly enthusiasts, possessing strong word-of-mouth influence.

"Final Destination" has received quite positive feedback among them.

"The core of this film is not the novel ways characters instantly die, but the slow torture before death, which is even more terrifying than death itself. Under the deliberate hints and suspense set by the director, the characters enter familiar environments of the audience's daily life. Every action they take could potentially lead to their eventual death, but the audience is always anxiously waiting for that moment to arrive."

"The plot is innovative, and the details of death are cleverly designed and imaginative. It's tense, and the atmosphere is suffocating."

"After watching it, there's a refreshing feeling. Every nerve is tense, not knowing who's next, or how they'll die. It's great, a classic in the horror genre."

"It's truly shocking. Apart from the incredible ways of dying, what's even more impressive is the fatalistic theory, that death is predetermined, unavoidable fate. Even if you manage to escape once, you're still doomed."

These fanatical enthusiasts often spread their opinions about the film through various channels after watching it.

They tend to comment most on two types of films: those that are entertainingly good, and those with numerous flaws.

With the rapid development of the internet, these people use various forums, blogs, and movie websites like IMDb as their activity bases, frequently expressing their opinions and comments on newly released films, which can influence a considerable number of people's movie choices.

The rapid development of the internet and the existence of these fervent fan-level enthusiasts are also reasons for the rapid decline in the influence of professional film critics.

They are enthusiastic about watching trailers before the main feature in theaters, repeatedly watching them online and recommending them to friends. They participate in surveys on channels like Yahoo Movies, indicating which new movie they'll buy tickets for this weekend. After watching the movie, they share their thoughts with friends and even publish comments through various channels.

Moreover, their understanding of the film industry is no less than that of professionals, and their knowledge of industry insights and behind-the-scenes trivia is extensive. They can account for up to sixty percent of a new film's box office revenue and create widespread word-of-mouth, which to some extent affects ticket sales.

It can be said that as long as a film pleases this group of fanatical enthusiasts, half of the box office success is guaranteed.

And ninety-nine percent of these people are teenagers.

"Final Destination" has precisely won the hearts of this demographic.