Chapter 40 Oscar Promotion Battle
The culprit behind this was "The Return", which was also a favorite to win the award. The film's distributor, United Artists, also began to exert its strength in the media, criticizing "The Deer Hunter" for being tedious and the Russian roulette scene for being fabricated from the audience's perspective.
Ronald was unfortunately involved in the war of words between the two Oscar-winning films. He became a "hot topic" on TV.
When he walked on the street, some people would recognize him and ask him if he was "Sleepy Ronald". Some people agreed with Ronald's evaluation and smiled and wanted to high-five him. There were also some fans of "The Deer Hunter" who cursed him for not understanding movies and talking nonsense.
Ronald had to wear sunglasses when he went out. No one there cared about his attack on a Vietnam War movie.
After a few days, the popularity of Sleepy Ronald subsided slightly. Then, the war of words unexpectedly brought up the issue of director Michael Cimino's integrity.
Speaking of which, director Michael Cimino himself should be blamed.
Because the Russian roulette plot in the film is absurd and bizarre, not to mention the Vietnam War, such a scene is impossible to appear in any modern war. The officer forced the prisoner to play Russian roulette with a revolver. Let alone other things, what if the prisoner took a gun and fired a few shots at you and died with you?
This put a lot of pressure on Universal, the distributor of "The Deer Hunter".
Universal made a strict plan at the beginning and only released the film for one week in 1978 to meet the Oscar entry standards. Most of the guests invited to watch the film were Oscar judges and their families. There are two advantages to doing this.
First, it is a disguised compliment to the judges. Being able to watch the movie "The Deer Hunter" is a symbol of status. In addition, it is said that during the screening, the judges all received gifts. So after the screening for one week last year, all the media reported good reviews.
Secondly, it also creates a sense of hunger in the market. If a well-received movie can win several important Oscar nominations and then is publicly screened, the audience will rush to the cinema in a short time to see it first, and the box office figures will be very good.
This is why Universal packaged "The Deer Hunter" as a film reflecting the tragedy of the Vietnam War from the beginning. The Vietnam War has been over for nearly 4 years, but the huge scars caused in America continue to tear society apart. If there is a movie that can seize the opportunity and film the trauma of the Vietnam War to society, then the box office will not be too bad.
However, the fabrication of the key plot, the Russian roulette scene, was hyped up by competitors through the media, which had a great impact on Universal's box office plan.
At this time, director Michael Cimino came out to defend the authenticity of this plot to win awards and protect the box office. He said that during the Vietnam War, he was a medical soldier in the US Army Green Beret Unit and was sent to the front line to participate in the 1968 "Spring Offensive" that led to the capture of the protagonist in the film. He also said that things several times more exaggerated than this happened in the Vietnam battlefield.
But if you calculate it this way, the age of director Michael Cimino does not match the time when the new soldiers were recruited for the Spring Offensive in 1968. The new soldiers in 1968 were generally born around 1950, and they are less than 30 years old this year, but the director looks almost 40.
Faced with this problem, Michael Cimino claimed in an interview with Daily Variety that he was born in 1952 and is only 27 years old this year.
"Have you ever seen such a 27-year-old man? The hairline is so far back, and there is a double chin caused by obesity. You are only 27? Who are you trying to fool?"
Ronnie complained to Gale in an Italian restaurant near New World Studios. To find someone to discuss how to deal with the Sleepy Ron incident, Ronald specially invited Gale out for lunch.
"Hahaha, Sleepy Ron. Don't be angry." Gale teased him.
"Will this have any impact on me, Gail? You have worked with Mr. Corman for a long time and have seen a lot. I have a hunch that this will affect my future."
"Well, yes, you have been reported by the media these days. The TV stations are playing the two interview clips where you criticized "The Deer Hunter." Gale laughed, "And the clip where you yawned."
Ronald rolled up the spaghetti with a fork viciously and ate it with minced meat and tomato sauce.
"But I am innocent. I also said good things. The damn TV station edited my words like that."
"Don't be angry, Ronald. You have worked in the editing room before, and you know that editing can go against the original intention and even edit out an opposite meaning. What the media likes most is this kind of heated topic. Now, these two Vietnam War movies are fighting hard for the Oscars, and you are involved."
"What can I do?"
"You can't do anything, Ronald. Of course, you don't have to do anything." Gale said.
"Then I will just watch?" Ronald was still angry.
"To some extent, yes. As long as you wait until the Oscars are over, no media will pay attention to Sleepy Ron anymore."
It seems that this is the only way.
Ronald sighed. "Has the preview time of Rock n Roll High School been confirmed?"
"Let me see," Gale took out his notebook and checked. "Yes, it has been scheduled for April 10, the day after the Oscars."
At this time, the TV hanging on the ceiling of the restaurant was turned on by the owner, "This is KNBC (NBC's regional station in Los Angeles). The director of the Oscar-nominated Best Director and the biggest dark horse of this year's Oscars, 'The Deer Hunter', accepted an interview with this station to clarify his military experience..."
Michael Cimino, with his fat double chin, talked to the camera:
"The screenwriter of the movie accused me of stealing his work? No, no, I am a very good screenwriter. I wrote my last movie myself. The first draft he wrote? That was pure garbage. I tore it down and rewrote it all."
"Sleepy Ron's opinion? He accused me of making movies that make people sleepy? I want to say that if this is Sleepy Ron's true opinion, I advise him not to go into the film industry. The perception of beauty and art is a gift. With his thought process, it will be difficult for him to make a name for himself in the film industry no matter how hard he tries."
Ronald slammed the table in anger, and with a bang, it attracted everyone's attention. He was so scared that he shrank his neck, turned up his collar, and put on sunglasses. "Sorry, Gale, I didn't mean it."
"People who know me know that I like to joke, and sometimes I will half-joke when I am interviewed. 27 years old? Of course, it's a half-joking statement because I look young, so I want to test how old your reporters can believe me to be at least. I was born in 1949 and I am 30 years old this year."
"I don't believe you," Ronald muttered angrily.
In the next few days, Ronald had to pretend not to watch the news so that he didn't see Sleepy Ronald yawning on TV. Fortunately, the media gradually began to shift their fire, and his yawns appeared less and less on TV.
He called Marla a few times, but she didn't respond.
'I guess I made her lose face in front of her classmates, and it would be difficult for her to calm down in a short time.'
As the days go by, the competition for the Oscars this year is becoming more intense than in previous years. The fat director of "The Deer Hunter", Michael Cimino, is being attacked for his birth age. His defense is becoming increasingly weak. His birth year has retreated from 1949 to 1947, 1945, and finally stopped at 1943.
The fat director's mouth has no credibility in the film industry, and the public has no good impression of a person who lies about his age. Therefore, everyone is generally skeptical about the plot of Russian roulette, believing that it was made up by the director and screenwriter, Michael Cimino himself.
At this time, Universal Pictures, which had already placed a heavy bet on "The Deer Hunter" to win the award, finally fought back.
They did not waste ammunition on the issue of Cimino's age but directly attacked Jane Fonda on the other side.
First, Universal united the main actors nominated for the Oscar for Best Actor, Robert De Niro, nominated for Best Supporting Actor, Christopher Walken, and nominated for Best Supporting Actress newcomer, Meryl Streep, to jointly stand up for the director.
The three were interviewed on TV, and their main argument was that Russian Roulette is not about the Vietnam War, but a possibility. The Deer Hunter is not about the Vietnam War but about the possibility of any war. Michael Cimino filmed the human reaction in any war.
The audience does not need to be serious about whether the plot is real in the Vietnam battlefield. Instead, when watching the movie, they should focus on the beautiful shots and the portrayal of human nature in war.
"So Russian Roulette is a fabrication, it is not the Vietnam War, but a fictitious reference to any war. The male lead returns to his hometown to rob his friend's fiancée, which is the destruction of human nature by war, and it is a criticism of the Vietnam War's harm to human nature."
Ronald complained to Cameron in a bad mood. I happened to come to the stunt model factory that day and had lunch and chatted with Cameron.
"Anyway, this fat guy is always right!"
Universal first played a smoke bomb to defend the plot of Russian Roulette.
Then they played a real trick and caught a fatal mistake of Jane Fonda.
Jane Fonda has repeatedly stated that "Coming Home" is the better Vietnam War movie for this year's Oscars. But in a TV interview, Jane Fonda admitted that she has not watched "The Deer Hunter" yet.
Having not watched "The Deer Hunter", she said that her "Coming Home" is better than its rival. Universal seized this handle and launched a full-scale attack in the media. This time it is the turn of the "Coming Home" crew and Jane Fonda to be embarrassed.