Chapter 258: Lost to Himself
McCarthy handed a thick stack of scripts to the Coen brothers.
The Coen brothers had polite smiles on their faces, but their hearts were full of condescension. They felt like the ancestors of the sect, planning to teach the younger disciples some tricks.
But to be honest, these two people do have the upper hand. Looking at the entire Hollywood, when it comes to screenwriting and script adaptation capabilities, no one dares to say that they are better than the Coen brothers.
Although the old man McCarthy is also a screenwriter, he actually does not have any good scripts. His previous work as a screenwriter was mainly in dramas. The script presentation of a play is different from that of a movie, so the Coen brothers didn't think McCarthy could come up with a decent script.
The younger brother Ethan Coen has a more active personality than his older brother. He took over the script first and started reading it.
"Huh? There is also a description of the shots? Isn't this the job of the director? The script written by this old man is a bit interesting!"
After quickly turning a few pages, a scene concept emerged The picture appears in the script.
“Is this a scene concept map? I didn’t expect there to be such a thing in the script. Speaking of which, this scene concept map seems to match the description in the novel!”
The Coen brothers are watching I have read the original version of "The Old Man Is Somewhere to Support" more than once, and I already have a clear understanding of the plot and descriptions of some of the scenery.
When I saw this concept map of the scene, Brother Cohen instantly restored the scene in the novel.
Coupled with the previous description of the scenes, a vivid plot turned into a movie fragment appeared in the mind of Brother Cohen.
Brother Cohen was shocked. As a top director, he would never be led by others. He had his own thoughts and creative ideas.
So he always takes the initiative to form movie clips in his mind, and then shoots movies based on what he formed in his mind.
But this time, he completely followed the shot descriptions and scene concept drawings in the script to form a movie clip. This is tantamount to his full recognition of the creative concept of the script author.
The next second, a sense of unwillingness arose in Brother Cohen's heart, and then this unwillingness quickly turned into anger.
"I, Ethan Coen, do I need others to teach me how to make movies! How can I fall into other people's thoughts? What a shame!"
Cohen's brother took a deep breath He calmed down his tone and continued reading the script.
Dialogue, expression description, split shots, scene concept drawings, it’s the same old routine again, and a complete movie plot was unconsciously formed in Brother Cohen’s mind.
"Hey, what's going on? Why did I get stuck again? Where are my own thoughts? Where are my own thoughts? Why are there none? Why do I feel unconscious when I see this script? Want to shoot according to the script’s shots and scenes? ”
At this time, the anger in Brother Cohen's heart slowly turned into a feeling of fear. As a top director, after seeing a script, he has no ideas of his own at all. Everything in his mind is copied from the script. What is narrated and described here, isn't this the screenwriter teaching him how to make movies?
If Brother Cohen was still a novice director who had just started in the industry, he would probably treat this kind of thing with a normal attitude.
But at this time, Cohen's younger brother had already been famous for many years and was regarded as the king of the Cannes Film Festival. His works had also formed a complete personal style and would hardly be affected by the outside world.
But even so, when he saw the script, apart from recognition and resonance, he was unable to have any independent thinking!
A director of his level should not be in this situation! You shouldn't be swayed by a script.
The next second, Brother Cohen raised his head and looked at McCarthy opposite, with a hint of horror in his eyes.
"The old man in front of me is so powerful. The script he wrote makes me unable to extricate myself. Is this the creative ability of a generation of literary giants?"
Joel Cohen, who was next to him, also discovered his younger brother's talent. Strangely, he pushed his brother gently with his hand. Brother Cohen came to his senses and handed the script to his brother.
Cohen's elder brother has a calmer character than his younger brother. After he received the script, he initially found the shot descriptions and scene concept drawings interesting, but then he showed the same expression as his younger brother.
The elder brother, like the younger brother, is also trapped in the script and cannot produce his own independent thinking at all.
At this moment, Brother Cohen's face changed drastically. He never expected that he, the most talented director in Hollywood, would be taught how to make movies by others!
After a long time, Brother Cohen calmed down and said: "Mr. McCarthy, I didn't expect you to have such high attainments in the field of screenwriting. I think your screenwriting level is not inferior to that of Hollywood. Any well-known screenwriter."
Although you knew that Brother Cohen was complimenting you, McCarthy still smiled and said, "To be honest, I did not write this script. The person is a friend of mine, and he is also a writer. You may have heard of his work, "The Thirst Game". "
"I know, it is a best-seller. The novel. It turns out that this script was written by the author of "The Thirst Game"!" Brother Cohen nodded as if he was aware of it.
Since he is a powerful best-selling author, it is not surprising that he can write such a good script.
McCarthy continued: "I think this script is very well written and highly completed, and it fully restores my novel. To be honest, after reading this script, I even had a feeling of a movie coming to my mind. The feeling that comes to mind.
That’s why I decided to recommend this script to you. I think if you follow this script, you will definitely make a very good movie!”
The Coen brothers looked at each other, and the elder brother said: "Mr. McCarthy, do you suggest that we take this script back and study it carefully?"
"No problem! I have a copy here. I can make two copies for you." McCarthy agreed immediately.
With the reputation and status of the Coen brothers, they would definitely not do such things as cheating on scripts or plagiarizing other people's scripts, let alone cheating on scripts from the great writer McCarthy, so McCarthy was relieved to hand over the script of "No Country for Old Men" to them.
...
The Coen brothers returned to their studio. The two of them read the script carefully and couldn't help but praise that the script was really well written.
Immediately afterwards, the two people began to modify the script based on the original work.
"Joel, look at this split shot, I think it can be modified like this..."
"This modification direction of yours feels worse than the original script! If you think about it carefully, if If you modify it like this, it will weaken the emotion of this character..." "Ethan, look at this plot, I can streamline it. These lines can be deleted. The entire plot only needs to be given to the camera. A close-up of a face measured from an angle, then stretched to a panoramic view..."
“If you look at this scene alone, there is no problem if you shoot it this way, but don’t forget that there is a motel scene later on. There are many echoes between these two scenes. If you delete If you delete this section, how do you plan to arrange the motel scene?"
"We can arrange the motel scene like this..."
"Do you think that according to you? The character's personality cannot be reflected at all, so the character has lost its charm. In this case, why not change it?
For three days, the two brothers have been discussing the script, and they have put forward their own ideas. Modify the plan and then reject it, sometimes mutually, sometimes jointly
Generally speaking, the modification plan they came up with was not as effective as the original script.
Three days later, when the assistant came to the studio, he was shocked by what he saw. The unshaven Ken brothers sat side by side, looking extremely decadent, as if they had been cuckolded.
Use one word to describe it, that is "mourning"!
The two talented Hollywood directors, who are usually glamorous and look like male models when standing in the spotlight, are now like two bereaved dogs, who have been soaked in the heavy rain all night. They look pitiful. They were helpless and could only huddle together and tremble.
Obviously, these two talented Hollywood directors were shocked.
For three days, the two of them worked hard, but found that the script was so perfect that there was no way to modify it!
What frustrated them most was not the excellence of the script of "No Country for Old Men", but that they completely agreed with the content of the script. The plot rhythm of the script, the actors' lines, and the description of the shots. Almost everything is in line with the two brothers' expectations for the movie.
The two brothers even felt that if they were to adapt the script themselves, they would follow this idea.
This also means that if "No Country for Old Men" is made into a movie, the Coen brothers will completely follow this script. The two of them don't even need their own ideas, as long as they master the actors well.
As a top director, what does it mean to make a movie without his own ideas?
In Hollywood, the Coen brothers are the ones who are imitated, not the ones who need to be imitated.
However, the contents presented in this script convinced the Coen brothers. They admitted that the script was perfect, and they also admitted that what the script presented was exactly what the two brothers wanted to show to the audience.
For the Coen brothers at this time, it was really a shame and humiliation to be taught how to make movies by others, and they absolutely could not accept it.
But it would be a pity that such a good script, such a script that suits their taste, is not produced.
As a result, the Coen brothers' hearts, while being hit hard, entered a state of repeated struggle and pulling.
The poor Coen brothers didn't know that they were actually defeated by themselves. What Zhang Wei exchanged from the devil was the script they adapted themselves.
"No Country for Old Men" should be regarded as the best work of the Coen brothers. Otherwise, it would not be possible to win the Oscars for Best Picture and Best Director, the two most valuable awards.
In addition, "No Country for Old Men" also won the Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay, which is enough to illustrate the solidity of this work.
Historically, when adapting the script of the novel "No Country for Old Men", the Coen brothers also racked their brains. Almost all of the film skills of this pair of genius brothers for most of their lives were used in this work. Every one of them The shots and every detail were carefully considered over and over again.
At that time, the Coen brothers were in their fifties, which was the golden age for a director. At this age, a director must have experience, brains, and good energy. When you are forty years old, you will have your own understanding of life and a clear understanding of the world.
The scripts written and the movies produced at this time must be at the peak level.
If you are older, your brain and energy cannot keep up, and you will not have much innovation in your thinking. You often cannot keep up with the latest trends, and the movies you make appear old-fashioned and lack new ideas.
And if you are too young and lack understanding of life, the film you make may have a twists and turns in the plot and exciting content, but in terms of the expression of the connotation, it will definitely be unsatisfactory. At least in the eyes of Oscar judges, it will be a bit difficult to judge.
So at this time, the Coen brothers are actually competing with their peak and most successful selves.
This was originally a script that they carefully thought out during their peak period. It is of course impossible to modify it.
And it is precisely because this is their own pinnacle work that after reading the script, the two brothers will directly have fragments of the movie in their minds. They will feel that this script is written to suit their appetite. , exactly what I expected from the movie.
Because this is originally their own work.
......
In the end, the Coen brothers were reluctant to part with such a good script, and finally they agreed to use the script provided by Zhang Wei to film "No Country for Old Men."
After Mr. McCarthy learned the news, he immediately informed Zhang Wei by email.
For Zhang Wei, this is a great joy. "No Country for Old Men" won the Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay. If the Coen brothers use their own script to make a movie, they can get an Oscar statuette for nothing!
And it is also a screenwriting award. This gold content is quite good, at least it has more gold content than those for best makeup, best sound effects, best editing, best costume design, etc.
If nothing else, in the domestic film and television industry, such an Oscar winner in the screenwriting category can already dominate. Director Zhang, Director Chen, Director Feng, at this level, would treat me as an equal when they see him. When you sit there at a movie award ceremony, you don't even have to get up. All the pretty girls passing by have to bow down and shake your hand.
It’s just that the filming of “No Country for Old Men” still needs a process. Now we have just confirmed the director and script, and we still need to find a producer to raise funds, casting, scenery, props, and filming. After the filming is completed, there is a series of processes such as editing, soundtrack, sound, and sound effects. There is no one that cannot be completed within a year or a half.
Leave these matters to the Coen brothers. With their status in Hollywood, these should not be a problem.
What Zhang Wei has to deal with is another matter.
The new semester has begun, and Zhang Wei is finally no longer a freshman.
When he returned to Tsinghua University, the school gave him a new identity: the mascot of Tsinghua University!
(End of this chapter)