"Why can't Fury Road be screened in our market?"
In an office, a slightly questioning voice came out.
"I know the film is a bit extreme, with some scenes quite bloody, but this is already the 21st century. We shouldn't view the film industry with outdated perspectives. Besides, the director Duke Rosenberg is one of the world's top directors. His films have always been fair and have never subtly attacked us!"
"Ahem... ahem..."
A clearing throat sound was heard, followed by another person speaking deliberately.
"It is inevitable that this movie cannot be screened here."
Perhaps because the other person had enough weight, he explained a little more than usual.
"It's not because it's bloody, not because it's violent, nor because it lacks our capital investment. The core spirit of the film is simply wrong!"
"Core spirit is wrong?" The person who first asked clearly was baffled.
"Have you not noticed? Fury Road actually tells a story about 'Since no one will survive anyway, why should I listen to you and not resist?' This is basically the same as the history of every dynasty's rise: where there is tyranny, there will be rebels!"
Upon hearing this, the questioner was immediately speechless, fully realizing that their thoughts were on completely different planes, so he just closed his mouth.
There was no need to argue anymore because such a reason was simply impossible to refute.
Perhaps intentionally, perhaps unintentionally, somehow this news spread out. Duke had countless supporters in this land who immediately expressed their dissatisfaction. Moreover, not just these people — the public had long-standing grievances against a certain department, instantly stirring up a wave of criticism. Especially online, some of Duke's fans created countless mocking jokes.
Maybe that department's original intention was good, but it was widely acknowledged that it was too rigid and lacked standardized rules.
On a famous website, a post mocking this department was pinned at the top. In just a few days, it received over a million clicks.
"A famous director wanted to imitate Star Wars to make a sci-fi blockbuster called Earth Defense. So he wrote a script and found investment to start filming. Of course, before filming, he had to submit it to the relevant department for review, so he sent the script outline to the department."
"The outline said: Many years later, Earth has fallen into chaos and turmoil. Martians take advantage of the chaos to attack Earth. In this critical moment, Captain Solo and the last Jedi Luke form a resistance alliance to fight the Martian invasion. With the help of Princess Leia, robot R2, and Master Yoda, they use the 'Force' to defeat the Martians' 'Dark Power,' destroy the Martian ship, and save Earth."
"The famous director soon received a reply from the department. It said: Since Earth has fallen into chaos and turmoil, then how is our country?"
"The director replied immediately: Our country is the same."
"The department exploded with anger: Impossible! Under the leadership, our country will never be in chaos!"
"The director laughed and cried, replying: By then, all political groups no longer exist."
"The department sent a stern question: How dare you curse the downfall of the leadership?"
"The director broke out in cold sweat and quickly replied: You misunderstood. This is just a fictional scenario, not real."
"The department warned: Even if it is not real, it could cause unnecessary associations for the audience and affect social stability. Are you willing to bear that responsibility?"
"The director felt uneasy and had to revise the script. A few days later, he submitted the newly revised outline."
"The new outline said: Many years later, Earth is in chaos and turmoil, but our country is prosperous and flourishing, with people living in peace and happiness. However, Martians suddenly attack Earth. At this critical moment, Captain Solo and the last Jedi Luke form a resistance alliance to fight the Martians. With the help of Princess Leia, robot R2, and Master Yoda, they use the 'Force' to defeat the Martians' 'Dark Power,' destroy the Martian ship, and save Earth."
"Soon, he got another reply from the department. It said: Who are this Solo and Luke?"
"The director replied: They are the heroes who saved Earth."
"The department questioned again: Could Earth really be saved by just these few people? Where are our leaders, army, and people? Where is our greatness...?"
"The director patiently answered: Humanity was almost defeated by the Martians; in the end, only these few endured many hardships and finally drove the Martians away."
"The department severely rebuked: You are promoting individual heroism and belittling the collective power! This will cause serious social impact. Rewrite!"
"The director had no choice and revised again. After much thought, he finally completed it."
"The new outline said: Many years later, Earth is in chaos and turmoil, but our country is prosperous and flourishing, with people living in peace and happiness. However, Martians suddenly attack Earth. At this critical moment, our country dispatches excellent party member Solo and soldier Luke to form a resistance alliance to fight the Martians. Under the wise leadership and help of the masses, they use the 'Force' to defeat the Martians' 'Dark Power,' destroy the Martian ship, and save Earth."
"Soon he received a reply from the department. They said: Basically satisfied, but what exactly are this 'Force' and 'Dark Power'?"
"The director explained: They are kinds of mental control energy, very powerful, able to move objects at a distance. It has two aspects, the good 'Light Side' and the evil 'Dark Side'..."
The relevant department immediately responded: "How can this be? This is feudal superstition! A heretical path! It does not conform to scientific facts! It will cause serious social impact, as uninformed people will take it as truth. Youngsters will imitate it in competition, bringing severe negative effects to minors. Rewrite it!"
The famous director spat out three sheng of blood and barely recovered. There was no choice but to revise it again.
After repeated modifications, the final script outline approved by censorship was as follows:
Many years later, Earth had descended into chaos and turmoil, but our country was prosperous and thriving, with people living and working in peace and happiness. Suddenly, Martians attacked Earth. In this crisis, our country stood up and turned the tide, dispatching outstanding Party member Solo and soldier Luke to form the Resistance Alliance to fight off the Martian invasion. With wise leadership and the help of the masses, everyone united, using kitchen knives, sticks, sickles, and axes to engage in fierce combat with the Martians, defeating them and saving Earth. In the end, Luke was honorably admitted to the Party, and Solo became a heroic model everyone competed to learn from. From then on, Earth returned to peace, and people lived happily ever after…
The news that "Fury Road" had not passed censorship also reached Warner Bros. The management was inevitably disappointed, but Duke naturally accepted the fact. It was not surprising that a film like "Fury Road" could not enter their market.
Jamie Johnson from Warner Bros. even went to Malibu to see Duke and asked if he could make appropriate modifications, but Duke firmly refused. If he modified it to their standards, "Fury Road" would only become a standard bad movie.
Even if such a bad movie was made just for a particular market and wouldn't affect screenings in other regions, Duke did not want to risk his reputation over it.
This incident reminded Duke of a viewpoint he had once read: why many directors avoid making sci-fi movies.
"How do I explain it to the higher-ups? What's the practical meaning of my film? What's its positive significance? Why am I making such a strange movie? The main question is: how does my film align with the current situation? I can't answer any of these, and that's a problem. Thinking this way, the conclusion is clear: I shouldn't have gotten myself into this trouble in the first place."
Unable to enter that market, Duke would not force it, nor would he produce a special version of "Fury Road" for that market. That would be disrespectful to the audience there.
His films had made money before, but making money always had to have limits.
Duke quickly threw this matter out of his mind and no longer paid attention to it. By May, all his energy had turned to promoting and distributing "Fury Road." Together with Charlize Theron, Tom Cruise, James Franco, and other main actors, he traveled frequently across major North American cities, attending numerous shows and promotional events to build hype for the upcoming release.
The new summer movie season had begun in North America, and "Fury Road" faced direct competition from "The Adventures of Tintin." Moreover, due to the MPAA rating, the film had a built-in disadvantage regarding audience reach, so the promotional efforts had to be stronger.
No matter what, the Cannes Film Festival still had some influence. Since "Fury Road" was competing, the goal naturally was the Palme d'Or!
After finishing a series of North American promotions, Duke met up with the main cast and crew and took his private jet directly to Paris to attend the 62nd Cannes Film Festival.
Thanks to Warner Bros.' efforts, "Fury Road" would appear as the opening film of the Cannes Film Festival.
.....
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