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Chapter 161: Unexpected Changes in Oscar History
🕑 Added 2025-01-01 09:50:18 +0000 UTCThis year's Oscars were quite interesting. Due to the absence of Braveheart, the situation changed dramatically.
Because of Mel Gibson's allegations of sexual assault and anti-Semitic remarks, Braveheart didn't receive a single nomination at the Oscars.
Naturally, CAA and the film's production and distribution company abandoned the movie.
Although it wasn't publicly stated, and despite Gilbert Jr.'s act of justice, Paramount, as the main investor of the film, held significant grudges against him.
However, these grievances were not expressed openly because banishing Mel Gibson from Hollywood had become a consensus.
Within Paramount's parent company, Viacom Media Networks, there were many Jewish executives who naturally supported Gilbert's actions, so Paramount could not retaliate.
Logically, when one person is removed, someone else should pay a price.
But Gilbert not only didn't pay any price; instead, due to this incident, his reputation among women and the Jewish community soared.
With Braveheart withdrawing from the Oscars, the competition became unpredictable.
Gilbert knew that in his past life, Braveheart had won five major awards, including Best Picture and Best Director. With its absence, these awards now went to other films.
The biggest beneficiaries were Dead Man Walking and Sense and Sensibility.
Sense and Sensibility was directed by Ang Lee, a Chinese filmmaker. Since entering Hollywood, Ang Lee had worked tirelessly to secure opportunities for himself.
Unlike Gilbert, who had an easy rise, Ang Lee faced immense challenges in Hollywood. He had to sacrifice a great deal to secure directorial opportunities, making him cherish each chance to prove himself.
If Sense and Sensibility failed, Ang Lee would quickly lose the trust of Hollywood studios and have no choice but to return across the Pacific.
In fact, Ang Lee wasn't the only Chinese filmmaker venturing into Hollywood. John Woo, who had already built his reputation in Hong Kong's film industry, also sought to establish himself in Hollywood.
Unlike Ang Lee, who pursued artistic films, John Woo chose the more challenging commercial film route, where failure was not an option.
However, John Woo demonstrated his ability. His first Hollywood film, Hard Target, starring Jean-Claude Van Damme, grossed nearly $40 million at the box office.
In early February, John Woo's film Broken Arrow was released in North America, performing well. It seemed likely to surpass $50 million at the North American box office and achieve over $100 million globally, ensuring John Woo's foothold in Hollywood.
In March, another shift occurred. At the Oscars on March 25, Sense and Sensibility unexpectedly won Best Picture due to the series of butterfly effects caused by Gilbert.
The news caused a mild reaction in North America. At most, some media expressed dissatisfaction on behalf of other films, arguing that Sense and Sensibility was not as deserving as other nominees.
However, in Taiwan and Hong Kong, the impact was massive.
The success of Ang Lee's film at the Oscars sent shockwaves through both regions. Coupled with John Woo and Jackie Chan's successful entry into Hollywood, it inspired more filmmakers in Hong Kong and Taiwan.
The continuous success of Chinese directors and actors also sparked a wave of enthusiasm for Chinese talent in Hollywood. While the major studios remained cautious, second-tier production companies displayed unprecedented interest in Chinese filmmakers and actors.
Jackie Chan handed his North American representation to Sheena Boone, becoming the first Chinese actor under International Creative Management (ICM).
Sheena Boone took Jackie Chan's Hollywood career seriously. Gilbert, of course, knew what Jackie Chan's most iconic Hollywood series would be:
The Rush Hour series, with three films in total, marked the pinnacle of Jackie Chan's Hollywood career.
A film series that reaches three installments signifies one thing: profitability.
Otherwise, after the first film, Jackie Chan would have returned to Hong Kong instead of continuing with the second and third.
Although Gilbert wouldn't direct the films, his Melon Studio could invest in their production since it was a lucrative series.
After learning of Gilbert's plan, Sheena Boone specifically discussed it with Jackie Chan, who expressed great interest.
Naturally, he was interested. Opportunities in Hollywood were rare, and Jackie Chan needed to seize them.
At the moment, Jackie Chan was busy with projects like Police Story 4: First Strike and Mr. Nice Guy. Once these projects were completed, he would officially move to North America.
When Jackie Chan arrived, the Rush Hour series could begin pre-production.
The late 1990s to early 2000s was the peak of the "Chinese wave" in Hollywood, and Gilbert was simply riding the trend.
Other Oscar Highlights
At this year's Oscars, Best Director went to Tim Robbins for Dead Man Walking, an award that originally belonged to Mel Gibson.
As expected, Nicolas Cage won Best Actor for Leaving Las Vegas, marking the peak of his acting career.
With box office hits like The Rock and an Oscar win, Nicolas Cage had achieved both critical and commercial success.
As long as he managed his career carefully, his path would surely remain smooth.
But life is unpredictable. Who could have imagined that Nicolas Cage would later face bankruptcy and resort to accepting numerous low-quality films to pay off debts, ultimately ruining his reputation?
Another surprising outcome was that Scarlett's favorite film, Babe, won two awards due to Braveheart's absence: Best Cinematography and Best Visual Effects.
The Best Visual Effects award was expected, given Babe's impressive technical achievements. But Best Cinematography? That was harder to explain.
After the Oscars, the summer blockbuster season loomed closer.
By late March, Gilbert completed the final cut of Saving Private Ryan, which had a runtime of 2 hours and 49 minutes.
Producer Charles Roven suggested trimming the film to under 2.5 hours to allow for more daily screenings in theaters.
However, Gilbert refused, insisting on preserving the film's integrity. Cutting more would compromise essential elements.
In editing, Gilbert abandoned the fast-paced techniques used in The Rock and Speed, opting instead for traditional editing with long takes and documentary-style shaky cam.
For the score, Gilbert enlisted John Williams, a frequent collaborator of Spielberg. Initially reluctant, Williams agreed after Spielberg intervened. The result complemented the film beautifully.
Editor Mehdi suggested that if Gilbert aimed to win awards at next year's Oscars, he should make the film more Oscar-friendly by reducing war scenes, focusing on internal struggles, and slowing the narrative pace.
Gilbert rejected the idea outright. "That's not possible. This film is meant for the summer audience. The pace is already slow enough, with plenty of dialogue. If I slow it further and cut the action, what will viewers watch? Stare at the screen blankly?"
Mehdi was speechless for a moment before replying, "If you stick with this, it'll be hard to win Oscars."
"It doesn't matter," Gilbert said, gazing into the distance. "If the Oscars don't recognize me, I'll force them to. If not this time, then the next. I don't need their validation; I am the authority."
For Gilbert, the Oscars were merely the cherry on top. Unlike others obsessed with awards, his ultimate goal was always commercial success.
After completing all post-production, Gilbert archived the film materials and wrapped up production.
But a film isn't truly complete until it meets its audience, so Gilbert still had plenty of work to do.
The first step was the rating process. Despite the efforts of Disney, Warner Bros., and 20th Century Fox, the film received an R rating.
According to the rating board, they initially considered an NC-17 rating but settled on R to allow more people to see the film's profound humanistic themes.
Gilbert wasn't disappointed. Surprises like The Rock's PG-13 rating couldn't happen every time.
After the rating, Saving Private Ryan held both theater and critic screenings, officially kicking off its promotional campaign.
With Gilbert's dominance in the summer box office, no one dared challenge him, moving their release dates far away.
The film was set to hit U.S. theaters on May 6, just two days before the May 8 Victory in Europe Day—a fitting release date.
Given the film's commemorative significance, Gilbert suggested holding the premiere in Normandy, specifically at the Caen Memorial.
With French government support, the premiere would indeed take place there.
Moreover, the Cannes Film Festival invited Saving Private Ryan to participate in its events, an opportunity Gilbert gladly accepted.
Coincidentally, Sophie Marceau had been eager to introduce Gilbert to some French beauties, and he was curious to see what awaited him.
