After reviewing the fax in his hand, Simon called Amy to discuss some of his ideas and inquire about the casting progress for the male lead in 'Batman'.
Truth be told, there weren't many films in the competitive section of this year's Cannes Film Festival that piqued Simon's interest. He didn't plan his viewing schedule like he did at Sundance, but instead intended to use the next two weeks to meticulously organize his ideas for the 'Batman' script.
Although this superhero movie is slated to begin filming next year, time is not as abundant as it seems.
Over the next six months, in addition to the script, Simon also needs to address the various high-tech gadgets for Bruce Wayne in the film, such as the Batmobile. These need to be actual drivable vehicles, not just models. From design to assembly, six months might not even be enough. Furthermore, many of the planned stunts and special effects in the film will also require a significant amount of preparation time.
For the next few days, Simon mostly stayed in the mountain villa in Le Cannet, conceptualizing the script and maintaining constant contact with the US. Janette and Jennifer, on the other hand, explored all of Cannes. Janette even befriended Nastassja Kinski. Although Nastassja didn't stay overnight again like that one evening, she returned with Janette for lunch on Saturday. However, her attitude towards Simon remained lukewarm.
Meanwhile, various activities at the Cannes Film Festival were in full swing after the opening ceremony. Of course, the main focus was the screening of various types of films. In addition to the official competitive and non-competitive screenings of the film festival, there were also many film companies that paid to promote their films in cinemas, on beaches, and in auditoriums throughout the city. There were hundreds of screenings every day, truly a grand cinematic event.
However, the official films of the festival were undoubtedly the most scrutinized by the media.
The organizers' schedule for the screenings in each competitive section was well-paced, usually based on the film's reputation or fame, to ensure that the twelve-day festival wouldn't be too dull. The scheduling of 'Pulp Fiction' on Sunday of the first weekend of the festival was based on this consideration. In the days leading up to 'Pulp Fiction', the media discussion was ignited by Kieślowski's 'A Short Film About Killing' and the British production company's film 'Patty Hearst', based on a true story.
Polish director Kieślowski had not yet reached the pinnacle of his later 'Three Colours trilogy' at this time; 'A Short Film About Killing' can be considered his breakthrough work. The media from all sides naturally praised this film highly, with some even predicting that 'A Short Film About Killing' would be the strongest contender for the Palme d'Or this year.
The other film, 'Patty Hearst', was adapted from a sensational kidnapping incident that shook the world in the 1970s.
Patty Hearst, the heiress of the American media giant Hearst family, was kidnapped by thugs. After undergoing cruel humiliation, abuse, and brainwashing, she unexpectedly joined the thug organization and participated in several subsequent bank robberies.
Patty Hearst thus became the most typical patient of 'Stockholm Syndrome'.
After her arrest, the Hearst family used extensive resources, connections, and even a presidential pardon to successfully release the pampered young woman who had been sentenced to 35 years.
In contrast to the overwhelmingly positive reviews for 'A Short Film About Killing', the media's criticism of 'Patty Hearst' was scathing. This was clearly due to the influence of the Hearst family. Although the production company chose a very sensitive subject, their handling of the entire story remained evasive. For example, during the thugs' training of their members, even other female members were naked, but Patty Hearst, who was among them as a hostage, remained fully clothed.
A film critic for France's Le Figaro newspaper wrote with a sarcastic tone of 'if you don't dare to film it, then don't': "According to the description in this film, I only saw extreme deference from the thugs towards the Hearst family. According to this logic, Miss Hearst should have been released immediately, not brainwashed into becoming one of them".
In the 1980s, Cannes did not yet have an official festival daily that formally scored films in each section; this practice only began in 1997. However, French media still organized a five-point rating system. 'Patty Hearst' predictably received the lowest score of 1.3, while Kieślowski's 'A Short Film About Killing' scored a high 4.6.
This continued until Sunday, May 15th.
The red carpet premiere of 'Pulp Fiction' was scheduled for 9 AM.
Although the film's quality was still unknown, as Simon's second film after the globally successful 'Run Lola Run', which grossed over $400 million, 'Pulp Fiction' was undoubtedly the most anticipated film of the festival.
Even before 8 o'clock, the area outside the Palais des Festivals was already bustling. The number of media reporters attending this premiere was no less than that of the festival's opening ceremony. Many film enthusiasts who couldn't get invitations openly held signs offering high prices for tickets, hoping to get one before the screening began.
In addition to the 'Pulp Fiction' crew, most of the main competition jury members and many Hollywood stars who had come to Cannes confirmed their attendance to show their support.
Watching such a grand occasion, Simon and his team didn't feel much pressure, but Mike Medavoy, the president of Orion Pictures, appeared incredibly nervous.
As of now, Orion has released six films this year. Although the period was a relatively slow season for movies, only 'Colors', starring Robert Duvall and Sean Penn, was considered somewhat successful among these six films; the other five ended in failure.
These six films already account for a small portion of Orion's entire release schedule for this year. It's conceivable that if no other blockbusters emerge throughout the year, Orion could face another loss, or even a crisis more severe than the one two years ago.
You see, things are different now than two years ago.
After last year's stock market crash, the hot money pouring into the entertainment industry was like a spring nearing depletion. Even the seven major film studios began to face crises. It's said that Coca-Cola was privately negotiating with Sony to sell its shares in Columbia Pictures. Universal, which had decent performance in the previous two years, was also seeing its business situation worsen, only hoping that the upcoming 'Back to the Future' sequel could salvage the situation.
In such circumstances, if it falls into crisis, Orion would definitely find it difficult to recover as it did two years ago.
'Pulp Fiction' is precisely the film most expected to bolster Orion's performance this year. However, compared to commercial films that appeal to all ages, 'Pulp Fiction' is quite unconventional. Due to Simon's strong influence, Orion was completely unable to interfere with the project according to its own wishes.
The film is set to be released on June 3rd, and there's no doubt that the outcome at Cannes is crucial for 'Pulp Fiction'.
Although he had already received some information from the judges he knew, Mike Medavoy had still been working non-stop for the past few days. Just last night, he even hosted a press conference at the Ritz-Carlton hotel in Cannes, entertaining major mainstream media personalities attending the film festival in advance, so that even if these reporters were not entirely satisfied with the film, they would be lenient in their writing.
Compared to the original $8 million production cost of 'Pulp Fiction', Orion Pictures had already invested $5 million in the film's promotion, distribution, and public relations without realizing it. Moving forward, if the film's reputation is good, they will certainly continue to invest, essentially reaching a point where the marketing costs match the production budget.
Amidst this intense trepidation, Mike Medavoy continued to greet the guests attending the premiere without relaxing, until he finally sat down next to Simon as it approached nine o'clock.
Regardless, everything that could be done has been done. Now, it's up to fate.
In the packed Lumière Grand Auditorium, the lights dimmed, and the screen quickly lit up.
After the Orion Pictures and Daenerys Entertainment logos, the original explanation of the term 'Pulp Fiction' appeared first. Immediately after, the scene shifted, and a pair of robbers, played by Sean Penn and Madonna, appeared in a coffee shop.
In the hall, everyone was stunned to see these two appear.
Many veteran media professionals clearly remembered the disaster caused by Madonna's consecutive film appearances two years prior. Therefore, the moment Madonna's figure appeared, the first thought in many people's minds was: a misstep.
Although many had learned from previous promotions that Madonna and Sean Penn would make cameo appearances in the film, most people did not expect Simon Westeros to place them at the beginning of the movie.
At this point, listening to the two incessantly discuss the topic of robbery, although some also noticed that Madonna's performance didn't seem that bad, such a plot still made people feel baffled. It wasn't until the two, who had just been chatting animatedly, suddenly erupted, pulling out guns and starting to rob, that some viewers began to experience a different kind of meaning.
Then, this segment abruptly ended.
After the opening credits, the scene had already shifted to Vincent and Jules, played by John Travolta and Samuel L. Jackson.
Listening to the two still incessantly discussing hamburgers like two office workers, the audience, whose interest had been piqued by Madonna and Sean Penn's outburst, gradually grew bored again, until the two arrived at the small-time thugs' residence, and then, suddenly drew guns and killed people.
The scene then switched again, moving to Butch, the boxer played by Robert De Niro.
Still the same baffling chatter, Butch listened to the gangster boss's instructions and met Vincent for the first time, which laid some groundwork for later plot developments.
The narration then shifted back to Vincent. After receiving instructions from his boss, Vincent, who had thoroughly enjoyed himself, rushed to Mia's residence. At Mia's insistence, the two went to the Jack Rabbit Slim's restaurant. By this point, the film had only been playing for half an hour.
Upon seeing the Golden Age celebrity cosplayers in the restaurant, many audience members smiled knowingly.
Moreover, astute film critics suddenly realized that the film's rambling style had, without their awareness, drawn them into the plot. Following Vincent and Mia's classic twist dance, some even felt a sense of being unable to stop, a strong desire to know what would happen next.
However, unlike any previously known film model, except for the small number of people who had already seen the film, everyone present could not guess the direction the film's plot would take next.
After Vincent and Mia's dinner, everyone basically expected an inevitable affair and infidelity, but the plot once again devolved into an absurd farce. Mia mistakenly snorted Vincent's drugs and fell unconscious, and the scene where she was injected with adrenaline inevitably left a deep impression on the audience.
Amidst a cold joke about ketchup, their date came to an end.
The story of the gold watch begins.
When Christopher Walken appeared on screen to narrate the gold watch's past, many fans who had seen 'The Deer Hunter' couldn't help but laugh at Simon's dark humour, especially when Robert De Niro's character, Butch, appeared afterward, even eliciting laughter in the hall.
It's worth noting that in 'The Deer Hunter', Christopher Walken and Robert De Niro coincidentally played two Vietnam War POWs. This segment is entirely linked to 'The Deer Hunter', with Christopher Walken surviving the POW camp and then bringing back the gold watch that Butch's father had painstakingly preserved.
Apparently, Robert De Niro played his own father.
After Butch brutally killed his opponent in the boxing ring and began his escape, the audience, who had just been immersed in the 'Deer Hunter' reference, was immediately captivated by the stunning appearance of Esmeralda Villalobos on the big screen.
Inside the taxi, in just a few minutes of dialogue, Robert De Niro appeared completely at ease. Yet, the unknown actress, with her fluffy, dishevelled hair, pale face, cat-like lazy eyes, dangerously fiery red lips, and a strangely alluring accent that disarmed everyone, unconsciously captivated the attention of all the audience members.
Some film critics even subconsciously had a thought they were reluctant to admit: this completely unremarkable actress actually overshadowed Robert De Niro, who had already won two Oscars.
Perhaps Butch's range of expression wasn't extensive, but Esmeralda's beauty, strangeness, and danger in every move made her unforgettable at first glance.
Even after this scene ended, many were still savouring every detail of Esmeralda in the previous shots, hoping that this alluring taxi driver would reappear in subsequent plot developments.
This anticipation even affected the film's subsequent plot progression.
It wasn't until Butch killed Vincent and, after encountering the gangster boss, they were both kidnapped and brutally tortured, that the audience snapped out of the profound impression left by Esmeralda and redirected their attention back to the film's plot.