It was released in more than 3,000 theaters on the first weekend and only made 10.35 million US dollars at the box office. It has to be said that this is a very poor start for Shao Shuaijun's film when it was released in North America. If the reputation were not very good, almost so good that it was almost a hit, this would be a sequel.
Another failure after "The Nighthawks".
Originally, "Pumping Heart" was a movie that attracted a lot of attention. After all, it was supported by Shao Shuaijun's golden name. The media that originally praised it immediately changed its direction.
"With good reviews but no box office success, "Heartbeat" suffered an embarrassment, and the theater circuit may be significantly reduced in the second week." - "Hollywood Movie Report".
"The magic of fresh movies is no longer there, and Shao Shuaijun encounters his second Waterloo." - "Chicago Post".
"The movie "Heartbeat" is no longer exciting at the box office, and Summer's miracle is over." - film website.
From the United States to the world, the news of the box office failure of "Heartbeat" blew up like a storm. Shao Shuaijun, who has received the most attention in recent years and is known as the next generation king of the world, finally faced another setback in life.
.Jealous people will naturally clap their hands in celebration, while those who regard him as their idol will cover their faces with their hands.
In any case, the media is very busy.
Li Xiuxiu called immediately. She was the one who originally requested to shoot the movie.
"Husband, I'm sorry for causing you to fail at the box office."
Shao Shuaijun said nonchalantly: "I never thought about making money from the beginning. My wife, just rest assured and don't blame yourself. Don't look at what the media is advocating all day long about box office failure, loss of money, etc. In fact, the cost of movies is low.
Promotional expenses are also low. Just the box office in the United States plus follow-up revenue will be able to protect the capital. Maybe the overseas box office will not be able to do the same, but DVD sales should be able to make a fortune."
"But you still got some bad comments on your back." Li Xiuxiu was still a little worried.
"It doesn't matter. I'll be able to get rid of it after I accept the interview. It's not the media that has the final say. Don't you think my film was excellent? The audience agreed after watching it." Shao Shuaijun said with a smile.
"There are no bad movies made by my husband. I like "Pumping Heart" very much."
"Haha, uh-huh, I will tell the media tomorrow that I took this photo for my wife to see. It doesn't matter if I make money or not. What matters is that my wife is happy to see it."
"Husband, you are so kind to me."
"Then let's do it."
To comfort Li Xiuxiu and to further promote the movie, Shao Shuaijun accepted an interview with two of the largest newspapers in Hollywood, "The Hollywood Reporter" and "Variety", as well as his own Summit Video.
In a seating area of a coffee shop in Hollywood, Shao Shuaijun and several reporters sat across from each other.
"The box office of "Heartbeat" is not very satisfactory. How does Director Shao view this problem?" The reporter from "Variety Show" is a beautiful woman and started the conversation without hesitation.
Shao Shuaijun said with a smile: "From the beginning, I didn't have high expectations for the box office performance of "Heartbeat". For me, neither "500 Days with Summer" nor this one has been watched.
There are too many commercial potentials. I hope to use these two movies to leave the audience with some beautiful memories about love and growth. After everyone watches it and says "good", then my goal will be achieved."
A reporter from "The Hollywood Reporter" followed closely: "Director Shao, if your director career is divided by "The Nighthawks", before "The Nighthawks", you had an absolutely magical aura in the Chinese film market.
All movies are blockbusters, and after "The Nighthawks", the movies you made have acquired a global magical aura. Now that "Heartbeat" has ended such a halo, do you feel discouraged?"
"This magic halo of box office is too exaggerated. I have always regarded myself as a commercial director, but I am not a director who only focuses on box office. I think no matter how great the box office is, you must first have a story worth savoring and a story worth watching.
The emotion of aftertaste.”
Shao Shuaijun leaned back in his chair casually, looking very free and easy: "Before filming "Pumping Heart", I had many commercial film plans, but I rejected them or postponed them. Because I just wanted to shoot such a pure film.
The story of love, in fact, I have never felt that the movies I make must make money. "The Night Watcher" did not make any money, and its reputation was not good. "Pumping Heartbeat" had 10.35 million in its first weekend, plus the previous ones that were screened one after another
The box office of 3.2 million, as well as the subsequent box office, copyright transactions, DVD sales, etc., will no longer make a loss. It has a good reputation, which is a success, and of course I will not be discouraged."
"As a commercial director, why don't you pursue box office and instead focus on telling stories?"
Shao Shuaijun laughed: "When I was in China, the domestic media called me a director who can tell stories. For our habits, the best way to call a director is not to say that he is a director who can make money, or that he is a director who can make money.
He is a director who makes literary and artistic films, but it means that this director can tell stories. If the story is well told, it is the highest state. Whether a commercial director or a director of artistic films, they all pursue storytelling, and I am the same."
"You will no longer pursue box office in the future?"
"I have never been a director who pursues box office."
"How do you say that?"
"If I want to pursue box office, it's actually very simple. You know I need a lot of creativity. "Twilight" was the copyright that I purchased in my own name four years ago. I knew at that time that "Twilight" would be a big hit.
It was sold, but in the end I didn’t shoot it. “The Hangover” years ago was also my idea, and I didn’t direct it. I have always felt that as a director, I am not easy-going or humble. In other words, I am a very
I am a stubborn person, I have a lot of bad tempers, or inexplicable thoughts."
Shao Shuaijun waved his hand and strengthened his tone: "I am the kind of director who chooses what to shoot according to his own preferences. If I like it, I will shoot it. If I don't like it very much, even if it is a good movie, I will
I don’t want to shoot. Just like many people have been asking me, why do you never shoot a sequel? When I was in China, whether it was "Crazy Stone" or "Source Code" or "Painted Skin", many people wanted me to
Filming a sequel.”
"Then why not shoot?"
"Because I think the first part of a movie is made because you have a lot of ideas to tell, and it will be very passionate and full of a sense of struggle. When you make a sequel, what you want to say will be finished in the first part.
, you no longer have to say whatever you want, you have to connect with the first one and cater to such a plot, thus sacrificing many aspects. So I rarely shoot sequels. I hope to start with a sloppy beginning.
After saying what you want to say, you can leave the rest to others to complete. Or you can just come up with a big plan, like Nolan's Batman or Lucas's Star Wars, which can be covered in several movies.
It should be in the form of a story, rather than continuing it in a hurry just to make money at the box office." Shao Shuaijun boasted vigorously.
"Do you think there is a reason for this? You have become famous, have a huge career, and have enough capital to do what you want to do, so you can strive for more excellence in shooting, and be able to put aside commercial factors and be yourself.
What do you want to do?”
"There may be a reason for this. In the past, I was afraid of losing money when making movies, and was afraid of losing my wealth and losing everything. But now that you have achieved a certain degree of commercial success, when you can squander this kind of resources at will, it's really, really difficult.
It’s hard to maintain your original attitude, and before you know it, you want to try something other than money.”
"Does this mean that you will no longer take the commercial director route in the future?"
Shao Shuaijun shook his head: "How should I put it? In the past, it was to position myself. Now I don't need to position myself. I can just shoot as I like."
"We know that Director Shao's shooting speed is very fast. In less than five years, nine films have been released. After "Heartbeat", are there any new plans? Can you disclose the direction? No more
Is it a pure love theme?"
"You must not know how many plans I have this year. There are several scripts collected by Summit Entertainment, all of which I want to film. But I don't know which one I should choose. I had previously hoped to produce "The Hunger Games".
Said, this is another commercial production that is not inferior to "The Twilight Saga". The script, shots, etc. are almost ready, but sometimes you don’t have to shoot a good movie yourself. If you shoot everything yourself, my
The plan can be scheduled until at least 2020, haha. So, I am also choosing what to shoot next."
"Can you tell me, is it a big production?"
"I'm not sure about this, haha, but I think if nothing else happens, my next few works will all take a commercial route. As for the themes, they span comedy, fantasy and science fiction." Shao Shuaijun said with a smile.
He is currently hesitating among three projects, "Teddy Bear", "Rise of the Planet of the Apes" and "The Hunger Games". In his memory, the box office of these three movies is about the same. Moreover, the box office and reputation of the three movies are good, as long as they are made
Both can achieve huge fame and profits. He wants to film both, he just doesn’t know which one to film first.
In fact, in terms of long-term planning, "The Hunger Games" should be postponed. As the pillar series to succeed "The Twilight Saga", we should continue to develop youth-themed movies. But "The Hunger Games" Shao Shuaijun has been fully prepared, so he is afraid of delays
If it takes too long, the previous inspiration will run away.
"Rise of the Planet of the Apes" is a science fiction movie. If it is filmed now, it can revitalize the entire "Planet of the Apes" series and continuously unearth new works.
It doesn't matter when "Teddy Bear" is shot, but the advantage is that this movie is very simple. Except for the special effects production of a teddy bear, there are no challenges. If it is a challenge, the filming can be completed in a month and then post-production will be carried out.
Don't delay anything.
Shao Shuaijun has not decided yet which one to choose for filming.
Without further entanglement in this aspect, we talked about the plot and behind-the-scenes of "Pumping Heart" again, and the interview ended here.
On the other hand, after the box office failure in the first week, the theater chain for the next week has been confirmed to be reduced to 2,458 theaters.
The dream of high box office is gone.
But if it can move the audience, Shao Shuaijun feels it's worth it.
At least I can still say confidently: "I have passed the period of making movies for money..." (To be continued. Please search Piao Tian Literature, the novel will be better and updated faster!)
