重點整理一下消息來源The Hollywood Reporter的原文:
http://tinyurl.com/jucy4ls
1.
Yet if the villain team-up ultimately works — and it has drawn some harsh
early reviews — it will be in spite of the kind of behind-the-scenes drama
that is becoming typical for giant franchise movies that now are the main
focus of the studio business: a production schedule engineered to meet an
ambitious release date; a director, David Ayer (Fury), untested in making
tentpole movies; and studio executives, brimming with anxiety, who are ready
to intercede forcefully as they attempt to protect a branded asset.
本片幕後的勾心角力十分嚴重。
製作大趕進度、
導演大衛艾亞從未拍過暑期商業大片、
片商高層積極插手干預。
2.
A source with ties to the project says it was a sprint from the start. "[Ayer]
wrote the script in like, six weeks, and they just went," he says, arguing
that the whole process would have benefited if Ayer, 48, had been given more time to work
大衛艾亞只有六週時間可以寫出劇本。
3.
In Ayer, Warners enlisted a director who had never made a giant,
effects-packed action movie. Hiring filmmakers who lack such experience is
the trend, and it's often out of necessity. "There are a lot of people who
don't want to direct those movies and that's a huge problem," says one
producer with franchise experience. "A lot of the proven guys are
back-to-back with their stuff, or they want to develop it for five years, and
there's a machine that has to be fed. And there's the economics."
現在超級英雄電影都在雇用沒什麼拍攝大片經驗的導演,
因為有名導演都不想碰超級英雄電影,再加上片酬太高。
所以片商只好找上比較欠缺經驗的導演,
而此舉有時候會成功,有時則不。
4.
A source with knowledge of events says Warners executives, nervous from the
start, grew more anxious after they were blindsided and deeply rattled by the
tepid response to BvS. "Kevin was really pissed about damage to the brand,"
says one executive close to the studio. A key concern for Warners executives
was that Suicide Squad didn't deliver on the fun, edgy tone promised in the
strong teaser trailer for the film. So while Ayer pursued his original
vision, Warners set about working on a different cut, with an assist from
Trailer Park, the company that had made the teaser.
華納高層對BvS出乎意料之外的負評感到震驚而慌了手腳,
華納董事長兼執行長Kevin辻原對DC品牌受傷感到很不爽。
華納高層覺得《自殺突擊隊》沒有像預告那樣歡樂又鮮明,
所以當大衛艾亞在處理自己的版本時,
華納找來剪接本片前導預告的公司Trailer Park,
另外剪了一個版本。
5.
In May, Ayer's more somber version and a lighter, studio-favored version were
tested with audiences in Northern California. "If there are multiple opinions
that aren't in sync, you go down multiple tracks — two tracks at least,"
says an insider. "That was the case here for a period of time, always trying
to get to a place where you have consensus." Those associated with the film
insist Ayer agreed to and participated in the process. Once feedback on the
two versions was analyzed, it became clear it was possible to get to "a very
common-ground place." (The studio-favored version with more characters
introduced early in the film and jazzed-up graphics won.) Getting to that
place of consensus, however, required millions of dollars worth of additional
photography.
在今年五月,
大衛艾亞比較黑暗的版本,
以及片商屬意的輕鬆版本,
在北加州進行觀眾測試。
內線人士表示,
雙方一直在協調彼此之間的意見不合。
最終電影版本是導演版與片商版中間的妥協版,
並由片商版佔上風。
片商版在電影前半段介紹了更多角色出場,
在影像上也比較生動活潑。
而為了取得妥協,片商花了數百萬美金來重拍。
6.
Other sources describe a fraught process — one cites "a lot of panic and ego
instead of calmly addressing the tonal issue." Clearly all wasn't sitting
right with Ayer, who in June suddenly dropped his longtime agent at CAA and
defected to WME, though the agency won him back in a day. "He was under a lot
— a lot — of pressure," says one person with knowledge of the situation,
arguing that Ayer was exhausted and needed time to process conflicting ideas.
在協調電影調性的過程中,
出現了很多恐慌與自信問題,
而不是雙方坐下來冷靜討論。
飽受壓力的大衛艾亞也在今年六月突然離開自己的經紀人,
不過在一天之後又被勸回去了。
7.
Just weeks before the two versions were tested, Warners declined to ante up
for Ayer's next project, Bright, which will reunite him with Squad star Will
Smith. He ended up at Netflix, which made a staggering $90 million deal.
華納當時也拒絕開拍由大衛艾亞跟威爾史密斯再續前緣的新片《Bright》,
電影最後被Netflix所簽下。
8.
Even on the day of the premiere, one insider fretted about whether Suicide
Squad would mirror BvS' huge opening and weak legs. Another veteran says the
goal is survival: "The movie's got to do $750 million, $800 million to break
even. If they get anywhere close to that, they'll consider it a win."
業界人士正在交頭接耳,
猜測SS會不會跟BvS一樣首週狂賣、次週暴跌。
有人說華納目前只想從中倖存:
本片需要賣到7.5~8億美金才能打平。
只要能盡量賣近這個數字,
華納就會燒香拜佛了。
PS:
現任華納董事長兼執行長Kevin辻原是在2013年才上任的,
也是好萊塢龍頭片商中的第一位亞裔大頭目,
他現年才51歲,相當年輕。
而華納旗下的搖錢樹《黑暗騎士》三部曲、《哈利波特》系列電影,
都是在前任董事長Barry Meyer任內完成的,
Barry Meyer在《地心引力》推出後便告老還鄉。
而目前正在票房上大獲全勝的迪士尼影業,
現任董事長Alan F. Horn當時正是Barry Meyer底下的華納總裁兼營運長。
換句話說,華納當時以《黑暗騎士》、《哈利波特》所取得的成功,
Alan F. Horn自然功不可沒。
而當他在2012年以68歲高齡轉戰迪士尼之後,
這份成功也跟著一同轉移至迪士尼了。
雙方如今相比之下,實在不勝唏噓。