Chapter 351: Another Success

Chapter 351: Chapter 351: Another Success

Camera 3’s panoramic shot captured the scene: rain pouring down, spray flying everywhere, a chaotic crowd surrounding the embracing couple, their silhouettes outlined by the backlight, sparks from clashing weapons flickering around them. The imagery was incredibly impactful.

Irene Coppola stared at the monitor, focusing on the close-up of Keira Knightley’s face: "Very good, that look is spot on! Let’s do another take. This time, the moment Will Turner kisses her, have Barbossa knock out the enemy next to him with a bottle scattered on the ground to increase the dramatic tension!"

This scene was filmed from eleven o’clock at night until five in the morning, repeated nearly twenty times, all to capture the most authentic footage.

Irene Coppola stood in front of the monitor the entire time without a moment’s rest, occasionally calling for a stop to adjust lighting angles, sometimes personally demonstrating fighting moves and facial expressions for the actors, and even running out into the rain onto the deck to adjust the positions of the extras, ensuring the chaotic scene was realistic without overshadowing the main action.

When the final take was completed, she looked at the footage on the monitor and finally revealed a satisfied smile: "Perfect! That’s a wrap! All departments, pack up the equipment. Actors, go change your clothes first and drink some ginger tea to warm up. Don’t catch a cold!"

By now, Irene Coppola was completely soaked. Her waterproof jacket could not withstand six continuous hours of heavy rain. Her hair was stuck to her cheeks, her lips were frozen purple, and her voice sounded hoarse.

An assistant handed her a cup of hot ginger tea. She took it and drank a sip. The warmth spread down her throat, yet it could not mask the exhaustion from days of filming through the night. "Send the footage from just now to the editing room immediately. Have them do a rough cut. I’ll watch it when I go back tonight."

She instructed her assistant, then took off her soaked jacket, revealing the black T-shirt underneath, which was stained with some mud and wooden prop splinters.

It was already eight o’clock in the morning when Irene Coppola returned to the hotel where the crew was staying.

Pushing open the door, she didn’t even have time to take off her shoes before collapsing onto the sofa, wanting nothing more than to close her eyes and rest for a moment.

For half a month straight, she had been sleeping an average of only four hours a day, either working overtime to film or watching rough cuts. The sequel to Pirates of the Caribbean had been filming for six full months since April, and compared to any other commercial blockbuster, this duration wasn’t considered long.

What primarily exhausted Irene Coppola was that the special effects for At World’s End were just too numerous and complex.

Especially the giant whirlpool sea battle they were currently filming, a total money pit, yet this segment was the most indispensable part of the entire film. If Irene Coppola were to slack off and simplify it, the visual effects would suffer greatly, which was something she was unwilling to see.

Fortunately, Jerry had stepped in to stabilize both Fox and Disney, and she had saved on some actor salary expenses early on. Even so, the production costs were still terrifyingly high. Even though she was confident that the box office would be a huge hit, she still inevitably felt immense pressure.

Just as she was about to fall asleep, her phone suddenly vibrated frantically, and a string of messages popped up on the screen, all from Robert.

Fighting off her drowsiness, she opened the messages. The first thing that caught her eye was a screenshot of box office data: Saw opening day box office: 12.8 million dollars.

Irene Coppola’s drowsiness instantly vanished. She sat up straight and swiped her fingers quickly across the screen.

Robert’s messages popped up one after another: "Irene Coppola, the box office exploded! It premiered in 800 theaters in North America, with an average attendance of over 80 people per screening and a seat occupancy rate as high as 95%. The single-day box office is 12.8 million dollars, far exceeding our expectation of 5 million dollars! You have to know we haven’t even fully exerted our efforts yet. The number of theaters can still increase, and by then the box office will surely double!"

Following that was a summary of audience reception: "Rotten Tomatoes freshness rating is 87%, audience score is 4.7/5! Most audience members are praising the film’s plot twists and horror atmosphere, especially gamers, who have given it unanimous five-star reviews! Some say ’the foreshadowing in the game is fully echoed in the movie.

The puzzle-solving process is like reliving the game, it’s such a pleasant surprise,’ others say ’Jigsaw’s image is even more terrifying than in the game, and the final twist was completely unpredictable.’

Some viewers even posted long essays analyzing details in the movie after watching it a second time, saying ’every prop hides a clue. It is truly worthy of a work chosen by Irene Coppola’!"

Robert also attached several screenshots from social media: On Facebook, the topic Saw has surged to the number one trending search, with related discussions exceeding 500,000 posts.

On Twitter, the hashtag #SawTheMovie has been crazily retweeted, with many viewers posting photos of their movie ticket stubs with the caption "A must-watch for gamers, a new benchmark for horror movies".

On Google, the search volume for "Saw online tickets" has skyrocketed by 1200%, and many theater chains have proactively contacted us, requesting to increase screening times.

"There are also reviews from film critics. Although we didn’t invite many due to the subject matter limitations, most have given positive evaluations! A critic from the Los Angeles Times said ’Saw uses a low budget to film a high-standard sense of horror.

The plot is tight, the twists are constant, and the linkage mode between game and movie is extremely innovative’. Horror Movie Weekly evaluated it as ’Jigsaw’s character molding can be called classic. The design of the mechanical voice and the escape room traps is hair-raising, making it the most surprising horror movie of 2003’!"

Irene Coppola looked at these messages, and a long-lost smile appeared on her exhausted face.

The facts proved that she had once again achieved success. The viral spread of the Facebook game turned Saw from an obscure independent film into a widely discussed topic of national conversation.

She picked up her phone and replied to Robert: "Well done! Contact the theater chains immediately and strive to expand to 1,200 theaters by next week. Shift promotional resources towards Saw and push the three points: ’game easter eggs,’ ’plot twists,’ and ’high acclaim.’ Additionally, notify director James Wan to prepare for media interviews. We must strike while the iron is hot and build this movie into the beginning of a franchise IP."

Putting down her phone, Irene Coppola walked to the bathroom and ran a bath.

She rubbed her throbbing temples. Although she had been working continuously for over ten hours and her body was exhausted to the extreme, the passion in her heart was boiling.

She knew this was just the beginning. In her mind, she involuntarily replayed the audience reviews of Saw she had just read, thought of those players crazy about the game for William, remembered Robert’s nervousness and anticipation at the premiere, and also remembered every instance of persistence she had shown on the filming set.

As a director and as the helm of Future World Pictures, every one of her decisions concerned the fate of the team and the success or failure of the work.

After the bath, she felt her tight muscles were not as stiff anymore. Irene Coppola wrapped herself in a bath towel, walked out of the bathroom, set her alarm for 12 o’clock, and prepared to rest for a while before going to watch the rough cuts in the afternoon.