Chapter 143: Chainsaw Opening Shot

  Facing the old theater veteran Max, who was about to listen to the script story, Yifei Yang straightened up his spirit and said in a tone similar to that of a radio horror story: "Really want to hear it? The story is about to begin, but before it starts, I suggest you'd better have a sip of whiskey to calm your nerves, because this story will be very terrifying."

  Old Max wouldn't fall for that, "Oh buddy, stop bullshitting and get to the point already, I'm getting impatient."

  "Cough, okay then... let's begin." Yi Feiyang cleared his throat and spoke in a deep, mysterious tone: "Fate won't favor anyone unless a miracle happens to them, but such miracles can often be terrifying stories..."

  "A man named Adam suddenly woke up to find himself submerged in a bathtub, unable to see his fingers. Shortly after, he discovered another person in the bathroom. When the other person found the light switch and turned on the lights, Adam realized they were both trapped in a locked room. The other person claimed to be Dr. Gordon, and both of their feet were shackled with thick iron chains. On the floor of the locked room lay a large pool of blood, where a man had succumbed to poisoning and shot himself. Adam found a rusty saw, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't cut through the chains. What should he do? Should he use the saw to cut off his own leg in order to escape?"

  No wonder, Yi Feiyang has a great talent for storytelling, especially the ups and downs of his tone, which is very attractive. Thanks to his past life, he liked listening to pingshu, such as "The Legend of Yue Fei" and "Yang's Generals", which were all good opportunities to hone his eloquence.

  "Oh. Who locked Adam in here? What kind of sick person comes up with this to do to Adam? What are they trying to do? And what is Adam going to do? Cut off his own legs? My God. Is that the only way to escape?" Max's face, easily prone to drama, contorted in shock. He leaned forward involuntarily, as if expecting to see the answer on Yifeng's face.

  At this time, James returned with cash, entered the house, and saw Yifei Yang and Max playing deeply. He didn't want to disturb them, so he sat aside and poured himself a glass of whiskey, observing the surroundings.

  "Has the money been exchanged?" Yifeng Yang suddenly asked him.

  James Wynn, who was drinking, coughed. "Cough, yes, I've exchanged them, they're all here." He handed $1,000 to Yifei Yang. Yifei Yang pushed it to Max, "This is your reward, the reward for making those props."

  "Oh, for God's sake, never mind those damned bonuses, get on with it, what's this wild story of yours?" Max exclaimed.

  Yi Feiyang smiled slightly and then carefully recounted the following plot. Yi Feiyang's eloquence was not bad, and with James Wen's occasional detailed supplements, the whole story immediately became vivid, leaving Max entranced.

  "My goodness, what a wonderful story! It's even more thrilling than Edgar Allan Poe's bizarre tales. Yes, I love this story, it's just to my taste..." Max said with relish.

  It's clear that this story has drawn him in.

  "So, what kind of message do you want to convey through this film?" Max, of course, was not an ordinary audience who would be deeply immersed in a horror story. He noticed something more profound.

  "Well, dear Max, the story is actually quite simple. I just hope that the audience watching the film can feel the beauty and meaning of life amidst all the bloodshed and screams."

  "Oh? To feel the beauty of life in bloodiness? I'm getting more and more confused the more I listen! Can horror movies also be educational propaganda films? This is really an interesting thing." Max burst out laughing loudly, dispelling his previous depression.

  "In fact, any film should have a certain realistic significance. Only when it touches the depths of one's soul can your movie truly move people's hearts." Yì Fēi Yáng said tactfully.

  "For example, romance films often illustrate that true love is priceless and cannot be replaced by anything; science fiction films mostly depict the significance brought about by technology to humans, but most of them are disastrous. As for police and gangster films, it's even more so - generally, good triumphs over evil, with justice always prevailing over wickedness. As for horror films that we shoot, they aim to tell people, amidst the horror, to be a good person, speak the truth, and not easily harm others... cherish life, as it only comes once."

  "Well, how to put it, these words are too popular and too educational, I'm an old bone, not interested in these... but what interests me is, how much is my pay for this film?"

  "Oh?" Yi Feiyang was taken aback for a moment, just starting to hear Max say "not interested", Yi Feiyang thought this thing was over, didn't expect...

  "As for the remuneration, our company's current situation is not too good so..."

  "Alright, you don't have to say anything else!" Before Yifei Yang could finish speaking, Max handed the $1000 back to him and said: "I don't want a salary, I just want a share of the box office profits. Yes, I want a share! This $1000, plus my salary, will be considered an investment! You little brat, you must make this movie well, or else I'll lose big!"

  Yi Feiyang was taken aback again, but immediately came to his senses and smiled happily: "Don't worry, old Max, I'll definitely make this play very well!"

  "I believe in you, young man, because my happiness for the rest of my life is all bet on this play!" Max exclaimed with enthusiasm, "Come on, young man, let's create a miracle again!"

  ……

  News of DreamWorks' horror film spread like wildfire and immediately caused a stir throughout Hollywood.

  "China is ready to return to horror themes, 'Saw' will inevitably fight for the summer file!" --- Hollywood's "New Movie Times" reported.

  "Horror movie coordinates, Shang-Chi director again helms a thriller, can Saw bring him glory?" --- Los Angeles Entertainment Weekly reports.

  "Whether 'Chainsaw' is based on the Texas Chainsaw Massacre, we don't know, but one thing's for sure: this summer, the chainsaw will kill again!" --- US Weekly Entertainment News.

  ……

  "China will once again play a joke, electric saws will only become a laughing stock. They won't become classics!"

  "The magic of Yang is no longer magical. Copying the electric saw murder method is despicable!"

  "Although the movie has not been released yet, just from the name, it's a bad film!"

  ……

  Yi Feiyang has gotten used to the polarized comments in Hollywood, for him, these damn comments are nothing but crap, they're just something those crappy journalists come up with by racking their brains to make a living.

  Poor paparazzi, pitiful journalist.

  Yi Feiyang is indifferent to the media and public opinion, but James Wen, who is a deputy director for the first time, can't help being affected by these opinions. He asked Yi Feiyang more than once, "Boss, can we succeed?"

  Yi Feiyang encouraged him, "In this world, there is no such thing as success or failure, as long as we try our best."

  After painstaking efforts, Yi Feiyang revised the script repeatedly according to James-Wynn, Rabbit Bill and Fat Jack's opinions. The current Chainsaw Horror focuses more on suspenseful thrills and ups and downs, making it impossible for the audience to escape from the screen from the first minute.

  This revised film has completely broken away from the limitations of a general horror movie. It's more like a role-playing game, not only telling the development of the case from the victim's point of view, but also allowing the audience to experience the pain with the victim through this perspective, and desperately searching for clues with the victim, using their brains to try to escape, and various unexpected elements evoke infinite terror.

  The shooting location was set in a long-abandoned warehouse that hadn't been swept for ages, which was found with the help of Old Black Dad. The layout was almost identical to the opening scene of that movie in Yifei Yang's mind.

  Black Daddy has been in a bad mood these days. After helping Yi Feiyang shoot several plays, Black Daddy regarded himself as "Bo Le" and from time to time stretched out his hand to help Yi Feiyang deal with some trivial matters, making Yi Feiyang feel grateful.

  He just said, "Although I am not a person of the film industry, my soul is tied to your movies. From now on, if there's anything, just speak up."

  The old black man's refreshing and righteous, admirable to the extreme. On this basis, he even treats Dream Factory as his own home, eating, drinking, and shitting all here. Occasionally, he also takes some company things out to sell, such as posters, souvenirs, and special props used in filming, including the ermine cloak worn by Stormi, and long boots...

  For the black old dad being so familiar, it made the fat housekeeper Gaojiabao feel annoyed, and directly listed the black old dad as a "negative asset" that may surge at any time in the financial report.

  To avoid any unexpected situations, Yi Feiyang carefully gathered together Rabbit Bill, Fatty Jack, photographer Cindy, makeup artist Miqi, and lighting engineer Charlie, and held a mobilization meeting to get them to help with the filming of this play.

  Under Yifeiyang's call, the staff were busy setting up the venue. They would try their best to turn this abandoned warehouse into a slaughterhouse.

  Yi Feiyang brought his director's assistant, James Wen, with him, who was also Yi Feiyang's newly recruited apprentice. With a somewhat pretentious air of being a master, he introduced to him all the procedures for filming.

  You must teach this apprentice well, let him become famous all over the world, and when that happens, you will also become a famous director's "master". What does that represent? It represents that you will become a grand master in the directing world!

  Someone is shamelessly daydreaming.

  ……

  "Hey, dear Wen! Look at this, it's our company's latest acquisition - a camera! This thing cost your master me a pretty penny... Just look at its sleek design and beautiful appearance, it's almost breathtakingly beautiful... Trust me, when you operate it, it will surely listen to you obediently and help you take perfect shots!" Yì Fēi Yáng said, pointing to the carefully placed black 35mm film camera in the corner, speaking to his apprentice James-Wen.

  "Remember, being a director is like being a swordsman or a knife expert. The camera is our weapon and we must love it, cherish it. Only then can we achieve unity with it when using it... Do you know Xiaoli Feidao? He's the one who says 'Xiaoli Tanhua, example not in vain'. Why was he able to master the flying knife technique so perfectly? There's only one reason: he is the flying knife, and the flying knife is him!"

  Although James Wen is of Chinese descent, he doesn't usually watch martial arts films and only knows a little about Gu Long, so many of Yifeng's words are undoubtedly like playing the zither to a cow.

  James Wen listened dazedly, and Yi Feiyang also lost interest in his lengthy teachings. He waved his hand and said, "Alright, you should familiarize yourself with these things first. Don't be completely clueless, or how can you come out and hang out with me?"

  "Got it, Master! I'll study hard!" James-Wen seemed very humble.

  Yi Feiyang nodded and walked towards a nearby place, with James Wen asking behind him, "Master, where are you going?"

  Yi Feiyang turned back deeply and said, "I'm going to Xixi... how about it, want to go together?"

  James Wen: "!!!!!!"

  "Cough cough, never mind then. I'll just take a look at the script first."

  Yi Feiyang shook his head and said, "Alas, students who have drunk foreign ink are different, they don't even follow the rules for urinating..."