Chapter 455

Adriaan was right. The reason why the media were so calm was that they were waiting for the release of "Howard Manor." The trailer of the movie had been broadcast on major TV stations as early as when "To Know A Woman by Scent" earned 30 million dollars at the North American box office. Both the American and British media turned a blind eye to it and did not make any comments. It was interesting to see the controversy caused by the broadcast of the tango segment of "To Know A Woman by Scent."

Adriaan could more or less guess what these people were thinking. The trailer was well edited. Although it was only two minutes long, the characters, environment, and story were very consistent with the original novel. Hence, the American and British media were in a dilemma.

The American media was in a dilemma because the trailer was so consistent with the original novel. If the movie released was terrible, praising it now would be a slap in the face. There were countless movies with excellent trailers but terrible movies.

The British media were in a dilemma because the American kid could not really make a perfect Victorian-style movie, could he? Although the trailer was different from the actual movie, who knew what the final result would be?

More importantly, because of the controversy caused by the attack on Adriaan a few months ago, and the current tit-for-tat over "To Know A Woman by Scent," the media and even critics of the two countries wanted to determine the winner of "Howard Manor." Although this situation was caused by too many coincidences, it was undeniable that the cause of all this was Adriaan's desire to bring "Howard Manor" to the big screen.

Because of these reasons, and the fact that the release date of the movie was set for December 10th, both sides had been silent since Thanksgiving and were waiting for the release of the main movie.

It was the first time in Hollywood that the media of two countries had such a tacit understanding about a movie. Adriaan could not help but think so. However, he did not forget himself. Therefore, he remained calm and refused to mention "Howard Manor" before the day of its release. He even rejected the idea of the premiere. Based on the attention of the two countries' media, the publicity was enough. Besides, this was not a commercial movie based on the box office. Too much marketing was likely to be superfluous.

So, in a strange silence, it was December 10th, 1992.

"Howard Manor" was released in 600 cinemas in the United States in a low-key manner. Although 20th Century Fox, as the distributor, thought of a lot of ways, it was, after all, a niche movie with an artistic plot. The cinema owners could not allocate so many cinemas at the beginning!

However, what shocked countless people who were waiting for a good show was that even though the movie was very niche and only screened in 600 cinemas, the box office for the weekend was still 9 million USD! The total box office in the first week reached 10 million! It actually grabbed the tenth place in the North American box office during the Christmas period!

This number might not be enough for some blockbusters, but it was quite amazing for a niche movie. However, this situation did not happen because God wanted people to watch the movie. The feelings of the fans after watching the movie could be seen.

"I've always been interested in Adrian's movies. He's a genius, and he's always able to tell many interesting stories, but 'Howard Manor' disappointed me too much. It's flat and tasteless. There's neither passion nor ups and downs. It's a little better at the end, but it's completely illogical. If I'd known this, I wouldn't have come to watch it," a fan said in an interview.

"The main reason I went to the cinema was to see what kind of surprise Professor Hannibal and the genius director could bring us. But the result was quite disappointing. I have no idea why Adriaan would tell such a bland story. Professor Hannibal also completely lost the style that he should have. So disappointing! "This was the feeling of a fan who left the movie halfway through.

Of course, there were also people who applauded. A lecturer at Harvard University in Boston thought that Adriaan did a good job. "He completely grasped what the novel wanted to express and made the movie as exquisite as a work of art. I think Foster in heaven will be very happy to see Adriaan's adaptation of 'Howard Manor'."

Unfortunately, such people were in the minority. Most people expressed their disappointment with the movie. The reason could be summed up as: the plot was as slow as water, and there were basically no ups and downs that could attract the audience. Like the second fan, there were many people who left after watching two-thirds of the movie. Therefore, it was inevitable that some people would ridicule Adriaan for overdrawing his reputation.

However, even so, at the end of the second week, "Howard Manor" still secured a total box office of 10 million dollars! The total of two weeks was 20 million dollars. Basically, it was not a problem to recoup the cost.

This was another stunning result, but if you thought about it carefully, it was not surprising. First, because of the good opening in the first week, the number of cinemas increased to 1,000. Second, the reputation that Adriaan had accumulated since 1990, and so many amazing halos — in three years, he had participated in all three major European film festivals, not only winning, but also winning the Palme d'Or. Finally, he was the youngest Oscar nominee for Best Director — even if the fans heard about how ordinary "Howard Manor" was, they still could not help but watch it curiously.

Of course, in addition to the above two reasons, there was also the most important reason — the comments of the media and critics.

Contrary to the majority of the complaining fans, the American media basically praised and flattered the movie. When "Acquainting Women" was released, there were still 10 to 20 percent of critics who criticized it. Now, the proportion had shrunk to 1 percent, which meant that almost 99 percent of the critics had a positive attitude toward "Howard Manor." Of course, the tabloids, who always liked to sing a different tune or play to the gallery, were not among them.

"This is a very exquisite work. Adriaan firmly grasped the emotions that Forster wanted to express in the novel and perfectly transformed them into images and sound. Yes, the plot of the movie is very ordinary and boring, and there is no place that can fully arouse the audience's emotions. But it is this kind of ordinary that is the true essence of the novel and the movie. Only in this kind of ordinary can we see what the movie really wants to say — the oppressive, heavy, and estranged things! No one thought that Adriaan could really successfully bring 'Howard Manor' to the screen. Those who laughed at and doubted him can now shut their mouths. "

Kevin James, The New York Times

"To be frank, I never thought that such an exquisite, authentic Victorian-style movie would come from the hands of an American director. From 'Two Smoking Pipes' to the present, Adriaan always surprises people. Unlike Forster's other novels, love is only an embellishment in 'Howard Manor.' It is more of a discussion about life, society, and class. Henry is not a good person, but he is not a bad person either. His pursuit of Margaret is real, and his coldness towards his ex-lover is also real. He looks down on the poor and thinks that the poor are poor. Margaret, on the other hand, is gentle and reserved, trying her best to smooth out this awkward relationship.

The acting skills of the three main actors are very good. Anthony's excellent performance makes him completely different from last year's Professor Hannibal. As for Margaret, although Emma Thompson is a little livelier than in the novel, it does not hurt her acting skills. She is the best actress in the movie. Kate Beckinsale also deeply portrays the sensitive and passionate Helen, but sometimes she uses too much force and seems a little deliberate. She is not as skilled as Anthony and Emma.

In short, Adriaan has surprised me again. I really hope there will be more surprises like this in the future. "

Famous film critic Roger Ebert

In short, the mainstream American media was full of praise. Many people subtly declared that this was a victory for the American director. Roger Ebert was not stingy with his famous thumbs up for "Howard Manor." It was very interesting to think about the contradictory feelings that Americans had towards the British.

So, how did the British media react to the release of "Howards End"? Although the release time was the same in the United Kingdom and the United States, all the media and critics were unanimously silent for three days after the release. This was because they really did not know what to say. This was the same situation when they criticized Adriaan's "Howard Manor" and the American media avoided the topic. However, at that time, the American media could more or less talk about other things, but at this moment, the British media did not know what to say.

Praise? That was equivalent to slapping themselves in the face. Many people still remember the reports from half a year ago. Nitpicking? Don't joke around. Although every movie wasn't perfect, there were still ways to nitpick. Don't forget how many countries were watching the British now.

A French critic who had been concerned about the attack went to London to see "Howard Manor", and when he returned to Paris, he praised the film in a column. He even claimed that if the film had also participated in the Cannes Film Festival in May, it would be one of the strongest contenders for the Palme d'Or.

Such comments immediately aroused the curiosity of many French people. After all, Adriaan had won the Palme d'Or for "Pulp Fiction." Many critics and some "artistic" directors also went to London to watch the film.

In the face of such a situation, if one wanted to nitpick, one had to be careful. Otherwise, one would only become a laughing stock. He had already been slapped hard by the American kid. Did he have to slap himself with the same force now?