Chapter 41

In terms of promoting the movie, Chen Tian had no constructive suggestions and could only leave it to the experienced DreamWorks to handle. Katzenberg had previously orchestrated media hype around the conflicts among the three major figures and had promoted "The Sixth Sense," with good results.

Now that the movie's release date was set for August, they had ample time for promotion.

During this period, Chen Tian had already obtained a U.S. green card, securing permanent residency. This green card, which others found difficult to obtain, was approved shortly after he reported that he had directed a $30 million movie. The Immigration Bureau even asked if he wanted to change his nationality, but he declined.

With the green card, the issue of overstaying due to visa expiration was resolved.

Free from worries, he decided to travel the world with Kate. They set off immediately, carrying a DV and a camera, filming along the way and capturing many breathtaking scenes.

The trip was also a way to scout locations for his next movie.

The first movie he downloaded, "Salvation," was free. The second movie required nearly 900M of data to download, plus the occasional data usage for research. He saved up for five months until the New Year to complete the download of this long-desired movie, which consumed 1.45G of data, the smallest version available. Any smaller would have been unclear and not conducive to viewing.

By March 1998, he still had 780M of data left, not enough to download the sequel.

With nothing else to do, he went out to travel. He spent over two months traveling, even missing the release of "Saving Private Ryan."

If it weren't for Kate's movies "Disco Inferno" and "Alice in Wonderland" being released one after another, they wouldn't have planned to return.

Upon returning to the U.S., they immediately felt the atmosphere surrounding "Saving Private Ryan." This summer belonged to "Saving Private Ryan," with box office numbers soaring and critical acclaim pouring in.

"Titanic" was still in theaters, even topping the box office charts, but its weekly millions in revenue could no longer significantly impact the new hit "Saving Private Ryan." Instead, "Titanic" had sparked a movie-going craze among American audiences, indirectly benefiting "Saving Private Ryan," whose box office performance exceeded expectations.

Chen Tian was well aware that as the top-grossing movie of 1998 in the U.S., "Saving Private Ryan" had enormous box office potential.

The media once proclaimed, "No more WWII after Spielberg," which surprised the crew, "This saying seems familiar."

"Action scenes are a crucial part of action movies, with intense content, rapid camera movements, explosive sound effects, and bloody scenes, all of which make your adrenaline surge. American director Sam Fuller, who directed classic war films, once said: 'A true war film makes the audience feel as if someone is shooting at them!' Years later, Steven Spielberg interpreted this with his unique artistic language." The Los Angeles Times was full of praise.

"Unlike most of my friends, I'm not a big fan of war movies. To be frank, I used to be indifferent to them. I often couldn't understand why they would get so excited and talk endlessly about war-themed works. This film completely changed my view. It was from this film that I began to understand the human element in war movies.

"The main reason I watched this film was its universally praised reputation, winning the hearts of both critics and audiences. WWII veterans called it the most realistic and impactful portrayal of WWII ever made.

"So, with a sense of reverence, I began this unique viewing experience.

"When the film ended, I felt a heaviness in my chest, a feeling I had never experienced before. It wasn't just the satisfaction and pleasure of watching a good movie; it was mixed with thought, shock, and a lingering impact, making one reflect deeply. People who are accustomed to peaceful and comfortable lives can no longer feel the panic and crisis of war times, nor do they spend much time exploring the good and evil in human nature during war."

Every review was positive, a flood of praise.

IMDb, the movie information website that Amazon had recently invested in and expanded, was gaining more influence.

The Top 250 Movies is a popular feature on IMDb, listing the 250 best movies of all time as voted by registered users. Only films released in theaters can be nominated, and users rate them on a scale from "1" (lowest) to "10" (highest). The final score is calculated using a mathematical formula.

To protect the results from malicious voting, the database uses data filtering mechanisms and a minimum vote threshold (currently 1250 votes) to achieve a "real Bayesian probability result." Only votes from "frequent voters" are counted, and the criteria for becoming such a user are kept confidential.

The list is notable for its broad range and occasional surprises, featuring both old and new films, popular and obscure works, and various genres.

Some films on the list, while not widely acclaimed, have a dedicated following among cinephiles (such as "The Shawshank Redemption" and "Donnie Darko"). "The Godfather" and "The Shawshank Redemption" have consistently ranked in the top two, with the only films scoring over 9.0.

However, "Saving Private Ryan," with its high score of 8.6, immediately secured a place in the top ten.

Many viewers, after watching the film, might wonder, "Should Ryan be saved? Is it worth sacrificing so many lives? Is Ryan the only one with a mother?" These questions provoke deep reflection.

"Should I save him?" This is a question of human nature.

"If you were Captain Miller, what would you do? Would you sacrifice your own men to save a stranger? Perhaps not, perhaps you would abandon the mission."

China has long debated whether human nature is inherently good or evil, a debate that has lasted for centuries. However, the conversation between Miller and Ryan by the bridge deeply reflects that one cannot escape their nature. Miller always tells Ryan to think more about home, perhaps the longer the war drags on, the more this method helps to find the humanity lost in war.

"In Miller, we see a noble quality, the unhesitating choice to give life to others and death to oneself in war."

Consistently brilliant and morally uplifting, this is the strength of Spielberg.

DreamWorks succeeded, and Spielberg once again proved himself. Enthusiastic fans have even hailed him as "Emperor Spielberg." The "Titanic" disaster of last year seems to be a thing of the past.

Chen Tian also succeeded. He hadn't planned to watch the movie again, as he was deeply involved in preparing for his next film. It was Kate who dragged him to see it. The film was slightly different from the original, but equally profound and brutal.

Kate was deeply moved, especially when the credits showed "Christmas-chen/Chen Tian" as the screenwriter and assistant director. She excitedly shook his arm. Chen Tian shrugged, "I prefer the second name."

He didn't know why the crew had added his Chinese name, perhaps to highlight that the script was written by a Chinese person, adding international appeal. Imagine, a Chinese person writing a story so admiring of American soldiers, how impressive.

Chen Tian knew this would likely draw criticism and insults from some narrow-minded nationalists, but he didn't care; he just wanted to make a living.

Thanks to its excellent reputation, "Saving Private Ryan," which hit theaters in May, was a huge success, grossing $30.57 million in its opening week. It topped the charts for four consecutive weeks and remained in theaters for nearly three months, accumulating a total of $216 million in the U.S. and enjoying global success. As an imported film in China, it also grossed 82.3 million yuan.

Considering the prices in 1998, this was an extraordinary achievement.

In North America, except for "Armageddon," which was released in July and was slowly approaching $200 million, no other film could match its success.

With such a successful film, Chen Tian felt he should take advantage of the situation. The promotional poster for "The Sixth Sense" already featured the tagline "Directed by the screenwriter of 'Saving Private Ryan.'"

Standing on the shoulders of giants was undoubtedly the most comfortable and efficient way to promote. With a $20 million promotional budget, hardware promotion was sufficient, but it couldn't attract enough attention.

Unexpectedly, "The Soldier" became a huge hit, and the young screenwriter who had caused conflicts among the three major figures at DreamWorks was now recognized.

Seizing this opportunity, Chen Tian visited several of the main actors from "Saving Private Ryan" and recorded promotional messages.

"An unbelievable story structure, a perfect story, and top-notch production. This is a movie you can't miss." Spielberg couldn't escape Chen Tian's persistence and recorded a promotional message.

Chen Tian, who had never done such a thing before, managed to get Spielberg to record a message. With his recent good mood and Chen Tian being the screenwriter, plus "The Sixth Sense" being a DreamWorks production, it was no big deal to help promote it.

With the big names endorsing it, promoting to others became easier.

"I recommend 'The Sixth Sense.' It's a great movie," Tom Hanks said.

"Unmissable, completely unexpected. I can't describe how I felt watching it the first time, but I got goosebumps," Vin Diesel said, delivering his lines perfectly.

Matt Damon, Jeremy Davies, and others were also coerced into helping with the promotion. They hadn't seen "The Sixth Sense," but if their idols and the director said it was good, then it must be good.

This promotional strategy, widely used in China a decade later, was something Chen Tian was trying to apply to expand the movie's influence, using every possible means.

Short clips of the big names were placed in subways, on street screens, and on TV ads. Leveraging the momentum of "The Soldier," it indeed attracted the attention of many "The Soldier" fans and Spielberg fans.

Spielberg truly lived up to his title as the king of movies in 1998, with his influence being unparalleled.