America Tycoon: The Wolf of Showbiz

Chapter 720 - 713: The Greatest Shame in Life

Century City, inside the WMA office.

Thomas brought over a stack of publications, including "Variety" and "Entertainment Weekly," and placed them on the low table in front of Martin, saying, "Starting this morning, many reviews unfavorable to 'The Martian' have appeared in newspapers, online videos, and TV critique shows."

"It seems someone is treating us as their main competitor," Martin said as he picked up a newspaper to read.

On the front page of the entertainment section of this newspaper, a retired astronaut named Walter criticized 'The Martian' for its lack of rigor, pointing out numerous inaccuracies with the facts.

"Martin Davis maintaining a similar walking and carrying method on Mars as on Earth is not scientific at all. Mars' gravity is only one-third of Earth's. Multiple NASA experiments have proven that normal movement on Mars should involve more jumping or small shuffling steps, not the way Martin Davis does it."

This former astronaut aimed directly at Martin from the get-go, outright criticizing his role.

And there was more.

"A large storm like that is impossible on Mars. The atmospheric pressure on Mars is less than one percent of Earth's, and even if Martian winds reach speeds of 160 kilometers per hour, the actual force of the wind is equivalent to just 16 kilometers per hour on Earth—a breeze barely strong enough to fly a kite."

"The dangers of space radiation were completely ignored by the film. According to the ways Martin Davis handles and rescues himself in the movie, he would definitely become seriously ill from space radiation, and even if he managed to return to Earth, he would likely die quickly from cancer!"

Even Martin, the leading man of the film, couldn't find fault with these statements, as they were based on current scientific re

The articles criticized "War Horse" for its poor storytelling, lackluster performances, and director Spielberg's creative exhaustion, reduced to rehashing a single template for melodramatic films.

They blasted "The Martian" as nothing more than a Robinson Crusoe adrift story wrapped in a Martian and space veneer, devoid of any sincerity.

They ridiculed "Midnight in Paris" director Woody Allen as a clown, once again dragging his affair with his stepdaughter into the public eye.

Several contenders for the Oscars were slammed as utterly worthless.

Only "Moneyball" received high praise, becoming the sole good film in the eyes of these outlets.

Especially the lead actor, Matt Damon, was lauded to the heavens, and amidst the backdrop of a series of soft articles, appeared to be the most deserving of an award.

The media reports spread rapidly.

......

In Glendale, the headquarters of DreamWorks.

Though the reception to his recent films had been lackluster, and the media constantly claimed his ideas were outdated and his talent exhausted, 65-year-old Steven Spielberg was undeterred, hoping to claim more Oscars.

In addition to the newly released "War Horse," he was also preparing a movie with Lincoln as the lead character to make another run at the Oscars.

Spielberg had just arrived at work today when his assistant came in with news, "Boss, there's a lot of negative press about 'War Horse'."

"The papers," Spielberg said.

The assistant brought over several newspapers, and Spielberg flipped through them quickly.

"'War Horse' is filled with messy logic and unrestrained sentimentality; Spielberg really has gotten old. After all these years, he's still playing with the same overdone emotional manipulation."

"It's merely a children's movie, what artistic value does it have? Spielberg doesn't deserve an Oscar; he's nothing but a charlatan, trying once again to deceive the Oscars with an overly sentimental and bogus story..."

Spielberg's complexion turned sour as he was reminded of something that happened more than a decade ago.

This scene was oh-so similar to what had happened with "Saving Private Ryan," when the media went wild smearing him and the film, leading to the loss of one of the most important awards.

That Oscar ceremony was Spielberg's greatest humiliation.

Spielberg looked through other reviews of Oscar-contending films and said to his assistant, "Find out who's behind this."

The assistant immediately went to make calls.

Spielberg's influence was significant; it didn't take long for the assistant to return and report, "I got in touch with connections at the 'Hollywood Reporter,' 'People,' and 'Variety.' The contacts at the newspapers didn't recognize them, but judging from the interactions with internal staff there, the employer is likely Warner Bros. or Matt Damon."

Upon hearing this, Spielberg thought of a certain film, "Moneyball?"

The assistant confirmed, "That film is also a hot contender for the Oscars."

Spielberg had collaborated with Matt Damon once, but their relations had soured after that experience because Damon sided with Harvey Weinstein during the subsequent Oscar campaign.

It was even rumored that Damon relayed information he learned from the "Saving Private Ryan" set to Harvey Weinstein. Thus, Weinstein took the film's vulnerabilities, rallied a group of WWII veterans, and led a city-wide smear campaign against "Saving Private Ryan," causing DreamWorks to lose the Best Picture Oscar.

Matt Damon had a deep relationship with Harvey Weinstein, and using the media to smear competitors was Harvey's most common tactic...

Spielberg instructed his assistant, "Mobilize our contacts, fight back!"

The same scene was also unfolding in several other film crews' offices.

There was no need for a detailed investigation to find out who was behind it all; just look for who stood to gain.

Find the beneficiaries and hammer them to death!