America Tycoon: The Wolf of Showbiz

At the Los Angeles Country Club, a black Cadillac SLS smoothly drove past the white gates of the clubhouse and stopped alongside the florid roadside.

The camera, following the dolly track, shifted to the driver's seat as Martin opened the car door and got out, perfectly dressed, with the background of luxury cars and the country club epitomizing success.

Director Joseph spoke from behind the monitor, "Cut, this one is good."n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

A driver approached and took the car back to the clubhouse entrance.

The crew also moved to the entrance where everything was set up for the next shots.

Martin went to his trailer to change his clothes and came back to continue filming.

It wasn't just video, but also print ads.

Although Cadillac is a luxury brand among American cars, unlike Brioni, which focuses on high-end exclusively, they wanted the advertisement shot quickly to catch the Super Bowl ad slot in early February.

Martin, featured alongside the car in the commercial, would appear on America's "Spring Festival Gala."

This was also excellent publicity for Martin himself.

Having received an endorsement fee of 10 million a year from Cadillac, Martin cooperated fully, posing in various stances as required by the photographer.

Once the shooting finished, makeup was touched up again.

The Cadillac SLS was parked in front of the clubhouse door.

Martin received a set of keys and entered the clubhouse lobby.

Director Joseph reminded him about his blocking, "Watch the camera and the keys."

Martin lifted the keys.

Once the crew was ready, Joseph gave the command, and shooting started again.

Martin exited the clubhouse, took out the keys, and pressed a button toward the car, making the lights of the vehicle flash.

The chase photographer captured close-up shots.

Joseph shouted, "That one is good, back to positions, let's do it again."

Earning his keep, Martin was not irritated by the repetition, taking eight takes of this shot.

Around 4:30 in the afternoon, both the commercial footage and print images were complete, Martin removed his makeup and changed clothes, then hopped into a Cadillac SLS and headed straight for Burbank.

This was one of several new cars that Cadillac had delivered.

Besides being available for Martin's use in public appearances, they could also be gifted to friends and family.

His agent Thomas was already waiting in the car.

Martin took out a set of car keys and handed them to Thomas, "The car is at the Cadillac dealership, you can pick it up yourself."

Thomas asked, "The car is for me?"

Martin replied, "The endorsement deal was negotiated by you, so it's only right you should have one too."

This gain, beyond his agent's commission, brought warmth to Thomas's heart. Compared to those stars who required cajoling and deception once they became famous, Martin was indeed a rare and good client.

Thomas pocketed the car keys.

Bruce also had one specially reserved for him.

Besides, Martin had left one for Mene as well, but Uncle Mene was currently out of town filming and wouldn't be back in Los Angeles for a while.

Glancing at his watch, Thomas said, "The screening is over."

Today was the theater managers and media screening for "Endless." Because Martin had to film the Cadillac commercial, he could only attend the reception party in the evening.

Entering Burbank, Bruce took the road leading to the Burbank Hotel.

Martin opened the car's cooler, took out a box of pizza, opened it, and placed it on the rear seat armrest, grabbing a slice he said, "There's no time for dinner, and there will be drinks at the party. Better eat something now to avoid drinking on an empty stomach."

"You're very thoughtful," said Thomas, grabbing a slice and eating with big bites.

After eating the pizza, Martin rinsed his mouth with mineral water, spritzed some breath freshener, and adjusted his attire in the mirror.

Dealing with finicky critics means every detail counts.

Many critics are as petty as pinheads. If they feel disrespected, their pens can blacken one's reputation for life.

In the future, Martin might not care about them, but for now, he needed these folks to charge into the fray with their reviews, attracting more attention to him.

The car stopped in front of the hotel, and both Martin and Thomas got out. Just as they entered the hotel lobby, they spotted Louise.

She was in a women's suit, wearing dark-rimmed glasses, and upon seeing Martin, she gently waved.

Martin went over and asked, "How was the screening received?"

Louise was not one to joke about such serious matters, "The feedback was very positive," she said.

She hooked her arm in Martin's. "Let's go to the banquet hall and talk while we walk."

Martin proceeded to the elevator at a leisurely pace.

Louise continued, "Out of the 38 journalists who attended the screening, the average score was 84. The business rating from theater managers was even better, averaging 94."

The latter score wasn't based solely on the quality of the film but considered more from a market perspective; a high score directly affected the support from theaters during negotiations between the distribution company and the theater chains.

In the past ten years, many good films had poor box office results, while bad films sold well.

Martin further inquired, "What about the moviegoers?"

This question seemed to lift Louise's spirits even more; she beamed, "A+!"

"That's great news," Martin said with a smile.

As for the critics, he didn't ask, and Louise didn't tell.

Upon reaching the banquet hall, Martin immediately adjusted his demeanor, mingling among the media reporters and critics, occasionally raising a toast with someone.

Just like before, he treated the critics who had attended the screening with great respect, always receptive to their feedback, and discussed highbrow artistic topics with them.

Before the new year arrived, the Oscar nomination ballots had already been sent out, and Martin still needed these people to continue cheering for him.

Martin took the initiative to find Kenneth Turan, the chief film critic at "Los Angeles Times".

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"I just saw the screening, and your performance was as outstanding as ever," Turan said, more concerned about Martin and the role he played than the film itself: "The transformation from downfall to success, you portrayed it especially well."

Martin responded, "Thank you for your praise, perhaps it's my own experiences that allow me to truly understand the emotional journey of such a transformation."

He never hesitated to sing his own praises: "This psychological shift is a big challenge, and I think I handled it quite well."

Turan had just seen the film and was impressed by Martin's character: "It's no less than your role in 'Infernal Affairs'. If this film didn't have the sci-fi elements, and had fewer commercial components, it definitely could have been a contender for the next awards season."

"In such a commercial society, it's tough to avoid commerce," Martin said with a look of helplessness: "The talent agencies, investment firms, and all my collaborators around me, I have to consider them all, I need to find a balance, I can't decide the final cut of a film, but I'm always striving to achieve a better balance between commerce and art with my performance."

Critics, too, are commercial scribes, revolving around the film industry—simply put, it's all business. Turan didn't see any issue with Martin's words, as though a teacher instructing a student, "Don't get lost in commerce, and never forget to hone your acting skills."

Martin nodded emphatically and made a point to say, "When 'The Reader' is completed, I hope you can attend the screening as soon as possible. Your reviews have given me much guidance, and I need your continued direction for the results of my efforts under that guidance."

These words made Kenneth Turan feel genuinely pleased from the bottom of his heart. He said, "Remember to give me a call."

Martin knew what these people liked, and at this stage, he needed them to shout out their support.

He asked a waiter for a drink and shared a toast with Kenneth Turan.

On the other side, Aniston had finished chatting with a deputy editor of a newspaper and, after waiting for a while, saw that no one was around Martin and approached him.

She was in high spirits: "The film's feedback is very good."

Martin was confident too: "Recouping the box office is not a problem."

Leaning in closer, Aniston whispered, "Have you seen the latest news?"

Martin was puzzled: "What news?"

"Griffith Observatory," Aniston said. "Many couples like to go there for stargazing dates at night."

Martin had been to the place, back when he was dating Annie-Hathaway.

Aniston continued, "Last night, someone set off fireworks attacking the observatory's stargazing platform, and many couples panicked and ran for their lives."

She took out her phone: "Someone captured photos of the scene."

Martin only needed a glance to recognize the fireworks as Gatlings: "Leo and Jack, those two bastards!"

Aniston commented, "Fortunately, there are no trees near the observatory."

Martin knew the style of those two bastards all too well: "They must've chosen it carefully."

After the party, Martin called Leonardo.

Sure enough, the two bastards were behind the nighttime attack on Griffith Observatory.

They proposed that on Valentine's Day, they should launch a nighttime raid on Venice Beach, which is said to be another famous spot in Los Angeles for lovers' trysts.

The following week, Martin threw himself entirely into work, running promotions for the new film while not forgetting to continue his Oscar PR efforts.

As various association awards and preliminary awards announced their results during awards season, Martin made it onto most of the Best Supporting Actor nomination lists.

But the award mostly went to Ellen Arkin.

In the meantime, he attended the Golden Globe Awards ceremony.

The entire "Infernal Affairs" crew returned empty-handed, with neither Martin nor Leonardo, who were nominated for acting awards, winning, nor did they claim Best Drama Film or Best Director, both of which were snatched by "Tower to the Heavens".

But no one took it to heart, since the Golden Globes' jury has virtually no overlap with the Oscars' jury.

Latter, at the Directors Guild Awards, Martin Scorsese claimed the crown for Best Director.

At the Producers Guild Awards, "Infernal Affairs" came out on top!

The guild awards of Hollywood practitioners are the true weather vanes.

At these two major awards, Martin was on the nomination lists, but the Best Supporting Actor went to Ellen Arkin for "Little Miss Sunshine".

Robert De Niro, who played a supporting role in "Limitless" and has spent decades in Hollywood building a wide network of connections, shared some news with Martin.

Last year's critically acclaimed "Little Miss Sunshine", with Fox Searchlight focusing its awards PR on Ellen Arkin for Best Supporting Actor, was the most assured win.

Having as distinguished a career as De Niro, Arkin, after harnessing decades of accumulated goodwill plus selling two Manhattan properties he invested in years ago to fund his PR campaign, still had a lot of clout.

This old man had played a significant supporting role in over a hundred film and television projects and was Jewish, now over 70 years old.

For Best Supporting Actor, the advantages were just too great.

The Oscars are famously respectful and nostalgic for the old.

Martin, for his part, took it in stride, since his goal was the Oscar nomination.

With a wider network of connections than his, a 70-plus-year-old Jew versus a 25-year-old non-Jew, and over forty years of experience versus three.

The most important thing was that the PR money Arkin put in was no less than his own.

Even De Niro, the old-timer, had Arkin at the top of his nomination ballot.

In the Academy's jury, the old-timers over 60 made up a large part.

By mid-January, the most important barometer of the Oscars acting awards—the Screen Actors Guild Awards—announced their results.

Leonardo, who aspired for the Oscar for Best Actor, didn't win Best Actor, losing to Black actor Forest Whitaker.

For Best Supporting Actor, Ellen Arkin predictably took home the award.

However, both Martin and Leonardo were selected for the five-person nomination lists for their respective awards.

With their Oscar nominations nearly secured, Martin's focus shifted to the promotion of "Endless".

In the last two weeks before its release, he changed cities every day, repeating a cycle of flights, hotels, and media commitments, traveling from the West Coast to the East Coast, and even went to England and Germany where it was also being released simultaneously in North America.

Whether on the internet or other media, the publicity efforts were at maximum.

Thanks to the positive word of mouth from test screenings, Warner Bros. secured nearly 3,300 theaters for the film's release.