Chapter 208 : A Quietly Powerful Keyword
Chapter 208: A Quietly Powerful Keyword
Not every review could be praise.
That applied equally to music and film.
However, it was a different story when criticism was driven by emotion.
That kind of criticism was little more than jealousy disguised as sincerity.
Most of it was probably nothing more than emotional venting born from envy or fatigue.
In most cases, it was best to simply ignore it and move on.
That didn't mean every criticism was meaningless.
Among them were some painfully accurate daggers.
For example:
Emotion alone cannot complete a film.
The music remained, but where did the movie go?
There was something piercing about those words.
Viewed objectively, they weren't wrong.
Taeyoon's music possessed such overwhelming presence that it covered every weakness the film had.
But conversely, that also meant the film's narrative and direction were buried beneath the music.
No matter how much praise poured in...
The truth pointed out by sharp critics like Baek Seokhwan couldn't simply be ignored.
Rather than reflecting a lack of directing ability on Director Oh Seungju's part, it was closer to a fundamental limitation.
For a film to be complete, countless elements had to work together seamlessly— the director's ability, the actors' performances, the investors' support, and much more.
If even one of those pieces fell out of balance, creating a perfect film became nearly impossible.
'I suppose you could look at it that way.'
Although he'd learned far more than he'd expected through the project, Taeyoon's music ultimately became both light and shadow to some people.
The brighter the music shone, the darker the film's other aspects inevitably appeared by comparison.
Taeyoon thought to himself.
Perhaps this review was actually the most valuable warning he could receive.
It had taken the long way around, but its core message was simple.
'Your music is extraordinary, but you alone can't move the world.'
Well...
If there were ten audience members, there would naturally be ten different opinions.
This much was perfectly fine.
Of course, the reason Taeyoon could think so maturely was...
“This is insane. It already surpassed 1.5 million viewers in just one week?”
“...The pet-friendly screenings aren't ticket wars anymore—they're outright battles.”
“Even Team Leader Dongyoon still hasn't managed to get tickets.”
...because the movie had become such a huge success that even this debate had become part of the conversation.
Regardless of the movie's success or the public's reaction...
I was completely satisfied with the work I'd done.
I didn't have even the slightest regret.
Besides, the OST was selling extremely well.
That alone was enough to prove my music.
With digital streaming dominating the market, CD sales had declined across the board.
The industry even considered releasing a movie OST on CD to be a gamble.
There wasn't even concrete sales data for OST albums because they sold so rarely.
Under those circumstances, a silent film's OST selling over 200,000 copies was undeniably encouraging.
Today, my older brother arrived wearing his agency team leader hat, carrying a thick stack of documents as he explained everything to me.
“The movie reached 1.5 million viewers in its first week.”
“Is that a lot?”
“Yeah. At the very least, it's projected to exceed 3 million. If word of mouth keeps spreading, 4 or even 5 million isn't impossible.”
“Wow......”
My brother had always been quick with numbers.
He calculated how much profit the CEO—meaning KIM Entertainment—would earn.
Then he calculated my own earnings as well.
The amount was far beyond anything I'd imagined.
Enough to move somewhere in Seoul instead of Bundang.
“The audience reviews are good, and the critics' reviews are good too.”
“You've practically become a film industry insider now.”
“You don't need to be one. It's all over the news. You saw them too, didn't you?”
“No?”
“Liar. I saw all those articles open on your tablet.”
“Ah... Ahh.”
What could I do?
No matter how many times I read them, they still made me happy.
Not only film critics and cultural journalists.
Even music journalists had given generous scores and positive reviews.
[It Made Me Cry, Laugh, and Embrace It. (9)]
[The Music Stayed with Me More Than the Words. (8.5)]
[Grassy Fields, Starlight, and Music. (9)]
[Gentle Sound, Tremendous Emotion. (9.5)]
[An Emotional Journey Completed Without Dialogue. (9)]
[The Feelings I'd Forgotten Came Pouring Out with the Music. (8.5)]
[A Film Heard with the Heart Rather Than the Screen. The OST Is Essential. (9)]
I'd heard it was rare for critics and the general public to agree.
As expected...
Music and empathy truly were quietly powerful keywords.
Only Baek Seokhwan seemed to feel differently.
He tore the movie apart with razor-sharp logic.
It probably hurt Director Oh Seungju quite a bit.
CEO Kim Minsoo and my older brother were furious.
“There he goes again.”
“He just can't stand seeing other people succeed.”
“It's like tearing people down is his favorite hobby.”
To some extent, I understood where they were coming from.
I read his review again.
[Baek Seokhwan / Music Critic / Review of <Footprints That Became a Star>]
The attempt to maximize emotion through the format of a silent film deserves recognition.
However, if the decision was made to place music at the center, then it should have been judged even more critically.
The problem is precisely that music.
The composer 'Stay' has recently dominated the charts with both popularity and public attention, but film music is different. It isn't about writing a good song—it's about writing the right song.
The music in <Footprints That Became a Star> is beautiful and emotional, but in trying too hard to embrace every scene, it repeatedly moves ahead of the protagonist. Rather than guiding the film, the music frequently overwhelms it...
(...Omitted...)
I'm sorry, but this was 'Stay's movie.'
Not 'Director Oh Seungju's movie.'
Two stars.
Four out of ten.
Honestly...
I couldn't really tell whether he was praising it or criticizing it.
Well.
Everyone thought differently.
However...
Something interesting happened.
The audience who watched the film.
And the listeners who loved my music.
They stepped forward and openly challenged his review.
To put it simply...
The public was furious!
Baek Seokhwan sat upright in his chair.
His writing hadn't changed.
It wasn't as though he'd only started doing this yesterday.
Criticism, by definition, meant discussing a work's value while pointing out its shortcomings to encourage something better.
Could simply applauding along with the public's emotions really be called criticism?
Praise what deserved praise.
Criticize what deserved criticism.
That was his conviction.
While everyone else excitedly declared it a perfect film, he alone maintained an objective standard.
He wasn't trying to belittle the movie.
Rather, Taeyoon's genius had paradoxically swallowed up every other element of the film.
He had merely pointed out that reality.
The moment music replaced every emotional function of the movie, audiences simply consumed emotion without thinking.
That was exactly what Baek Seokhwan feared.
So he believed the flood of criticism now directed toward him wouldn't bother him in the slightest.
'Did I really do something that wrong?'
He removed his glasses and rubbed his eyes.
As if everyone had planned it together...
They had united to attack him.
[An Unprecedented Harsh Review: Critic Baek Seokhwan Gives <Footprints That Became a Star> Four Stars. Film Industry Divided.]
[The Public Is Enthralled While Baek Seokhwan Gives a Harsh Review... Did Stay's OST Go Too Far? Debate Ignites.]
[The Essence of Silent Film Is Music vs. Emotional Manipulation. Why Baek Seokhwan's Review Has Become Controversial.]
“Hoo......”
The articles themselves were understandable.
Online reporters were always chasing clicks to raise advertising revenue.
But...
The public comments were another matter entirely.
↳ Is that really the only way you could interpret it? LOL.
↳ Anyone reading this would think Stay just went on a musical rampage because he thought he was better than everyone else LOL.
↳ Fr. The more I look at this guy, the more he just seems like someone who likes being contrarian.
↳ It's basically like he's saying, “You losers only like this because your taste sucks.” Does acting like that make him look sophisticated? LOL.
↳ Seriously LOL. “The music goes ahead of the movie.” THAT'S LITERALLY THE WHOLE POINT OF THE MOVIE. Is he insane?;
↳ Four stars? Pathetic LOL. Doesn't matter. The audience keeps growing anyway.
↳ Anyone reading this would think both the director and Stay were complete rookies.
↳ If you hated it, just say you hated it.
↳↳ Sometimes I seriously can't stand critics acting all high and mighty like, “You ignorant masses tsk tsk.”
↳ Didn't this guy say weird things about Lee Jeongin's album before too?
↳↳ Guess he was just jealous that a young composer was becoming successful;;ㅎㅎ
↳ This guy gives terrible scores unless a movie has people dying left and right. Total psychopathㅠㅠㅠㅠ He just hates emotional movies.
↳ What an absurd hate review. He probably thinks this makes him look smart. Ignore anything Baek Seokhwan writes.
To make matters worse...
Critics and journalists who knew him personally also publicly disagreed.
[Music was the protagonist of this film from the very beginning. If music doesn't lead within the framework of a silent film, then what should?]
[Stay's music didn't intrude upon the scenes—it breathed alongside them. Since the music replaced the dialogue that wasn't there, this criticism completely misses the point.]
[He still seems trapped in the outdated belief that music should quietly support everything from the background. <Footprints That Became a Star> is innovative precisely because it broke that boundary.]
'...Good grief.'
For the first time in his life...
Baek Seokhwan found himself under concentrated fire from both the media and the public.
He took a sip of his now-cold coffee.
Today, it tasted unusually bitter.
Taking a deep breath, Baek Seokhwan muttered,
“Hoo... Relax.”
Let's think rationally.
No matter what the public or journalists said...
The industry was tiny.
Anyone could become the champion of a neighborhood soccer league.
Emotional films were ultimately for the domestic market.
A quiet, slow-moving movie like this?
It would never survive in Hollywood.
At the very least, a building had to explode.
A dozen cars had to be destroyed.
A dozen people had to die before they would even consider watching it.
That wasn't just his personal opinion.
It was fact.
How many years had he spent around movies?
The trend had always been the same.
Unfortunately...
This was the ceiling for emotional films.
Whenever one movie became successful, the entire industry rushed after it, congratulating each other with linked arms.
It had always been that way.
Fine.
Let them enjoy themselves.
Baek Seokhwan smiled cynically as he poured himself another cup of coffee and returned to his seat.
He convinced himself that both the audience and the journalists were merely intoxicated by emotion.
Eventually, the spell would wear off.
Soon enough, they'd move on to praising another movie.
Thinking that way gradually calmed him.
He decided to ignore the criticism directed at him.
Not to dwell on it.
But...
Was the temperature inside his house too low?
No matter how hard he tried to dismiss the uneasy feeling...
Something still didn't sit right.
Kim Minsoo hadn't joined forces with KW Entertainment merely because of personal connections.
He had been aiming for a much bigger stage.
Among Korean distributors, KW Entertainment was one of the few that possessed its own North American distribution network.
KW Cinema had already attracted industry attention by opening KW Film Lounge LA in the United States.
Not only Korean independent films, but also documentaries and art-house films had built a devoted local fanbase through niche screenings and music-focused themed events.
<Footprints That Became a Star> became the first official OST project in that series.
As a result, not only did the North American preview screenings proceed quickly...
The movie also gained considerable attention from American critics and music publications.
Time passed quickly.
Winter approached.
Award season was just around the corner.
“Brr, it's cold. What are you working on?”
“I was preparing the open set list.”
“We've pretty much finished booking all the DJs.”
“What happened with DJ Guldan?”
“We should hear back soon.”
Before they knew it, KW Hotel's Club Lunatic was also preparing for its grand reopening.
Everyone was busier than ever.
“Did you gain weight?”
“Huh? Does it look that way? I have been feeling a little heavier whenever I wake up lately.”
“You look much better.”
Taeyoon and Dongyoon's move to Bundang had been completed without any problems.
Mom hadn't moved up permanently yet.
But thanks to the enormous twenty-serving batches of japchae she prepared every week, it was obvious Taeyoon had put on some healthy weight.
“Things have been strangely quiet lately.”
“Isn't quiet a good thing?”
“Something huge always happens when it's this quiet.”
“I actually like it. It gives us time to prepare for the opening. Wow... The interior really is amazing. As expected of a KW Hotel. Seriously.”
“Our Blackhole gets to do everything he wants.”
Just then—
Bzzz—
Kim Minsoo's phone vibrated.
It was a message.
“Hold on. What's gotten into this guy?”
The preview showed the name of a familiar reporter.
Expecting nothing more than idle chatter, he casually opened the message.
“...Huh?”
[Breaking News: <Footprints That Became a Star> Nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Score. Silent Film's Bold New Approach—Stay's OST Receives Official Nomination.]
Kim Minsoo stared at the phone, mouth hanging wide open.
“What is it?”
Taeyoon casually accepted the phone.
Then...
“Gasp......!”
His mouth dropped open as well.
He froze completely.
This wasn't some kind of spam message...
Was it?