Universal Pictures observer Jackie Fall, responsible for the Los Angeles area, arrived at a movie theater near Century City early Friday morning, sitting near the ticket counter to observe audience choices.
It was evident that even in the relatively off-peak month of October, with limited choices for viewers, not many people were opting to buy tickets for The Shallows.
Facing the theater lobby, the movie poster easily caught the eye: a promotional shot of Gwyneth Paltrow in a bikini, with a shark behind her. Similarly, the large screen in the lobby continuously played trailers for recently released movies, with The Shallows' trailer popping up from time to time.
Just as the first showing of The Shallows began ticket checks, Jackie Fall followed about twenty moviegoers to the entrance. It seemed these twenty-something fans were the audience for this particular showing of The Shallows.
While checking tickets, Jackie Fall overheard some moviegoers talking behind him.
"I'm telling you, if you haven't seen this movie, you'll definitely regret it. Don't blame me for not recommending it to you later."
"Is it really that exaggerated? Lewis, you're not exaggerating, are you?" A companion clearly didn't believe him.
The white male named Lewis looked displeased and said, "Exaggerating what? This is my honest feeling! I saw the test screening, that's why I dragged you guys to this sneak preview. Universal Pictures is really something; such a great movie still needs a sneak preview?"
Jackie Fall smiled when he heard this. Only four theaters in the entire Los Angeles area were showing sneak previews, with others scattered across major cities nationwide. Universal Pictures was still employing a conservative distribution strategy, not believing The Shallows could immediately ignite the box office. Even in Los Angeles, on a Friday morning, the first showing only drew this many viewers. However, it was understandable; perhaps in the evening prime time, the audience would grow.
The fact that a fan who had seen the test screening actively brought others to the sneak preview surprised Jackie Fall. This indicated that The Shallows had indeed left a deep impression on the test screening audience, making them eager to share it with friends and family and bring them along to watch. However, too few people had seen the test screening. If the sneak previews could be as successful as the test screenings, then The Shallows' word-of-mouth would spread rapidly. No form of promotion is as effective as good word-of-mouth.
Upon entering the screening room and settling down, Jackie Fall counted roughly thirty audience members, a bit more than he expected. The main reason was Lewis, the white male, who had brought over a dozen people with him.
Before the movie started, that group was still chattering, mostly revolving around Lewis's boasts about the film.
"Has this movie's director made any previous works?" the only girl in the group asked.
Lewis shook his head. "I looked it up when I got back; this should be his first feature film. To make a movie this brilliant on his first try, he's definitely a genius."
His other companions clearly didn't believe him. The girl said, "Lewis, if it's not good later, you're buying drinks at the bar tonight."
"No problem, I'll buy. But what if the movie is good?" Lewis retorted.
"Then I'll introduce you to the school cheerleading captain. Haven't you always wanted to ask her out?" the girl said.
"Whoa," someone nearby cheered, "Lewis, this is a great opportunity; you have to seize it!"
Lewis was full of confidence: "Don't worry, you absolutely won't be disappointed. Also, a word of advice: it's best not to drink too much."
"Why?" someone asked, puzzled.
Lewis acted mysterious: "Trust me, when the time comes, you absolutely won't remember needing to go to the restroom."
Seeing Lewis hype it up so much, his dozen or so companions were a bit skeptical but also intrigued. Lewis was never one to exaggerate; could this movie really be that good?
Sarati Merton was the girl who promised to introduce Lewis to the cheerleading captain if the movie was good. Today was supposed to be their university club's activity, and Lewis suggested watching a movie, so they came to this theater.
When the film officially began, after the Universal Pictures logo flashed, Sarati Merton was nonchalant, continuously eating popcorn. After the studio logo, there were usually long, tedious credit rolls; who wanted to watch that? But unexpectedly, the supposedly long and tedious credit roll didn't appear. After the opening titles, the film officially began.
The opening shot showed a man and a woman driving, the woman being Gwyneth Paltrow. At the same time, credits scrolled in the lower-left corner of the screen, flashing names like Executive Producer Spielberg, Writer/Director Gilbert, and Lead Actress Gwyneth Paltrow.
Jackie Fall thought this was a good approach. The Directors Guild strictly required the appearance of cast and crew names at the beginning of a film. This was why Star Wars director George Lucas angrily withdrew from the Directors Guild and hadn't returned since. George Lucas believed that opening credits were like "feces in a toilet," utterly disgusting. Of course, recently, some had been trying a new method, like in The Shallows' opening, integrating the credits into the visual narrative. This way, it flowed with the film's plot and didn't violate the Directors Guild's rules.
This opening immediately captured Sarati Merton's interest. She temporarily forgot her popcorn and, along with the surrounding audience, began watching the film a bit more seriously.
The beginning of the film was unremarkable, but the scene where the female lead undressed on the beach sent male hormones soaring in the theater. One male audience member couldn't help but mutter to himself, "God, she's so sexy..." If Gwyneth Paltrow had heard that, she would probably have been quite pleased. Having known Gilbert for so long, even having slept with him, he had never once told her she was sexy.
The plot of the movie progressed very quickly. Not long after appreciating the female lead's sexy figure and a brief surfing session, a whale carcass appeared on the beach. Soon after, a shark attacked. The two boys who were surfing and swimming on the beach left, and the female lead, Nancy, was grazed by the shark, stranded on a rock about two hundred meters from the beach. Crucially, her wound was bleeding, and the scent of blood kept attracting the shark to circle the rock.
As the plot deepened, the sounds of popcorn munching, soda sipping, and talking in the theater gradually faded away. All the audience members stared nervously at the big screen, worried about Nancy's plight. Sarati Merton was so scared she clutched her companion's arm, but her eyes refused to leave the screen, unwilling to miss a single frame.
Later, Nancy, stranded on the rock overnight, saw the two men from yesterday return. She screamed for help, but the two men didn't notice the shark and tragically met their demise in its jaws. However, one of the men's cameras drifted to the rock. Nancy recorded a final message with the camera and used the rising tide to push it back to the beach. At the same time, she also spotted a signal buoy closer to the beach, so she decided to swim there.
The film repeatedly showed scenes from the predator's perspective, using the camera to simulate the shark's point of view, making all the audience members in the theater tense to the point of holding their breath. This was simply too surprising and exciting! How could audiences in 1991 handle a horror thriller from twenty or thirty years in the future?
Finally, seeing Nancy, the female lead, rescued by the friendly driver from the beginning, undoubtedly made everyone in the theater breathe a sigh of relief. This thrilling and exciting shark movie had, without a doubt, left a deep impression on them all.
As the movie ended, "A Gilbert Landrini Production" flashed across the screen.
Sarati Merton then said to her companion, "Remember that name. I think he's going to create more surprises for us."
Lewis smiled, "Sarati, where's my cheerleading captain?"
Sarati Merton rolled her eyes at Lewis. "Don't worry, I'll introduce you when we get back."
Just then, a companion suggested, "It's still early, why don't we watch it again?"
"Yeah!"
"Let's watch it again! Oh my god, Gwyneth Paltrow is so sexy!"
"I know, right? I declare, from now on, she's my dream girl!"
"Hey, Davis, how many dream girls do you have now?"
"Can't I have one more?"
Listening to their conversation, Jackie Fall wrote in his small notebook: "Gilbert seems to have a kind of magic; with just one film, he has conquered the audience. The Shallows deserves larger-scale promotion, and I recommend a nationwide theatrical release as soon as possible."
With just one sneak preview, Jackie Fall dared to assert that The Shallows would definitely bring Universal Pictures a pleasant surprise.
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