Chapter 888: Chapter 294: Remember This Well
Adrian really shouldn’t have attended the premiere of "War of the Worlds." The film’s leading man is Tom Cruise. Even though the situation of him and Nicole linking arms and heading back to the hotel in Cannes happened more than half a month ago, and his subsequent remarks about European filmmakers diverted most people’s attention, someone’s always been watching.
After all, the situation between him, Nicole, and Cruise was quite the scandal back then. Rumors about Adrian hooking up with Nicole while directing "Eyes Wide Shut" have never ceased and still occasionally circulate online. If he were to appear on the red carpet at the premiere of a Cruise-starring film at such a time, or even meet with Cruise, it would undoubtedly cause a huge stir in the media, and the cold rumors would return to the public’s eye, which is definitely not good.
Of course, judging from Tom Cruise’s attitude toward Adrian, if they were to meet on the red carpet, his head must have really gone soft. Only two scenarios would make him do it: either to show good will toward Adrian and gain some positive attention through the current spotlight, or to irritate Adrian and Nicole in this way. Naturally, with Cruise’s character and wisdom, he’d neither think of nor act on the former, and as for the latter... he wouldn’t even think of it.
So Adrian attended the premiere of "War of the Worlds" very discreetly. His main purpose was to probe through Spielberg the Hollywood Jews’ reaction to "Pianist." Although it would have been more convenient and less urgent through Weinstein, Spielberg, who directed "Schindler’s List," was undoubtedly the most suitable person, and it was better to prepare early. After all, he had another goal, as long as he stayed off the red carpet and didn’t meet with Cruise.
In fact, this purpose was basically achieved. Even though what was said between the two was somewhat vague, its meaning was fairly clear. Adrian also took this opportunity to express that producing "Pianist" was influenced by Spielberg. This is crucial; to achieve his goal, gaining the support of the Jewish group is essential. In any case, Jewish funding holds significant weight in Hollywood.
In a sense, he was playing a game among several parties, so he should strive for anything beneficial. Of course, he must also grasp the degree; as long as he controls it well, this tight rope is very stable.
To be honest, Adrian never really thought about directing "Pianist" himself initially. Although he sent people to find Spyman and reissue "Dead City," that was just to wait for the right price, to earn a favor with Polanski or the Jewish group. So when Polanski sent someone to buy the adaptation rights, Adrian almost agreed, but after carefully thinking it over and further refining his plan to a higher peak, he then put it on his list, leading to the current situation.
Well, for now, let’s just leave it at that and start that movie. After talking with Spielberg and greeting a few acquaintances, Adrian prepared to leave. He originally came incognito, with not many people knowing, so there was no need to stay in the screening hall to watch the showing of "War of the Worlds." Cruise certainly wouldn’t like seeing him before or after the movie.
However, as he was about to leave through the side door, a young girl’s voice called out to him: "Mr. Cowell."
"Hannah?" He turned around to see Dakota Fanning panting as she ran over.
"I’m so sorry... Mr. Cowell." The little girl stopped and took a couple of breaths before revealing a smiling face, "I hope I didn’t disturb you."
"Oh, of course not. I was just about to leave. Also, just call me Adrian or Ed." Adrian looked at her curiously, "Is there something you need help with?"
"No, nothing really," Dakota quickly explained. "I just wanted to... thank you."
"Thank me?" Adrian raised an eyebrow.
"Yes," the little girl nodded, revealing a cute and somewhat shy smile, "I know you’ve been looking out for me, recommending a lot of excellent roles for me. I’m very grateful, really grateful, so... so I’ve always wanted to thank you in person, Mr. Cowell... Ed. I originally intended to find an opportunity later, but just now, hearing from Mr. Spielberg that you were here, I couldn’t resist... so I came over... I didn’t see you, so I guessed you didn’t want too many people to know, so I came here. I didn’t mean... to disturb you..."
She was speaking somewhat hesitantly, her little face reddening, her gaze shifting around, seemingly too shy to meet his eyes, which made her appear particularly adorable.
Adrian raised an eyebrow almost imperceptibly, then put on a gentle smile: "It’s nothing. You’re a talented girl, and recommending you was the least I could do; there was no need for special thanks."
"No," the little girl said with a firm tone, "Maybe you think not, Ed, but I know that without your guidance, I wouldn’t have achieved today’s honor so easily..."
As she spoke, it seemed she summoned some courage, straightening her chest and looking at him with large blue eyes: "Can you still guide me more in the future?"
Once again raising an eyebrow imperceptibly, Adrian suddenly leaned down, getting in front of her, and reached out to ruffle her golden hair: "Of course, I said you’re a very promising girl."
"Thank you." Dakota smiled brilliantly, stood on tiptoe, and quickly pecked his face before scurrying away.
Another little fairy, hmm? Watching her back as he slowly straightened up, Adrian chuckled softly to himself. No, not just that; she’s even younger than the little fairy back then. Tsk tsk, who can escape the temptation of Vanity Fair? Especially a particularly precocious girl. Is having such a precocious child a blessing or a misfortune?
This question was immediately cast aside. No matter what hints Dakota might have given, she’s still too young now. So, even though the waves stirred up haven’t calmed, and the Atlantic coasts are still arguing endlessly, with Adrian still very much in the spotlight because of Cannes, and the promotion for "Pianist" still ongoing, he quickly threw himself into the filming of the new movie "Locke."
"This is a simple scene; you just need to walk from here to there, no unnecessary body language. But it’s also a complex scene, with the camera focusing on your face, requiring you to express at least two emotions." In the massive studio, Adrian was instructing Nata.
"No specific direction?" Nata said, pursing her lips.
"No," Adrian nodded, "How to convey the emotions is up to you, although it could be handled in post-production through montage techniques, I still hope it’s accomplished by you."
After speaking, he began calling for the lighting and props team to prepare. Once everyone was in position, he signaled to start shooting.
"Locke" doesn’t have many scenes; primarily taking place at home and the office, with a few minor outdoor scenes, meaning 80% of it can be done in the studio. The remaining 20% has plenty of suitable exterior locations outside the studio. And even if they’re not suitable, as long as Adrian is willing to invest, the curtains can be drawn, and the background inserted during post-production.
So, even though the film is gaining attention due to a tight schedule and Adrian has always been in the spotlight because of the Cannes affair, it’s still easy to keep the curious eyes off the new project, easier than with "Pianist"—at least until "Pianist" is fully released, the return of the Miracle Director to shooting a new movie should be kept under wraps.
Of course, the simplicity of the storyline of the script is primarily responsible for this. This script could be considered a semi-original work by Adrian, mainly describing a distorted family where a single mom has a pathological control over her daughter due to raising her alone.
Because the daughter has everything in her life managed by her mother from childhood to adulthood, she can only passively accept without her own views. This changes when a new supervisor joins her workplace. The new supervisor is a playboy, and for some reason, the relatively plain daughter catches his eye, prompting the supervisor to try and woo her.
The indecisive daughter had no idea how to handle such matters, but the company needed to promote a batch of people at that time, and she was fortunate to be among them. Hence, she had to deal with the supervisor, while her only friend stood by her side, offering advice. Initially, everything seemed fine; although she had to feign friendliness with the supervisor, the daughter’s long-closed heart slowly began to open. That was until one day, she accidentally saw her only friend and the supervisor speaking intimately. Doubts started to grow in her mind, leading her to become increasingly suspicious.
On top of that, her mother at home continued to be strict with her, rarely listening to her innermost thoughts, only insisting she follow her instructions and strive for promotion. The tension between mother and daughter subtly started to sharpen.
All these factors weaving together made the already sensitive daughter, severely lacking in a sense of security, become somewhat neurotic. When she discovered that her only friend was also on the potential promotion list, this neurosis grew even stronger. Eventually, under various torments, she began to hallucinate, as if someone was trying to harm her, and her once orderly life spiraled out of control, finally bursting out. Everything went haywire, and everyone got hurt.
Isn’t the plot somewhat familiar? Similar to a certain ballet movie. In fact, Adrian did draw inspiration from that ballet movie when writing the script, though he borrowed elements from other films even more. Putting aside those expressive methods, similar plots that involve strict mothers controlling their daughters, leading to disastrous outcomes due to the daughters’ rebellion over a sequence of events, have been ubiquitous in American films since as early as the 1970s movie "Carrie."
The key still lies in the mode of expression, such as the superpowers in "Carrie," or the ballet in the ballet movie. As long as the expression can resonate with audiences, even the most melodramatic plots will only enhance the experience, much like using ballet to convey the protagonist’s emotional changes, which indeed feels novel.
However, Adrian had long thrown that idea far away without much contemplation. Long ago, he mentioned that in films about dance, ballet is the most challenging to shoot or, rather, the most difficult for the protagonist to perform personally. With ordinary dance, actors can usually perform decently after a certain period of training, and with some post-editing, the desired effect can be achieved.
But ballet is different; it demands a high level of physical requirements, which is why most ballet dancers start training from a young age, with those not meeting the standards being eliminated early on. Furthermore, the intricate techniques require exquisite movements to express various tensions, which are not something an inexperienced actor can cover with even six months or a year of training.
Of course, there’s also montage; excellent post-editing can always achieve the desired effect, making it almost impossible to distinguish whether it’s the actor or a stand-in dancing in front of the camera, especially with the rapid advancements in CG technology today. As early as in "Gladiator," head-swapping technology had been used, let alone now.
But here comes the problem again; although convenient, don’t forget what Adrian’s ultimate goal is! Generally, in films involving dance, unless the protagonist can personally perform 80% to 90% of the actions, the Academy wouldn’t consider it. Audrey Hepburn for instance, did not even get a nomination because most of the singing and dancing in "My Fair Lady" were done by a stand-in.
Adrian might resort to various methods, such as shooting more scenes of her dancing herself and claiming that most of the shots in the edit were hers, and he could have the entire crew vouch for her. Under other circumstances, this might have a high chance of succeeding. However, this is not an ordinary time; Hollywood has numerous eyes fixated on Adrian. If a flaw is caught, it could potentially jeopardize the entire plan, even if he has fallback measures.
Not affecting the plan is the bottom line; moreover, the more pressurized the situation, the more necessary it is to claim victory honorably, leaving no room for criticism, although his final plan for Natalie seems more in line with previous interests.
Adrian also believes that with his current level of control, directing such a film should pose no difficulty. After all, all that’s needed is to showcase Natalie’s acting prowess, and the whole film is set to serve this point. In fact, the script is designed to express these dramatic plots through acting!
This is why Adrian emphasized acting repeatedly earlier, urging Natalie to break through on her own. Therefore he took her to meet those troubled by similar issues earlier, hoping to inspire her.
Nevertheless, this still proved to be a challenging shoot; the first scene took an entire day of repeated takes without accomplishment, leaving everyone exhausted by the wrap-up. Doing the same task tens of times is inevitably tiring, even for individuals made of steel.
"We will continue tomorrow," Adrian announced with a frown, then sat in the director’s chair, closed his eyes to think for a few minutes, and then stood up to whisper a few words to Natalie before heading back to his office nearby.
Because AC Media had acquired Universal Pictures, Universal Studios naturally became its asset, so he set his office at the foot of the hill, far from the famous 5171 office situated on the studio tour route, to avoid being disturbed by tourists from around the world.
"Come in." Adrian, resting his eyes, immediately called out after hearing the knock on the door.
The already-prepared Natalie walked in, sitting silently in front of the desk.
"Do you know where your problem lies?" Adrian opened his eyes, looking at her and asking.
"Too many attempted emotions?" Natalie responded, probing uncertainly.
"Of course not," Adrian waved his hand sharply, "What are you worried about? What are you hesitating for? I can clearly sense that several times you were very close to achieving the desired effect perfectly, yet each time at the last moment, you chose to retreat."
He stood up, supporting himself with both hands on the table, leaning forward with a severe look downward at her: "Tell me, Nata, what are you really hesitating for?!"
"...Nothing." Natalie pressed her lips together, eventually uttering these words after a pause.
"Nothing?" Adrian sneered, "Afraid of failure? Afraid I won’t let it go? Afraid of being exposed? Afraid of falling from the clouds?"
Natalie turned her head to the side without a word, but seeing her earlobes turn red with shame was telling enough that his words had hit home. Adrian said nothing more, merely gazed icily at her before eventually coming around the desk to lock the door.
Realizing his intentions, Natalie hastily stood up, about to speak when Adrian grabbed her wrist, flipping her around and pressing her onto the desk with force.
"You’re hurting me," Natalie cried out in pain.
But Adrian showed no intent of sparing her, extending his hand to untie her belt and swiftly pulled down her pants.
"Stop, stop it! Or else I will..." Natalie cried out in shame and anger, but what answered her was a sharp pain, like stuffing a sausage between two slices of bread without spreading jam in between, making her scream out.
"Do you remember what I told you before? She’s angry! She’s resentful! She wants to break free from the control over her! She wants to decide her own life! But! She’s confused! She’s afraid! She’s indecisive! Because she’s never tried before! She lacks the courage to try! She seems strong but is, in fact, fragile! She seems clever but is actually foolish! She thought she got rid of everything! But in reality, she gained nothing! Yes! Exactly! It’s this feeling you now have! It’s your body’s reaction! It’s this! Remember it well for me! Do you hear me, Natalie! Remember it well! If you can’t do it, I’ll do this to you every day! Understand?"
The man’s roar echoed in the room, accompanied by the woman’s sorrowful sobs. (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to vote for it at with recommendation tickets and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation.)