Chapter 100: Kissed Until Swollen

There were two kissing scenes in "My Blueberry Nights," and the scenes and content of both were almost exactly the same.

Both times, Elizabeth and Jeremy were chatting in the restaurant, and somehow, Elizabeth would fall asleep on the bar counter.

Very dramatically, there would be some white cream from the blueberry pie she had eaten on her lips.

The first time, Jeremy originally wanted to use a paper towel to wipe it clean for her, but later he couldn't help but use his mouth.

In other words, he sneakily kissed her in a very sleazy way.

Chen Nuo's understanding of this scene was that he would start from a sitting posture, letting people see that he had developed feelings, then lean over to kiss the sleeping Emma Stone, and stay lip-to-lip for a few seconds, and that would be the end of it.

Once he had it figured out, let's start.

Emma Stone, as written in the script, placed her face on the bar counter.

She closed her eyes. After a while, she felt someone approaching, and then a soft touch came to her lips, along with some warm nasal breath. The other party's breath was very fresh, like a spring meadow.

His lips just rested on hers like that. Her heartbeat seemed deafening.

Darius Khondji held the camera very close, filming from the side.

Five seconds later.

"Cut, again."

Wong Kar-wai didn't even give a reason.

The makeup artist went in to touch up their lipstick, and they immediately filmed the second take.

A few seconds later, "Cut, one more time."

Wong Kar-wai stood up from behind the monitor, walked into the coffee shop, and said to Chen Nuo in Chinese, "Nuo Zai, I want you to show more love."

"Understood."

Chen Nuo nodded, hesitated for a moment, and said, "Director, let me chat with her for a second?"

Before filming the first scene between the mute and Xiaozhu, Zhang Yi had let him talk to Ni Ni for a long time to build up some chemistry. Not to mention 'The Return of the Condor Heroes,' where Zhang Jizhong and the others were practically desperate to tie Liu Yifei and him together to build rapport.

With Wong Kar-wai, it hadn't even been half an hour since they first met, and not only did they have to film a kissing scene, but they also had to show a lot of love?

Although Chen Nuo felt his state was good, this rhythm still made him feel a bit uncomfortable. He tried to find some buildup, even if it was just saying a few words or a sentence, having a little bit of interaction would do, at least to let him establish a preliminary image of this girl in his heart, rather than having her be like an inflatable doll right now.

To his surprise, Wong Kar-wai actually refused: "No, you can only kiss, you cannot speak. I want you to kiss until you fall in love with her. Alright, continue."

Chen Nuo glanced at Emma Stone. She blinked her big eyes, seemingly very curious about what the two of them were saying.

Kiss until you fall in love with her?

Wong Kar-wai...

You are truly a madman.

Third take.

Emma Stone at this age was definitely a big-eyed cute girl, youthful and beautiful. Especially when she closed her eyes, her dark brown eyelashes trembling, she was like Sleeping Beauty in a fairy tale.

Darius Khondji changed the angle this time, and the camera was a bit further away than before.

Chen Nuo observed for a while, leaned forward, closed his eyes, and slowly kissed her.

Lips met, lips parted.

"Cut, one more time." Fourth take, Darius Khondji held the camera and moved from the right side to the left.

Darius Khondji was still somewhat dissatisfied with the casting, but he had to admit that, at least in the lens, the shape and contours of this boy's face were indeed not something that would make Western audiences like him feel offended.

Just like Bruce Lee back in the day; although he filmed action movies, he was a proper male lead, and American audiences bought it just the same, even viewing him as an idol to this day.

Because his eyes were big, his nose bridge was high, and his contours were deep; among Eastern faces, he belonged to a face shape that leaned toward Westerners. Looking at Jackie Chan, he was also a big name in Hollywood during his peak, but to get American audiences to buy tickets to enter the theater, 'Rush Hour' still had to be a dual-lead movie, and they had to add a typical African American to be funny.

Darius Khondji knew his words might offend Wong Kar-wai. However, as an Iranian-American who grew up in France and worked in the United States, he understood discrimination too well. In this land that seemed free, discrimination wasn't something you could pretend didn't exist just by intentionally ignoring it.

This time, when Chen Nuo kissed her, he didn't close his eyes the whole time, trying to feel Emma Stone's beauty at an ultra-close distance.

Emma Stone had a very small face, a baby face, with some small freckles on it, but they weren't obvious.

Her face shape was a square face that leaned toward pointed. On this face, the most eye-catching thing was, of course, her pair of special eyes. Although she was closing them now, Chen Nuo knew she had a pair of lively eyes like emeralds, and the beauty contained within them would make him think of those emerald-green lakes in Jiuzhaigou.

Her mouth wasn't small, but her lips were thin, and the shape was very good, like soft jelly, as if they would break if sucked lightly.

In just two or three short seconds, so many thoughts flashed through Chen Nuo's mind.

Because he still couldn't find where the love was.

Sure enough, another "Cut, again."

Wong Kar-wai went crazy on the first day; this short kissing scene was filmed over and over again.

Darius Khondji was definitely a master of motion shots. Every time, he filmed from different angles, and the feeling of every take was actually different.

This made Wong Kar-wai increasingly unable to stop.

Filming from dusk to late night and then to dawn.

When Emma Stone had been kissed about 20 times, she became numb.

In the end, if the script supervisor hadn't clapped the board and said it was the 55th take, Emma Stone wouldn't have been able to count how many times she and that boy had kissed.

They filmed for a whole night, until 5:00 AM, and everyone was exhausted. Wong Kar-wai actually hadn't called it a day, but instead shouted, "Wrap."

The first day of filming passed just like that. Emma Stone didn't even want to change her costume; all she could think about was getting a good sleep.

But her agent said that after wrapping up, no matter what time it was, she must give her a call.

Emma Stone dialed the number. After a few rings, the other side picked up, and a sleepy voice said, "Hello, Emma, are you done filming? How does it feel?"

Her agent, Sarah, was about 40 years old and was a casting director who had been hanging around Hollywood for years. She had been her agent since she was 15, so Emma Stone didn't have any reservations and told her everything that happened today, then complained to her agent, "Oh my god, the kissing scene I imagined wasn't like this. I feel like my mouth is swollen now."

Sarah's voice carried a smile, "Wow, I hope Chen's handsomeness makes you feel a bit better. By the way, how is his kissing technique? Actually, if his kissing technique is very good, I wouldn't mind letting him kiss me 55 times."

Emma Stone laughed a bit shyly, "It was just touching lips, not really kissing, okay? Sarah, I think he was almost going crazy later. Oh my god, I can't imagine what it feels like to be NG'd 55 times. If I were him, I definitely wouldn't be able to keep filming. Do you know? Everyone was whispering later. I can't even imagine how sad he must feel."

Sarah laughed, "Did you forget what I told you? This director is famous for being strict in China. Filming his movies requires that kind of psychological preparation."

Emma Stone sighed and said, "I know, I'm just a bit worried about myself. I'm afraid I won't meet his requirements later."

"Emma, Emma, I've been a casting director in Hollywood for so long. You have to trust my vision, and you have to trust yourself. Don't worry about that Chinese boy; he might have limited talent, but you are truly excellent. You are the only lead in this movie. You know, how many Hollywood girls dream of acting with Natalie Portman and Rachel Weisz, yet they are just your foils this time! Emma, you must seize this opportunity, otherwise, you will regret it for the rest of your life!"

(End of Chapter) ===== CHAPTER 101 =====