Chapter 261: That was truly beautiful (Bonus for 200 monthly votes!)

Before Zhang Yimou shot this take, he had already prepared himself to film it many times over.

When Wong Kar-wai filmed the first scene of *My Blueberry Nights*, he shot it over 100 times.

In the end, *My Blueberry Nights* won the Palme d'Or.

This incident has already become something of a joke within the director circles across the mainland, Hong Kong, and Taiwan.

Many directors joke about it, saying that if they ever directed a film starring Chen Nuo, they would definitely do the same thing when shooting the first take; who knows, they might even win a Palme d'Or.

Although Zhang Yimou has been focused on his Olympic work, this joke, which has spread far and wide and is even taken seriously by many, still reached his ears.

To say he has no ambition for the Palme d'Or would be self-deception.

However, he is Zhang Yimou.

Even if this joke were true, he wouldn't do such a thing.

He is not Wong Kar-wai; he wouldn't deliberately torment his actors just to win an award.

The only reason he would prepare to NG a hundred times is one:

The actor's performance is not good and very likely won't pass. It would require many, many takes.

Therefore, before filming began, he decided to switch the camera from film to a digital camera that was not yet very mature.

It is no exaggeration to say that Director Zhang had already prepared to spend the New Year on set.

If the filming schedule couldn't keep up, then for the three-month production period, starting with him, no one in the crew would get a single night of peaceful sleep.

In any case, his reputation must not be ruined this time.

"Director Zhang, I think you're taking this too seriously, really. It shouldn't come to that..."

"Chen Nuo, it's not that I don't trust Liu Yifei. If I didn't trust her, I wouldn't have cast her in the first place. It's just that after thinking about it, the difficulty of this film for the female lead is indeed high. No matter who plays it, I have to make these preparations. So, we still decided to use digital; you can't say I think Liu Yifei can't act well, it's mainly to strive for perfection."

"How about this, Director Zhang, for our first scene, let's shoot the one where Jingqiu cries in front of Lao San's bed at the end. How about that?"

"This scene is quite difficult. Shooting this as the first scene, wouldn't it be too soon? Chen Nuo, I'm afraid Liu Yifei won't be in the right state of mind by then."

"I think she'll be fine. I've been watching her changes these past few days. My point is, let's use this scene to test it. If, after you film it, Director Zhang, you feel that Liu Yifei really can only be filmed with digital, then we'll do as you say."

"Haha, the way you put it makes it sound like I have no confidence in you and Liu Yifei."

"Director Zhang, Liu Yifei and I are old friends, and I think I understand her well enough; she won't be that bad. So, Director, why don't you give her a chance?"

This was a conversation Zhang Yimou had over the phone with the male lead of his new film before departing from Jingcheng for Hubei.

It was precisely because of this conversation that he decided to bring the film equipment along as well.

Just in case—what if Liu Yifei actually pulled it off?

Why Chen Nuo insisted on using film, Zhang Yimou actually understood.

In this era, digital cameras were only just starting out.

Although they allow for unlimited shooting, deleting, and NGs without increasing costs,

in reality, in terms of visual effect, the graininess and texture of film photography are indeed something current digital cameras cannot compare to.

When played in a cinema, the impact of this might not be huge.

However, if the film were to be sent to Cannes... that would be a different story.

In his previous life, because of the two new actors Zhou Dongyu and Dou Xiao, Zhang Yimou decided to use digital cameras to shoot this film; it's hard to say whether this influenced the final evaluation of the film.

Because anyone who has seen the film knows that, besides the visuals appearing thin and cheap, the original *Under the Hawthorn Tree* had many other things worth criticizing.

However, digital photography certainly did not play a positive role in helping the film, and no one could defend that point.

It's not that Zhang Yimou didn't know digital had issues and would lower the quality.

But as everyone knows, Zhang Yimou is a man, not a god. He is not only not a hero who would "go forward even if there are thousands," but he could even be said to be a man with many flaws.

After casting Liu Yifei in the film, the pressure from public opinion on all sides left him unable to eat or sleep.

Although Zhang Weiping firmly supported him,

Zhang Yimou knew that was entirely because of Chen Nuo.

Because Chen Nuo's appeal in the mainland, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan, South Korea, and even the global market left this businessman dazzled.

However, setting Zhang Weiping aside, voices criticizing his choice of Liu Yifei as the female lead were incessant, both online and offline.

The comments Liu Yifei saw in the internet cafe were a tiny, tiny fraction, even insignificant.

More pressure even came from his friends and the worries and persuasions of acquaintances.

It's too risky.

Everyone said so.

Everyone was well-intentioned, and what they said was very sincere.

"Liu Yifei's acting is too formulaic. Even Chen Nuo will have a hard time bringing it out of her."

"Mouzi, you've really lost your mind this time. If she were really capable, *The Return of the Condor Heroes* would have worked, or at the very least *The Message* should have. She really isn't capable."

"To be honest, Director Zhang, you'd be better off picking a newcomer; someone half-baked like Liu Yifei is too hard to train."

"Mouzi, you might really need to prepare your budget this time. We mainland investors can't learn from the likes of Wong Kar-wai. If you want to shoot it well, you'd better be mentally prepared."

Zhang Yimou is an artist, and as everyone knows, artists tend to be soft-hearted and their resolve is not always firm.

When everyone around him told him in unison that Liu Yifei wasn't capable,

after ten days or so, Zhang Yimou couldn't help but doubt his initial decision.

However, being soft-hearted as well, despite having already settled on digital filming, after hearing Chen Nuo's words on the phone, he wavered again. He decided to prepare for both scenarios.

But as for how it would actually go, Zhang Yimou still had no idea before seeing Liu Yifei's performance.

Until now.

As he watched the girl in the monitor crying in such heart-wrenching, soul-crushing grief.

Zhang Yimou watched Liu Yifei's performance on the monitor while keeping an eye on the time in the top right corner of the screen.

13 seconds, 58, 12...

More than 10 seconds had passed.

She was a completely different person from the girl who could only wail dryly after shedding two drops of water during the audition.

Her tears flowed like a fountain, endless. Not only had she been crying for so long, but the tears hadn't stopped.

What satisfied Zhang Yimou most was that, from the lens, one could see Liu Yifei wasn't performing a solo act;

her gaze remained locked on Chen Nuo's face.

Thus, every viewer could clearly perceive that she was crying for him.

Mourning endlessly for her lover who was about to die.

She loved him so much that the emotions filling her eyes were almost overflowing from the screen; it was an unmasked, deep, affectionate gaze.

One didn't need a professional eye to see this.

I don't know how many top actors Old Mouzi has worked with; to this day, it's hard to say which actor's performance has truly moved him.

At this moment, he couldn't help but nod slightly.

He watched for a while longer, until the time in the top right corner of the monitor reached 31 seconds.

At this moment, Liu Yifei spoke her first line.

While crying, she said intermittently: "You... you're a liar, you clearly... clearly promised me..."

According to the script, Liu Yifei should have said, "I am Jingqiu. I am Jingqiu. I am Jingqiu."

Because Lao San was dying and was in his final moments.

Lao San's mother told Jingqiu to hurry and tell him who she was and that she had arrived.

So, in the original film, Zhou Dongyu was like a broken record, repeating this pretentious and depthless line several times, causing the audience, who were initially slightly moved, to instantly lose immersion.

This time, when reading the script, Zhang Yimou still didn't think there was anything wrong with the line.

But at this moment, after hearing Liu Yifei's line, he looked thoughtful and "clapped" his hands.

Zhang Yimou was quite pleased.

Old Mouzi's artistic aesthetic judgment is, after all, not comparable to that of an ordinary person.

Once Liu Yifei delivered this improvised line, he immediately reacted: this was absolutely more appropriate than the line in the original script.

This "liar" echoed a line Jingqiu and Lao San had earlier.

It seems Liu Yifei had memorized the script by heart.

Not only that, the line was good because, for two people who were so deeply in love, did they really need a line like "I am Jingqiu" to remind the other person who she was?

They didn't.

Two people who truly love each other can recognize the other by a cough, a sob, or even a footstep or a breath.

Before calling "Cut," Zhang Yimou looked at the time in the top right corner of the monitor again; it had now reached 45 seconds.

Tsk tsk.

He shook his head again and said into the walkie-talkie: "Cut! That's a wrap. Let the actors rest for a while. Prepare for the next scene."

Immediately, Director Zhang sat in his director's chair and hesitated for a few seconds, finally deciding that one should still trust oneself.

What do those random passersby know about film?

Since the Republic era, all the good things have been ruined by these fools who only know how to blather.

Look at Liu Yifei; this expressiveness, this infectious power, this ability to cry without ruining her face—and people say Chen Nuo couldn't bring this actress out? What kind of international joke is that?

Could my judgment be wrong?

Zhang Yimou stood up, expressionless but inwardly satisfied, and urged those around him, frowning: "Change the equipment, change it. This digital stuff still won't do; you have to use film for me."

Hearing the "Cut," Chen Nuo, who had high-gloss powder on his cheeks and hollowed-out cheeks, immediately closed his mouth.

With a tube in his nose, he had been breathing lightly through his mouth, and after drinking in the cold wind for so long, his mouth was dry and quite uncomfortable.

He had just pulled the nasal tube out when he heard Director Zhang Yimou say considerately over the walkie-talkie that the actors should rest...

Chen Nuo felt it wasn't really necessary.

He had just been lying there; the mattress was quite comfortable, the quilt was warm, and although he had to pretend to be like a corpse to play a dying man, it wasn't comfortable, but it wasn't exactly exhausting either.

However, when he moved his gaze to the face of the person by the bed, he was stunned for a moment.

No wonder it passed in one take.

She really did get into character.

It wasn't in vain that he had worked like a father and mother this month.

From beauty treatments to haircuts, from psychological counseling to physical posture, he could be said to have poured out all his experience in immersing himself in a role.

If he could be considered Li Er's closing disciple, then Liu Yifei had to be his founding disciple.

Come to think of it, what was he after?

There were three reasons.

First, people are emotional animals; Liu Yifei and he had known each other for so long, even if... there were feelings.

Second, people are visual animals; such a beautiful girl was stuck in a professional bottleneck, what man could bear it? If you can help, you must help.

Third, and most crucially, people are profit-driven animals.

In November, Liu Yifei officially renewed her management contract with Huanxin Company.

Even though Liu Xiaoli looked unhappy on the side, she signed an 8-year contract with Huanxin Company without hesitation.

As for the breach of contract penalty, she didn't even bargain with Qi Yuntian. It was truly frighteningly straightforward; it looked like she really didn't intend to seek other opportunities.

This was 8 years!

Liu Yifei was only a year younger than him; 8 years later, she would be almost 30.

In other words, Liu Yifei's golden years, from 22 to 30, the most golden age in any actress's life, were basically sold to him.

For every dollar she earned, he would get 30 or 40 cents.

Then Chen Nuo couldn't help but ask: what's wrong with being the female lead in a Zhang Yimou film?

Why couldn't Liu Yifei do it?

Isn't it deserved to collect a few million in salary?

Finally, 30 days of hard teaching paid off today.

Chen Nuo came out of character, smiled, and praised: "Not bad..."

Before he could even finish his sentence, Liu Yifei pounced on him, hugged him, and let out a "Wow," a loud cry that made his eardrums buzz.

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 262 =====