Chapter 366: Pretense

The red carpet for the opening ceremony of the 64th Venice International Film Festival on August 29th was not exactly star-studded; even though eight Hollywood films were selected for the main competition, very few big stars showed up.

However, unexpectedly, the red carpet for the closing ceremony on September 8th was the complete opposite; almost all the leads from those Hollywood films nominated for the main competition had arrived.

"Professor X" James McAvoy, the lead of *Atonement*, along with the beautiful and sexy Keira Knightley.

The male lead of *The Darjeeling Limited*, the youngest Oscar Best Actor winner, Adrien Brody.

The male lead of *The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford*, Hollywood superstar Brad Pitt, as well as Casey Affleck.

The male lead of *Michael Clayton*, superstar George Clooney.

The leads of *In the Valley of Elah*, Tommy Lee Jones and Oscar Best Actress winner Charlize Theron.

The leads of *I'm Not There*—well, perhaps only the male lead, Christian Bale, and the "Great Demon King" Cate Blanchett, who has won so many awards her hands must be tired.

Why emphasize the male lead? Because *I'm Not There* is a biographical film about Bob Dylan; Christian Bale plays Bob Dylan, and Cate Blanchett also cross-dresses to play Bob Dylan.

Just Bob Dylan at different periods.

Furthermore, another interesting point about this film is that while Christian Bale is one of the male leads, one of the important roles is played by Heath Ledger.

In *The Dark Knight*, a collaboration between Cao Yang and Nolan, the actor playing Batman is none other than Christian Bale, while Heath Ledger is the actor playing the Joker.

The red carpet for this Venice Film Festival closing ceremony was absolutely dazzling.

Not only were there Hollywood superstars, but also Oscar Best Actors, Oscar Best Actresses, and even an Oscar Best Supporting Actress—though, in truth, that is also called an Oscar Best Actress.

Ever since the closing ceremony red carpet began, Old Situ hadn't been able to close his mouth, smiling as brightly as could be.

He really wanted to shout to everyone: Didn't you all say the Venice Film Festival's influence was declining? Didn't you all say the Venice Film Festival had been "intercepted" by that damn Toronto Film Festival?

Well then, tell me, look me in the eye and tell me, who is that walking on the red carpet?

That is Hollywood superstar Brad Pitt, that is Hollywood Best Actress Cate Blanchett and Charlize Theron, that is superstar George Clooney, who still holds immense influence across the globe!

When has the Venice Film Festival ever attracted so many superstars?

Answer me!

As for whether the arrival of so many Hollywood big stars would lead to criticism that the Venice Film Festival has "fallen."

So what if it has "fallen"?

Hasn't Cannes compromised with Hollywood just the same? Isn't Berlin also currently tilting toward Hollywood?

Why can't Venice?

"For the sake of the Venice Film Festival's attention and influence, I shall bear this infamy."

Old Situ mocked himself in his heart with a touch of self-pity.

Of course, if not for his unclosable mouth, if not for the fact that the festival's biggest internal competitor had been taken down, and if not for the fact that next year's commercial development could be foreseen to be much smoother...

His self-mockery might have been more relatable.

Cao Yang walked the red carpet with the *Pieta* crew, and he stepped onto the carpet quite early, not at the finale.

Including Cao Yang, there were four people in the *Pieta* crew: Old Tian, the male lead Fu Dalong, and the female lead Hui Yinghong.

However, when it came to fame and influence, especially in Venice, the three of them combined... fine, that comparison is a bit insulting to Old Tian and the others, because they aren't worthy.

On the red carpet, whether it was the media on both sides or the fans, everyone was calling Cao Yang's name; the three of them were complete passersby.

Fortunately, there was the mainland media, and there was the Xiangjiang media.

At least the three of them weren't completely ignored; at this moment, they were especially grateful to the media from the mainland and Xiangjiang, otherwise they really would have become background props and passersby.

"Director Cao's influence is truly great."

Fu Dalong remarked sincerely.

The three of them quickly finished walking the red carpet, while Cao Yang was left alone on it; there was no helping it, too many media outlets wanted to interview Cao Yang.

Old Situ's intention was also for Cao Yang to stay on the red carpet as long as possible.

Hui Yinghong, standing nearby, nodded. Watching the media reporters frantically taking photos, she sighed along: "I thought Director Cao's influence in Hollywood was greater, I didn't expect his influence in Venice to be this much too."

Old Tian glanced at Hui Yinghong and sneered in his heart; if she weren't a woman, the chivalrous Old Tian would have already retorted.

What an ignorant woman. Do you think the two Golden Lions and one Palme d'Or in Cao Yang's hands are just for show? Do you think just anyone can produce a Berlin Best Actress, a Venice Best Actress, and a Cannes Best Actress?

It's only because Cao Yang is still young; if he were even fifty, Cannes, Venice, and Berlin would have been fighting to give him a Lifetime Achievement Award.

Don't look at that kid Cao Yang as young; it's just that you Xiangjiang media report so little on art-house films and the three major European festivals that belong to the art-house circle.

If the Xiangjiang media reported normally at all, you would know that that brat Cao Yang is practically being canonized in the European art-house circle, alright?

He's probably just one Berlin Golden Bear away from being "canonized."

Old Tian looked at Hui Yinghong again; truly, long hair and short insight.

Xiangjiang?

Heh, just a cultural desert; most of the media and entertainment circle are a group of people who cannot recognize themselves.

Old Tian couldn't be bothered to explain so much to Hui Yinghong and walked straight inside, saying: "Let's go, let's head in first. Cao Yang has things to do later, we don't need to wait for him."

Cao Yang did indeed have things to do later.

The film *The Sun Also Rises* by director Chen Yili from Wanwan had entered the midnight screening section and was even selected as the closing film.

The closing film of the Venice Film Festival is very special, so special that the premiere of the closing film has to be held on the same day as the festival's awards ceremony, and even after the red carpet has started (this is the reality).

So, is this damn closing film even worth having?

At this time for the premiere, one can imagine the level of attention from the media and fans.

Of course, for films that didn't make it into the main competition, even if the attention isn't high, being the closing film is much better than having nothing at all—at least they can brag to the outside world that they are the closing film of the Venice Film Festival.

Don't look down on this title; if you want to sell European distribution rights, this title is still worth quite a bit of money.

Without the "label" of the three major European festivals, it is very difficult for Chinese-language films, including those from Xiangjiang and Wanwan, to sell European distribution rights.

After finishing the red carpet, Cao Yang got into a pre-arranged car to attend the premiere of *The Sun Also Rises*.

There was no choice; when several domestic directors had dinner together, because Cao Yang arrived in Venice late, only Jiang Wen's *The Sun Also Rises* and Chen Yili's *The Sun Also Rises* had not yet premiered.

Jiang Wen spoke first, inviting Cao Yang to attend the premiere, and to show his gratitude, he downed a glass of white liquor, displaying great boldness and generosity.

The Wanwan director Chen Yili was stunned for a moment, lost in thought, then followed suit by downing a glass of white liquor, and personally poured another for Cao Yang, toasting him.

Only then did he open his mouth to invite Cao Yang to attend the premiere of *The Sun Also Rises*.

Cao Yang had just agreed to Jiang Wen, and now Chen Yili was even more polite; what could he do?

Moreover, the day before this gathering, one of the leads of *The Sun Also Rises*, Cao Yang's little fanboy Liu Ye, heard that Cao Yang had come to Venice and had come to find Cao Yang to hang out.

Before leaving, he also invited Cao Yang, saying if Director Cao had time, could he come to attend the premiere of *The Sun Also Rises*.

Under these circumstances, Cao Yang had no choice but to agree.

Even if he didn't give face to Chen Yili from Wanwan, he had to give face to Liu Ye.

*The Sun Also Rises* attached great importance to this Venice screening; the crew's three main male leads, Liu Ye, Zhang Zhen, and Wu Yanzu, all came, and additionally, the two female leads, Shu Qi and Li Xiaolu, also came.

When Cao Yang arrived, what met his eyes were the five main actors and the director all on the red carpet, well, doing nothing.

Very few media reporters had come, and there weren't many fans either.

Sigh, the main thing was that this time slot was too pit-worthy; the film festival's closing ceremony red carpet was being held over there, and what's more, this red carpet had so many Hollywood big stars, who would be bored enough to come here looking for "news"?

Well, the few "bored" media reporters actually did capture big news; they didn't expect to run into Cao Yang at such an occasion.

In an instant, the few reporters were like they had been injected with adrenaline, and with an "ow," they rushed toward Cao Yang.

"Director Cao, are you here to attend the premiere of *The Sun Also Rises*?" "Director Cao, are you very optimistic about *The Sun Also Rises*?"

"Director Cao, what is the reason that made you come to attend the premiere of *The Sun Also Rises*?"

Cao Yang grabbed Liu Ye from the few people who had come to greet him and said with a smile:

"This is Liu Ye; some of you might know him. He is the male lead of my first film to win the Golden Lion, *Empty Room*, and he is also my friend.

So you should know why I came to attend the premiere of *The Sun Also Rises* now, right?

As for how this film is, sorry, I haven't seen it yet and cannot comment. However, as you can see, this film has so many beauties and handsome men; that alone is worth the price of admission, isn't it? Haha..."

"Haha..."

The reporters also laughed along. Although some didn't understand why they should laugh, Director Cao Yang laughed, so they definitely had to laugh along.

For a time, the red carpet was filled with a joyful atmosphere.

"Hello Director Cao, thank you for being able to spare the time to attend the premiere of *The Sun Also Rises*, truly, especially grateful."

Director Chen Yili was clearly very happy that Cao Yang could come.

"Hello Director Cao, thank you." Zhang Zhen usually looked serious, but at this moment he still revealed a smile.

"Hello Director Cao, especially grateful for your arrival, thank you." Shu Qi said in the delicate tone unique to Wanwan.

Cao Yang shook hands with her and couldn't help but think of Shu Qi's representative work *Sex and Zen*, her performance in it was still very classic.

All in all, Shu Qi could be considered the most successful of the many Category III actresses to have "come ashore."

"Hello Director Cao, thank you." Currently, Wu Yanzu's looks were still quite formidable, in the prime of his youth.

"Hello Director Cao, I am Li Xiaolu, you are the director I like and admire the most."

Miss Xiaolu, who likes to do hair, shook hands with Cao Yang, and when letting go, whether intentionally or not, she scratched the back of Cao Yang's hand with her ring finger.

For Cao Yang, who had been "harassed" countless times by actresses using various excuses and tricks, Li Xiaolu's methods were still a bit green; this was just child's play.

But to be honest, Li Xiaolu, at the age of twenty-five or twenty-six, was at her most blooming and gorgeous time, and her figure was not something the "plain" Shu Qi could compare to; she looked quite pleasing to the eye.

As for their attire, whether it was Shu Qi or Li Xiaolu, compared to the completely backless outfits of Chen Chong and Kong Wei when Cao Yang attended Jiang Wen's film premiere last time, the two of them were considered very conservative.

Don't know why, but Shu Qi, who should have been more "bold," was instead more conservative, wearing a pink strapless long dress, with only her arms above the shoulders exposed; other places were very covered.

Compared to Shu Qi, Li Xiaolu exposed a bit more.

It was also a strapless long dress, with the two hemispheres slightly exposed, and the cleavage was indeed squeezed out very obviously, but this attire was considered conservative at the Venice Film Festival.

Cao Yang had also arrived just in time; it was now exactly time for the movie to start, and the few of them walked toward the screening hall, laughing and talking.

"Director Cao, before you arrived, I attended the premiere of *Pieta*. Oh my god, I was truly shocked at the time. Director Tian is really daring to shoot; especially that scene between Fu Dalong and Hui Yinghong, tsk tsk..."

"That male lead is fucking perverted. You have to know that at the time, he probably thought Hui Yinghong was his mother, and because he wanted to take revenge on his mother for abandoning him early on, he actually... tsk tsk, it's too shocking, it completely ruins one's worldview, haha..."

Liu Ye is a famous big-mouth, especially after his fame grew; he is quite daring with his words, and when he gets into a conversational mood, he doesn't care about the occasion.

Cao Yang glanced at him and said with a smile while walking: "Shocking, right? Ruins your worldview, doesn't it? I wrote the script."

"Uh..."

Liu Ye looked as if his throat had been pinched. Well, although he has a big mouth and is quite daring, he isn't stupid; he can still tell who is who.

"Pfft..."

Li Xiaolu, who was nearby, couldn't hold it in and covered her mouth to laugh.

As for the rest of the people, they all acted as if they hadn't heard anything.

Liu Ye glared fiercely at Li Xiaolu, then forcibly chuckled twice to ease the awkwardness, and said with a straight face:

"Only this kind of shocking plot can highlight the essence of art, can explore the good and evil of human nature in a profound yet accessible way, can..."

"Alright, alright."

Cao Yang waved his hand to interrupt Liu Ye's boasting and urged him with a slightly serious tone:

"It's only because I know your personality that I won't hold it against you. You brat, remember this: keep your mouth in check and run your words through your brain a few times before speaking. Otherwise, your career will sooner or later be ruined by this mouth of yours."

Liu Ye nodded solemnly and promised: "Cao Dao, I know you have my best interests at heart. I have taken your words to heart."

Fine, although Cao Yang didn't really believe he could remember it, he hoped he would.

Next, it was time to watch the movie.

"Heavenly Side" had already been released domestically. Tian Zhuangzhuang had mentioned it to Cao Yang, saying that this movie was filmed a bit awkwardly and the director hadn't controlled the plot well, leading to it being somewhat out of hand.

He even joked to Cao Yang that after this movie was released, many people online started to think that Chen Kaige's "The Promise" was actually well-made.

Now that he had watched it, Cao Yang felt that what Tian Zhuangzhuang said... still had some truth to it.

The plot is actually very simple. The story takes place in old Shanghai. The dance hostess played by Shu Qi is the woman of the crime boss Sun Honglei, but she has an affair with Sun Honglei's top henchman and assassin Zhang Zhen, and also makes Wu Yanzu lose his mind.

After the affair is exposed, the boss wants to assassinate those who betrayed him, which leads to Wu Yanzu's desperate protection, Wu Yanzu's good brother shooting his own big brother Liu Ye, and finally Liu Ye sending people to kill Shu Qi...

Although the plot seems very "twisty," it is hard for the love between Shu Qi and any of the men to be moving.

How she was made famous by the crime boss Sun Honglei is unknown; how she and Zhang Zhen loved each other silently for years is not explained clearly; and her ambiguous relationship with Wu Yanzu is also inexplicable...

So much so that when she finally fell in a pool of blood, Cao Yang didn't feel a shred of empathy, didn't feel the slightest tragedy, but really wanted to laugh.

In short, it's too ridiculous.

Especially when the assassin played by Zhang Zhen kills Liu Ye, Liu Ye actually presses his hand to his forehead, strikes a "Thinker" pose, poses for a moment, and then mutters to himself: "This is what you call an assassin."

Holy shit!

Uh, Cao Yang didn't know why, but a scene from a movie starring a second-generation Xiangjiang actor suddenly appeared in his mind. That guy wouldn't have been so shocked after watching "Heavenly Side" that he copied it, would he?

So much so that just as the credits began to roll, Cao Yang whispered to the director Chen Yili beside him: "I still have to rush back to present the award to the Best Actress tonight, I can't stay any longer."

Cao Yang's original plan was to leave after participating in the subsequent Q&A session with reporters.

But he was afraid.

What if the reporters asked him what he thought of "Heavenly Side"?

How would he answer?

Retreat, retreat.

By the time Cao Yang rushed back to the awards ceremony, he found that they were still presenting other miscellaneous awards and hadn't started on the main competition category films yet, so he finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Sometimes, attending other people's premieres isn't that easy.

Just like with Jiang Wen's "The Sun Also Rises," when reporters asked him what he thought of the movie?

Well, even if Jiang Wen's self-expression was too strong, at least there were merits, and one could find points to praise, such as pointing directly to the heart or exploring the fragility of human nature.

But how do you praise "Heavenly Side"?

Should one "praise" the director for being too pretentious, or "praise" it as an auteur film that moans without an illness under the banner of art?

Sigh, damn you Wu Yusen, as a movie produced by your studio, as the producer of the film, as a remake based on your "Bullet in the Head," is this it?

At this moment, Cao Yang felt a bit of resentment toward Ma Ding again. You really are something; supporting Chinese-language cinema is fine, but you should at least guarantee the quality, right?

This kind of support of yours isn't helping Chinese-language cinema; it's smearing it!

It seems I need to have a good talk with Ma Ding.

(End of chapter)