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As the plot continued to unfold, the audience finally picked up on the basic clues and framework. The male protagonist, Leonard, not only lost his wife to a home-invading rapist, but also suffered short-term amnesia—the director here deliberately used a scene where a waitress spits into a flask to illustrate this, which elicited laughter from the audience. The male protagonist, a survivor, used photographs to help him remember and began tirelessly searching for the rapist to avenge his wife.
However, the director told the story using two parallel structures of narration and reverse narration. Although the structure was innovative, it inevitably looked somewhat laborious, and it was easy to miss some clues if one was not careful. For example, the male protagonist obviously had a connection with Teddy, whom he shot at the beginning, and the way he explained his condition by recounting the case of another person with short-term amnesia who ended up killing his own wife was also very strange. Unfortunately, there were too many clues intertwined together, and the plot developed so quickly that it was hard for people to comprehend.
Yet, for this reason, the film was extremely captivating. If it weren't being shown in a theater, some might have even jumped up to demand a replay of certain scenes.
Finally, the movie reached its conclusion, revealing everything. Even if some in the audience had missed many clues, they still understood the ending. Teddy was a policeman who had long helped Leonard find the criminal who raped his wife, and Leonard had already taken his revenge for it, but he forgot. Then, Teddy used him to kill a drug dealer and swallow $200,000, and Leonard, knowing all this, no longer trusted him and took a photo of him marked "Do not trust." Ultimately, for various reasons, Leonard mistook Teddy as the murderer of his wife and killed him, leading to the opening scene. Whether Leonard would forget again was unknown.
As the credits rolled, the lights came on, yet there was no applause, only intermittent discussion. Although it was generally understood what the story was about, many aspects couldn't be grasped in a single viewing. For instance, was the person Leonard mentioned who had suffered from short-term amnesia real, or was he just imagined? Was his wife murdered by the rapist or caused by him? The audience exchanged their viewpoints, completely forgetting that the film had ended.
"It looks like the movie failed, there's not even any applause," Adrian, sitting in the special reserved seat at the back for the crew, "sighed" as he said, "I have to say, Dennis, you really disappointed me."
"Me?" Dennis Knight looked at Adrian, puzzled.
"Yes, you're the actor, shouldn't you bear some responsibility?" Adrian remarked seriously.
"This..." Dennis was frustrated and glanced around before sighing, "Kate and Joe are actors too."
"That's different," Adrian waved his hand, "You had the most scenes."
Kate, sitting beside him, finally couldn't hold back and laughed out loud, "Alright, Ed, stop teasing Dennis. Didn't you hear their discussions? Maybe the applause will start soon."
As soon as she finished speaking, applause indeed began, starting with just one person, but a few seconds later most people joined in. However, as they were discussing the film's plot, the applause was somewhat sparse.
"How is it?" Kate proudly puffed out her chest.
"Great, very great," Adrian laughed and gave her a kiss on her lovely cheek.
Watching all of this, Joe Pantoliano patted Dennis on the shoulder and said seriously, "We should go, Dennis; this place has become their flirting ground."
Some crew members around them chuckled softly, and Kate turned her head slightly awkwardly and cleared her throat.
"Alright, folks, I think it's about time we leave as well." Noticing that some of the audience members were starting to head to the exits, Adrian stood up to signal the crew to prepare to leave. But as soon as he reached the aisle, he was stopped by a few people.
"Hello, Mr. Adrian, I'm John Betson from the Los Angeles Evening News. May I ask you a few questions?" A man with brown hair and fairly regular facial features spoke first.
"Mr. Adrian, I'm a reporter from the Eastern Republic Newspaper. Can we talk about your movie?" The man behind Betson extended his hand. He had notably protruding ears and was French, speaking in French.
There were a few others behind them, each introducing themselves in their native languages or in oddly-accented English. Adrian nodded in acknowledgment while glancing at Laverne, who shrugged imperceptibly.
Are they all tabloids? Well, it doesn't matter. Adrian smiled and raised his hand, "Thank you for your support. Feel free to ask any questions you have, but please don't be too tricky. I assume you wouldn't want me to say 'no comment,' right?"
Although the Berlin Film Festival mainly featured politically themed films, as one of the world's most influential film festivals, it still attracted numerous outstanding films to participate, such as Silence of the Lambs, which took home Best Picture and Best Actor and Actress at the 64th Oscars. Similarly, like Dennis and the others, the main actors Anthony Hopkins and Judi Foster also attended this Berlin Film Festival.
Although Adrian, as the director and producer of Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, had gained much attention in recent months, he was still a newcomer. In the eyes of the journalists, a director's news value was never as high as that of big stars, so the mainstream media flocked to the more famous directors and stars instead.
Nevertheless, having some attention was better than none. A few months ago in Venice, even after Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels received praise, no reporters came to interview him—although taking Kate around sightseeing was one reason.
Adrian's cooperative attitude won him quite a bit of goodwill. The first to ask a question was the French reporter, "I want to know, what was your intention with such editing, Mr. Adrian?"
"Of course, to tell the story. Those surprising, shocking, or confusing editing methods are all meant to tell a good story," Adrian replied with a smile, but couldn't help cursing "idiot" in his heart. While having some attention was a good thing, there was nothing to be done if people were stupid. A tabloid is just a tabloid, after all.
"It's an astonishing film. May I know who really killed Leonard's wife?" This time, John Betson from the Los Angeles Evening News asked.
Another one... Adrian shrugged, "I'm sorry, I can't say that directly. I'll only say that all the clues are in the movie. If you're still unsure or something seems off, you might want to watch it again in the theater."
The other tabloid reporters, like them, focused their questions on the plot, which left Adrian rather depressed. But come to think of it, it made sense since tabloids chased after attention-grabbing tidbits. The fact they came to interview him was probably due to running into him coincidentally, or the film's suspense elements were too enticing. From that perspective... it wasn't too bad.
As they chatted while walking outside, the group soon found themselves outside the theater. Adrian then gave Laverne a look. Laverne nodded knowingly and suddenly said loudly, "Everyone, if you're unsatisfied, why not ask Mr. Dennis Knight? He is the lead in the whole movie."
The journalists paused and then gathered around Dennis. In the eyes of reporters, especially tabloid entertainment reporters, actors were indeed more valuable than directors. Dennis was evidently a bit overwhelmed by the attention. Although there were only about 7 or 8 reporters, all tabloid reporters, when had he ever received such treatment? Even after starring in a well-received and profitable film. But he swiftly calmed down and responded with a smile, clearly enjoying the attention.
Seeing the reporters drawn to Dennis, Adrian discreetly slipped away with Kate. With Laverne and Pantoliano assisting, they believed Dennis would manage without any issues.
"Damn it, I wanted to stay there to wait for them to ask me some questions!" After walking past two streets and making sure the reporters couldn't find them, Kate suddenly complained; however, her crescent-moon-shaped eyes and playful expression showed what was really on her mind.
"Alright then, Miss Kate Beckinsale, the big star, how do you feel about the role you played this time?" Adrian asked with a grin.
"Hmm..." Kate tilted her head thoughtfully for a moment before her face suddenly fell, "I feel... not too good."
"Why?" Adrian asked, a bit surprised.
"Think about it, my first role was someone who smokes pot all day and is completely out of her mind, with no lines; and my second role was full of foul language, plus a drug dealer boyfriend who got killed... none of these are normal," Kate sighed, "Especially the makeup in Memento... it was so ugly that I don't dare to look at it on screen. Strangely, I didn't feel it was so ugly on set..."
Adrian couldn't help but laugh, "Alright, when you have time, I'll see if there's a suitable romantic comedy role for you, one where your character is seductive and beautiful, making everyone fall in love at first sight."
Kate was about to agree, but seeing Adrian's knowing smile, she swallowed her words.
"Is there... something wrong?" Kate asked timidly.
"No, nothing," Adrian sighed, "Honestly, you did fantastic in Memento, even better than Dennis, second only to Joe."
This was the truth. Dennis did well, his makeup and acting meeting Adrian's requirements, but due to his youth, some minor details were not perfectly done. Ordinary audiences might not notice, but as someone who had watched countless times during editing, Adrian was well aware. Thankfully, the captivating story made up for it.
Kate, although equally young, or even too young, didn't have the same role that ran throughout like Dennis. The younger she was, the more vibrant she appeared, and her versatility was greater. Plus, with someone like Adrian, intimately familiar with the film, making slight script modifications and providing guidance, along with the makeup artist's deliberate effort to make her look uglier than the original to disguise her beauty, she delivered an excellent performance instead.
(Yesterday, I watched Sucker Punch, full-screen CG. The translations like "Sweet Pea" and "rich man" were hilarious. Beyond that, this story is actually very sad, but most people's attention was on the CG. This illustrates how crucial storytelling methods are for directors. Schneider still has a long way to go compared to Nolan. This movie could have rivaled Inception, but alas.)
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