[Chapter 635: Isn't There a Way to Stop This?]
The theater lights dimmed.
After the production and distribution logos flashed on screen, a cacophony of frantic shouting erupted from the sound system. The image brightened to reveal a packed underground boxing ring filled with a wild crowd.
In the ring, a fragile figure seemed overwhelmed by the fierce onslaught of a muscular, buzz-cut female fighter. Yet throughout the exchange, the girl somehow managed to avoid even a single hit from her opponent.
With rapid cuts and edits between shots, a Black host holding a microphone narrated the action at an incredible speed, as if he were rapping. The power dynamics of the two female boxers were laid bare -- the buzz-cut fighter's imposing physique may have seemed intimidating, yet the frail girl's undefeated streak of 37 matches sent the audience into another frenzy.
In the flashing close-up shots, the girl, whose complexion appeared a bit sickly pale, raised her hand wrapped in white bandages to block several attacks. She seized an opportunity to strike back, but a sudden bright light flashed before her eyes, momentarily clouding her judgment. Her opponent showed a cruel, wicked smile as her fist came rocketing toward the girl. The girl staggered back, ultimately colliding with the rough wooden barrier of the ring. In the chaos, a piece of protruding barbed wire caught her right arm, leaving a noticeable gash.
Just as the girl narrowly dodged a potentially lethal blow, a loud bang resounded, cutting away from the boxing match. The door of a black Buick Riviera slammed shut, and the camera lingered for a close-up of its recognizable "triple shield" logo.
Some overly confident viewers smiled, suspecting this shot was undoubtedly product placement.
Morgan Freeman stepped in to take over the role originally played by Bill Murray as the liaison, John Bosley. He stood by the Buick Riviera for a moment, listening intently before casting a discerning glance at the dilapidated street. The view switched to a first-person perspective. In John's sight line, a few young men and women appeared at the alley's entrance. John's gaze seemed to land on a particular figure, and he smiled at a tall person approaching from the opposite side. "Gill, let's go meet your future partner."
Charlize Theron portrayed Gill Monroe, who nodded and followed Morgan Freeman toward a warehouse-like building from which sounds of indistinct chatter emanated.
Two brawny guards noticed John and Gill's arrival. Instead of stopping them, they opened the iron gate for them with a hint of deference.
Moving through the dim corridor, John brought Gill to the second-floor seating area. A bald White man greeted John, coming over to whisper a few words in his ear.
Gill, however, had already taken notice of the two fighters facing off in the ring below. The previously seemingly overwhelmed girl now showcased her dominance, unleashing a flurry of relentless attacks that steadily overpowered the buzz-cut fighter.
"She's quick," Gill couldn't help but exclaim.
By this time, John had silently taken position beside Gill, his expression growing serious. "She's angry."
Before he finished speaking, the buzz-cut fighter fell unconscious, knocked out by a powerful kick from the dark-haired girl.
The venue erupted into wild cheers, but John remained expressionless, telling Gill, "Let's go."
They vanished from the staircase, and the scene adeptly shifted back outside. Among the young people observed by John at the alley's mouth, a Latin girl clad in a cropped top and ripped jeans approached. She nonchalantly popped a lollipop in her mouth, playfully flashed the finger to her friends, and ambled towards John's Buick.
Upon reaching the Buick Riviera, the Latin girl removed the candy from her mouth, revealing not a trace of candy on the tip, but a glint of metal instead.
Many seasoned film buffs in the audience exchanged knowing smiles upon seeing these shots.
They recognized Penelope Cruz's character as a car thief, but also realized from the previous shot that the Buick seemed more like a "bait."
As a film adapted from a TV series, most viewers by now had identified the three girls' roles. At the same time, curiosity about the "Angels" continued to grow. Kate and Penelope's skills were clear, but Charlize's Gill had yet to show any distinct talent.
Though the film was only a little over two minutes in, most viewers found themselves immersed in the plot; this was exactly the effect the producers aimed for.
Just as Penelope's character inserted tools into the car's keyhole, the camera cut back to the underground boxing ring.
The pale, dark-haired girl sat alone on an empty bench in a waiting area, quietly wrapping a bandage around her recently injured right arm.
At the door, John and Gill paused for a moment. John stepped forward and sat next to the dark-haired girl, while Gill stood by the door, a mix of admiration and respect in her demeanor.
"You only want to win each time, but they wouldn't hesitate to kill you," John sighed, his tone holding a note of caution.
"I only want to win, knowing they can't kill me," the dark-haired girl replied calmly, her voice devoid of pride or arrogance, as though stating a simple fact.
"That was just an accident, Bernie will handle it," he continued, "But I still suggest you don't come back here. There are too many rule-breakers these days."
The dark-haired girl showed no intent to agree, focused instead on neatly securing her bandage while glancing at Gill by the door.
John chose not to press the matter further, signaling to Gill as he introduced them. "Your new partner, Gill Monroe. Gill, this is Selina Garrett."
Selina glanced at Gill but ignored the girl's attempt at greeting. Instead, she pragmatically inquired, "Aren't there supposed to be two?"
John chuckled lightly, "The other one's outside. Let's go."
Penelope Cruz's character, Lucini Beck, had already found herself in trouble. Like usual, she quickly opened the car door in mere seconds, but minutes later, not only had she failed to find the ignition wire, the door had inexplicably locked itself.
Like a bird caught in a trap, Lucini struggled for a bit before deciding to find something to smash the Buick Riviera's glass and escape, when suddenly someone opened the passenger side door.
A kindly-faced Black man smiled and said, "Picked a car I knew you'd love. How does it feel?"
Lucini gaped in surprise, her mouth agape for a second before her expression morphed into one of innocence. Waving her arms frantically, she stammered, "Ah... Haha, good evening, sir. I just came by to say hello, didn't realize nobody was here. Haha, hahaha."
Laughter erupted from the audience as the girl's hilariously awkward excuse unfolded.
However, when John tossed a thick stack of documents into Lucini's lap, laughter rang out again throughout the auditorium.
For within that stack were photographs of Lucini caught in the act of stealing cars, and amusingly, all those vehicles bore Buick's prominent "triple shield" logo.
"Looks like Buick spared no expense this time; this placement is certainly amusing," many film critics in the audience mused.
On screen, Lucini chattered nervously like a flustered magpie, justifying her actions while defiantly accusing John of stalking her. The other two girls watched in silence, while John slowly stated, "You've got 30 minutes to get the car to 10880 Malibu, or I'll hand you and these photos over to the cops."
The "chattering magpie" fell silent immediately as the engine roared to life. The Buick Riviera smoothly drifted a dozen meters before merging onto a main road.
Once flowing through the busy traffic, Lucini's voice echoed again, "If I get to 10880 Malibu, are you going to let me go?"
"Plus one more job for you."
"Oh no, I don't want to end up serving 180 years like my dad. If you make me go crack a safe, I'd rather be caught by the cops."
"We guarantee the legality of our actions."
"Are you FBI?"
"No."
"CIA?"
"No."
"MI6?"
"No."
"Please don't tell me it's KGB!"
Growing impatient, multiple voices chimed in unison, "Shut up."
The Buick Riviera sped away, fiery rock music starting up, giving many viewers a substantial surprise with the opening credits. Eric employed a style reminiscent of David Fincher's opening in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, with male sculptures encased in a strange black liquid slowly being shattered, evoking themes from the opening of a Bond film.
...
"A striking feminist style, directly countering the Bond series."
One excited female critic jotted down that sentiment in her notebook, then muttered to herself in awe, "I can't wait; I just wonder if this film can reach even a fraction of the Bond series' heights."
Although the initial minutes included clues waiting to be unraveled, Eric didn't delve into anything too profound in the storyline.
Similar to the original script, Knox Network Technologies had reported a theft of their core code for a newly developed online email service. If that core code was misused, it would threaten the information security of millions of users. Simultaneously, Eric Knox, the primary developer of this code, had gone missing. The three Angels were assigned to rescue Eric Knox and retrieve the core code.
Undoubtedly, this plot line aimed to promote Yahoo's email service.
At the time, Yahoo was the only significant player in online email services, even if the name changed; everyone knew "Knox Network Technologies" implied the same company.
While discussing the script with several Yahoo executives due to the premise of the core code theft, Ian Gurney and others initially worried users might take it seriously. However, Steve Mitnick, after reading Eric's script, mockingly told him, "How ridiculous. Go ahead and shoot it."
Eric didn't mind the ridicule from this tech genius; it was just a movie. He was also aware that the online email services' core code comprised millions of lines -- certainly not a one-person job. Furthermore, the core codes were stored on secret server clusters accessible only to a handful of Yahoo executives.
Even if the "person in charge" were genuinely kidnapped, as Steve Mitnick scoffingly remarked, moving those servers housing Yahoo's core codes would require several container trucks, assuming those kidnappers could pinpoint the right servers from the massive data center. In contrast, Eric's script set this "core code" simply on a 2.5-inch floppy disk. How absurd could it be?
After the film's release, Yahoo could easily dissolve any potential user anxiety by rolling out a few explanatory articles.
Certainly, professionals like Steve Mitnick saw this setup as ludicrous; however, in the mid-90s, when many ordinary people had yet to encounter personal computers, such a plot wouldn't raise many eyebrows. Instead, it projected an impressively high-tech aura.
Selina, the intense and tough "girl with a past," Gill, the genius computer whizz, and Lucini, the comedic chatterbox with an uncanny knack for unlocking anything, coordinated increasingly smoothly throughout their exciting missions. Meanwhile, the villains' grand scheme unraveled layer by layer.
In a film about saving the world, the climax always finds its way to the villain's secret lair, and Charlie's Angels was no exception.
...
Within a secret base deep in the Nevada desert, the Angels faced their final showdown after a series of tumultuous events bringing them to the villain's headquarters.
Not long into the fight, Lucini -- having managed to help her friends crack the base's main door -- found herself separated.
With no time to worry, Selina and Gill encountered a flood of enemies. Selina battled fiercely against all the muscular NPCs, as was her style, taking down the talkative villain. Finally, together, they reached the central control room, bruised but victorious.
Gill's fingers flew across the keyboard as she anxiously stared at the computer screen. "The virus program has been activated. In ten minutes, it will spread. All we can do is alert everyone to disconnect from the network to prevent catastrophic data loss worldwide."
"Isn't there a way to stop it?" Selina asked.
"The virus's activation sequence is encrypted. This encryption can only be cracked through brute force, but considering this facility's computer power, it would take 190 years to crack it, and we only have ten minutes." She paused, then added, "Unless there's a supercomputer; then we might only need a few minutes to break the password."
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