69novels Chapter 74: The Premiere of "About Time"
Chapter 74: The Premiere of "About Time"
Chapter 74: The Premiere of "About Time"
A typical premiere usually involves several steps: first, press interviews; then, a red carpet ceremony; and finally, depending on the circumstances, a live interactive session or a film screening.
This process was basically established during the premiere of "Hero," and it became a fixed format.
However, Zhang Jun did not hold any press interviews or red carpet ceremonies. After all, although there were quite a few mainland stars present, it was still a bit lacking compared to the star-studded lineups in blockbuster films.
It's roughly the difference between the big cities of Tieling and Shanghai, so Zhang Jun skipped the formalities and got straight to the point.
The premiere was held at a luxury cinema owned by China Film Group.
This movie theater was going to undergo modernization, and "About Time" was the last movie shown before the renovation, so it still had significance.
Yang Mi curiously entered the theater and found a seat. She had heard of the movie "Little Miss Sunshine" directed by Zhang Jun, but had never seen it.
However, according to feedback from those who have seen it, and some online comments, "Little Miss Sunshine" is a unique film in Chinese-language cinema.
It's not that the film's box office performance was exaggerated—though it certainly was. Zhang Jun, directing for the first time, earned over 40 million yuan at the box office with his debut film.
What's most special about "Little Miss Sunshine" is that it's a rare road movie in Chinese-language cinema.
Before entering the theater, Yang Mi saw the movie poster and was very envious of the name on it.
She thought to herself, "If only my name could be on it." Then she fixed her gaze on Zhang Jun, ignoring Fan Bingbing and Gao Yuanyuan beside her.
"Director Zhang Jun is my chance to enter the film industry!" she thought to herself.
In order to gain Zhang Jun's favor, Yang Mi believes she needs to make some changes.
The premiere began soon.
Thank you all for coming to our premiere.
Jiang Tao acted as the temporary host: "I see many familiar faces, many new and old friends, and our journalist friends."
I'm sure you're all curious about the movie, so without further ado, let's start watching!
After Jiang Tao finished speaking, he retreated to the audience seats, and the lights in the theater dimmed. Behind the dragon logo were the logos of Guanzhi Pictures, China Film Group, and Zhang Jun's personal director studio.
Then the film officially began.
Chen Kun plays Chen Xiu, who lives with his family in a small seaside town. His parents are both retired teachers, and his father is played by Wang Xueqi.
He also has a younger sister, played by Sun Li.
The family lived a peaceful and happy life, but Chen Xiu had one complaint: he had never been in a relationship. Because of his introverted personality, he didn't know how to pursue girls.
Watching the film's opening sequence, Huang Xiaoming was once again amazed by Zhang Jun's composition. Under Zhang Jun's lens, both people and scenery were breathtakingly beautiful.
He envied Chen Kun for being able to participate in such a movie; from the very beginning, he felt that the movie must be very good.
Yang Mi felt the same way, but she wasn't envious of Chen Kun, after all, she's an actress. She would make comparisons to see if she could have performed the role better if she were in his shoes.
She still remembered Zhang Jun's words: acting skills are the foundation of everything. However, Yang Mi slightly disagreed, believing that beauty is the foundation of everything.
If an actress wants to become a star, she absolutely needs stunning beauty; this is Yang Mi's personal opinion.
But that didn't stop her from taking Zhang Jun's words to heart, because if she wanted to act in Zhang Jun's plays, her acting skills had to be up to par.
Returning to the movie, in order to solve the problem of being single, Chen Xiu decides to resolve it during the last period of his university life.
Then he attended his university graduation party and met a girl he wanted to confess his feelings to. However, he lacked the courage and failed.
Watching this scene, Fan Bingbing whispered to Zhang Jun, "Is this character based on someone else?"
Zhang Jun whispered, "There is indeed a part of me in it, but I was focused on studying in high school and was the one who got confessed to in college."
Although the confession was rather subtle, and I received some flowers and love letters, it was still a confession.
The movie continues, and the defeated Chen Xiu thinks his life is over. But unexpectedly, on his birthday, he learns from his father that the men in the family can time travel.
This scene is full of laughs, even though Chen Kun and Wang Xueqi aren't exactly serious comedic actors. Through dialogue and physical comedy, Zhang Jun still manages to create enough laughs.
The film presents the concept of time travel for the first time here. It's not the bizarre and fantastical thing you might imagine. It's simply about looking at a specific old photograph, clenching your fists, recalling the moment you want to go, and then closing and opening your eyes to complete the journey.
To return, you don't need to do that. Just find a secluded space, clench your fists, and if no one sees you, you can return to the present moment.
Although Chen Xiu did not believe his father's words, he secretly took the old photos from his father's study when he returned to his bedroom, and then traveled back to the university reunion.
He relived the events of that day, until he met the girl, confessed his feelings, and then awkwardly learned that she already had a boyfriend.
Seeing the taller and stronger boy than himself, Chen Xiu quickly apologized and fled the scene.
The theater erupted in laughter, as Zhang Jun showcased his directing skills admirably. The film's pacing was comfortable, and the characters' dialogue and actions were nuanced, creating a gently unfolding narrative.
Back in the modern era, the father explained the key points of time travel to Chen Xiu.
First, you can't go to the future; second, you can only go to the moments you personally experienced and remember; and third, changing the past doesn't mean the world will make way for you.
Fourth, and most importantly, ability amplifies choices, but also amplifies costs.
My father said that Grandpa Chen Xiu used his abilities to speculate and make money, which earned the family this house by the sea, but he regretted it in his old age because he lost Grandma Chen Xiu.
Chen Xiu's uncle used this ability to indulge in pleasure, and his life seemed to be paused.
Only my father did it differently; he devoted all his time to reading. He would read a good book twice and a good sentence countless times.
It's like turning on a small lamp in the darkness.
Seeing this, the celebrity guests and reporters present roughly understood that this was actually a movie disguised as a romance film, but in reality, it was about life attitudes.
In fact, many media outlets and seasoned film fans who had seen the preview screenings mentioned this point, saying that "About Time" should not be regarded as a purely romantic film.
Because the film contains more than just this element.
As for Chen Xiu in the film, when his father asks him what he will do with this ability after he gets it, he is asked...
This is how he answered: "To be honest, right now I just want to use this ability to help me find a girlfriend."
Wow! That's not easy!
"Yes, this is the main event."
Now that the movie has progressed to this point, it's time to get to the main event, and Fan Bingbing makes her appearance.
When Chen Xiu went to the train station to pick up his sister's friend who came to visit, he saw a girl wearing a T-shirt and jeans with an angelic face and a hot body, and he was immediately smitten.
Chen Xiu was completely infatuated and infatuated, while Huang Xiaoming also noticed something: Zhang Jun was particularly good at taking pictures of women.
To be honest, he already thought Fan Bingbing was very beautiful, but in Zhang Jun's film, that beauty was magnified exponentially.
You can tell from the way the men in the room stared at her; Fan Bingbing is definitely captivating.
If Fan Bingbing is this beautiful, how beautiful must Gao Yuanyuan be!
Everyone is already looking forward to it.
In the movie, Chen Xiu also feels attracted to Luo Wei, played by Fan Bingbing, and he intentionally or unintentionally begins to get close to her, but his inexperience makes things a mess.
The father, who was standing nearby, couldn't bear to watch any longer. He covered his face, feeling ashamed to face anyone, and complained that his son had low emotional intelligence.
The concept of emotional intelligence wasn't popular at the time, but that didn't stop people from trying to understand it. In short, Chen Xiu was bad at pursuing girls.
On the last day before Luo Wei left, Chen Xiu found a moment to be alone with her and said he had something important to say.
But Luo Wei had already guessed Chen Xiu's thoughts: "Is he going to confess his feelings to me?"
In his panic, Chen Xiu could only admit it, but Luo Wei said that confessing on the last day was not a good idea. She suggested that if he spent more time with her while they still had time, he might still have a chance.
Chen Xiu, who had little experience, took it seriously. So he went back to the time before, spent time with Luo Wei seriously, made up for his bad performance, and then spent time alone with Luo Wei again.
But this time—
"Why don't you wait until the last day to confess your feelings!"
Chen Xiu's blank expression made the audience in the theater burst into laughter.
As Meng Ziyi grew younger, she gradually understood everything. Pointing at Luo Wei on the big screen, she said, "I understand now, this older sister is a bad guy."
This remark made everyone burst into laughter again. Zhang Jun teased, "See? Even the kids think you're a bad woman."
Fan Bingbing expressed her helplessness, saying it was necessary for the role and that she herself is a good person!
Of course, his confession failed. Chen Xiu also realized that even with the ability to travel through time, he couldn't make someone who didn't love him fall in love with him.
After Luo Wei left, Chen Xiu decided to become a "Shanghai drifter" and experience life in a big city.
It's worth mentioning Sun Li's portrayal of the younger sister, Chen Xue. She's quirky, cute, and has a very distinct personality.
Sun Li was overjoyed to see her performance on the big screen. Although she wasn't the lead, she could already imagine how directors would appreciate her after the film's release.
Box office revenue is important to film companies and directors, as well as to the film's male and female leads.
But for supporting actors, the key is to attract more attention through this film and thus secure more projects, so Sun Li is very concerned about her performance.
She felt that she had performed quite well.
Chen Xiu arrives in Shanghai and works at a company called GG, living at the home of his father's friend, Lao Fan. Fan Wei seems to be becoming Zhang Jun's go-to actor; his portrayal of Lao Fan in the film is very similar to Chen Xiu.
The first thing he said to Chen Xiu upon meeting him was, "Now look what's happened, two losers living under the same roof!"
It's almost time for Huang Xiaoming's cameo role to appear.
Just when he was feeling lost about his love life, Ah Ming, played by Huang Xiaoming, came to Shanghai to visit Chen Xiu.
The cynical young man heard that there was a new dark restaurant in Shanghai that was very interesting, so he immediately dragged Chen Xiu along to go there.
When the guests heard about this "dark restaurant," they smiled knowingly. Clearly, the "dark restaurant" has been generating a lot of buzz in the media lately, a concept created to promote the video.
In the film, the waiter invites the two men to sit opposite the two ladies. The four of them are facing each other, but they cannot see each other's faces; they can only hear each other's breathing and heartbeats.
Here, Gao Yuanyuan's character, Su Man, still doesn't show her face, but her outline can still be roughly seen in the dimly lit restaurant partition.
Both of them were introverted, but surprisingly, there was no awkward silence, and they actually had a pretty good conversation.
After the meal, Su Man suggested, "Perhaps—I—we could meet outside?"
"Okay—that is, of course!" Chen Xiu exclaimed excitedly.
The two men waited anxiously for the girls they were interested in. He Lan, played by Hu Jing, came out first, and A Ming's eyes lit up. The two started chatting.
When Gao Yuanyuan appeared, everyone's attention was once again drawn to her.
Accompanied by soft piano music, Gao Yuanyuan, who plays Su Man, wears pigtails, a floral dress, and a shy and reserved smile on her face.
At this moment, not only Chen Xiu in the movie, but every single man in the theater was captivated by Gao Yuanyuan's beauty and charm in the film.
Yang Mi admitted that she was extremely jealous at that moment because Zhang Jun had taken such beautiful photos of Gao Yuanyuan.
If this movie is successful, Gao Yuanyuan will have a representative work and a representative role, and she will become one of the most popular actresses.
She would definitely be among the four leading actresses discussed by the media.
Gao Yuanyuan herself was stunned; she had never imagined she could be so beautiful. She was already very pretty, but Zhang Jun's lens amplified that beauty.
Could it be that Director Zhang Jun possesses some kind of magical power? Does he have a natural beauty effect?
Fan Bingbing was also very jealous. She liked the character Su Man very much when she first saw the script and wanted to play the role.
But Zhang Jun refused, saying she was too alluring.
Fan Bingbing now regrets not pestering Zhang Jun relentlessly for the role, while Gao Yuanyuan will likely skyrocket to fame with this role.
Originally, everyone was the same; they were all just supporting actors for Hong Kong and Taiwanese stars, and being a pretty vase in movies was enough.
Then you can star in an art film, win an international award, and come back calling yourself an international movie star.
The problem now is that Gao Yuanyuan's portrayal of a vase in the movie "About Time" is a bit too much; her beauty is beyond the norm.
Fan Bingbing looked at Zhang Jun beside her, and Zhang Jun happened to look over as well.
Fan Pangbing brought her head close to Zhang Jun's ear, her warm breath surrounding him.
"I'm jealous. Next time there's a good movie, you'd better think of me. I'll give you everything."
Zhang Jun stroked Fan Pangbing's soft, boneless hand and said, "That depends on your performance."
Sitting next to Chen Kun, Gao Yuanyuan looked at Fan Pangbing openly flirting with Zhang Jun with disdain, thinking that Fan Pangbing was starting to get anxious.
Through this film, Gao Yuanyuan felt that she was in a leading position for the first time.
Gao Yuanyuan had a big heart; she even felt that Zhang Ziyi was nothing special and that she could try to get close to her.
If Zhang Ziyi knew what Gao Yuanyuan was thinking, she would definitely be very unhappy.
She was supposed to attend the premiere of "About Time" in person today, but she had something to do in Hollywood and couldn't get away, so she expressed her regret.
However, Zhang Ziyi still asked her friend to go see the movie and then tell her how it was.
Zhang Ziyi is quite interested in the story of "Reign of Assassins," but she hesitates because of Gan Zhangjun's acting skills and is afraid he won't be able to direct it well.
If things go wrong, it will damage her reputation, so Zhang Ziyi should think carefully.
Zhang Ziyi's good friend is Yin Xu, who is also an actress and the girlfriend of Zhang Ziyi's brother, Zhang Zinan. It was Zhang Ziyi who introduced the two of them.
At this moment, Yin Xu was completely immersed in "About Time" and couldn't extricate herself from it. She didn't feel that there was anything wrong with the movie.
The pacing is very comfortable, and the composition of the shots is excellent.
The plot unfolds in a captivating and engaging way, lacking the intense conflicts of a blockbuster film, yet it still manages to keep her watching.
Yin Xu knew that Zhang Jun was not a professional director, but even directors with more than ten years of experience might not be able to match his level.
Could he really be a genius?
It's easy to see that anyone who gets into Tsinghua University must be a genius. Even if they're bookworms, they're geniuses among bookworms.
But the problem is, different fields are like different worlds. I heard that Zhang Jun majored in astronomy in college, which has nothing to do with art. How did he master these directing skills?
This is also one of the mysteries that makes Zhang Jun so attractive. The media is very interested in him not only because he is handsome and has a Tsinghua University background.
That's not a big deal. Shui Mu Nian Hua is also from Tsinghua University, and they have the popular song "You'll Be With Me All My Life".
But singing is different from making movies. With music, you can rely on your talent and self-study to write a good song, and you can even use formulas.
But making movies is a different story. Only those who have worked in the film and television industry know how difficult it is to be a director. Experience is very important.
Filming is secondary; the most difficult part is actually personnel scheduling and management, which takes up most of a director's energy.
But Zhang Jun showed no signs of awkwardness or sluggishness, as if these experiences were his innate talents, which was quite frightening.
Yin Xu felt that regardless of the final box office performance of this film, Ziyi should accept the director's role.
Given time, Zhang Jun may grow into the second Zhang Yimou.
Yin Xu wasn't the only one who felt this amazement; many of the guests present shared the same sentiment. Li Jian was also there today, supporting his junior from Tsinghua University.
Shui Mu Nian Hua's "You'll Be With Me All My Life" was used as background music in the movie "About Time".
Li Jian was also invited by his junior Zhang Jun to compose several piano accompaniments.
He still remembered his first impression of Zhang Jun: he was incredibly mature and confident. This confidence wasn't arrogant, but rather a confidence that nothing could faze him.
This gave Li Jian a very good impression of Zhang Jun, and he later agreed to compose the soundtrack for the film, even personally selecting several old songs for the soundtrack.
Judging from today's viewing experience, it was quite good.
After the film screening officially ended, it was time for media interviews and guest interactions, with Jiang Tao once again taking on the role of host.
"What do you all think of our movie? Is it good?"
The guests were very accommodating: "It looks great!"
That's true. If "About Time" isn't good, then there aren't many good movies left.
"Would you all like to get to know our main creators?"
"think!"
"Alright, now let's invite our main creators to come up and meet everyone."
Jiang Tao introduced them one by one, starting with screenwriter and director Zhang Jun, then the male and female leads Chen Kun and Gao Yuanyuan, followed by Fan Bingbing, Sun Li, Wang Xueqi, and others.
Everyone received a huge round of applause, which was both a sign of respect and an affirmation of the movie-watching experience.
Holding the microphone, Zhang Jun first thanked the guests present, and then said, "Actually, I didn't want to go through all this trouble at first. I just wanted the movie to be released directly after filming."
But it's for publicity, you know what I mean.
But judging from everyone's reaction, my film is still satisfactory.
I was more than satisfied; I was absolutely moved.
Especially in the final scene of the film, Chen Xiu travels back in time to play billiards with his father, and then the two of them return to the time when Chen Xiu was a child playing on the beach.
When his father passed away, Chen Xiu went back to see him, and his father calmly accepted his fate of death.
There were so many touching moments in the film, like a gentle stream flowing into the hearts of the guests and reporters present.
So during the Q&A session, a reporter asked, "Director Zhang, this story is great. How did you come up with this story?"
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Zhang Jun was prepared: "Actually, these all come from my own experience in biotechnology. For example, the father character in the film is largely based on my own father."
He was a teacher in the group, and in my memory, he always used wise words and bioengineering experience to teach me how to live each day better.
I combined my feelings about my relationship with my father with some background information and stories to tell the story in a way that is not boring.
The film's message is actually quite simple: love life, love everyone around you, that's all.
The premiere was a great success, and the cast and crew took a group photo at the end, which marked the end of the premiere.
Yang Mi waited until Zhang Jun finished his social engagements before coming to him.
"Director Zhang, this movie is really great, I was completely engrossed in it."
"Yeah?"
Zhang Jun was delighted: "I'm so happy you liked this movie; it means my work wasn't a failure."
"Of course it didn't fail!"
Yang Mi quickly chimed in, "At least I really like this movie, and I wish it great box office success."
"Xianxian!"
Zhang Jun smiled and said, "If possible, please help promote this movie so that more people can see it."
It's said to be helping, but Yang Mi doesn't have many fans right now, so it's more like Zhang Jun is helping her out.
But this proves one thing: Zhang Jun doesn't dislike her, which is good news for Yang Mi.
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