Chapter 357 The Battle between Hope and Despair
Bingbing Li and Shu Chang have already experienced going to the cinema to watch a movie.
But what they have not experienced is attending a movie premiere, and it is such a huge premiere.
I have never heard of any domestic film director's film being released with such success before. Now that I have seen it with my own eyes, it is indeed Hollywood.
However, Brother Chenglong told them that there are only a few people in Hollywood who can do all this, and little Gilbert is the best one among them.
In fact, there is endless debate about who is the best director in Hollywood.
But what is certain is that little Gilbert's name must be among them, and it is very high on the list.
After finding their own seats and sitting down, Bingbing and Shuchang glanced around. The premiere theater was packed with people.
"So many people?" Shu Chang whispered.
"No, I recognized several of them, and I also saw Jack." Bingbing Li didn't know DiCaprio's name very well, but he had watched "Titanic".
On such an occasion, the two of them were no different from the ordinary movie fans behind them.
There are all stars here, all important figures in Hollywood. They are like transparent people.
In fact, I was very lucky to be able to come to this premiere. Many second- and third-tier Hollywood stars couldn't come because the seats were limited.
Before Bingbing Li could lament her own insignificance, the second viewing session of the premiere began soon.
Noel did not go to Los Angeles to attend the premiere of "The Return of the King." He was in New York and grabbed early tickets for "The Return of the King."
Because Thursday was a working day, he went to the theater a little late.
By the time Noel arrived, the advance show of "The Return of the King" was almost starting.
When Noel walked into this large theater that could accommodate more than 400 people, he looked around and saw that it was packed with people. Noel felt that the attendance rate for the film's advance screenings reached 90%.
But when he looked around for seats, he found an empty seat in the corner.
This one is full, Noel thought.
I guess that's true, the advance tickets were sold out a week ago, and this is a movie theater in the busiest neighborhood in New York, so it's not comparable to ordinary remote movie theaters.
So it’s normal for the attendance to be full, and some fans are asking for more standing tickets!
In fact, since the popularity of the "Lord of the Rings" series, many movies under the banner of epic have appeared in the film market.
Noel has watched a few, but to be honest, none of them can compare with the "Lord of the Rings" series.
When it comes to epic movies, it has to be the "Lord of the Rings" series.
In fact, it is unfair to compare other movies with "Lord of the Rings". The "Lord of the Rings" series can be recorded in film history. But the biggest problem with epic movies that follow the trend is that they don’t even do basic storytelling well.
Movies tell stories, no doubt about it.
Unlike Noel, Doug and Zoe in Los Angeles were lucky enough to get the tickets to watch the premiere. They dropped the child off with the child's grandmother and watched the premiere of the movie together.
Doug and Zoe have been following Gilbert's movies since "Shark Tank". Fast forward more than ten years, and the original couple have become parents.
But what remains unchanged is the shared love and fondness for Little Gilbert's movies.
After finding her own seat and sitting down, Zoe couldn't hold back her excitement, hugged Doug's arm and said, "I really don't know what the movie will be like, I'm really looking forward to it."
"Shh!" Doug signaled for silence: "The movie has started..."
Including the premiere, the 2,200 movie theaters in the United States that showed up in advance were packed, but no one was talking, and it was eerily quiet.
In this environment where the sound of a pin dropping could be heard clearly, the highly anticipated "Return of the King" officially kicked off.
At the beginning, the titles of Disney, Warner Pictures, Melon Studios, and several small investors flashed through. Everyone is familiar with these and has seen them many times.
"The Return of the King" does not have a big scene at the beginning, but it is gradual.
The beginning goes directly to Isengard, who was destroyed by the trees in "The Two Towers", and Gandalf, who has become a white-robed wizard, faces Saruman.
Saruman, who was exiled in the original book, was killed in a sneak attack by Gormari, King Théoden's favorite in the second film, and Gormari was also shot through the heart by Legolas.
Whether in Eastern or Western culture, people usually despise traitors, so little Gilbert gave Saruman such an ending.
Christopher Lee, who plays Saruman, smiles knowingly. He is really lucky to be able to participate in the "Lord of the Rings" series.
After finishing filming "Lord of the Rings", his focus will be on the "Harry Potter" series, in which he plays Dumbledore after all.
In the first few dozen minutes of the film, there were very few action scenes, and they were basically large sections of literary drama, but no one found it boring, and instead watched it with gusto.
Starting from the forty-one minute mark, the pace of the film suddenly accelerates.
An evil beam of light rose into the sky, and Frodo fell to the ground. The closer he got to the Eye of Sauron, the more he was bewitched.
At this time, the Black Gate opened, and the dense army of Orcs walked out in neat steps, marching towards Gondor.
Gandalf looked at Mount Doom in the distance and said: "This will be a century-old war that will determine the fate of Middle-earth..."
The film gives fans an appetizer first, with an army of orcs taking a boat to attack the Gondor outpost at night. Although the human defenders were prepared, the orc army was too numerous.
The human defenders were unable to resist all night, and finally the remaining troops exited the level and retreated to Minas Tirith. The orc army bit the tail of the remaining army and rushed directly to Minas Tirith, the largest human city in Middle-earth and the last fortress.
The orc army is about to arrive, and Gandalf asks the little hobbit to light a beacon and ask for reinforcements.
The beacon is rekindled, and hope is rekindled.
Accompanied by the passionate soundtrack, the beacon fire came from Minas Tirith and passed through the mountains, raising the audience's emotions to a high point.
Noel in New York couldn't help but stand up to watch the movie. Not only him, but almost all the audience stood up.
Just a simple scene like lighting a beacon fire, and the heavy epic feeling comes out.
In a cinema in Los Angeles, the little-known Hollywood director Oakley Dale watched this scene and sighed in his heart. His film was not as good as Gilbert Jr.'s simple picture processing.
Oakley Dale is teaming up with Legendary Pictures to make an epic film about the fall of Byzantium, the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire. The other party spent US$110 million in production costs and negotiated a distribution contract with Disney.
However, this distribution contract was stopped by Gilbert Jr. because after watching the finished film, Gilbert felt that the story was sloppy and the scenes were confusing.
At the time, Oakley Dell was still unconvinced, but now he has seen the smooth plot changes and emotional grasp of "The Return of the King", and Oakley has come to his senses.
The gap between him and director Gilbert Jr. is at least ten Michael Bays.
The beacon reached the Kingdom of Rohan, and Aragorn ran towards the royal court: "The beacon of Minas Tirith, the beacon is lit, Gondor is asking for support."
The atmosphere solidified at this moment. Faced with Aragorn's request, King Théoden seemed to be thinking.
Princess Eowen of Rohan, Legolas, Gimli, the knights of Rohan, and movie fans in the cinema are all waiting for King Théoden's decision.
If we follow the shooting methods of some art films and film critics, King Theoden should reject it at this time, so as to reflect the darkness and complexity of human nature.
But for "The Return of the King", shooting like this will obviously make the audience explode, and of course little Gilbert will not do this.
"The Kingdom of Rohan will rush to the aid of Minas Tirith and order the entire army to assemble." King Théoden's decision caused the premiere hall to burst into cheers and then applause for the first time.
Shu Chang clapped and said excitedly: "It looks good, so exciting."
"Yes, he is so capable. This is really a good movie." Bingbing Li was full of praise.
Bingbing and Li Bing had never watched the "Lord of the Rings" series before. After she was chosen to play the role of Little Snake, she went to watch the previous works of Gilbert Little.
Then she realized what a great movie series she had missed.
The feeling of watching the movie this time is very different.
The assembly bell rang, and the knights of Rohan were gathering and filing out.
Different from the despair when the orc army moved in full force just now, the Rohan knights brought people hope with the majestic and exciting marching songs.
King Theoden looked at the assembled knights with heavy eyes.
He knew that after leaving, many people would not be able to come back.
But just like his inner monologue, this battle will determine the fate of mankind and Middle-earth.
"The moment of decisive battle has arrived. Knights of King Théoden, remember your oaths and go to war for the king and Rohan..."
As the mighty team set off for the expedition, the fathers and fellow villagers of Rohan saw each other off on both sides. Husbands and wives said goodbye, sons said goodbye to their parents, and fathers said goodbye to their children.
This is the end of mankind, but it is also the hope of mankind.
King Théoden marched in person. He knew that at this time he had to lead the charge himself in order to inspire the soldiers to fight.
From the moment the beacon was lit until the knights of Rohan set off for the expedition, the emotions of movie fans were always at a high point and never dropped.
On the front line, the passerby army retreated to Minas Tirith. Franmer told Gandalf and Pippin that he had seen Frodo and Sam, and they were heading towards Mount Doom.
In the theatrical version, Gilbert Jr. shortened the line of Frodo and Sam Gollum as much as possible, giving more scenes to humans fighting orcs.
But some key scenes cannot be missed. Frodo, Sam, and Gollum are heading towards Mount Doom with difficulty.
A dense army of orcs surrounded Minas Tirith. The defenders of Minas Tirith asked Gandalf: "Will reinforcements from Rohan come? Where are King Theoden's cavalry?"
To this, Gandalf's answer was: "Now courage is your strongest line of defense."
At this time, the regent of Gondor also sent an army to recapture the front pass.
Disobeying the regent's order, the soldiers launched a death charge against the orc army, and all of them died in battle.
The defenders and civilians saw this tragic scene on the city wall, as if they had seen their own fate, and felt extremely desperate.
But hope often accompanies despair, and in the valley King Théoden rallied his cavalry.
But Aragorn felt that Rohan's cavalry alone was not enough. He, Legolas, and Gimli left the military camp, planning to find another supporting army.
This place is different from the original work. In the original work, Aragorn is looking for the Southern Legion of Gondor, but in the movie, Aragorn is looking for the undead army that has not dissipated.
The battle between hope and despair is about to break out
(End of chapter)