King of Hollywood-Chapter 552 - 273 The Problem of Choice Between Two Options

Chapter 552: Chapter 273 The Problem of Choice Between Two Options

Natalie wore a dark, long-sleeved evening gown today, her brown hair softly falling on either side, giving her a delicate and lovely appearance while also carrying a subtle hint of sensuality, perfectly capturing the contradictory qualities of both a girl and a woman.

"Hello, Adrian," she said with a reserved smile as she shook hands with Adrian, and it must be said that her acting was quite clever. At least for now, she seemed just an ordinary friend to Adrian.

Their close relationship was very secretive, known only to Charlize besides the parties involved. Adrian rarely showed affection to Natalie in public, even when visiting the set of "Good Will Hunting," due to both Natalie’s request and Adrian’s cautiousness. Nevertheless, as he shook her hand, his thumb still slid across the back of the young girl’s hand.

"It looks like you’re all prepared for the awards, aren’t you?" Adrian then asked with a smile.

"Good Will Hunting" had received several significant nominations: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actor, and both Best Supporting Actor and Actress. Since all the nominees were present, he posed the question.

"No, I certainly don’t think I can compete with you for Best Director," admitted director Gus Van Sant, waving his hand. After all, he was standing before a major figure who had received three Best Director nominations in a single Oscar ceremony and had specifically chosen him to direct this movie. Whether in terms of ability or face, he couldn’t very well brag in his presence.

"Don’t sell yourself short, Gus. Who can be sure of winning until the very end?" Adrian wasn’t concerned at all and appeared quite relaxed, clearly not dwelling on whether he could win Best Director again.

"Honestly, if ’Fight Club’ could have been released at the end of last year, I might now be competing with River for Best Actor," Joaquin remarked with some regret.

"Perhaps," Adrian responded noncommittally.

While he was busy with "The Lord of the Rings" in New Zealand, "Fight Club," which had been scheduled, was released across the United States, and, just as he had expected, the film’s performance wasn’t good. In an effort to support Fincher, Adrian had his company secure 2,000 screens, and the box office for the premiere three days was decent: 4.3 million on the first day, 8.8 million over two, and over 10 million after three days, even taking the top spot for the weekend box office during the off-season. But it was a fleeting success; the total gross only barely passed 20 million in the second week, expected to drop even further the next. The opening weekend’s earnings of over 10 million were completely reliant on the popularity of Fincher, Dennis, and River pieced together.

Critic opinions were sharply divided regarding the movie. The Conservatives labeled it "a classic example of a film that promotes anarchism," while the radicals claimed it voiced the inner thoughts of contemporary youth. Similarly, audiences had different takes on "Fight Club": to the general public, it was just a decent thriller, but to cult film enthusiasts, it was a definitive classic.

As for tabloids, they focused on the gossip involving Dennis and Winona. Rumors had surfaced about sightings of Dennis and Winona having lively discussions or dining together during filming. The rumors died down somewhat after Dennis married, but picked up again after the movie’s release—how could they not when the plot involved ambiguous and intense romantic scenes between them?

However, the film received more praise than criticism abroad, especially in Europe, yet that was of little help. So, the film remained as it was, gathering nearly or over a hundred million in global box office revenue—don’t be fooled, that’s very little compared to the nearly 70 million investment. After a few years of debate, it would become a cult classic, a must-see for cult film fans, then make some money back through sales and rentals of videotapes or DVDs.

Thus, even though River’s performance was impressive—essentially, all three leads were outstanding, whether it was River, Dennis, or Winona, with media even deeming Winona’s work her best in years, having shed her former Pure Girl image. Adrian was quite surprised when he learned this, but then he came to terms with it, considering she had Dennis, a proficient actor, as her scene partner. Many times, acting skills could leap forward with the right challenge.

In any case, even so, getting a nomination was a difficult task; the conservative Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences wouldn’t take kindly to a movie that promoted anarchism, even if that wasn’t the perspective of the producers and director.

"Don’t worry, Joaquin, you’ll get into the competition sooner or later, just don’t back down when the time comes," Adrian said teasingly.

He chatted a bit more with River and Robin Williams before excusing himself to continue further in. From beginning to end, he only exchanged a few words with Natalie, greeting her like an ordinary friend and making small talk. Only when he was about to leave did he give her a deep look. There was no helping it; the reporters’ cameras were trained on him at that moment, and his quarrel with the two Miracle Girls was what they most wanted to see.

Unfortunately for the reporters, they didn’t know that Adrian had already arranged with Gwyneth and Blanchett that they would arrive after he entered.

Thankfully, Natalie discreetly gave him a smile, which comforted him somewhat.

But without Gwyneth and Blanchett, there were others; Julia and Nicole were already Oscar regulars. Sarah and Zetajones were also making their transition. Although "Mulholland Drive" only had a Best Director nomination, Naomi made her appearance here. Kate, however, due to not having regained her popularity from her "Twisters" days, simply did not attend. As for Monica and Sophie, both were visibly pregnant, and although it didn’t hinder their movements, they couldn’t be bothered to brave the red carpet and the interrogation by reporters.

After all, Monica didn’t have any significant works this year; "The Matrix" was only nominated for a few technical awards, and it was next to impossible for a science fiction film to win a major award. Sophie’s "Anna Karenina," on the other hand, received higher critical acclaim than the original after its release at the end of last year, but its box office was not great, and it only received a few technical nominations such as Best Costume and Best Art Direction, so it wasn’t a big deal that they didn’t come.

Even though reporters kept shouting in hopes that he would respond, Adrian quickly entered the theater. It was still early; less than a third of the seats in the theater were filled, but several of his acquaintances were already there.

"Hey, Steven, how come you’re in so early today?" Adrian greeted Spielberg with a smile as he approached.

"Back from New Zealand? How’s the new movie? Still not willing to spill?" Spielberg responded with a smile, though it was forced.

After a few words, Spielberg excused himself to his seat, and Adrian turned to a producer he had spoken to before: "What happened? Steven doesn’t seem very happy."

"What else but ’Life is Beautiful’?" the other person shrugged.

It only took a sentence for Adrian to understand, and he shrugged too. Roberto Benigni’s "Life is Beautiful," a film he directed and starred in, depicting the story of an Italian Jewish father and son sent to a Nazi concentration camp during World War II, had won the Grand Jury Prize at last year’s Cannes Film Festival. Adrian was there at the time, and Benigni was so excited he nearly kissed the shoes of the Jury President, Martin Scorsese.

The film had been released in the United States last year and had won countless awards since, such as the Chicago Film Critics Association Award or the Screen Actors Guild Award, and had received several important Oscar nominations like Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Original Screenplay, and Best Foreign Language Film. If Adrian hadn’t occupied three of the Best Director nomination slots, he would certainly have been one of the nominees.

Spielberg, however, disliked "Life is Beautiful" intensely, for reasons including the film’s "overly strong entertainment factor" and his belief that "the holocaust should not be overly entertaining." Adrian understood his feelings, as Chinese people would absolutely not like a movie that evoked warmth and affection about the Nanjing Massacre, even if the movie carried accusatory elements.

Adrian wondered how much effort Steven had put into public relations after he found his own seat. Since Spielberg disliked the movie, it was very likely he could use his connections to persuade the Film Academy judges not to give their votes to "Life is Beautiful." In fact, even if he didn’t do that, it was unlikely for "Life is Beautiful" to win Best Picture since it was an Italian film; the only Italian film that seemed to have won Best Picture at the Oscars was Bertolucci’s "The Last Emperor," and even that was partly due to China’s influence. After all, China was seen as very mysterious by many, a notion that persisted well over a decade later, let alone at present. freewёbnoνel.com

So there was no need for Spielberg to worry, but it wouldn’t hurt to have the judges lean a bit in favor, considering that Joaquin had a Best Actor nomination... Adrian shook his head slightly, Joaquin was still too young and always in the shadow of his brother. Since he started acting, he had been compared to River, and the brighter River shone, the lower Joaquin’s actual acclaim.

If River had starred in "Good Will Hunting," with last year’s nomination, there was a very high chance he would have won Best Actor this year, but Joaquin - better not think about it. Fortunately, the two brothers hadn’t let this lead to conflict or estrangement.

Shrugging, Adrian pulled his thoughts back. In fact, these things had little to do with him; at this Oscar ceremony, his primary concern was only for Best Actress. All the other awards could be ignored—Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, etc.—but Best Actress had to go to either Gwyneth or Blanchett.

It wasn’t an impossibility. The other three nominees included Fernand Montheano from Brazil— a Brazilian winning Oscar-winning actress? Sorry, please get in line at the back. Emily Watson, who only started acting in movies in ’96, had no standout works to her name, and was too inexperienced. Moreover, "Hilary and Jackie," a biographical film adapted from the life of British cellist Jacqueline Dupree, had received strong criticism from many of Dupree’s friends, who said it wasn’t factual and distorted Dupree’s image, including some masters. Though film and music were different industries, if these people joined forces to pressure the Film Academy, the Oscars would have to consider their feelings.

The most competitive was Meryl Streep. Since her Best Supporting Actress win in ’79 and her first Best Actress win in ’82, she had accumulated 11 acting nominations, seemingly on track to surpass Katherine Hepburn’s record. However, sometimes the number of nominations is inversely proportional to the chances of winning; too many nominations might result in the Film Academy overlooking you.

Of course, more importantly, Adrian had invested a substantial amount of money for public relations, so the Best Actress would only be between Gwyneth and Blanchett; otherwise, it wouldn’t do justice to their performances of this period.

"What are you smiling about, Ed?" Gwyneth, who’d entered the theater and was seated to the right in front of him, turned her head and asked with a furrowed brow.

"Nothing much, just thinking about some things," Adrian replied with a smile, coming back to the moment.

"Really?" Gwyneth looked unconvinced and lowered her voice, "You seemed... rather mischievous?!"

"Not at all" Adrian quirked an eyebrow and turned to glance at Blanchett, who was sitting to the left behind him. Her gaze seemed to be on the stage, but she was actually all ears, listening to his conversation with Gwyneth.

"I was just reflecting on where the line between competition and unfair play lies," he then added teasingly.

Gwyneth’s cheeks suddenly turned a slight shade of red; she glared at him fiercely before turning her head away, while Blanchett, feigning indifference, coughed softly from behind. Adrian’s amusement grew; although the shooting for "The Lord of the Rings" had just started and they didn’t have any scenes yet, the two women hadn’t followed him to New Zealand but had previously done their utmost to outdo each other in currying favor with Adrian.

Even one could say that there was nothing they dared not do, except for what Adrian couldn’t think of. Of course, this was an exaggeration, but during this period, they were incredibly obedient, even more so than Britney’s little pet. Although Gwyneth and Blanchett both realized that this was somewhat improper, some things became difficult to stop once started.

After teasing them a little, Adrian sat up straight and adjusted his clothes. As more and more people took their seats, the award ceremony was about to begin. Even though he was somewhat impatient with the monotonous Oscar award ceremony, since he was there, he had to do his best.

Even so, he still couldn’t help but sigh internally as the host took the stage.

The host for this year’s ceremony was Ubi Goldberg. Adrian’s sigh was not because he felt Goldberg’s hosting was inadequate; having been invited to host the Oscars multiple times like Billy Crystal was enough to prove Goldberg’s capability. It was just that this woman really liked to change clothes far too much, swapping outfits at least seven or eight times over a few hours, even wearing many that female leads wore in their movies.

The female leads looked beautiful in those outfits, but on her—well, they just really shocked the senses. It was normal to debase oneself to achieve comic effects, and Adrian could accept that, but for Goldberg, it seemed rather hard on her. Of course, these were thoughts he could only keep to himself, as voicing them out loud would surely draw accusations of racism.

Thus, the 71st Oscar ceremony began, and after the song and dance, the formal presentation of awards got underway. This time they didn’t start with the Best Supporting Actor and Actress categories, but the technical awards still attracted a lot of attention—the only ones science fiction and fantasy movies could hope to win. Adrian seemed somewhat distracted; with ’The Matrix’s quality and popularity, taking these awards would hardly be strenuous, with the only thing piquing his interest being the Oscar for Best Animated Short Film.

Pixar was nominated once again for Best Animated Short Film this year but unexpectedly lost what seemed like a sure win to Blue Sky Studio. Obviously, Adrian had another promise to fulfill—it was just a question of whether they were ready for that squirrel.

"The winner of Best Supporting Actor is ’Good Will Hunting,’ Robin Williams!"

A burst of enthusiastic applause erupted, and an excited Williams immediately jumped up, pumping his fists as people all around stood and hugged him, offering congratulations. Adrian joined in, lightly clapping. Even with a year’s delay, Williams still managed to win Best Supporting Actor. His performance was indeed outstanding, and ’Good Will Hunting’ definitely tickled the judges’ fancy.

While most of his works were comedies, Williams, unlike Jim Carrey’s exaggerated performance, became famous earlier and had a more varied comedic persona, along with some other factors, making him a fitting winner of Best Supporting Actor.

On stage, Williams had begun his speech, holding the Oscar statuette, but Adrian’s gaze drifted elsewhere. The ’Good Will Hunting’ crew and the ’Shakespeare in Love’ and ’Elizabeth’ crews weren’t far apart, so Adrian caught sight of Natalie instantly. She was intently listening to Williams’s speech, seemingly a bit excited—after all, the Best Supporting Actress award was next to be announced.

Adrian was hesitant about whether he should root for Natalie to win Best Supporting Actress. There were many factors to consider, with youth being the primary issue. Since the ’little fairy’ won Best Supporting Actress a few years ago, the Film Academy was unlikely to favor a very young girl for a considerable time, and the other nominees for Best Supporting Actress this year were formidable.

Judi Dench, for instance, didn’t need any introduction. Having directed ’Shakespeare in Love’ himself, Adrian was well aware of her performance. Despite only being on screen for a short ten plus minutes, she had received quite a lot of praise. Not to mention, what about Lynn Redgrave and Rachel Griffiths, wasn’t their experience more extensive? And there was also Kathy Bates.

However, nothing was absolute in this world. Supporting Actress didn’t carry as much weight as Best Actress, so there was more leeway. But Adrian was not sure whether winning would genuinely benefit Natalie’s growth. Although the ’little fairy’ claimed the title of the second-youngest winner of Best Supporting Actress, it definitely hindered her future development. Natalie might be more intelligent, but predicting the future remained a challenge.

Natalie seemed aware of this issue as well. During their phone conversations, Adrian could clearly sense her hesitation, but it seemed her worries were slightly different from his. (To be continued. If you enjoy this work, we welcome you to recommend it and cast your monthly votes at qidian.com. Your support is my greatest motivation.)

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