Chapter 919 The First Surprise of "The Notebook"

Jiang Yuqian has always wanted to win a prestigious performance award, a fact known to those who know her well.

Jiang Yuqian is not the kind of person with extraordinary talent in acting. In fact, because she is very beautiful, her acting skills are often overlooked, a fact that many people are aware of.

She has not been subjected to large-scale abuse and attacks because of her acting skills, but she has also not earned the title of "acting powerhouse".

After all, he worked his way up from supporting roles.

Take it one step at a time.

The performances were at least passable.

Her starring role in "The Golden Era" marked a turning point in her acting career.

After that, several films, including "Squid Game" and "Red Eye Flight", propelled her career to a new peak.

But that was the peak of her career in the business world.

She even gave up her obsession with becoming a good actress at one point.

Or rather, the obsession with winning awards—she felt she didn't have the right to shamelessly say she had the obsession with becoming a good actress.

She is greedy for fame and fortune, and also cares about the spotlight.

She couldn't bury herself in film crews for a year and not be able to produce results.

This is not what she longs for.

But this doesn't mean she's unwilling to pursue better acting skills within her capabilities.

Especially those around her, regardless of their personality or career path, have never given up honing their acting skills.

The final edited version of the film "The Window" was very different from what she had imagined and expected.

To be honest, when she was filming this movie, she once felt that it was a story about a female actor's self-awakening, recognizing the director's true colors, and the two eventually falling out.

The comments published in the media, especially the analyses of the themes and relationships between the characters, gave her a sense of sudden enlightenment.

That was something she hadn't thought about deeply while performing.

However, Sia Wee is indeed a very talented director.

She doesn't need you, the actor, to have a holistic understanding of your character. She's already on set, letting you act out everything she wants. She can sit in the editing room, processing it to create the final version she desires.

When Jiang Yuqian saw herself in the movie throwing the script out the window and turning away without looking back, she felt a sense of relief.

But at that time, she didn't feel relieved; instead, she felt angry.

But that doesn't matter.

Jiang Yuqian's eyes were captured by Xi Yawei in the film, revealing a great deal of detail.

Jiang Yuqian didn't even think that those details in her eyes could have any special meaning during the filming.

However, after being edited together by Xi Yawei, it suddenly became a coherent state that Jiang Yuqian herself was not familiar with.

Jiang Yuqian clearly remembers that at several connection points, the expression in her eyes was one of "casualness" that she was asked to perform on set, but the next second, after an editing point, the expression changed to "conflicted and complicated".

The performances, which consist entirely of fragmented moments and states, were edited together to create a sophisticated, rich, and complex quality.

Jiang Yuqian even saw the limitations and safe zones of her past performances in this movie.

It presented her with a broader area of ​​performance that she could explore.

However, those in the know understand the intricacies.

In comparison, the scenes featuring British actor Johnny Hein, who plays the director, are often continuous, unlike Jiang Yuqian's scenes, where the shots are cut very quickly and rarely last more than three seconds.

But that doesn't matter.

In the film, her character is in a more "volatile" state, while his character is moving from a seemingly calm and composed demeanor towards a twisted, fanatical state.

The impact on Jiang Yuqian was not only that the film, in a way that exceeded her expectations, almost reshaped her acting style and quality, but also that she saw for the first time clearly what she could further present in her acting.

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"So, does Sister Yuqian have a chance to win the Best Actress award this year?" Lu Yanhe asked Chen Ziyan on the phone.

Chen Ziyan: "That's not necessarily true. This year is a big year for actresses. British actress Lil Collins was considered a strong contender for Best Actress at this year's Jose Film Festival. Now that Yuqian has emerged, she's only a match for her. There's also Qin Shulan from 'Grandma's Legacy.' I've already seen the rough cut of this film, and Qin's performance is excellent. The North American film companies that saw the film in advance used the promise of helping Qin with public relations during the North American awards season as a way to persuade them."

That just goes to show that Sister Yuqian is facing a really tough competitive situation this year.

It's a big year, so it doesn't matter who wins the award, but it's a real shame for the actresses who don't win.

“Moreover, Yuqian has another disadvantage this year. The British actor in ‘The Window’ gave such an outstanding performance that Variety magazine directly said he would be a top contender for Best Supporting Actor at the Oscars at the end of the year. Usually at this time, people only say that a nomination is certain,” Chen Ziyan said. “The Jose Film Festival doesn’t have a jury system; the results are determined by audience voting. Based on the practice of the last five years, these qualified audience members often distribute their votes to different films. Generally speaking, the direction of the media and critics will affect these results because these audience members can also see this information. Jiang Yuqian’s popularity for this film is not as high as that of Johnny Heinz.”

Lu Yanhe: "Was Johnny Hein's performance really that good?"

“Excellent,” Chen Ziyan said. “I watched the movie, and I think Variety was absolutely right. If there weren’t any other strong competitors, Johnny Hein could have won the Best Supporting Actor Oscar next year for this film. The character itself is particularly symbolic, and his performance is almost a complete self-destruction of his image. In recent years, I haven’t seen another actor on the big screen who can portray such a calm, obsessive, and irrational desire for control. To some extent, Jiang Yuqian’s performance is more of an instinctive reaction stimulated by him. In many scenes, he is leading Jiang Yuqian. Judging from the competition films that have already been screened at the Jose Film Festival, the recognition he has received from critics can be described as unparalleled.”

For no apparent reason, Lu Yanhe thought of Quentin Tarantino's "Inglourious Basterds," in which Christoph Waltz, who played a supporting role and villain, won the Best Actor award at the Cannes Film Festival and the Best Supporting Actor Oscar despite having a relatively minor role.

That was also a very rare villainous character. Cold, arrogant, with a powerful aura, possessing a calm yet obsessive madness.

-

Lu Yanhe certainly hoped that Jiang Yuqian could realize her dream of winning the award.

However, winning an award truly depends on the right timing, location, and people.

To date, his performances in "Late Spring" and "Three Mountains," which have been the most discussed in the international film scene, have not won him any acting awards internationally.

His second Oscar nomination for acting in "The Mist 2" was, in fact, a performance that doesn't even rank among the best in his acting career.

However, the fact that it actually brought Lu Yanhe a nomination, given the favorable timing, location, and circumstances at the time, proved to be a perfect fit.

Lu Yanhe currently considers "Dingfeng No. 1," his masterpiece in acting, to have disappeared entirely during the latter half of the awards season because he recommended Wen Shengming.

The film "Love Letter," which attracted attention with its two dazzling actresses when it was released, has seen several scenes of Lu Yanhe circulate widely on the internet over time, earning him the title of "Lu Yanhe's God-like Beauty Period."

However, actors must have awards.

Without awards, I always feel a bit inferior, as if I can't hold my head high.

With an award, one can say, like Lu Yanhe, "Awards are nothing," or "Winning an award is a matter of timing, location, and people; it doesn't mean it's my best performance."

In any case, the film "The Window" is a good thing, finally bringing Jiang Yuqian the attention of critics.

If "Love is Not Blind" showed everyone that Jiang Yuqian could express complexity beyond just being a pretty face, then "The Window Sill" is like a crystal rough stone, cut into more than a hundred cross-sections, revealing the complexity and depth that she can present.

Lu Yanhe sent a message to Jiang Yuqian, saying: Sister Yuqian, congratulations! Your performance has finally been seen and recognized by everyone.

Jiang Yuqian replied: That's not my credit, it's because Xi Yawei's camera is so good at capturing things. However, Yan He, the biggest takeaway from this movie is that I finally know the difference between my previous performances and a quality performance. After you watch this movie, please analyze it for me too. I've seen a new direction.

Lu Yanhe was surprised that Jiang Yuqian would say that, and he immediately replied that he would.

Two days later, "Grandma's Legacy" was screened at the Jose Film Festival.

Qin Shulan and Zhang Ruozhi attended the red carpet together.

After the screening, the media and commentary completely shifted in opinion.

Qin Shulan has become the frontrunner for Best Actress at this year's Jose Film Festival.

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"The competition among actresses in the main competition at this year's Jose Film Festival is definitely the biggest highlight. Compared to the overwhelming support for Johnny Hein, the performances of the actresses are comparable to a major battle."

"British actress Lil Collin was nominated for Best Supporting Actress at the Oscars when she was fourteen for her role in the British film 'Clear Sunshine.' As a child star who grew up in the public eye, she has focused on creating art films over the years and is a regular at international film festivals. This time, after arriving at the film festival with 'Love,' she did not leave after attending the premiere and promotional work of 'Love,' but stayed in Jiangguang, seemingly quite confident of winning an award."

"Since rising to global fame with 'The Squid Game,' Chinese actress Jiang Yuqian has gained popularity worldwide with a series of works such as 'Doomsday,' 'Red Eye Flight,' and 'Love is Not Blind,' becoming one of the most internationally renowned Chinese actresses. However, her previous screen images were not known for her acting skills; rather, her beauty, figure, and fashion sense were the focus of discussion. This time, 'The Window' almost completely redesigns her, and her performance on screen has surprised everyone."

"Malaysian actress Qin Shulan recently became a dark horse in the Oscar Best Supporting Actress nomination list for her role in 'Tropical Rainy Season,' and this year she and Zhang Ruozhi, the lead actress in 'Love Letter,' have brought us a heart-wrenching film, 'Grandma's Inheritance.' Several of her scenes in the film can absolutely be called some of the greatest performances in the world, especially the scene near the end where she lies in bed, her cloudy eyes staring helplessly at the ceiling, her eyes trembling slightly, and finally, a few tears completely obscuring her cloudy eyes. She opens her mouth, wanting to scream silently. I can't wait to see her on the awards stage. This Malaysian actress, who has achieved great success for global audiences, absolutely deserves to be known by more people."

...

For the past two days, Lu Yanhe has been following the coverage of the Jose Film Festival.

Especially in the Best Actress category.

Although he knew that no matter how much he read, it wouldn't make a difference; the opinions of the media and commentators were not 100% aligned with the results.

In many cases, they even go in the opposite direction.

He still couldn't resist going to see it.

The news that "The Notebook" had its world premiere in Jose finally diverted some attention from the competition for actresses at the Jose Film Festival.

This Hollywood romance film, produced and written by Lu Yanhe, saw all of its cast and crew—including Lu Yanhe himself, the director, and the lead actors—arrive in Jiangguang to attend the film festival and the film's premiere.

At the premiere of "The Notebook," Jiang Yuqian, Qin Shulan, and Lil Collin, three of the most popular contenders for Best Actress this year, all showed up.

They're all here to promote this movie.

This is a very touching and moving movie story.

However, when the movie begins, it takes place in a nursing home.

On the screen appeared an elderly couple.

After a two-second pause of confusion, screams erupted from the audience.

"Claire Taylor and Grylls River!"

After those two names were called out, everyone finally realized who they were.

The two people appearing on the screen were actually top actors who were famous all over the world two or three decades ago.

An American actor and a British actress.

Both have over forty years of film careers, winning numerous awards and producing a multitude of classic works.

The two have not made a public appearance for nearly twenty years since retiring from acting.

This is why many people didn't recognize it at first.

The entire audience erupted in excitement.

Including the media.

Two global superstars reunite on the big screen after twenty years!

They didn't do any prior publicity!

Clearly, they were waiting for an opportunity like the Jose Film Festival to expose this!

(End of this chapter)