Chapter 139 -139: Hints
After the premiere, Adrian left with Kate. Although he had provided the outline for the screenplay, the majority of the content was completed by the company’s scriptwriters; he basically only supervised the direction. Hence, his name was listed at the end of all the scriptwriters in the end credits, making it unnecessary for him to attend the subsequent press conference.
This version of “Casper” differed in many ways from the one he remembered, specifically regarding camera language control—such deviations are normal, even if the same director makes the same movie twice—except for the perfectionist Adrian.
Still, there was no need to worry too much; Brad Silberling had managed to capture the main storyline quite well. Throughout the screening, laughter was continual, and Caspar’s decision to give up his chance at revival for Katie’s father, while getting the chance to become a boy and successfully date Katie, reverting back after midnight, also left many emotionally-rich viewers sighing.
Moreover, the images of Caspar and the three ghosts were quite attractive. The production team spent millions of US dollars to cleverly integrate the animated characters into the movie, maintaining the cartoon’s essence without feeling out of place, especially the ghostly forms of the actors after their deaths were particularly amusing. Thus, when the lights in the hall came on after the movie ended, there was immediate, enthusiastic applause.
The media also viewed the movie favorably; “Empire” magazine declared it “the best family movie to watch together since the start of the summer,” and “Hollywood Report” felt “This is Brad’s most humorous and warmhearted work yet, Disney’s family-friendly movies are always appealing, and if you want to have a pleasant weekend with your family, this movie is a great choice.”
Film critic Jon Riley, while critiquing the actors’ performances, wasn’t too harsh: “Everyone fulfilled their roles, but the standout was Caspar, the ghost, who was clever and fun, exactly like the animation. Luckily, Sarah Michelle Gellar, who played the daughter Katie, also had her moments, smart and nimble yet slightly melancholic; otherwise, it would have been too bad if the real actors lost out to computer animation.”
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Adrian agreed with this review; he believed that Sarah’s performance in the movie outshined Christina Ricci’s original, although this opinion might be subjective. But what of it?
In any case, the movie received a lot of praise upon release, mainly because such PG-rated films rarely stir controversy or require deep analysis, but also due to Disney’s image and promotional strategy, as these types of movies are their specialty. Hence, in its first week, “Casper” topped the North American box office with 22 million, and it seemed set to lead for a while.
Seeing this, Adrian shifted his focus to other matters, preparing to return to London to start post-production on “Howards End.” However, just the day before he was set to depart, an unexpected message forced him to delay his trip. Although he had anticipated this, Adrian still sighed, this guy was indeed anxious, but fortunately, Adrian was also prepared and it was time to play his last card.
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Spielberg flipped through the files in his hands, his frown deepening, and with impatience, he threw them away and started searching on his desk again. After rifling through for two or three minutes and changing documents over a dozen times, many of which ended up on the floor, he still couldn’t find what he was looking for.
After a frustrated hum, Spielberg gave up on the files on his desk and approached his bookshelf to start searching again. This time, after discarding a few documents, he finally found the one filled with black and white images he was looking for.
After heaving a long sigh and turning around, he was startled to see his simple, bright office now overtaken by scattered documents.
With a bitter smile, Spielberg raised his hands in resignation, placed the found documents on a nearby coffee table, and began to tidy up, eventually sighing deeply and covering his forehead. He had always been a person who paid little attention to details. His office was often messy, usually tidied by his secretary. So now, to organize these scattered documents was as challenging as asking him to fly out the window.
“Damn, Steven, you really can do it, now you can’t even handle this small issue,” Spielberg, taking off his glasses and wiping them with the corner of his shirt, muttered to himself.
At that moment, the communicator on his desk buzzed: “Mr. Spielberg, Mr. Adrian is here.”
Startled, Spielberg quickly recovered and pressed the talk button: “Thank you, Melissa, please let him in and could you also get us two cups of coffee.”
After a quick glance around, he decided not to clean up anymore—the necessary documents were all on the desk, albeit just as scattered. So he picked up the document he had initially sought and sat back down in his chair.
“Hello, Steven…” Adrian, carrying a briefcase, was clearly surprised upon entering.
“Sorry, Ed,” Spielberg gestured, “As you can see, it’s a bit messy here because I was doing some last preparations.”
“It’s okay, sometimes I do the same in the office.” Adrian smiled, walked over to the desk, and sat down. He picked up the scattered files from the floor, sorted them neatly, and placed them on the other side of the desk.
Spielberg looked at the young man in front of him, his expression slightly complex. As before, his first impression was impressive. However, even today, he didn’t like him much; his utilitarianism was strong, he was impetuous in his actions, always aiming to produce the best work in the shortest time, and his private life wasn’t that great either.
In Hollywood, some things aren’t secret, or even if the person involved doesn’t mention them, enough information leaks out to guess what happened. Of course, only fools would go around gossiping about such matters. And after all, Drew Barrymore was still his goddaughter.
But on the other hand, Spielberg greatly admired him. He was daring in his decisions and thoughts, his mind bustling with unexpected ideas, and each time he did it well, his works won both critical acclaim and box office success. Not everyone could win the Palme d’Or at Cannes at the age of 24, not even Spielberg himself.
“So let’s not engage in too much small talk,” Adrian coughed then, interrupting Spielberg’s thoughts, “if I remember correctly, ‘Jurassic Park’ isn’t finished yet, right? Why rush to start a new movie?”
Spielberg smiled faintly, “How is your new movie doing? Many people, especially the British, are waiting to see you fail.”
“Uh…” Adrian laughed awkwardly, his expression betraying a mix of helplessness and self-mockery – questions about this had apparently been common during this period. However, he quickly recovered, grasping what Spielberg meant.
“It’s not the same, Steven, I always complete the production of one movie before starting preparations for the next,” Adrian shook his head, disagreeing with his idea.
Spielberg shrugged his shoulders, then suddenly asked another question, “Why did you decide to bring ‘Howards End’ to the big screen, Ed? You’ve never directed this type of film before, have you?”
“Because… I think I should,” Adrian hesitated, finally sighing.
“Don’t worry, I’ve handed over all the post-production to Lucas. As one of the people who knows me best, he understands what I want. When decisions are needed, I will reach out to him,” Spielberg said, also sighing. “I’ve been waiting too long.”
“I understand,” Adrian said as he tapped his fingers on the desk, “So, anything else? If it’s just about funding, I don’t need to come over, right?”
Spielberg nodded, “Yes, I believe you’ve already read the script. As one of Hollywood’s finest screenwriters, maybe you could offer some suggestions?”
“The finest screenwriter in Hollywood? I couldn’t possibly claim that,” Adrian laughed, genuinely humble, “Well, I don’t have many suggestions for your script; you’ve already done a fantastic job, especially the scene of the clearing of the Jewish ghetto in Krakow – by the way, I remember you mentioned planning to shoot this movie in black and white?”
“Yes, I think color film would fail to convey the depth of the feeling,” Spielberg responded, not blinking as he stared at him.
Adrian, acting as if he hadn’t seen it, took a hefty script from his briefcase, flipping through several pages before commenting, “I have no objections; you are the director, it’s ultimately your call. However, frankly speaking, how do you plan to depict Schindler’s transformation? There must be a logical explanation or impactful scenes, otherwise, it might lack persuasiveness.”
“I know, I purposely arranged for him to witness people being shot, especially many children. I plan to give those children… some close-up shots,” Spielberg nodded, pausing before he added, “But I still feel something is missing.”
“I see…” Adrian stroked his chin, and after a few seconds, he suddenly seemed to recall something, “By the way, while gathering relevant information, I came across a memoir titled ‘The Girl in the Red Coat: An Autobiography’ by Roma Ligocka, a survivor of the concentration camp, and I believe she is related to Roman Rolanski?”
“Is that so?” Spielberg looked puzzled, not understanding what Adrian was suggesting.
“I think, perhaps, you could set it up like this: when Schindler witnesses the massacre, he sees a little girl in red moving through the crowd, eventually running into a house where amid the gunfire, she crawls under a bed and covers her ears. That bright red stings Schindler’s eyes, and then his transformation begins! And then, one day, as the Nazi’s dig up the dead bodies for burning, he sees that striking red again on a wooden cart carrying corpses! You see, Steven! The only bright red in a world of black and white, a symbolically powerful red!” (To be continued, for further details, please visit www.qidian.com. More chapters, support the author, support genuine reading!)
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