Chapter 359: The Grand Budapest Hotel Is Covered with Layers upon Layers
Soon, the time came to 12:30 noon on January 29th, China time. 11:30 pm on the 28th, Eastern Time in the United States.
In downtown New York City.
In the bar next to the Sydney Cinema, soft jazz music flowed in the air.
Ethan, the producer of "Redemption on the Battlefield", sat next to the bar with John, the director of the market research department of Summit Entertainment.
John held a glass of wine and sighed: "The storm has calmed down a lot in the past two days."
Two days ago, Ethan secretly complained about Chazelle, which caused a small-scale discussion on the Internet. Chazelle's support for Chen Xiao is fine, because everyone has long known that he is a person who puts art first, and they are dissatisfied but understandable. But now he deceives his peers in his country, which is a typical case of elbowing outward. Many peers' impressions of Chazelle have declined again.
John continued, "There should be another storm when the movie comes out today."
Ethan shook the wine glass, and the golden liquid shook heavily in the glass. He looked through the wine glass and curled up a sneer at the corner of his mouth, "That's what he deserves. He deserves it."
The two chatted about the company's affairs, and soon 20 minutes passed. The two put down their wine glasses and walked into the VIP viewing room.
At the same time, in Chen Xiao's villa.
Chen Xiao held a tablet computer, and the huge projection screen on the wall in front of him slowly lowered.
Chen Xiao, Sun Li, Wang Rui, Fang Rong, and Cha Zhe Lei also held snacks and pillows and found their favorite seats to sit down.
Wang Rui sat on the sofa on the far left, holding a pillow, picked up a bag of potato chips, tore open the package, stuffed it into his mouth, and smiled and sighed: "It's really rare to see a movie where Director Chen, the screenwriter, dares to eat."
Sun Li joked: "What if he really cries?"
"How is it possible? I don't have the habit of stabbing people." Cha Zhe Lei snorted coldly and put his hand on Huoyun's head.
Everyone chatted for a while, and the time came to 13:00.
"Xiaobai, turn off the lights."
"Okay, master."
The next moment, the room went dark. Only the light from the screen fell into the room.
Chen Xiao pressed the play button.
The picture on the wall in front of him moved.
The list of directors, screenwriters and other personnel appeared on the screen. At the same time, melodious humming came from the surround sound system, bringing a nostalgic and romantic feeling.
A few seconds later, the story began.
At the easternmost part of the European continent, there was a Republic of Zubrocka, which was once a glorious empire.
Wang Rui chewed potato chips in his mouth and asked Chen Xiao curiously: "Director Chen, this place name is virtual, right? What does it mean?"
Before Chen Xiao could speak, Chazelle said coldly without turning his head: "Doing reading comprehension? Ask in the first picture."
"Sorry." Wang Rui shrank his neck and continued to stuff potato chips into his mouth silently. But this time, the chewing action was lighter.
On the screen, the opening subtitles faded.
A young girl holding a book walked into the cemetery and came to a tombstone with a sculpture of the writer's head.
The tombstone was hung with various keys. It was written on the tombstone: In memory of the national treasure.
She hung a bunch of keys, looked up at the statue deeply, and picked up the book in her hand.
The pale pink book was called "The Grand Budapest Hotel".
She turned the book over, and a black and white photo of the writer was printed on the back.
The next moment, a line of text appeared on the screen: 1985.
The story came to 1985 when the writer was alive.
The film's screen ratio remained unchanged, but the screen was reduced.
The writer told the camera a story he had heard before.
The next moment, his voice suddenly became younger, and the screen ratio changed again, becoming a rectangle of 2.35:1.
The timeline entered the moment he narrated - 1968.
"In 1968, when I went there, it was off-season. The hotel had lost its former glory, and it was off-season."
In this hotel with few people, he met the manager and a short and well-dressed old man, who was surrounded by a sad atmosphere. This man's name is "Zero". He was once the richest man in the Republic of Zubroka and the owner of the hotel. But when he came here, he only lived in a waiter's room that was smaller than the elevator.
Zero sighed to the writer: "Today's managers are not even second-rate. Times have changed. The decoration of this hotel is outdated, but I like this look. There is a charming sense of dilapidation."
Zero asked him to have dinner together and told stories about his youth.
The picture turned into a 1.37:1 red picture.
A line of text appeared on it: Chapter 1, Mr. Gustav.
...
Fang Rong raised his hand and breathed a sigh of relief.
Oh my God, it is worthy of being an art film. It's a bit hard to watch.
He stared at the screen, turned his head slightly and said to Chen Xiao: "You are using nesting dolls?"
Chen Xiao responded: "Big director, can you use more professional words? This is called a multi-layered nested narrative structure."
"Yes, there are really nestings."
"Is this clear enough? The contemporary girl recalls the writer in 1985, the writer recalls Zero in 1968, Zero recalls Gustav in 1932. Gustav..." Chen Xiao smiled and didn't continue.
Fang Rong nodded.
It can be seen that as a director, he can see the relationship between the aspect ratio and the era at a glance.
Comparison of the same screenshots (upper left contemporary, upper right 1985, lower left 1968, lower right 1932)
Contemporary, it is a 1.85:1 picture, and it is a little bigger.
In 1985, it was also 1.85:1, but the screen was smaller.
In 1968, the era of Lao Ling, a 2.35:1 screen was used. Both of these are used today, but the latter emphasizes visual impact, so it is used in memories of the hotel.
In 1932, the 1.37:1 aspect ratio was used, which was also called the Academy ratio and was commonly used from the 1930s to the 1950s. The sense of age is overwhelming.
Fang Rong yawned and said in a joking tone: "With so many layers, can you tell me what the meaning is?"
Chazelle turned around and looked at Fang Rong coldly: "What do you mean by this tone? This is one of the main themes!"
"Sorry, sorry, I know it has deep meaning. I just feel sleepy after eating and my brain is not very flexible. I want to ask. Sorry, sorry, I will watch quietly."
Fang Rong smiled awkwardly.
He really didn't mean anything else. He was really sleepy after eating too much lunch and was too lazy to think. He just wanted to hear the results directly.
"You're not allowed to ask." Chazelle turned his head.
Chen Xiao leaned on the backrest and sighed: "You two, stop talking. You will know the meaning of nesting later. If you read it here, you can pay attention to the term 'Chapter 1'."
Fang Rong nodded and touched his chin.
Chapter 1... Is this the wording used in novels?
The girl at the beginning took out a book.
But now it is presented in the form of a novel. Does that mean...
ah!
Fang Rong's eyes lit up.
Understood!
No wonder. Writers in 1985 would talk to the camera.
No wonder, there were so many autobiographies by writers in 1968. These two parts are the preface of the novel or the autobiography of the writer, right?
In 1932, Zero’s autobiography is the main text of the novel.
If he guessed correctly, the novel would appear again at the end of the movie.
Fang Rong whispered: "It's so complicated. It's also a literary film. Isn't it much more complicated than "The Truman Show"?"
Chen Xiao nodded, "It's more appropriate to say it's obscure. So I suggest watching it at home so that it's easier to talk. However, nesting has a deep meaning, so let's look at it later."
Fang Rong nodded and looked at the screen again.
——
ps: There is a video barrage for this movie saying that the Sixth Princess was spared, but I couldn’t find the playback information. But on the CCTV website, you can indeed find its trailers, clips, and specials. What I want to say is... I will mention a little element of war next, but the film’s stance is okay, don’t worry.