Chapter 106: Chapter 106: Courting Again

“This is a remarkable work, the result of the efforts of everyone involved–Judi, Anthony, Scott, George, and so many others–without you, there would be no ‘Silence of the Lambs.’ Thank you all!” Jonathan Demme, accepting the Oscar statuette for Best Picture on behalf of the producers, had completed his acceptance speech.

Instantly, the hall at the music center erupted with fervent applause; everyone, regardless of their inner thoughts, at that moment was cheering for the movie’s win of the Oscar for Best Picture, including Adrian.

“All right, guys, it’s over, don’t look so down, remember how you comforted me before? It’s just a game,” Adrian said to those around him who generally seemed despondent after the award ceremony had announced its conclusion.

“They’re just not content,” Robbins explained, “after all, to receive eight nominations and not a single award, that’s somewhat hard to justify.”

“Indeed, at least I think we should have won either Best Cinematography or Best Editing,” Dennis chimed in.

“Don’t worry about it, remember ‘The Turning Point’ in ’77 and ‘The Color Purple’ in ’85? They both had eleven nominations and won nothing,” Adrian waved his hand dismissively, “it’s no big deal, there will be other chances.”

Heading to the foyer, the slightly crowded stream of people had thinned out a lot. Many were gathered in small groups, chatting, waiting for their cars or companions, while the winners of several major awards went to an adjoining room to follow the tradition of taking photos for memory’s sake. After briefly surveying his surroundings, Adrian greeted Robbins and the others before heading towards his own target.

“Hey, James, congratulations to you guys,” he said upon reaching James Cameron, who was chatting with a few people.

“Congratulations? Well, from your perspective, it’s not wrong to congratulate us,” Cameron assessed Adrian with a teasing tone, “such misfortune, though.”

However, he quickly put on a serious face, “Don’t mind it, Ed, look, I’ve never even been nominated for Best Director.”

“When you’re nominated, Best Director will already be in the bag for you,” Adrian replied with a smile.

“Is that a prediction? Thanks, though I think so too,” Cameron laughed heartily, true to his maverick reputation.

The two chatted casually for a bit, mainly about film technology, with Cameron doing most of the talking while Adrian listened. When it came to the technical details, he certainly couldn’t match this tech enthusiast, but occasionally he was able to provide some insight that sparked interest.

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Noticing that the reporters outside seemed to have mostly left, Adrian said to Cameron, “Looks like the press has pretty much gone, I should be leaving too.”

“Alright, we’ll stay in touch,” Cameron nodded before turning to leave.

“Oh, James,” Adrian suddenly called out to him again, “do you have any plans coming up?”

“Not at the moment… I had planned to go traveling with Linda after ‘Terminator 2,’ but I kept getting held up by this and that,” Cameron spread his hands helplessly, referring to Linda Hamilton, the lead actress in ‘Terminator 2,’ who was now his girlfriend.

“How’s that, you’ve got another bright idea?” he said, looking at Adrian with an interested expression.

“Here’s the thing, I watched a French film called ‘La totale!’ unintentionally. It was released at the end of last year and quite interesting. The gist is about the male protagonist who can’t reveal his identity as an elite secret agent to his family and friends. In their eyes, he’s just a mediocre office worker, but his wife craves excitement and gets drawn to a scammer claiming to be a special agent. After the protagonist discovers this, he starts to use his job perks to track his wife’s life, triggering many laughable incidents. I think it would make a great remake material.”

Seeing James Cameron furrow his brows, Adrian quickly added, “Of course, the whole film is still filled with the typical French boredom of endless chatter. If we were to remake it, we would need to make some major adjustments, like adding some big scenes–how about Arnold flying a Harrier jet between skyscrapers? Well, better wait until you’ve seen the film.”

“Your idea is interesting, Ed,” Cameron said, stroking his chin, “‘La totale!’, is it? I’ll give it a watch.”

Then he nodded and turned to walk away. Adrian watched him for a while and then chuckled softly as he too started to make his way outside at a leisurely pace.

In another timeline, few people had seen ‘La totale!’, but the American remake directed by James Cameron had a resounding name: ‘True Lies’!

Although the film, with its nearly 400 million US Dollar global box office, didn’t earn as much as some other blockbusters in comparison to its budget, it epitomized the meaning of big investments and big productions and paved the way for Cameron’s next film that would captivate the world. To build his own empire, Adrian had no reason to pass up the opportunity, especially when he could further ingratiate himself with this tech-madman.

“Hey, Ed.” A voice interrupted Adrian’s thoughts, then Jonathan Demme appeared before him with a broad smile, holding a shiny Oscar statuette in his hand.

“There’s a celebration party at the Melita Hotel by the ‘Silence of the Lambs’ crew. Would you like to come? We could also talk about ‘Philadelphia Story’ on the side.” Demme extended the invitation, but he quickly realized something, and his smile became awkward.

However, Adrian didn’t show any sign of offense and seriously asked after two seconds, “May I join?”

“Um… of course.” A surprised Demme nodded subconsciously.

“Then, I’d be honored,” Adrian said with a slight smile.

The ‘Silence of the Lambs’ crew had booked the fourth-floor hall of the Melita Hotel, accommodating nearly a hundred guests. The celebration didn’t just invite the crew and film company people but also many other well-known figures in the industry, all entertainment-related, like Tina Brown, the editor-in-chief of ‘Vanity Fair’.

But what really piqued everyone’s curiosity was the director of ‘The Shawshank Redemption,’ Adrian, who had received 8 nominations. Despite not winning a single award and losing major ones to ‘Silence of the Lambs,’ he showed no signs of disappointment and even attended the ‘Silence of the Lambs’ celebration party…

Okay, it was true that Jonathan Demme had invited him and that they were good friends, and after the awards ceremony, they were no longer competitors, but still, it felt oddly off.

“As you all know, ‘The Shawshank Redemption’ didn’t win anything, so naturally there wouldn’t be a party to celebrate, which is really too bad. I had nowhere to go! Just at that time, Joe came over to invite me, so I agreed,” said Adrian with a tone of self-mockery, “I suppose you guys don’t mind, right?”