A widower's entertainment

Chapter 344 [International Screenwriter] (Please Subscribe)
Although Lin Youcheng will not be attending the Cannes Film Festival, the entire crew of "Atonement" will naturally be there, especially Gong Li, the female lead, who is very much looking forward to this trip to Cannes.

She has now starred in several films that have been nominated for the main competition of the three major film festivals, but unfortunately she has not yet won the Best Actress award at the three major film festivals.

"Ju Dou," which was nominated last year, also went home empty-handed.

Now, naturally, I'll only be watching this one, "Atonement".

Besides the female lead Gong Li and the male lead Chen Daoming, the other female lead is Kong Ling, who plays the young Lin Xue. To be honest, Kong Ling and Gong Li's first collaboration was in "Raise the Red Lantern", where Kong Ling played Yan'er, the maid of the college student Song Lian.

Chen Aige and others all had ideas about the Cannes Film Festival, and they all went to Cannes, France with high expectations.

"Teacher Lin Youcheng, isn't he coming with us?"

As a young actress, Kong Ling has been reading Lin Youcheng's literary works for a long time and likes them very much. Naturally, she also hopes to meet Lin Youcheng, the screenwriter.

Chen Aige waved her hand and said with a smile, "He's getting married, so he doesn't plan to attend."

"That's it!"

Kong Ling was somewhat surprised, clearly having only just learned of Lin Youcheng's marriage.

This is not the future when internet information is more developed, and Lin Youcheng is not a celebrity. His remarriage is only known to some people in the literary circle and has not spread to the general public.

Kong Ling clearly knew that Lin Youcheng had been raising the child alone. After his wife died, he began to engage in literary creation, and most of his novels were about love. It was rumored that this was because of his love for his deceased wife. Unexpectedly, he has now remarried.

Gong Li had heard quite a bit about Lin Youcheng, and said, "It seems that Teacher Lin took care of his child alone for eight years, which was not easy."

Upon hearing this, the thought that had just flashed through Kong Ling's mind vanished instantly; eight years had already passed.

Hearing Gong Li's words, Chen Aige nodded and said with a smile, "It wasn't easy, but now he's doing well, with success in both his career and love life."

These are also other people's opinions on Lin Youcheng's new marriage, but it is clear that Chen Aige does not know that Lin Youcheng's double success in love and career has only just begun.

……

May in Cannes, in the south of France, is undoubtedly a paradise for filmmakers, where countless viewers and film professionals who love the art of film gather.

One film after another was screened at the Cannes Film Festival, and the Eastern film "Atonement" undoubtedly attracted considerable attention, and could even be described as receiving an unprecedentedly enthusiastic response.

France is a land of romance, so how could a film with such a breathtaking love story not leave young film enthusiasts breathless?

Of course, most importantly, the story of Atonement itself is so amazing and so moving.

With just one person's words, Lin Xue destroyed the lives of two young people. Lin Yu and Luo Yang, such a brave and loving couple, both died on the battlefield, and their deaths were so close together. These two lovers were never truly together.

This ending shocked and stunned the audience at the film festival.

An apology couldn't undo Luo Yang's tragic life or Lin Yu's happiness. The girl's jealousy ruined the two young people. She never got to see Luo Yang again. Later, she became a writer. At the end of the film, the elderly Lin Xue recounts in an interview that she spent her whole life writing this novel, "Atonement." The novel's depiction of Lin Xue visiting her sister and meeting Luo Yang, begging for their forgiveness, and the ending where the two are happily together, is all just a fabricated creation.

She wanted to give them a happy ending in the book, and she wanted to find redemption for her own spirit through the novel.

But all of this is utterly ridiculous, because some sins simply cannot be redeemed.

This film has truly impressed countless film critics and viewers.

The audience was moved to tears by the touching and tragic love story of Luo Yang and Lin Yu, and they were all deeply touched by the story.

Because the story is so real, as if it had actually happened in history, many media reporters interviewed director Chen Aige, wanting to know if the story was adapted from a true story.

Of course, amidst such enthusiastic responses, Lin Youcheng, the screenwriter of the film "Atonement," was naturally mentioned in the reports. It was also mentioned that Lin Youcheng's previous novel adaptation, "The Devotion of Suspect X," had also shocked the Cannes Film Festival a few years ago and won the Palme d'Or.

Now that Lin Youcheng's novel adaptation, "The Time Traveler's Wife," is being released worldwide and is very popular, the moving story of "Atonement" is also coming, and it will naturally be discussed.

The art of screenwriting is often the art of structure. Clearly, Lin Youcheng's "Atonement" is full of artistry in its structure, not to mention the plot which is full of the tearing apart of love and humanity, as well as the sense of destruction of war. This is also why it is so popular among film lovers.

French film critics have praised Chen Aige's film "Atonement," giving it high marks. One critic wrote: "While both films deal with the theme of lovers separated during war, this one portrays love that yearns for return amidst agonizing waiting, and its emotional impact is always cold. The title 'Atonement' seems to be a metaphor for the endless human pain and self-reflection behind that war."

Chen Aige's film always reminds me of the aesthetic beauty of Wordsworth, the Lake Poet. It's like a series of richly colored oil paintings, so visually fresh and vibrant. And so, within that brisk rhythm, we are transported to that summer afternoon—a ceramic kettle falls into the pond, bees buzz at the window, and a girl, her emotions churning, watches the ambiguous couple outside. Folded shots re-emerge from the younger sister's perspective, revealing her inner turmoil. Sunlight streams in through the window, the heat thick and quiet, yet the scene by the manor pond pierces the sensitive girl's heart like a bee sting.

Therefore, it's not hard to explain Lin Xue's true purpose in later lying, which was half lucid and half hateful. It was a subtle chemical reaction of love turning into hate, and before that, there was a related experiment—the content of which has appeared countless times in today's TV soap operas: she tested his love by attempting suicide.

The lush water plants at the bottom of the pond entwined the young girl's body. She watched the man swim towards her, a hint of joy in her smile. She chased after him, now angry, among the wildflowers on the bank, naively believing she had achieved her goal. Love runs deep, so does hate. Didn't Shakespeare also have a general, Othello, who strangled his own wife?

Therefore, we believe that on that night, Berlane actually saw everything clearly. The reason she became so ruthless was because she tasted what jealousy was like… In addition, the French film magazine “The Set” also had film critics praising the film “Atonement”.

It's important to know that *Cahiers du Cinéma*, founded in 1951 by André Bazin and others, is a prestigious French film magazine renowned for its artistic exploration and critical spirit, and it played a significant role in the development of the French New Wave movement. The magazine has long maintained an independent editorial stance, and its sections cover in-depth content such as film analysis and director interviews, making it a highly regarded publication.

"Lin Xue ruined Luo Yang's life with lies. The book-within-a-book structure of Lin Xue's script tells a love story between a young man and his sweetheart amidst war. Even without bloodshed and gunfights, this scene in 'Atonement' is definitely one of the most shocking in terms of its depiction of war. With nearly a thousand extras and complex camera movements, Chen Aige demonstrated his extraordinary mise-en-scène skills and enormous ambition with this long take that lasted more than four minutes."

Several film critics also rushed to express their opinions on the film "Atonement".

"This is a good film. Objectively speaking, the atmosphere is oppressive, rich and subtle, full of tension, with intimate expressions of repressed emotions as well as grand war scenes. It is quite amazing that Lin Youcheng, a science fiction writer, could write such a story. Of course, it is as shocking as his previous work, The Devotion of Suspect X. The ending is also quite astonishing."

There's not much to say about the story itself; it's undeniably a good one, especially considering the author is also the screenwriter. The events of that summer are narrated from both Lin Xue's perspective and the actual events themselves—a clever and necessary approach. The film's camerawork is excellent, with the long take on the battlefield being particularly memorable.

The actors' performances were also outstanding. Lin Xue, the older actress, delivered a powerful confession at the end. Kong Ling's performance was also excellent; I felt she embodied a melancholic, imaginative, and thoughtful character, somewhat frightening, with a complex psychological depth. She thought she understood what she saw, but she didn't. Her suspicion, her prying, her speculation… her innocent crush on Luo Yang—all were portrayed very well. Chen Daoming and Gong Li's performances were brilliant, conveying the pure emotions of youth, which was truly moving.

……

"The film 'Atonement' is so moving. It's beautiful to the extreme, yet it's also a film that leaves you feeling suffocated with oppression. It makes you deeply feel the helplessness and horror of ignorance, jealousy, and class disparity. Even though the female lead's sister tries to write a novel to give the male and female leads a happy ending, she can never soothe her inner guilt and will never find peace in her life."

The film is beautifully shot and explores the question of how to redeem oneself after committing mistakes or crimes. Thirteen-year-old Lin Xue, a young girl with a vivid imagination, is just beginning to try her hand at writing. One day, through the window, she witnesses an intimate relationship between the housekeeper's son, Luo Yang, and her older sister, Lin Yu. Later, she discovers a sexually explicit letter he wrote to her. Naïve but imaginative, Lin Xue develops a dislike for Luo Yang. Later, when her cousin is harmed, she falsely accuses Luo Yang, who is imprisoned. Tragically, both Luo Yang and her sister Lin Yu die in the war.

In this film, the one who suffers the most is actually the younger sister. The bondage of sin and guilt accompanies her throughout her life. Those who die young suffer the most. Just as Socrates said before his death, "He went to his death, and you remain. Who envies whom is another matter entirely." A truly astonishing story, incredibly brilliant. Chen Aige has made a great film, but I admire even more the screenwriter Lin Youcheng for writing this story.

……

Clearly, these numerous comments are all affirmations of the film "Atonement," and naturally, also affirmations of the unique story behind it.

Amidst the heated discussions at the film festival, the Cannes Film Festival has unknowingly reached its final closing ceremony.

Chen Aige was undoubtedly looking forward to winning an award, especially the most important Palme d'Or. Therefore, when she learned that the film festival organizing committee had invited the film crew to participate in the final closing ceremony, she naturally knew that the film would win an award.

In particular, he also knew that many film critics had recently praised the film "Atonement".

Having received the invitation, the main creators of "Atonement" were naturally very excited and looked forward to the final closing ceremony awards presentation.

Fortunately, the awards ceremony was not particularly long, and soon the presenters announced that "Atonement" had won the award.

"Best Screenplay Award, congratulations to China's 'Atonement'!"

"Fantastic! We won an award! We won an award!"

"Yes, we won an award!"

"The Best Screenplay Award still belongs to Lin Youcheng. Lin Youcheng is truly amazing!"

"Director Chen, our film won an award! Best Screenplay!"

Upon hearing this, Gong Li and the others nearby were naturally excited. In any case, the film had won an award, and everyone was very happy. They were happy for the film "Atonement" and also for Lin Youcheng, who was far away in China.

Best Screenplay Award?

This is the Best Screenplay award!

Although Chen Aige was somewhat surprised to win the Best Screenplay Award first, and also the Best Screenplay Award, and didn't know if there would be other awards later, she was half happy and half nervous. But in any case, the film won an award, so it was something to be happy about.

When Chen Aige went on stage to accept the Best Screenplay Award, she naturally gave an acceptance speech on behalf of screenwriter Lin Youcheng.

This award is undoubtedly an affirmation of the film script, which in turn is an affirmation of screenwriter Lin Youcheng.

As for the awards presented later, Chen Aige was stunned and began to feel uneasy.

Because the Coen brothers' film "Barton Fink" won both the Best Director and Best Actor awards, which is quite incredible, Chen Aige was shocked and began to wonder if the film "Atonement" would also have another big award waiting for it.

Regardless of whether there are any major awards later, Lin Youcheng, a big name in the domestic literary circle, has now won the Best Screenplay Award at the Cannes Film Festival.

This was born from one of the world's three major film festivals—

Undoubtedly the best screenwriter!
Although this is only Lin Youcheng's first Best Screenplay award at one of the three major film festivals, it is definitely an international breakthrough that has amazed the world.

(End of this chapter)