A widower's entertainment

Chapter 424 [Thanks from the Film Festival] (Please Subscribe)
Undoubtedly, whether it's Lin Youcheng's two screenplays being nominated for Oscars or the film "The Reader" being nominated for the main competition at the Berlin Film Festival, these are quite astonishing events in the domestic film industry.

Lin Youcheng, in particular, is an international screenwriter who has truly amazed many film professionals in China.

Of course, the most important thing now is whether these films can win awards.

Lin Youcheng had naturally seen the shortlist for the main competition at the Berlin Film Festival. He knew that Li Shaohong was aiming for the top prize, but in Lin Youcheng's opinion, Li Shaohong might be disappointed.

Because one of the films in the main competition, *In the Name of the Father*, was originally a Berlin Film Festival Golden Bear winner from a different timeline. This film tells the story of Gary Conron, a naive petty thief who unwittingly offends the local government. He flees to England, only to be framed and sentenced to life imprisonment. His father, trying to save his son, is also imprisoned. Years later, a British lawyer clears the Conrons' names. This film also received seven Oscar nominations, though it ultimately failed to win any awards, much like *Schindler's List*. However, the Golden Bear win itself speaks volumes about the film's excellence.

Most importantly, this film is based on true events, bringing to light one of the most infamous true stories in modern British history. While highly political, it also possesses considerable artistic merit, depicting the complexities of father-son relationships, the corruption of power structures, and the struggles of humanity. The plot is weighty, historically significant, and deeply impactful.
Of course, this does not mean that the film "The Reader" is not competitive. After all, the original film also received six Oscar nominations and won the Oscar for Best Actress. However, "In the Name of the Father" is more political and is based on a true story.

Of course, whether or not you win an award ultimately depends on the judges' choice.

In particular, the main competition jury at this year's Berlin Film Festival includes producer Xu Feng, who has worked with Lin Youcheng before. Although Xu Feng, as a jury member, may not have the same influence as the other jury members, nor the same influence as Jeremy Thomas, the chairman of the main competition jury, it is still better to have a Chinese jury member than none at all.

While Lin Youcheng wasn't going to the Berlin Film Festival, Li Shaohong naturally still brought the main actors along.

As the female lead in the film "The Reader", Pan Hong naturally went. After finishing filming "Stock Fever", she flew to Berlin to meet up with Li Shaohong.

At this year's Berlin Film Festival, besides Li Shaohong's "The Reader," the only other Chinese-language film was Wu Ziniu's "Fire Fox." However, compared to "Fire Fox," which was screened at the Berlin Film Festival, "The Reader" clearly garnered considerable attention and even received an unprecedentedly enthusiastic response.

Of course, this is also inseparable from the fact that the screenwriter of the film "The Reader" is Lin Youcheng. It can be said that overseas film professionals are definitely familiar with Lin Youcheng, this Eastern screenwriter, after all, this screenwriter has appeared twice on the Oscar nomination list.

However, even if Lin Youcheng wasn't the screenwriter, "The Reader" is still a very good movie.

It's important to remember that Berlin experienced the division caused by war, and the fall of the Berlin Wall was only five years ago. It's fair to say that there's a strong sense of reflection on war here, especially in the film "The Reader," which also reflects on war. Undoubtedly, the audience at the Berlin Film Festival was amazed by this Chinese-language film.

Because this story is truly amazing and moving.

A young boy and a middle-aged woman develop a secret affair. The woman loves to lie in his arms listening to him read, completely absorbed in his clear, melodious voice. This scene alone is highly artistic and chilling to the audience. However, what the audience doesn't expect is that while the boy is hopelessly addicted to this relationship, he discovers he doesn't truly understand this woman, Yang Ju. Then, one day, this mysterious woman disappears without a word. After a brief period of confusion and sorrow, the boy begins a new life. Later, the war ends, but the trials of war criminals continue. During one of the trials, Jiang Xia unexpectedly discovers Yang Ju's secret: she was willing to risk her life to hide her illiteracy.

The story of this movie truly shocked, stunned, and deeply moved the audience.

This illiterate middle-aged woman was passionate about listening to readings. The stronger her yearning for the beauty of the cultural world, the stronger her aversion and fear of her illiteracy became. These were two sides of the same emotion, which drove her almost madly down a path of maintaining and pursuing dignity, for which she was willing to lie, abandon her job and those who loved her. To protect her secret, she was even willing to be imprisoned and even lose her life.

This film has truly amazed countless film critics and viewers, who were all deeply astonished by the story.

Because the story is so real, as if it had actually happened in history, many media reporters even interviewed director Li Shaohong, wanting to know if such a story existed in previous wars in China, and why screenwriter Lin Youcheng would write such a story.

Of course, amidst such enthusiastic responses, the film "The Reader," a collaboration between Li Shaohong and internationally renowned screenwriter Lin Youcheng, naturally became a topic of discussion, with many media outlets offering their opinions on the film.

It's fair to say that most of the comments were positive, because the story is truly amazing.

In the eyes of many film critics, "The Reader" is a truly good film, full of artistry, not to mention the plot which is full of the struggle between love and humanity, as well as the struggle between dignity and war, which is why it is so popular among film lovers.

Several film critics also rushed to share their opinions on the film "The Reader," giving it high praise.

"The film *The Reader* not only showcases the complexity of human nature but also imbues this complexity with a sense of simplicity and unity, allowing the character to remain whole rather than fragmented. That complexity is thus not murky but rich. Yes, for that woman, it was that utter ignorance. Ignorance is bliss, and she confessed without hesitation. When she looked directly at the judge and asked, 'If you were me, what would you do?' no one could answer her. That frank ignorance made her seem utterly innocent. No one knew where that shame came from; she would rather lose her freedom than her dignity. Illiteracy was a secret, and for it, she imprisoned herself. She was her own prison, her own hell. But, tragically, it is precisely this prison, this very dignity, that earns her my respect. A person's darkest part is also precisely their most shining part. Understanding is sometimes the deepest helplessness, because only through understanding can one realize that she is indivisible, inextricable, and unchangeable…"

……

"The relationship between the male and female protagonists in the movie 'The Reader' is really just a ridiculous bedroom game in their youth. If viewed simply, we could even call it an immoral act, a process of a boy and a woman constantly learning in bed..."

……

"The film *The Reader* is so moving. It seems to pose a question to everyone: If you fall deeply in love with your middle-aged, single female neighbor, and your relationship continues to affect you even after your breakup, what do you do when, eight years later, still heartbroken, you discover she is an executioner, and your testimony can save her from life imprisonment?" "People often have secrets, matters of dignity, things they don't want others to know. These secrets may stem from lies, vanity, love, or fear. Revealing the truth may not seem difficult, but some are willing to dedicate their entire lives to protecting their secrets. I believe that in reality, regardless of the period or circumstance, there will always be people in this world who fight their entire lives for the secrets in their hearts. Even if the secret were replaced with something else, this principle would still hold true—after experiencing countless things, as our vision gradually focuses, we suddenly realize that because we were so deeply invested, that thing will ultimately become the meaning of our entire lives."

……

These continuous comments are all affirmations of the film "The Reader," and naturally, also affirmations of the wonderful story behind it.

Undoubtedly, despite the different story backgrounds, Lin Youcheng's "The Reader" is very easy for overseas audiences to understand. It can even be said that overseas audiences have once again witnessed the brilliance of Lin Youcheng, the master screenwriter. At the film festival, overseas distributors have already begun to contact Li Shaohong, wanting overseas distribution rights in other regions.

Amidst the heated discussions at the Berlin Film Festival, the film "The Reader" is undoubtedly an unmissable presence at the festival. Now, the Berlin Film Festival is unknowingly approaching its closing ceremony, but some media outlets have reported that there are significant disagreements among the jury members in the main competition regarding the final award selection.

Such rumors naturally made film directors like Li Shaohong very excited.

Fortunately, the film festival organizing committee invited the "The Reader" crew to participate in the final closing ceremony, so it was clear that the film would win an award. The only question now is what award it will be.

Lin Youcheng had previously considered winning international film awards, but the Berlin Film Festival's main competition section did not yet have a Best Screenplay award. In another timeline, in 2025, the Best Screenplay award was first established in the main competition section, marking its formal inclusion in the festival's core award system.

To this day, the Berlin Film Festival has not established an award for independent screenwriters in its main competition section, which means that screenwriter Lin Youcheng cannot win the Best Screenplay Award in the main competition section. Of course, there are screenwriting awards in some sub-sections, which are not in the main competition section but belong to the official award system of the film festival.

It's unlikely that screenwriter Lin Youcheng will win an award now, but "The Reader" will definitely win one, especially since it received high praise at the film festival, which naturally makes Li Shaohong very much looking forward to it.

Especially now that they have received an invitation to the closing ceremony, the entire cast and crew of "The Reader" attending the Berlin Film Festival are really looking forward to the final awards ceremony.

Pan Hong also had high hopes, because her performance in "The Reader" received a lot of praise, and she naturally hoped to win an award, especially the Golden Bear.

Previously, some media outlets had commented that Pan Hong was also a potential contender for the Berlin Film Festival's Best Actress award. Besides Pan Hong, another competitor was Krishnamurti, who starred in "Mother with Broken Wings." These two could be considered the biggest rivals.

The Berlin Film Festival awards ceremony wasn't particularly long, as there were only a few awards in total. Besides the Jury Special Award, the other possible awards were Best Actress and Best Director, as well as the Golden Bear for Best Film.

Soon, the award presenter gave the answer to the Berlin Film Festival's Best Actress award.

"Best Actress, congratulations to Pan Hong for 'The Reader'!"

Undoubtedly, when Pan Hong heard that she had won the Best Actress award at the Berlin Film Festival, she was completely stunned. Although she was looking forward to winning the award, she also knew that such things were not always possible. Now, when she actually heard the answer, she was truly surprised.

She won an award?

She won the Best Actress award at the Berlin Film Festival?
As Pan Hong listened to the congratulations and well wishes from those around her, she felt as if she were in a dream.

Although Li Shaohong knew that if "The Reader" won Best Actress, it would be difficult to win the Golden Bear Award, she was still happy for Pan Hong at this moment. After all, this was a major award for the film "The Reader". Her film had produced a Best Actress winner from one of the three major film festivals, which was quite rare!

However, it is quite obvious that in the eyes of many filmmakers, it is probably the film penned by international screenwriter Lin Youcheng that produced a Berlin Film Festival Best Actress.

Just like now, Pan Hong excitedly delivered her acceptance speech, thanking the film director Li Shaohong, her colleagues in the crew, and the crew members. Of course, the person she should thank the most is Lin Youcheng, who recommended her to act in the film "The Reader" and was also the screenwriter of the film.

"Thank you to screenwriter Lin Youcheng. I am truly grateful to him for writing this touching story, which gave me the opportunity to play the role of Yang Ju. Thank you!"

On the other side of the world, far away in Beijing, Lin Youcheng was unaware that he was being thanked by the Berlin Film Festival Best Actress.

Because he was busy in the middle of the night holding the baby in swaddling clothes, gently coaxing the little darling not to cry.

(End of this chapter)