The Best Actor in the Vase of Meiyu

Chapter 2093 Walking with the Song
Take a deep breath and then exhale slowly.

However, Reese's heart continued to pound wildly in her chest, the force so rapid and fierce that she could hardly breathe.

"nervous?"

A voice came from the side. Reese turned her head sharply and saw Anson's smile. She was about to shake her head in denial, but instead nodded.

Those media outlets were right. "Walking with the Song" is an awards season production, a standard Oscar contender. She and Anson are the same. She doesn't know if Anson's mindset has changed now, but she's always been the same, hoping to break through her career bottleneck.

She wanted to shed the "vase" label; she wanted to prove she had more potential.

While her husband, Ryan Phillips, was comfortably basking in the praise of being an idol, she knew that youth could not last forever, and that Hollywood, a ruthless and fickle place, was constantly changing its idols, with the turnover rate far exceeding expectations.

She was not willing to stop there.

Now, it's time to be examined and tested, on the stage of Cannes.

“Enjoy it,” Anson said.

Just as Reese was about to speak, Anson's smile widened. "Enjoy this tension and anxiety. Because of the anticipation and the care, your insides are burning."

"Right?"

Reese chuckled, "Well, I care very, very much... very much."

Anson shrugged slightly. "The movie is released, and we wait for reviews. In my opinion, this process is the most magical moment. We are curious about the audience's reaction. In fact, the audience is also curious about what kind of world they will enter. We use the light and shadow of the camera to create a dream, projecting all the imagination in our minds and the joys and sorrows in our lives into it."

"During the time it takes to project the film, we go on adventures together, immerse ourselves in the experience, share the same anticipation and curiosity, and then wait for an emotional collision."

"There may be disappointment. There may be joy. There may be anger. There may be boredom. There may be happiness."

Just like life.

"If you don't care and don't expect anything, life will just be a dead end, utterly boring, right?"

Slightly taken aback, Reese looked at Anson with a hint of curiosity in her eyes, "Is it the same even if the movie receives bad reviews?"

Anson spread his hands. "You need bad reviews to get good reviews, right?"

"When 'The Shining' was first released, it received a lot of negative reviews, 'Once Upon a Time in America' was practically doomed, and when 'Fight Club' was released, nobody cared. I'm not saying that they all turned things around later, but that it's normal for some people to hate it and others to love it, and there's no need to worry about it."

Reese scrutinized Anson intently, her brows furrowed. "I have reason to suspect that you're trying to prepare me for the worst. Is the movie really that bad?"

Shhh!
Anson placed his finger on his lips, then glanced at the packed Lumière Hall. "Imagine two thousand people watching a terrible movie together, cursing and laughing out loud—that's a kind of fun too."

Instinctively, Reese turned her head to look in the same direction as Anson—

Full of people, bustling with activity.

Two thousand people may not sound like an outrageous number, but only when you are actually in the midst of it all do you realize that they are just a tiny drop of water.

More importantly, unlike Hollywood movie premieres, the anticipation, excitement, seriousness, and tension on these faces are so vivid, it's like looking in a mirror.

Reese's eyes lit up with excitement; this was indeed a scene slightly different from what she had imagined.

Looking away, Reese could see the smile in Anson's eyes. Just as she was about to speak, Anson mouthed a reminder, "The movie has started."

The lights slowly dimmed. Reese could clearly hear the erratic breathing, the low gasps, and the sounds of adjusting her posture. The surging joy in the darkness became exceptionally clear, and she couldn't control herself at all. Her heart leaped into her throat, and that pure feeling of happiness began to erupt, transforming into anticipation.

Then, the movie began—

dong dong dong... dong dong dong...

Visually, it was still pitch black. The Lumière Hall and the large screen in front were completely dark. Only the faint light of the emergency exit indicator lights barely supported the entire space, creating a sense of space and reminding the two thousand people present not to lose their sense of direction.

When vision is impaired, the survival instinct takes over and controls the body, while the other five senses become more sensitive, capturing every detail in the darkness.

Is that background noise, or... drumbeats?
If you listen carefully, you can hear the faint, undulating waves gently surging in the air, coming from afar, as if they are slowly approaching the Lumière Hall from the horizon.

Then, if you look closely at the big screen, you will find that the darkness is not still, but is slowly flowing.

The light and shadow hidden in the darkness continued to flow, and the fluctuations in the air became clearer and clearer. Just a moment ago, it felt like the vibrations coming from deep underground, but in the blink of an eye, it was the sound of drums rushing towards us.

Moreover, it wasn't a drum set, it was more like... a jazz drum set?

Five seconds, ten seconds... fifteen seconds.

In the endless darkness, time seemed to stretch on endlessly, so tedious it made one roll their eyes, but the approaching drumbeats caught their attention.

I couldn't help but listen and move closer, trying to figure out what was going on.

With a turn, the camera bursts out from a narrow, dark passage, rounds a corner, and a gray sky instantly spreads across the large screen. Layers of thick clouds block out the sunlight, but the high walls and watchtowers are still clearly visible.

You don't need to be particularly clever or knowledgeable to guess that this is a prison.

Johnny Cash? Prison?
Wait, is this where Johnny was a prisoner, or is this the corner where Johnny returned as a guest performer?
"1968, Lepresa, California."

The text on the screen indicated the location, and the answer was revealed: it was clearly the latter.

In the Lumière Hall, many people couldn't help but lean forward, trying to get closer to the big screen; their eager hearts could no longer contain themselves.

The camera, however, did not fulfill the audience's wish to reveal the answer. Instead, it focused on other corners of the prison: the guards on duty, the dogs walking in the open space, the butterflies perched on the spikes of the bars, and the crows eating rotting flesh in the garbage. The solemn and desolate scene outlined the oppressive and dull atmosphere of the prison.

The thick, overwhelming clouds seemed about to collapse.

Then--

"Anson-Wood".

The large font appeared in the center of the screen, and the visual impact was overwhelming. It was obvious that people in the Lumière Hall held their breath.

Next up, "Reese Witherspoon".

Then, the camera slammed into the words "Walking with Song," passing over the empty playground and entering through the dilapidated main gate.

The sounds of jazz drums, bass, and guitar burst forth, resonating through the prison corridors and cells, yet the drumbeats didn't seem like jazz drums; the rhythm that awakened the heartbeat was clearly—

The jailers jogged along with solemn expressions, their anxiety and tension palpable, a sense of impending doom swirling in the air.

(End of this chapter)