Chapter Fifteen: Entering the Play or Fantasy

  The film doesn't have a big scene, strictly speaking it's just a play between three or four people, the boy and the doctor, the boy and his mother, the doctor and his wife. David Fincher also grasped the theme very well, thriller is just an outer garment, communication and affection are what the movie truly wants to express.

  Although the shooting speed was not fast under David Fincher's strict requirements, it was not slow either. As time went on, both Al Pacino and Nicole Kidman were getting better and better, while Ryan encountered a lot of trouble and his off-screen time got longer and longer.

  “Cut！”

  After David Fincher yelled cut, Ryan remained sitting in the high-backed chair, dazed and unable to snap out of it, as if the whole world had abandoned him and he could only seek comfort and protection within his own little world.

  This isn't the first time this has happened, in the past Al Pacino and crew members have tried to approach him but as soon as they get close to Ryan he becomes fearful, shrinks away and panics like Cole when he saw a ghost.

  At times like these, only Nicole Kidman can get close to him normally and only her arms can provide warmth and help.

  It took Ryan several minutes to come back to his senses, leaning heavily on the high-back chair and letting out a long sigh. They say good actors can control their emotions freely, but what about him? He could only let go and not hold back, what's going on with that? Especially when he was immersed in Cole's world, those extremely dark memories from his childhood would always occupy his mind.

  "Ryan, you need rest." David Fincher solemnly suggested.

  "No, David." Ryan shook his head firmly. "I'm in the best state right now, just trust me, okay?"

  David Fincher urged a few more words, seeing Ryan's resolute attitude, and had no choice but to sit back in the director's chair and start adjusting. The shot below is one of the most important shots in this movie.

  A faint light cast on the corridor, with a slight creaking sound, the door was opened a crack. A boy in shorts and short pants poked his head out from the gap, his pale face filled with hesitation, he was somewhat afraid, after looking around back and forth, finally made up his mind, and darted into the toilet with a twist.

  Suddenly, the boy felt something pass behind him, and he slowly turned around in terror, standing just like that in front of the toilet, looking so lonely and helpless.

  After hesitating for a while, the boy decided to go and take a look. He walked slowly, his face changing from hesitation to unease. Just then, the sound of kitchen utensils came from the kitchen, and he thought his mother was making breakfast, slightly calming down.

  He walked into the brightly lit kitchen and tentatively asked, "Mom?"

  The woman in pink pajamas suddenly turned around and said in a low, sharp voice, "No! Dinner is not ready yet, what do you want to do?"

  Her face was covered in purple scars, and her hysterical expression made her look extremely terrifying. She bellowed, stretching out her angry hands, which had deep knife wounds on the wrists. "You can't hurt me anymore, Lanny! It's you who drove me to this state!"

  The boy could no longer bear the terrifying scene, and he suddenly turned around and ran back to his bedroom with all his might. However, the female ghost's hysterical roar continued to come, and the boy didn't think twice before crawling into the red tent, facing the statues of Saint Mary and Jesus collected from the church. Tears of helplessness and despair flowed down in suppressed sobs.

  “cut！”

  Everyone, including David Fincher, breathed a sigh of relief as they didn't expect this crucial shot to pass in one take. The boy was too excellent and with his performance over the past month, apart from the word genius, they really didn't know how else to describe him.

  However, in that red tent they had neglected, Ryan still sat motionless on the ground, his lonely, helpless and desperate expression not only did not disappear, but became more and more intense. Those bright sky-blue eyes gradually lost their luster, and tears poured out like a burst dam.

  The little boy with black hair and eyes was abnormally thin, wearing clothes that were not only old but also had many patches, and the black backpack he carried was equally worn out, so heavy that it almost bent his spine.

  He pushed the classroom door open with force, and several classmates were playing near the entrance. Unfriendly glows appeared in their eyes, and they scattered immediately. As he walked towards his seat, someone led the way, and many people in the classroom shouted in unison, "Idiot! Beggar! Idiot! Beggar!"

  The little boy bit his lower lip hard, without even noticing the blood beads coming out, his body couldn't stop trembling, and the tears in his eyes rolled back and forth, but stubbornly refused to fall.

  "Fool! Beggar!"

  The jeering grew louder and he could no longer bear it, taking off the black backpack on his back and swinging it forcefully at the head of the male classmate closest to him, once, twice...

  "You're just a troublemaker who only causes us problems, can't they scold you without holding back? Look at you all, what kind of people are you, abandoned wild kids thrown away by your parents. What? I'm not wrong, and you still dare to glare at me, let me glare back..."

  The head of the orphanage slapped the boy's body with one palm after another, and the boy bit his lips even tighter, but there were no more tears in his eyes.

  "Ryan!" David Fincher yelled, seeing Ryan not only unresponsive but also with a trickle of blood on his lips, and those bright blue eyes losing their luster. He hastily shouted, "Quick! Go get Miss Kidman!"

  Nikki was removing her makeup, not even wearing shoes, and rushed over barefoot, ignoring everything around her, and directly rushed into the tent where Ryan was, tightly hugging him into her own arms.

  "Ryan! Ryan! Wake up!"

  Ryan just stared blankly, as if he had nothing left but his physical body. Nikki's heart trembled uncontrollably, she felt the boy getting colder, not physically, but spiritually. The Ryan she knew, the Ryan she loved, the Ryan she relied on for survival, was moving further and further away from her, seemingly about to disappear at any moment.

  "Come back soon, Ryan!"

  Nicole Kidman pressed her forehead tightly against Ryan's, trying to warm the boy's gradually cooling soul with her own body heat, and wanting to call back the most important person in her life with deep affection.

  "Damn it! I knew it, I knew it, I shouldn't have let you film this godforsaken movie! Ryan, I swear! If you don't wake up, I'll send you to boarding school, or a Catholic school! I swear to God and Satan at the same time! I swear, I'll personally tear down that welfare institution that's plunged you into suffering and darkness, and I'll send that black sow of a mother to Devil's Island!"

  Nikki's eyes gradually showed panic, and she was so hysterical that she didn't even know what she was saying. Fortunately, there were no blacks in the crew, otherwise she would have gotten into big trouble.

  Looking at Ryan's tightly pursed lips and the blood beads seeping from the corners of his mouth, Nicole could no longer control herself. Her blue eyes flashed twice, and two large teardrops rolled down.

  Tears rolled down her pale cheeks, taking away her breath, carrying the emotions that had seeped into her soul, and fell onto Rynn's cheek and mouth corner, dropping into his heart that was gradually being occupied by coldness and darkness.

  The young man's character was extremely stubborn, just like the black short hair standing upright on his head. He watched as the beautiful girl walked further and further away, the person who had given him ten years of warmth and light finally disappeared forever from his world. From that moment on, dark clouds covered the sun, and darkness replaced the light.

  Time had come to that night again, drunk and stinking, numb like a rotten wood, the young man opened another bottle of beer, raised it up and was about to pour it down his throat, when suddenly, two drops fell from the sky and landed on his face.

  "Why does it feel so familiar? This aura, this feeling..." The young man finally remembered something, his hand relaxed, and the wine bottle shattered on the ground. "An Xin? No! It's Nicole!"

  "An Xin? Nicole!" Hearing the voice of Ryan in her arms, Nicole hastily said, "Ryan, I'm here! I'm right by your side, I won't go anywhere!"

  Ryan's eyes blinked, and the dull eyes gradually regained their luster. The sky-blue pupils became brighter and brighter. Nicole felt that the familiar Ryan was back, but...but she had an inexplicable feeling that Ryan seemed to be a little different again.

  "Sorry, Nicole. I didn't mean to worry you." Ryan held her tightly, as if the whole world had narrowed down to this one embrace that brought him warmth and peace.

  "Ryan, if...if it's possible, don't scare me like that again, okay?" Nicole was still panting softly, and hadn't calmed down yet.

  "Don't worry, Nicole, I just remembered a lot of dark memories."

  "Who... is An Xin?" After all, having lived together for several years, Nicole had also picked up some Chinese.

  "Ah... Ah Xin?" Ryan was indeed a genius at acting, and his astonished expression was completely natural. "I said - be at ease, Nicole!"

  He deliberately slowed down his speech and repeated it in Chinese, one word at a time, so that Nicole could hear clearly.

  "Nicole, I think Ryan needs a break!" David Fincher walked over, "You guys don't have many shots left, I'll give you a few days off, take Ryan out to play around, he's getting too into character."

  Is he overacting? Ryan sighed, and he had long been unable to distinguish whether he was overacting or trapped in a fantasy.

  "Alright then." Nicole replied, looking down at the boy in her arms, "Where do you want to go, Ryan?"

  "New York!" Ryan subconsciously gave this answer without even thinking about it.