The extended limousine stopped at the red carpet entrance. As soon as the car door opened, Nicole Kidman felt a heated atmosphere from the sounds reaching her ears.
Stepping out of the car, Nicole appeared graceful and elegant in a sky-blue silk evening gown. Immediately, shouts of 'Nicole' and 'Mia' erupted from the fans on both sides.
Nicole is her name, and Mia is her character in 'Pulp Fiction'.
Evidently, more than a year had passed, but fans still remembered her performance in that movie, and Mia had become her most famous role.
It is very fortunate for an actress to have a memorable role.
It is also very unfortunate for an actress to only have one memorable role.
Nicole was grateful to have a memorable role at the age of 20 but did not want her career to stop at 'Pulp Fiction'.
With a proper smile, Nicole gracefully walked across the red carpet, briefly posed for photos in the media area, and then quickly entered the Shrine Auditorium.
All arrangements had been made in advance.
Today was 'Batman Begins'' main event, and it wasn't suitable for her to interact too much with fans or draw attention to herself. Though, she didn't think she could attract too much attention anyway.
Unlike ordinary fans who were lucky enough to receive invitations, guests did not go directly into the screening hall upon arrival but were temporarily led backstage.
Nicole followed the usher to the lounge area backstage at the auditorium. Simon Westeros had not yet arrived, but the place was already bustling.
Skilfully navigating the crowd and socializing with the necessary guests, Nicole inadvertently scanned her surroundings and suddenly felt an enviable network of connections.
The lounge, already packed with hundreds of people, gave the impression that half of Hollywood had gathered there.
Veteran Hollywood stars like Brian De Palma, Robert Redford, Robert De Niro, and Martin Scorsese; rising stars such as Sandra Bullock, Matt Dillon, Julia Roberts, and Keanu Reeves; Hollywood mainstays like Kevin Costner, Mel Gibson, Bruce Willis, Demi Moore, John Travolta, and Melanie Griffith; renowned film critics like Roger Ebert; and executives from Daenerys Entertainment, Warner Bros., and other film companies who came to show their support.
Such a lineup was usually only seen at the Academy Awards ceremony.
Yet, all these people were present at the premiere of a single film. Even George Lucas and Steven Spielberg, who were the most acclaimed in Hollywood in previous years, might not have commanded such a presence.
Lost in thought, a commotion quickly arose at the entrance to the lounge.
Nicole turned her head to see Simon Westeros and his girlfriend appear, and the crowd naturally gravitated towards them.
She also lifted her skirt and walked forward, but after waiting for a long time, Nicole only managed to get a nod from Simon. In this setting, she, who had received some cheers on the red carpet just moments ago, was completely an inconspicuous small fry.
Immediately after, the other main creators of 'Batman Begins', who were the last to appear, successively arrived backstage, signalling the end of the red carpet ceremony.
Simon, with Janette on his arm, and guided by Jennifer, who held a memo, greeted all the necessary important guests. It was almost seven o'clock.
Staff began to guide guests into the screening hall, and Simon briefly breathed a sigh of relief.
While casually chatting with the 'Batman Begins' creative team in a corner, his female assistant brought over a somewhat reserved young woman in a red dress. Simon glanced at her and smiled, saying, "Lisa, long time no see".
Lisa Collins had specifically travelled from the East Coast to attend this premiere, naturally through Jennifer's connection. She had pestered her best friend for a long time beforehand to get an opportunity to interact with Westeros. Now, approaching him, she was inevitably more nervous than during their initial encounter; the man he was now was worlds apart from the boy who had just emerged at Sundance.
Hearing Simon call out her name, Lisa Collins inexplicably relaxed and stepped forward to hug the man. She was originally a very lively person, and now, feeling a bit more at ease, she deliberately lingered in his arms for two seconds during the hug before reluctantly parting. With a playful grin, ignoring Jennifer's exasperated eye-roll, she said, "Simon, I really didn't expect you to still remember me".
"Of course I remember. You're great at skiing. Maybe we can go together again sometime".
"Alright, I'll hold you to that", Lisa Collins said, then casually pointed to a young man who had just followed her over: "This is Frank, my boyfriend".
The young man named Frank stepped forward and shook Simon's hand. Although he tried his best to appear natural, he immediately gave himself away when he spoke: "Mr. Westeros, hello, I'm Frank, um, Walker, Frank Walker. I work at Blackstone Group. It's a pleasure, a great pleasure to meet you".
"Blackstone Group, I know it. A very promising corporate acquisition company".
"Actually, we're not just involved in corporate acquisitions anymore..." Frank Walker had just said this when Lisa Collins pulled him away, saying, "Alright, nobody wants to hear you talk about your company".
Everyone laughed, and Frank Walker also felt a bit awkward, standing obediently beside his girlfriend.
A staff member then came forward to remind them that it was time, and Simon's group, the last to enter, also went into the screening hall.
The media session was scheduled after the film. Simon and his entourage took their seats, and after Billy Crystal, the host, delivered a brief speech, the lights in the hall dimmed. A beam of light passed over the dense crowd and landed on the giant screen at the front, instantly capturing everyone's attention.
Months of intensive promotion, coupled with various details about the film circulating within the industry, had built everyone's curiosity to its peak.
Among the more than 1,200 attendees at tonight's premiere, even many Hollywood bigwigs, with the exception of a very small number who came for networking, were essentially there to be among the first to see Simon Westeros's new film.
On the big screen, the first thing to appear was the animated logo of the distributor, Warner Bros., followed by Daenerys Pictures' magnificent Phoenix opening sequence.
Since the distribution rights had been handed over to Warner, Daenerys Entertainment did not contend for anything in these details.
After the final DC Films opening, the screen suddenly went dark.
The sound of a compartment door opening came from the speakers. Soon, two doors slid open with a clatter, and lights came on, revealing the interior of a shipping container. Wooden crates were stacked side-by-side with various labels, and someone stepped forward to inspect them. It turned out to be crates of assorted weapons.
The camera pulled back, quickly showing a busy port dock from small to large.
Accompanied by the background characters' dialogue, the audience quickly understood that this was an arms smuggling operation.
Although the atmosphere was well-established and the camera work was commendable, the critics, who had been anticipating the film for over half a year, instinctively felt that the opening was somewhat mediocre. Most people could even completely imagine the plot that would follow.
After dozens of seconds of background plot introduction, the scene focused on two gang members patrolling the outer perimeter of the dock.
The two thugs were walking through a container passage when suddenly, several bats fluttered overhead, startling both of them. One of them watched the bats fly away in the light and said to the other, "Hey, have you heard about the recent stuff?"
"What?"
"A bat", the first person said, "a very big bat".
"The attack on Scarecrow's factory, wasn't it the police?"
"No, they say there was a very big bat".
Seeing his companion acting jumpy, the other thug impatiently looked up and around, saying, "What bat..."
His words caught in his throat midway.
Seeing his companion's reaction, the other person also looked up. On a crane more than ten meters high not far away, a figure seemed to be standing. It was hard to believe someone would appear in such a dangerous place in the dead of night. The thug said with disbelief, "What is that?"
As his voice fell, the camera switched.
In a wide shot, at the top of a tall crane, a figure in a black cape and pointed-eared mask stood silhouetted against the moonlit and artificially lit night sky.
Music with a combat-like drumbeat began. The figure, realizing it had been spotted, leaned forward, tensed, and leaped directly from the crane more than ten meters high.
In the screening room, some unprepared audience members let out gasps of surprise.
Even knowing it was Batman, jumping from such a height was too thrilling. Could a person even survive that?
As that thought flashed by, the cape behind the figure unfurled with a whoosh, forming a giant bat. However, the descent did not slow much, and in an instant, it reached the ground, using the momentum of the fall to swiftly and cleanly knock down the two already dumbfounded thugs.
While the audience was still marvelling at the breathtaking, seamless high-altitude descent, the figure did not stop. With a nimble foot-to-foot relay, it climbed onto the top of a container, rushing towards the busy crowd like a ghost.
Then.
Following a clearly planned route, like an assassin, he cleared the outer scouts, gradually attacking the core. Accompanied by increasingly tense music and the chaotic crowd after being discovered, there were crisp, decisive blows, the elusive leaps of a phantom-like figure, a ghostly close-quarters approach, guns casually dismantled, and figures flying through the air.
Gunshots, shouts, and the sounds of fists and feet.
A battle lasting over four minutes.
Seamless.
Exhilarating.
In a flash, the entire dock was in disarray.
When a small boss was knocked to the ground without suspense in a 1v1 fight, fumbling to pick up a pistol and struggling to get up, he pointed at the figure opposite him with a distorted face and asked, "What exactly are you?"
Facing the gun, the figure finally spoke in a hoarse, distorted voice, "Batman".
As he finished speaking, a cold glint flew over, accurately knocking the pistol from the small boss's hand and embedding it with a clang in the iron sheet of a nearby container.
The camera zoomed in, freezing on the dark Batarang.
The image gradually magnified and rotated, the music style changed, the title 'Batman Begins' appeared on the big screen, and the opening credits began.
In the screening room.
After the five-minute prologue, everyone finally breathed a sigh of relief.
"Cool".
A voice even overpowered the opening music in the screening room, sounding somewhat abrupt.
However, no one in the screening room felt much aversion to the sound, because everyone felt the same way at that moment.
So cool.
Batman's seamless high-altitude descent in his entrance
The jump shot had already left many people amazed. Just this one shot made the audience feel that this was exactly the image of Batman they had imagined.
The subsequent meticulously designed fight scenes further redefined many viewers' understanding of action films.
So, combat could be so full of crisp, decisive power.
So, the actions of disarming and dismantling a gun could be so cool.
So, one could respond to a grenade like this.
So, one-against-many could be so devastatingly natural.
This is Batman.
It seemed that these extremely cool action shots shouldn't be placed in the climax at the end of the film, should they?
Now that they all appeared in the plot's prologue, what else would come next?
Thinking this, the expectations of most of the audience in the screening room rose by another level.
Experts see the subtleties.
Compared to ordinary movie fans, many big-name filmmakers present saw a series of unprecedented innovative cinematic techniques in these short few minutes of the prologue.
Some people could even no longer suppress their curiosity and excitement. It should be known that just the shot of Batman leaping from the crane made many filmmakers ponder how that shot was filmed. The action design in the prologue made big names involved in action films like Mel Gibson and Kevin Costner itch with anticipation.
What if their own films could also have such a level of action design?
Actually, these reactions were not surprising at all.
During the months-long preparation period for the film, Simon extracted the essence of many classic Hollywood action films from memory as references. These action designs were more mature than those in films like 'The Matrix' and 'Rush Hour' in the 1990s. It was equivalent to directly elevating the standard of Hollywood action films from the 1980s to more than twenty years later, which naturally gave everyone a stunning feeling.
Moreover, this short prologue also utilized many innovative techniques.
Among them, the shot of Batman flying down from a high altitude was entirely a CG scene. Simon had initially considered trying live-action shooting but ultimately gave up due to the extremely high danger factor, instead entrusting this shot to the Daenerys special effects team.
After more than a year of technical breakthroughs, the Daenerys special effects team conducted a large amount of data computation and detail improvements for simulated physical scenes. Coupled with the cover of the night scene, they finally achieved a lifelike effect that satisfied Simon.