章 3663: Chapter 2790: Star Core Rescue (41)
Eddie took a deep breath. He couldn't believe the twist of fate. He acknowledged that the two screenplays were somewhat mediocre, but after all, he was an author by nature who had turned to directing midway through his career. For him to have written to this level was not bad at all, right?
But seeing Shiller persist, Eddie continued reading. He refused to believe he couldn't write a story that would satisfy the client.
Then the opportunity arrived, because what followed was a documentary about Stark's wedding journey, which was basically a gathering of all the superheroes. This was definitely promising material, especially since it had already blown up online before. There was no need to fret over publicity; as long as there were no issues with the script and the shooting, it was bound to be a blockbuster.
The challenge was that writing an ensemble script is even harder, because there is already limited time, yet it has to be divided among many main characters, and each one needs their own story and emotional arc. On top of that, there must be a coherent main plot that holds it all together without becoming scattered. It was a true test of the writer's and director's skills.
Eddie rubbed his hands together with excitement; after all, he had been the director of the wedding documentary and remembered many details very clearly. Although he could use this advantage to produce a variety show full of gimmicks, making a movie would not be a letdown either.
After some thought, Eddie realized that what's most important in an ensemble drama is each person's motivation. Random entries without motivation could seriously disrupt the pace, and all motivations must ultimately intertwine, otherwise, the story would flicker from start to finish without a focal point.
In the end, Eddie still set his sights on the space station.
Stark had provided most of the technology needed for the space station, so he was quite proud of it. He even bragged about it during the preparations for his wedding banquet, with remarks that didn't hide his sarcasm towards the magic side.
Strange, as the Supreme Magician, found this belittling attitude towards magic very disagreeable. He believed that in humanity's journey to the interstellar seas, science should not be the only force at play—magic also needed its place. Therefore, he thought this was the right time to talk with Stark and emphasize the role of magic in the exploration of the space station and the Solar System.
The situation for mutants in the Andromeda Galaxy was good, but they believed their capital planet should have a facility similar to a space station on its outskirts. Thus, the leaders of the mutants had contacted Wanda who had just given birth, hoping she would feel out Stark's position at this gathering and see what kind of deal could be made for such technology.
Asgard was indifferent to how humans explored the Solar System, but they believed that the Supreme Magician should indeed have a stronger say in things, as they themselves were part of a Divine Power civilization. Put simply, they were there to back up Strange.
Peter, who had come as a researcher, and Captain America, with his public identity revealed, were concerned about another matter—whether jobs like those offered at the space station could continue to provide more employment for ordinary people, allowing them to benefit from such technological advancements.
And Shiller, he represented S.H.I.E.L.D. in mediating the various interests to prevent them from coming to blows. Of course, Nick also hoped that in the process, S.H.I.E.L.D. could gain more influence.
After checking several times, Eddie felt that everyone's motives were very much in line with the public's stereotypes of them. What followed was a series of encounters and negotiations. On the surface, everything seemed harmonious, but beneath, there was an undercurrent of mutual speculation, questioning, bargaining, and compromise.
Eddie had great ambitions. He believed this film should be different from any superhero documentary filmed before. It was not about emphasizing that they were superheroes, but that they were also individuals. They had their own interests to fight for, and like ordinary people, they would not give an inch in this regard. Superheroes had their own fields of fame and gain.
This fresh perspective was indeed attention-grabbing. In the public eye, superheroes are always righteous—seemingly unified on the surface, helping and supporting each other, eager to assist the needy.
If the audience saw them fighting over certain interests, arguing, or even coming to blows like lions fiercely clamping down on their opponent's flesh, being cautious in their approach, over-interpreting, and full of doubt, it would highlight the human side of their nature even more.
The theme of "The Real Superheroes" would definitely propel the movie to soar high and become an international sensation in no time.
To be honest, this was already a bit beyond Eddie's capabilities as a director who switched careers midway. He thought about collaborating with some well-established directors who would likely be interested in this kind of behind-the-scenes superhero script.
Yet Shiller still disagreed.
In the end, Eddie had no choice but to focus on the incident of the space station's fall—a disaster movie, a genre where if not done well, the film, the director, and the investors all face disaster, so to speak, especially if it's an adaptation of a real event. Treating it frivolously would be tantamount to committing career suicide.
Such films are often co-financed by government agencies from various countries. Generally, they carry a message of remembrance and warning, so they must be taken very seriously to fully convey a somber memorial. There is no room for entertainment-oriented interpretation.
For a director, this is like an added level of difficulty, as if having to dance in shackles. Eddie was not entirely confident he could write a good script, so he chose the most conservative approach, presenting the facts as if making a documentary.
However, a movie is different from a documentary. A movie needs a main viewpoint, and Eddie thought the safest approach was to tell the story from the perspective of the ordinary staff, showing how people in the air helped each other during the disaster, and how countries on the ground coordinated their response.
As Eddie was painstakingly revising the script little by little, his phone suddenly rang. Then, the exclamations of his colleagues came from outside the door. Eddie quickly checked his phone and saw that his favorite short video app had pushed a top news story to him.
The cover of the news was Mysterio's big face.
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Unsurprisingly, Jameson chose to expose Mysterio.
When the video was opened, the content was very straightforward—simply put, the former editor of the Daily Bugle was invited by the mysterious person for an interview but discovered that it was Mysterio, the hero who saved the space station. Throughout the interview process, he found this person riddled with inconsistencies. After the interview details were spoken, the image of a boastful, insecure, and ignorant charlatan jumped off the page.
The footage that followed corroborated this, showing Mysterio fleeing in panic when faced with a huge spider monster. He tripped over a rock halfway through his escape and ultimately smashed his helmet, revealing the face of Justin Balk, the only seriously injured survivor from the previous space station downfall incident that also attracted much attention.
Colleagues who had previously worked with him at Stark Group quickly recognized him, declaring he was not really Balk but Quentin Beck, a madman who wreaked havoc in the lab.
As more videos about Beck were released, people gradually pieced together the complete image of the fraudster: someone who caused trouble but wouldn't face the consequences, switched identities to escape accountability, infiltrated the space station, and threw everything into chaos, only to end up unsuccessfully attempting to play the savior and being exposed for it.
His reputation couldn't possibly get any worse.
However, Eddie, watching the news, didn't join in condemning Beck like the other netizens. Instead, he suddenly wondered if Aux was actually the innocent one and had been wronged if Mysterio was the behind-the-scenes manipulator.
Eddie immediately had an inspiration. He thought he should reinterpret the space station falling incident from Aux's perspective.
After all, he was an insider himself, having heard some news that Aux had been receiving psychological treatment since leaving the space station, which proved there was something wrong with his mental state.
Eddie thought that maybe he could use magical realism to portray the terrifying space station from Aux's perspective at the time. Not only would that serve as a caution for others, but it also could help Aux regain his social status.
Of course, he would start the story from the moment Aux boarded the space station, struggling under the weight of family responsibilities, facing difficulties at work, and being manipulated by villains, which gradually caused his emotions to spiral out of control. More and more illusions appeared in Aux's mind, eventually leading him to blame himself for everything.
Eddie was writing smoothly and quickly filled several pages with drafts. While writing, he was also explaining his thoughts to Shiller—distinguishing between the real world and illusions, portraying Aux's inner pain and struggle, and how to simultaneously address the space station's emergency situation.
Rarely did Shiller listen intently, but when he finally spoke, Eddie felt like banging his head against the wall. Shiller said, "Why did you only write about one half of the space station running out of oxygen? What about the other half?"
Eddie opened his mouth to respond, "I mentioned it, Aux received a message while trapped in the room that the other half of the space station had fallen..."
"And the details of the fall?"
"That's irrelevant to the movie," Eddie said. "Our main character is Aux, not the people on the other half of the space station. Movies need a certain degree of artistic interpretation, we can't film everything, or else it just becomes a mishmash."
Before Shiller could reply, Eddie cut him off, "I'm not saying the staff on the other half of the space station aren't deserving of sympathy. Besides documenting facts, a film should also reflect ideology and style and achieve complete unity in character, setting, storyline, and the spirit conveyed; otherwise, it's an outright terrible movie."
"It's like when you film a teenage love story, you can't possibly record every math class they attend, even though in reality they definitely attended them. But those details don't reflect their character or drive the main story forward, so there's no point in filming them."
"Like in the story I'm writing, the other half of the space station indeed faced disaster, but it had no impact on this half of the space station, it's unrelated to the main storyline, it doesn't contribute to the emotional development of Aux, nor does it better shape the spirit of everyone working together to overcome disaster and adversity; therefore, it's meaningless to this movie."
"I don't care, you have to film it," Shiller insisted, staring at Eddie. "And all the previous scripts are no good, you have to stick to facts."
"Then tell me what's wrong with them," Eddie, equally frustrated, swung his chair around, crossed his arms, and looked at Shiller.
"First, there's no character growth for Robbins," Shiller claimed. "Change his storyline after he goes to Kamar-Taj to him being defeated, captured, and then escaping."
Eddie was stunned and asked, "Why change it? I've crafted a character who isn't inherently bad but is reckless and impulsive. In this style of movie, the protagonist definitely needs to grow…"
"Because that's how it actually happened," Shiller said without much fuss. "Sandman needs changing too, make it so he was kidnapped by Robbins, and with hypnosis, his powers went out of control, which is why he pursued from the East Coast to the West Coast."
"Hold on, this is no longer about the movie," Eddie said. "What about the motivation? Why would Robbins kidnap Sandman?"
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