Hollywood: The Greatest Showman

Chapter 169: Official Reviews

The premiere of "Buried" lasted until around seven o'clock, much later than expected. This was mainly due to the overly enthusiastic and somewhat wild questions from the audience, dragging out the event.

Even after the premiere ended, the reporters still surrounded Renly. The entire crew consisted only of Renly and Rodrigue, and since the journalists were not very interested in the director, Renly became the focus of their attention. Leaving the screening room, a crowd still gathered around Renly, and it took another ten minutes of interviews at the cinema entrance before they finally let him go.

"A spectacular debut, truly a spectacular debut!" Ryan's hoarse voice rang out from behind. He came running up, attempting to jump onto Renly's back. However, Renly had heard him coming and dodged swiftly, causing Ryan to stumble forward, nearly falling, which made everyone burst into laughter.

Ryan turned around, hands on his hips, biting his lower lip, and looked at Renly with a meaningful expression, which eventually turned into a helpless smile.

In that moment, Rami jumped onto Renly, catching him off guard. This time, it was Ryan's turn to laugh loudly.

Rami's voice exploded in Renly's ear, "Toronto, did you hear that? Renly is in Toronto! Renly is in Toronto!" This is a style in Black rap, indicating the arrival of an important person, someone deserving of enthusiastic welcome and even reverence.

Renly couldn't help but laugh. These friends were even more excited than he was, as if they were the stars of today's "Buried" premiere. Ryan stepped up again, thumping Renly's chest, "Today was amazing! God, did you see the reporters' faces? They were stunned into silence, completely speechless. It was classic! Classic! What if your movie ends up winning the People's Choice Award?"

Renly burst out laughing.

It's impossible for "Buried" to win the People's Choice Award because the film is too intense and heavy, especially with its dark ending. The People's Choice Award is about getting all the audiences excited and thrilled, and "Buried" doesn't fit that criterion. Even Ryan's "Blue Valentine" doesn't fit. This year's People's Choice Award at the Toronto International Film Festival is likely to go to "The King's Speech."

"Buddy, you should think about your own movie. We're competitors," Renly challenged Ryan, raising his chin.

Ryan didn't back down, "Then let's compete! Want to bet? Let's see who wins, you or me?"

It sounded as if only their two movies were in competition at the festival, but Renly didn't refute. Instead, he raised his right hand high, "Let's see, the loser runs naked at the main venue entrance. How about that?"

"You're playing big!" Ryan was shocked, but Renly further provoked him, "If you're scared, forget it." This riled everyone up, and Ryan, cornered, could only nod repeatedly, "Naked run it is! What you have, I have too, nothing to be ashamed of, right?"

...

A group of friends took a taxi back to their hotel after leaving the cinema. Passing by the main venue, they saw a bustling scene with more than a hundred reporters crowding the red carpet interview area and over six hundred enthusiastic fans. The vibrant and noisy crowd illuminated the night in the setting sun. This was on a different level compared to the "Buried" premiere.

"You're not attending?" Renly turned back to ask Ryan, who was sitting in the back seat.

Both Ryan and Rami looked at Renly and then out the window, understanding his gesture. Ryan shook his head, "Such premieres are boring. Besides, I don't know Affleck, and we'd just be extras there. They don't like hanging out with us Canadians from the countryside."

Ben Affleck represents the elite class of Boston, a unique group that considers Boston superior to New York or Los Angeles. They have their own culture, circles, and systems, almost isolated yet in tune with the world. In fact, Boston's insularity can be more severe than that of the Midwest.

The movie "Spotlight" provides a glimpse into Boston's unique background. Since transitioning to directing, Ben Affleck has focused on Boston stories, like "The Town," similar to Woody Allen's special touch with New York.

Renly smirked, "Only those living in castles think they are the center of the world." Boston is like this, and so are London and New York. Nobility, even more so.

Ryan and Rami could sense the subtle disdain in his words, not envy or resentment, but an innate contempt, making them laugh out loud. They liked this side of Renly.

Night deepened, but Toronto's vibrancy and excitement continued. As morning came, the city revived, ready to embrace a new day full of energy.

Andy Rogers woke up early, with a busy day ahead.

The premiere of "Buried" was over, but that was just the first step. Next came the official magazine reviews, the general audience reactions at various theaters, and feedback from viewers. Simultaneously, media interviews with Renly would start, promoting the film. Finding a distributor and scheduling the release were next steps. If no distributor was found, they would need to appear at other film festivals...

Busy? Yesterday's premiere was the least busy part.

Although yesterday's premiere went smoothly with positive feedback from media and audience, Andy knew that was just the atmosphere of the event. Especially at the Toronto Film Festival, audiences often show incredible enthusiasm in the screening room, but after the viewing, they may forget the film, let alone vote for it in the People's Choice Award. The premiere frenzy was just an illusion; the real competition started with the critics.

Opening the official magazine of the Toronto Film Festival, Andy began to browse quickly. Unlike other festivals with scoring systems, Toronto doesn't have professional awards, leaving the voting to the audience. Hence, media don't give scores but provide comments, which can only be understood by reading them.

Yesterday, only two films premiered: "The Town," a North American premiere, and "Buried," a world premiere. The official magazine cover was unsurprisingly given to "The Town."

Andy skimmed through the pages. Surprisingly, Ben Affleck, often criticized for his acting career, received unanimous praise for his directing. The media didn't hold back their compliments, praising the film's rare wisdom and depth.

Just when everyone thought Ben's career was in a slump, he made a remarkable comeback. Andy found this interesting, raising expectations for "The Town" in the future—Toronto was just the first stop in North America; the real test would come with the general release.

Next, Andy turned to the second page, and there was "Buried." Andy was surprised again; he expected at most half a page, but it had a full page with professional reviews from nine media outlets. This detail showed the official recognition of the premiere's success.

"Renly Hall's one-man show lights up the big screen! Showcasing the unique and charming power of cinema once again."

"Variety's" review title was prominent, clearly stating their stance.

"A captivating and brutal confined-space survival film, pushing suspense and thrills to new heights within limited space, with underlying political significance expanding the film's depth, giving a survival game societal meaning. Cortez's control of rhythm and atmosphere brings back his sharpness from short films; but this time, he is not the main character, Hall is.

As a newcomer to the big screen, Hall delivers a profound, captivating, delicate, and intense performance, oscillating between strength and fragility, despair and hope, pain and fear, unleashing incredible energy and breathing new life into the film. Undoubtedly, this twenty-year-old actor has made a stunning debut.

Notably, just two weeks ago, Hall won his first Emmy Award for his debut work.

This is not a perfect film; the weak and tangled script undermines the core depth, but Hall's performance perfectly compensates for this flaw, presenting the most intriguing confined-space film since 'Saw.'"

The praise was unreserved. Even without a score, the "Variety" review made their admiration and approval for "Buried" clear. As Hollywood's most authoritative professional magazine, "Variety's" positive review set a good start for "Buried" journey, but this was not the only good news.

---

200 powerstones - 1 bonus Chapter