The Greatest Showman

Chapter 26: 026 Step by step

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What the hell is war.

This was the first and last question Renly asked Tim in boot camp.

When the two people really talked for the first time, Renly asked this question. At that time, Tim just smiled, didn't answer, and moved to other topics. Renly could feel it, and Tim was reluctant to say more; Before leaving San Diego, Renly asked the same question again. Tim's expression was very complicated. He didn't answer immediately, but he didn't have Zuo Guyan. replied, "I don't know."

I have no idea.

That was the answer Tim gave him, from a veteran who had gone to the battlefield twice. During the filming of "War in the Pacific," Renly pondered this question, not only because it was the answer Eugene was looking for, but also because it was the question Renly was exploring.

"Fairy Wood"

For some, war is glory. Just like Renly and Rummy, being injured is a medal, it means they have experienced the baptism of blood and fire, it means that they have the last laugh in the arduous confrontation, and it means that they have washed away the lead and completed their growth and transformation. .

For some, war is the hero. It's like the saying in "Band of Brothers", I'm not a hero, but I fight side by side with heroes. The friendship between brothers who support each other and protect each other, struggle to survive on the death line, and win the victory, makes people blood boil and keep on going.

For some, war is death. It's like there are corpses scattered all over the open space, there are enemy troops, friendly troops and innocent people. Lives are passing away, and eventually they evolve into a series of numbers, but no one remembers the real meaning behind the numbers. It seems that life is here. It no longer has meaning, not even living.

For some, war is profit. Just like John Basilone, a real war hero in history, his teammates stayed on the battlefield and kept fighting. People were dying every hour of every day, while he was singing and dancing in the United States and selling war bonds. , to enjoy the grace of beauty, all is just a string of money figures in the hands of Wall Street.

But why does Tim say "I don't know"? why

He saw the soldiers lost their minds because they killed too many Japanese, sitting dumbly and counting, as if all the friendly troops in front of him were enemies; he saw the soldiers in the same company start screaming because of nightmares in the middle of the night, Gradually losing control, in order to avoid revealing his position, they had to execute the soldier with his own hands, and he slept forever with nightmares.

He was almost killed by a Japanese bomb, but had to fight with the enemy's bare hands after surviving. When the dagger pierced the opponent's abdomen, hot blood covered his hands; After being rescued, it was only halfway through, and the debris detonated by the air strike directly ended the life of the wounded.

He captured a Japanese soldier with his own hands, but it was a teenage child, and he raised his hands in panic in surrender, which made him put down the barrel of his gun, but his friends took the child as a target Bet on whose marksmanship is more accurate; after he watched the local innocent people being treated as human bombs, crying "help" and infiltrating the team, the Japanese army detonated the bombs, causing chain damage.

So, what exactly is war? Renly had thought he understood, at least after he had really gone through what Eugene faced, but after a few months he didn't.

After Renly asked that question for the last time, Tim told a little story.

A war photographer went to the streets of Baghdad to look for material. He walked in the living area. Daily life here is still going on. It seems that the war did not have too much impact, but a moment of tranquility was actually bred. At this moment, a three- or four-year-old girl quickly crossed the street and ran towards the ruins behind. The photographer subconsciously raised the camera in his hand and aimed at the little girl.

Just such an action made the little girl stop in panic, raised her hands high, and looked at the photographer timidly, her dusty face was filled with horror and dark eyes. He was quickly covered by tears, and begged bitterly.

The photographer was stunned. He didn't know what was wrong with his behavior. He hurriedly stepped forward to comfort the little girl, but heard her murmur in a trembling voice, "Don't kill me." She thought that the photographer had It's guns.

"I used to believe that I was fighting for justice, I was fighting for glory, I was fighting for faith, or at least I wanted to believe that. But after seeing that photo... I don't know, I really don't know. ' These were the last words of the conversation between Tim and Renly, and then he turned and left, a heavy vicissitude on his shoulders, which were still straight.

Renly was a little confused, a little struggling, more numb and dazed, he didn't even have the energy to investigate and think, just continuing to persevere on this land has consumed all his energy. Sometimes, he doesn't even think about it, if he just died like this, wouldn't it be easier for him to die? Living has become a kind of torture, with no end in sight, no meaning, no hope, and even belief begins to fall apart.

Alive, they just fight to stay alive. Maybe it's right, maybe it's wrong, because maybe "alive" doesn't mean anything in and of itself.

Rami could sense subtle changes in Renly's mood, but couldn't tell why. Since his return from injury, Renly has started to look weirder.

It's not that he influenced the filming. On the contrary, Renly's filming went very smoothly, and the wonderful performance often won the hearts of the crew, not only David, but also several other directors who were involved in the filming. Renly was full of praise; But outside of filming, when there were no gags, he sat quietly on the side, the silent and repressed aura of Renly dimmed the sun, but every time he asked him, he returned to normal and continued. Joke idle with them.

Several times, Rami wanted to talk to Renly, but Renly avoided it subtly, not giving him a chance to go further, and took it lightly. This made Rami even more worried.

"Rookie, rookie." Lamy called out twice in a row, but he didn't get a response. He had to pat Renly on the shoulder, and then when he saw Renly come back to his senses, he raised his eyebrows slightly. Saying he heard it, Lamy pointed in the direction of the director, "They asked, are you ready?"

Renly nodded, made an "OK" gesture in the direction of the director, and then gave Rami a slight smile, "How about you? Are you ready? This scene is not easy."

Lamy picked up the worries in his heart and twitched the corners of his mouth, "You are the protagonist of this scene, you are ready, I will be fine."

Now they're filming a major scene, and the filming of "War in the Pacific" is drawing to a close, and all the weight of the scene is piling up on Renly.

After Eugene experienced a series of battles and events, his soul has been transformed, not only indifferent, but also hard-hearted. In the scene filmed five days ago, Eugene tried to kill the people who were in conflict with them like crazy. A Japanese prisoner, warned by the army, and then condescendingly executed, kills the last of the stubbornly resisting enemy troops - after the commander has ordered a ceasefire.

Today's scene is the pinnacle of all emotional outbursts.

After a long and arduous battle on Okinawa, the U.S. military finally won, but there are still some remnants of small forces that are stubbornly resisting, so they need to explore slowly and eliminate all the last resisting forces. During the search, Eugene and Merrill heard the cry of a baby in a dilapidated house on the side of the road, and they walked cautiously inside, where they found a surviving baby from a local family, all of whom died tragically in the house.

Here, Eugene, who was obsessed with demons and stagnant water, was touched again. The final sublime part of the entire "War in the Pacific" series depends on this.

Renly withdrew his gaze and quietly looked at the hill-like corpse in front of him. He knew that these were extras; he knew that those blood plasma and intestines were props. But at this time, they all entered the state of performance motionlessly, as if they were real corpses. This made Ren Li's mood settle down and he just stood there quietly, time seemed to freeze at this moment.

Death, he had seen so many deaths, so accustomed to it that he received a letter from his family saying that Deacon was dead, but he was indifferent, just sat there dumbfounded, thinking "Deacon is dead" in the end What does it mean, but no answer has been found, it seems that death has no meaning, it is just a state. What's even more ironic is that his body and face are covered with blood, even he himself can't calculate how many lives have ended in his own hands, and he himself is a wandering soul crawling out of the corpse.

However, looking at the crying baby in front of him, he was a little stunned.

The connection between birth and death constitutes a reincarnation. There is a trace of anxiety in the clear and loud cry, but there is no fear. It is just anxious, complaining, and crying, calling for someone to change his diaper. Or is it calling for someone to fill his starving stomach, so simple, so natural, so simple, surrounded by death, but bred of hope. The cycle of life unfolds before our eyes.

"Start shooting!" The director's voice came from the distant horizon, as if God's command.