On set, after Matthew finished tying up Anne Hathaway, he found another rope and tied it to the chair leg. He then walked towards the window as if preparing for a descent down the side of the building. As he moved away, Anne Hathaway, who had been partially obscured, was now fully exposed.
Ken Watanabe, standing directly in front of Anne Hathaway, had a clear view of how Matthew had tied her up.
"Too simple, too rough, too careless!"
As he observed the way Anne Hathaway was bound, Ken Watanabe shook his head in disapproval. "These Americans have no sense of refinement. There's no art in this bondage!"
Comparing the techniques of his compatriots with Matthew Horner's, the difference was stark. Matthew's efforts were on a kindergarten level at best.
What could have been an artistic scene turned into a chaotic mess.
Unfortunately, he wasn't the director; otherwise, he would have called for a halt to the filming and made Matthew watch some works like "Flower and Snake" for inspiration.
However, director Christopher Nolan was satisfied with the shot and, after calling for a cut, immediately announced that it was a wrap and moved on to the next scene, which involved shooting against a wall.
This time, it was a solo scene for Matthew.
"I'll do a final check!"
The stunt coordinator stood beside Matthew, personally inspecting the safety equipment. "This will take two minutes."
Matthew, standing on the lift, remained silent as the stunt coordinator checked the safety ropes and harness again. He then put on his suit jacket, took hold of another rope, and, following the rehearsal, gripped the rope with both hands, pressing his feet against the specially treated wall, and began a slow descent.
As he neared a window, he turned and gave Christopher Nolan a thumbs up, signaling the start of the scene.
Matthew's hands were strong, calloused from years of training, making the descent easy for him. During the filming of "Black Hawk Down," he had practiced even more challenging descents, and last year, while preparing for "G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra," he had undergone similar training.
For this scene, due to the need for close-up shots, he had to perform the stunt himself.
Matthew continued his slow descent until he reached the designated position, preparing for the most challenging part of the scene.
The rope, which had been taut, suddenly went slack, as if the chair on the other end had lost its weight.
Matthew plummeted, falling three to four meters before the rope tightened again. His strong grip, aided by the safety wire, allowed him to kick off the wall with his feet, using the momentum to steady his spinning body.
Then, with a tense expression, he looked upwards.
Of course, there was a camera above, but Matthew acted as if he saw only endless darkness. His face quickly returned to a calm expression as he gripped the rope and began climbing back up the wall, stopping at a glass window.
With the safety rope supporting him, he hadn't expended much energy.
Matthew climbed onto the window ledge, cut through the glass, and slipped inside.
Christopher Nolan's voice called for a cut. Matthew unhooked the safety line, bent down to pass through the passage behind the window, where the lift was waiting for him.
Once on the lift, someone immediately helped him remove his suit jacket and unstrap the harness hidden underneath.
Matthew stretched his arms, feeling a slight soreness. After descending to the ground, the crew took a short break, and Christopher Nolan approached, sitting in a chair next to Matthew to discuss the upcoming scenes.
"You're in excellent form today, really excellent."
It was clear that Christopher Nolan was pleased with Matthew's performance. "Try to keep that energy going."
A makeup artist was touching up Matthew's makeup, making it difficult for him to speak, so he nodded slightly.
Christopher Nolan continued, "However, there's one thing you need to improve."
As the makeup artist finished, Matthew turned to look at Christopher Nolan, curious. "What area?"
Honestly, given how long the filming had been going, he thought he had been performing quite well.
This wasn't just his own opinion; many people in the crew, including Christopher Nolan, shared that view.
Although his acting didn't reach the level of the most highly regarded method actors, a decade in the industry, along with starring in several major productions, had given him considerable experience and depth.
The role of Dom Cobb wasn't as difficult as he had initially thought.
Matthew knew that this was a result of shooting one film after another, and through on-set filming and acting in front of the camera, he felt that the role of Dom Cobb was simpler than that of Robert Neville.
Playing a lone survivor in a post-apocalyptic world was far more challenging than portraying the deeply troubled Dom Cobb.
"The film's setting is quite fantastical," Christopher Nolan didn't hide this fact, "but the style is grounded in realism. All your scenes, especially your performance, must align with this realistic approach."
Matthew nodded lightly. "I understand."
But Christopher Nolan wasn't finished. "It's not just about appearing realistic to us; it's about making the audience feel that these dreams are real." He gestured as he spoke, "The film's scenes are highly surreal, but to make the audience experience the reality of the dream, the actor's performance, especially yours as the lead, is crucial."
Matthew thought for a moment and said, "So you want the audience to believe that the dreams are real through the character's perspective?"
"Exactly," Christopher Nolan nodded, "When we dream, we often believe it's real."
Matthew found the last sentence familiar and suddenly remembered—it was a line from the script.
Christopher Nolan checked his watch and stood up. "You're doing very well, much better than I expected, but you can do even better! You need to strip away all the exaggeration in your performance and make this character a person with genuine emotions."
He emphasized again, "Dom Cobb isn't just a character; he's a real person who exists here on set."
Matthew didn't say anything more but nodded solemnly.
Christopher Nolan then walked back to the director's monitor.
Sitting there, Matthew seriously considered Nolan's words. How could he make his performance more realistic?
This might stump others, but Matthew had thoroughly studied Christopher Nolan's transition to mainstream commercial cinema since "Batman Begins." Whether it was "The Prestige" or the two new Batman films, they all had an unusually strong sense of realism.
No one could deny that the comic-book and sci-fi elements in "The Dark Knight" had been greatly minimized.
What was the acting style in these typical Christopher Nolan realistic commercial films?
Matthew had his own understanding—deep resentment!
So, in his upcoming performances, he planned to further emphasize the emotional and expressive aspects of the character in the direction of deep resentment.
This approach would not only require his efforts in acting but also the cooperation of the technical departments, especially makeup and cinematography.
During the next shoot, Matthew requested to review the footage after each take.
Typically, Hollywood directors rarely allow actors to watch the completed takes, as this can prevent disputes between the director and the main actors.
For example, if the director shoots a scene they're satisfied with, but the lead actor doesn't think they look good enough...
In most cases, an actor without significant clout would find it hard to challenge the director.
However, Christopher Nolan was no ordinary director, and Matthew was no ordinary actor, so this request was quickly granted.
Of course, Matthew only watched and hardly commented.
Realism was essential to the cinematography and every aspect of the film. Nolan didn't want the dream sequences to appear excessively surreal; he wanted the dream scenes to feel as solid as the real world.
In the context of this film, sometimes the characters themselves aren't aware they're dreaming, so the visual transition between dream and reality had to be seamless, except for specific moments when Nolan wanted the audience to know the difference. Most of the time, the sense of reality in the film came from the environment rather than photographic techniques.
According to what Christopher Nolan explained to him, maintaining a sense of realism when needed could create a subtly eerie or unsettling feeling without pulling the audience out of the story.
Also, Christopher Nolan always tried to keep the shots from looking too complicated.
The structure of this story seemed quite complex, but as filming progressed, Matthew could see that Christopher Nolan didn't like overly complicated shots.
It seemed his secret was to work as simply and quickly as possible.
There was still one more scene to shoot that afternoon. The crew moved to Stage 11, where Matthew, playing Dom Cobb, would fall backward into a bathtub filled with water, waking up from his dream...
Matthew fell into the tub, getting soaked from head to toe, but fortunately, the shot was completed in one take, so there was no need for a second attempt.
His work for the day was done. After removing his makeup and changing clothes, he returned to the set to continue watching the crew film.
Although he'd never be a director, he had the ambition to become a top-grossing producer, so he paid close attention to everything on set.
As he watched Anne Hathaway shoot her scenes as Mel, Matthew suddenly recalled an analysis he had read online after watching a pirated copy of "Inception."
The details were fuzzy, but he vaguely remembered the person suggesting that the entire movie was a dream—a spectacular dream Cobb had on his way home. The story about his wife, his guilt, and the dream-sharing technology were all just part of that dream and had nothing to do with reality.
While Matthew was lost in thought, a crew member approached him.
"Mr. Horner," the crew member said with a rather strange expression on his face, "Someone claiming to be your girlfriend is here to visit the set..."
_________________________
[Check out my Patreon for +200 additional chapters in all my fanfics! $5 for all!!]
[w w w . p a t r e o n .com / INNIT]
[+50 PowerStones = +1 Chapter] [+5 Reviews = +1 Chapter]