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Well, I'm tired. The worst part is that I have to go back to work in a few hours. ​I'll sleep for a while and see if I can continue translating in my free time. This will continue until the end of the year since it will be very difficult for them to hire someone new at this time. 🥲
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Katherine put an enormous amount of effort into Wasteland. She even used bullet time, a technique popularized by The Matrix. The scene of Neo dodging bullets is incredibly memorable and a textbook example of bullet time.
While bullet time relies on specialized technology in the 21st century, Katherine had to settle for a much less sophisticated approach. She used a series of still cameras (not video cameras) arranged around an object. These camera rigs were triggered sequentially. By combining the frames captured by each camera, she created the illusion of the camera rotating around a frozen subject—an effect she sometimes used to achieve ultra-slow-motion shots.
This technique already existed in the 1950s, and A Fistful of Dollars made use of it; its slow-motion shots had a profound impact. However, no one had yet uncovered the true beauty of the technique—bullet time itself, which lies at its core.
This kind of technology required enormous sums of money, and Katherine truly spent without restraint.
The technique was first used when Sean Connery killed a Deathclaw in the desert, and it appeared several more times afterward.
Katherine devoted a great deal of time to that Deathclaw. The "head" of the Deathclaw was not an actor, but a prop—a model container filled with pork, brains, and blood. That way, when the bullet struck and the entire moment was captured, it looked shockingly realistic.
The influence of the Hays Code was gradually fading, and after 1962 censorship became increasingly lax, so Katherine no longer had to worry about it.
Sean Connery was the lead actor.
He played a mysterious wasteland ranger who moved between light and shadow. Katherine required him to maintain a deep, restrained expression, allowing the essence of the character to fully come through.
Freeman played a naïve young man who had fled the vault and knew nothing about the outside world. He was kind-hearted, but in the wasteland, he was the kind of person who gave himself away—and whom people would remember.
Three people from very different backgrounds came together.
Katherine tried to incorporate elements from later American blockbusters into her film. Auteur cinema still had a market in this era, and naturally, Katherine wanted to give the movie a certain level of intellectual depth.
Of course, if the times didn't call for that kind of depth, Katherine would abandon it without hesitation. After all, she didn't want to waste one hundred million dollars—at the very least, she needed to break even.
Katherine was completely absorbed in directing, and her performance astonished even the technical crew.
During filming, she didn't behave like an ordinary minor. Her remarkable skill as a director left everyone deeply impressed.
Although Katherine had only studied directing as a secondary field—and originally as a hobby—this achievement would not have been possible without a lifetime of effort. For the first twelve years of her life, Katherine had essentially been accumulating experience. Long-term accumulation and steady growth were the true keys to her success.
The film also featured many zombies—humans mutated after a nuclear war, completely different from ordinary people. Humans exposed to intense radiation and special viruses also turned into zombies.
To ensure smooth performances, Catherine had the extras wake up at 5:00 a.m. every day for three hours of makeup.
The film opens with Connery hunting in the desert.
He discovers Bruce Lee being attacked by bandits. Lee's power armor is damaged, and he has lost his memory due to a head injury. However, his combat instincts remain. He decisively uses an emergency disengagement system to shed the armor and engage the bandits in hand-to-hand combat.
Bruce Lee forcefully kicks several unfortunate extras, sending them flying several meters before they hit the ground. While visually spectacular, the lethality is low—if Bruce Lee were to kick someone with his full strength, without recoil or energy dissipation, it would likely result in severe injury or even death.
At that moment, a bandit suddenly pulled out a gun, and Connery killed him.
This is the film's opening scene.
The two then arrive at a small town, where Freeman is being swindled by a group of people.
The outdoor shoots required extensive wilderness survival knowledge and tools that would only be useful in a post-apocalyptic world, which can be considered one of the film's major draws.
Although the outdoor filming encountered some setbacks, the completion time exceeded Sully's expectations. During filming, Freeman constantly taught himself and improved; fortunately, he was originally cast as a naĂŻve youth. Though still somewhat inexperienced, he was completely different from the person he had been when he first arrived.
After meeting Freeman, Connery stepped in and resolved his problem. From then on, the three became friends.
Later, Bruce Lee wanted to repair his armor, but it was advanced technology and required a great deal of money.
So he decided to accept a commission from the town to find a water purification chip that would power the village's broken purifier. The reward was generous.
In the future world of Wasteland, all external water sources are highly radioactive and therefore undrinkable.
Because of the lucrative reward—and wanting to repay a debt of gratitude—Connery and Freeman also accepted the mission.
Eventually, the three set out together on an expedition to find the water purification chip.
According to intelligence reports, the chip was located in an abandoned vault, so the team decided to head there.
After several twists and turns, they find the chip—but the team suddenly turns on itself.
Everyone wants to keep the chip in exchange for the enormous reward.
At that moment, a super Deathclaw breaks in, and in the end, only the three main characters survive.
Bruce Lee regains his memory and decides to find the Brotherhood, but it is located in California. As a member of the Eastern Brotherhood, he faces constant exclusion there.
California is also home to the Republic of California (RNC).
The film's main storyline follows Connery's adventures, while an underlying plot revolves around the power struggles between the Brotherhood, the RNC, and other organizations—though only attentive viewers will notice these layers.
Finally, after enduring many trials, the three men reunite. Bruce Lee decides to return east, Freeman chooses to stay and rebuild the region, and Connery lights a cigarette before departing.
At that moment, Freeman asks Connery who he really is.
Connery doesn't turn around. He simply says:
"A-man."
It can mean "a person" or "a man," and it can also be interpreted as "a human being," with a vague phonetic connection to the Christian "amen." Here, Catherine deliberately left the line unsubtitled, leaving space for the audience to reflect.