Earnestly trying to figure it out

"Hugo, think about it, use your brain to think," Al said a lot of words, feeling a bit tired and out of breath, he slowed down his pace and adjusted his breathing, "Do you remember the sentence I told you last time?"

"Don't study acting, study the character," Hugo forced himself to ignore the staff who went out to smoke one after another, and focused his attention on Al's words. After Al's question, he immediately thought of this sentence.

Al nodded repeatedly, "Yes, that's right. Think about it, what is Charlie's current situation? What is he facing? Why can he feel the Colonel's pain and why can he prevent the Colonel from committing suicide? Why is it him, not the Colonel's family or some woman?"

Hugo took a deep breath, calming himself down, and began to think about how Charlie came to this scene, not just thinking about this scene alone, but thinking about the entire movie, the story behind it, and Charlie's entire life.

Charlie was a typical obedient student, but he was unexpectedly involved in the mischievous acts of several rich second-generation students. He witnessed the process of the three high-class youths bullying the school monitor. Another member of the rich second-generation four-man group, George, was standing next to him, so George and Charlie became eyewitnesses. The school would not tolerate such behavior from students, so they planned to severely punish the group of students, and they needed George and Charlie to come forward to identify the culprits.

The school monitor used the offer of admission to Harvard University and a full scholarship to entice Charlie to tell the truth, while also threatening to expel him if he didn't. At the same time, George suppressed Charlie with friendship and made an agreement that they couldn't stand up and testify against those "good friends", and there was no need to tell their families or anyone else.

Under these circumstances, Charlie and the Colonel came to New York. During the few days in New York, Charlie unexpectedly discovered that George's actions completely matched the Colonel's speculation after hearing about the incident: George told his father, who was a powerful person, and he came forward to resolve the matter for his son. Under his father's power, George was likely to betray his so-called friends. For George, his future would still depend on his father's influence, and this incident would have no impact on him. However, this put Charlie in an awkward position. What should he do: betray his friends for a chance to get into Harvard, or stick to his principles and never break his promise?

Charlie did not want to betray his principles and friends, but if he persisted and George spoke out, he would be expelled from school, and perhaps his life would undergo a huge turning point from here. The Colonel knew that Charlie was unwilling to speak up because this was Charlie's principle, even if he was worried about being expelled from school, even if his life was likely to change because of those rich kids whom he did not even like, but this was Charlie's principle, and he did not want to compromise.

Therefore, Charlie knew that perhaps his life was about to be ruined, destroyed by his damn foolish principles.

In such a situation, the Colonel chose to commit suicide because he felt that there was no hope in life. But couldn't Charlie also feel the same way? In fact, in this incident, Charlie persisted in his principles and was also gradually walking towards a deep abyss. Although being expelled from school was not the real end of life for a young person, for a poor student who aspired to go to Harvard University and change his fate with knowledge, this was no different from suicide because it was like killing his own dream.

What kind of feeling was this? On the one hand, Charlie knew that sacrificing his future for a few rich kids was not worth it because those rich kids would not appreciate him. They can still achieve great success with the help of their families, even if they were punished or expelled from school, it would not affect them. But Charlie was different. On the other hand, Charlie was unwilling to betray his principles: he could not betray his friends. Even if he himself thought his persistence was worthless, he still wanted to stick to it.

This feeling must be so complicated.

Suddenly Hugo thought of his own life. In fact, the prospect of an underground rock band was so bleak. He knew this when he was in school. Although they were amateur music enthusiasts, they knew that rock music in China had risen rapidly in the late 1990s and then declined rapidly. There was almost no way out for underground rock bands. To put it bluntly, they couldn't make a living or even feed themselves. But knowing this, the "Glory or Death" band still chased their dream without hesitation. In their own words, it was "seeking a dead end". But even so, in those ten years of life, they still suffered and enjoyed it.

Perhaps this was the principle, the persistence that made one unwilling to compromise with reality.

Suddenly, Hugo understood.

The reason why Charlie was able to move the Colonel was because of his integrity and kindness, and also because he was unwilling to give up his principles even under the heavy weight of authority. This simplicity was like the sunshine in the darkness, allowing the Colonel to feel the warmth from the depths of his soul even though he had lost his sight.

So what was Charlie's feeling in this dispute? He could not accept surrender without a fight, he could not accept giving up on life, and he could not accept betraying his principles. In his view, even if he suffered setbacks and failures in life, he could still start again as long as he was willing. But once he gave up, there was no turning back, and he might regret it for the rest of his life. This was Charlie's own belief and principle, and even though he might feel confused, conflicted, or uncertain, he would not change it in the end because he did not want to and was unwilling to.

Meanwhile, he could not accept the Colonel's surrender. In his view, the Colonel was stubborn and dominant. Most importantly, the Colonel was a soldier, a military man who had achieved countless honors and experienced a magnificent life. Such a Colonel would not give up because it was the Colonel's honor, dignity, and principles.

Therefore, Charlie's emotions toward the Colonel were very complicated but also very firm. He believed that the Colonel's choice to commit suicide was a shameful surrender. He did not want to see the Colonel end up with such a fate, not only because of his integrity and kindness but also because of his admiration for the Colonel.

It was precisely because of Charlie's emotions that he persevered in the Colonel's stormy outburst and successfully dispelled the Colonel's suicidal thoughts, despite being in a weak position.

Realizing this, Hugo's eyes lit up. "Let's try again!" As Hugo raised his head, he saw Al and Martin's hopeful eyes. Not just them, many of the staff around them focused their attention on Hugo. It seemed that while Hugo was thinking, they were all waiting.

This was not only because of their seriousness about their work but also their curiosity. Could Hugo, who won the Razzie award for worst actor, really burst out with brilliant acting against a seasoned actor like Al?

Martin looked at Hugo again, not because he didn't trust Hugo, but because this scene was undoubtedly the most challenging part of the entire movie for Hugo. Of course, it was also the most remarkable part. The previous seven NGs had not been able to help Hugo find his state. So this time, Martin had reason to express his concerns.

But surprisingly, this time Hugo gave a firm look in response, a confidence Martin had not seen before. The energy emanating from Hugo's amber eyes inexplicably calmed Martin's heart.

Hugo stood up again and walked to Al's front. "I'm sorry about earlier. This time I will do my best." Al did not speak, but only patted Hugo's shoulder. He was also getting older, and such an emotionally intense scene posed a physical challenge for him. Everything was not so easy.

At this moment, the production crew had already called in all the staff smoking outside, indicating that filming was about to resume. Although the staff didn't say anything and didn't show any particular sarcasm or dissatisfaction in their eyes towards Hugo, they simply returned to their positions whispering and laughing, as if Hugo, who was about to resume filming, was insignificant. This indicated that the staff didn't have confidence in Hugo. They didn't believe that Hugo's acting skills would improve significantly in such a short time. Perhaps, in the end, this scene would have to rely on Al alone to carry it.

Facing the staff's attitude, Hugo couldn't blame them because if he were in the staff's position, he would probably have the same thoughts. But understanding didn't mean surrender. He knew that, instead of words, his actual performance was the best way to respond to this kind of disdainful attitude. Even if he promised the world but still gave a terrible performance, it would only make him look more miserable. A thousand words cannot compare to one brilliant performance.

Therefore, Hugo didn't say anything, but his fists involuntarily clenched as he silently cheered himself on.

Before walking to the shooting location, Hugo saw Joseph standing among the crowd. Joseph always had his arms crossed and stood outside the scene like a statue, watching the filming. He didn't blame or worry about Hugo nor did he encourage him. He just silently observed Hugo's condition. When Joseph saw Hugo's gaze, he only nodded slightly and nothing more.

But Hugo knew that Joseph was worried about him. Joseph standing still and watching his filming was actually the greatest support for him. Hugo gritted his teeth, adjusted his breathing, lightly stepped on the ground, and adjusted his mentality. He didn't pay attention to the gaze of others but focused all his energy on the filming about to begin.

Hugo didn't do anything else unnecessary. He walked back to the position designated by the production crew with Al and waited for Martin's command to start filming.