Chapter 42: Memento

After shaking off the melancholy mood, Christmas soon arrived at Harvard. The importance of Christmas in Western countries is as obvious as the Spring Festival is to Chinese people.

Even if we set aside its religious significance, the reunion of family alone makes it a very cherished holiday.

Evan Bell's junior year at Harvard University ended on a high note, with a semester full of accomplishments. His straight-A grades once again proved his capability.

However, because he had been so busy, he had only managed to draft his graduation project for the Department of Architecture, with no time for revisions.

Evan planned to use the winter break to make the necessary changes and submit it at the start of the spring semester. As for his graduation thesis in the Department of Psychology, he hadn't even begun selecting a topic.

The first half of his junior year had been consumed by filming and the band, causing various delays. It was clear that Evan would continue to be busy even during the winter break and spring semester.

When the Bell brothers returned home, the house was lively once again. The Hathaway family next door also felt the holiday spirit, as Anne Hathaway had finished filming The Princess Diaries and was home for the holidays.

A loud and hearty voice echoed from downstairs of the north building, shouting at the top of its lungs, "Evan! Evan Bell!" The shout stretched out for an absurdly long time as if the person wouldn't give up until Evan showed up.

Though it was noisy, the neighbors were used to it. This kind of thing had happened almost every day for over a decade, so no one found it strange.

The window on the second floor suddenly flew open, revealing Evan Bell's handsome face, clearly exasperated. Even after all these years, he still couldn't handle this kind of persistent nagging.

"Hathaway, at this rate, you'll never get married. Everyone on the street knows how terrifyingly loud your voice is."

Anne Hathaway stood below, hands on her hips, completely unfazed. "Didn't we agree to go to the movies today? Hurry up, if we don't leave now, we'll miss the 8 o'clock show."

The term "childhood sweethearts" usually refers to the innocent bond between a boy and girl who grew up together, but not every pair fits the mold.

Evan Bell and Anne Hathaway had spent their childhood playing and arguing. Anne, with her tomboyish personality, had even joined Evan and his brother in their roughhousing. If not for her pretty face, people might have mistaken her for one of the boys.

As they grew older, Anne Hathaway's feminine charm started to emerge, just as all girls do. But when it came to Evan Bell, she remained as casual and loud as ever, her voice echoing without any concern for ladylike decorum.

Evan didn't respond immediately. Instead, he simply closed the window. Less than 30 seconds later, his tall figure appeared at the front door, making his way toward Anne.

Although she hadn't measured him, Anne, who hadn't seen Evan in nearly four months, could tell he had grown taller. She couldn't resist standing beside him and comparing their heights.

"You've grown a lot taller. Looks like you might end up as tall as Teddy," Anne remarked in amazement. Teddy Bell was tall and broad, making Evan seem slender by comparison.

But Evan wasn't skinny; in fact, his physique was more symmetrical and elegant than Teddy's, giving off an effortlessly refined aura. 

Evan just smiled without replying. He turned around and called out to the store next door, "Teddy, are you sure you don't want to come with us?"

Teddy Bell's voice came from inside, muffled by the clothes hanging outside, "No, you two have fun." With Christmas approaching, the dry-cleaning business was getting busier.

Evan had been working all day yesterday, so today he was off to see a movie while Teddy stayed behind to help out.

Evan didn't press the issue. Instead, he called out, "Mom, Annie, and I are going out to go see a movie."

Anne Hathaway echoed the sentiment, yelling toward her own house, ten meters away, "Dad, Mom, I'm going out!" These two loudmouths seemed determined to let the entire neighborhood know they grew up together, even their powerful voices were in perfect sync.

Evan and Anne didn't go far; they headed to the Chinatown Cinema on Eighth Avenue, just a short walk from their homes.

As Christmas neared, this time of year was a crucial battleground for the North American film industry, with many movies being released. While competition was fierce, it also offered audiences a visual feast.

Recently, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, starring Jim Carrey, had been a huge box office hit. Evan remembered the movie had eventually topped the North American box office in 2000.

However, today, Evan and Anne weren't interested in watching that; they chose instead to see a more obscure film,

Memento.

Even under normal circumstances, Memento was considered a cult film, and during the joyful Christmas season, its audience was sparse.

Memento was directed by Christopher Nolan which would later be hailed as a cult classic. At this point in time, Nolan was just beginning his directorial career.

He had only made one 70-minute black-and-white film, Following, and Memento was just his second feature. Although Memento was only his second movie, It would later become the cornerstone of Nolan's rise to fame.

Anne ordered popcorn and a Coke, then asked Evan, "Why did you choose this movie today?"

"Because I invested in it," Evan replied a hint of mystery in his voice, causing Anne, who had been focused on her popcorn, to snap her head up in surprise.

"Invested? Are you serious?" Most people might be fooled by Evan's calm and elegant demeanor, assuming he came from wealth, but Anne knew better. The Bell family's financial situation was far from affluent.

Evan took the large bucket of popcorn and motioned for Anne to grab her Coke.

"Remember last year when I attended the San Francisco Film Festival? I saw Nolan's first film, Following, at that festival." Evan pointed to the director's name on the Memento poster, and Anne realized that this was the same Nolan Evan had mentioned.

"Following received a lot of praise at that festival, and I personally loved it." As they walked down the corridor to the screening room, Anne checked the room number.

With Memento about to be taken off the schedule, only one theater was showing it. "At the festival, Nolan was raising funds for his next movie. So, I invested."

Christopher Nolan hadn't been able to find investors to back Memento, so he continued down the independent film route, raising funds from audiences who appreciated his work.

It was a simple, effective method, and many fans provided their support.

Evan didn't know why others supported Nolan, but for him, knowing Nolan's future success and understanding the brilliance of Memento made him eager to be an investor.

Anne pushed open the heavy theater door, letting Evan, who was carrying the popcorn, enter first, a smile playing on her lips. It was a simple story, but somehow, it felt almost magical.

She hadn't expected Evan to be one of the investors in Memento. Even if there were no returns on his investment, it was thrilling to see a film he had supported on the big screen.

The lights were still on in the theater, with only three or four people scattered among the seats. Memento was one of those cult films, and with its limited run nearly over, it wasn't surprising the audience was so small.

As they walked to their seats, Evan said, "Two hundred dollars. That was all the money I had at the time."

For most people, two hundred dollars might not seem like much. And with Memento's five-million-dollar budget, Evan's contribution was a mere drop in the bucket.

But it was his support for the film and him giving it all he had that made his Two Hundred Dollars not insignificant. 

Anne wasn't surprised by Evan's generosity. He was always willing to go all in. "Hearing you talk about this movie makes me feel even more excited to see it." She plopped down in her seat, immediately digging into the popcorn.

Watching Anne devour the popcorn with no concern for manners, Evan chuckled, "The movie won't disappoint you." He was confident in that.

Although Evan had watched Memento on DVD in a previous life, this was his first time seeing it in a theater. Movies are meant to be experienced on the big screen, with DVDs serving merely as collectibles.

The difference between watching a movie in a theater and at home is immense.

Even though he had been amazed by Memento once before, Evan found himself astounded all over again, by every detail and every scene that made up this incredible film.