Chapter 767

Hugo didn't expect that Ernst would actually invite him in. It's been two years since Hugo moved here, but he has never entered Ernst's house. To be precise, even Alex has never entered. .

In fact, this is not unusual. In modern society, increasingly indifferent interpersonal relationships often lead to people who live next door not knowing whether they are male or female. Many people may not have had direct interaction with their neighbors for ten years, let alone Ernst has such a bad temper. Even if he wants to deal with Ernst, he will probably be closed.

Therefore, when Hugo heard Ernst say this, his first reaction was "I heard it wrong", which made him not react at all. Originally, Hugo thought that with Ernst's personality, he hesitated at this moment. , Ernst would close the door, but as a result he saw Ernst turn and walk into the house with the door fully open, which also means that Hugo heard right, Ernst was indeed inviting him go in.

Hugo hesitated for a moment, stepped on the brisk and classic jazz notes, and walked into Ernst's room. It was as if he had entered a whole new world. The layout of the whole room was obviously similar to the third floor. The hall on the other side looks very narrow. The hall is simply planned into two parts. The right side is still the dining room and the kitchen, but the space is less than half of the third floor; the rest of the hall is full of books.

Hugo only felt that this was half of a library. Countless books were densely spread out in sight. Even if there was a small part of the space, movie posters were posted, and even the three large windows opposite the main entrance were full. Most of it was blocked by two bookcases, leaving only one window for ventilation, which made the whole hall look like it was full of books. If you didn't pay attention, Hugo wouldn't even find the desk occupying half of the wall, because the desk There are also countless open books scattered on the top, and even the only sofa has four or five books lost on it. This is a sea of ​​books.

On the low cabinet on the left, the only free space in the entire hall, there is a gramophone, squeaking at the moment, next to a radio station, and an old-fashioned telephone.

This is the hall of Ernst's house, a strange and novel world. Hugo's footsteps are standing not far from the entrance. He doesn't know what to do. "Why, it's different from what I imagined?" Ernst's voice From the kitchen, the screaming sound of the boiling kettle was mixed.

Hugo nodded blankly, "Yes, it's completely different from what I imagined. This... this is like a treasure."

Hugo couldn't think of a suitable word to describe it, but he knew that books have always been one of the most important heritages of mankind. Books are not only the carriers of recording human wisdom, but also the heritage of the times. Although after entering the 21st century, due to the development of the Internet, e-books have gradually squeezed the market of traditional paper books, but in Hugo's view, traditional paper books are still an existence that can never be replaced.

Ernst took the kettle down from the stove. Hearing Hugo's words, he couldn't help raising his voice and said, "Treasure?" Then he twitched the corners of his mouth and laughed, "I thought you would say it's a garbage dump." Rain Although Guo is twenty-seven years old this year, in Ernst's eyes, he is a child of the new generation, and the children of his generation are chasing freedom of thought and sex. untie. They are called "baby boomers", so their rejection of traditional books can't be more obvious.

Hugo couldn't help but chuckle, "If there are people who are obsessed with cleanliness, it is indeed a garbage dump." Although Ernst arranged and organized all the books neatly, many old books could not be completely preserved. , and there are many books that have just been taken out and read, and placed on the table, sofa, and window sill, the whole room looks really chaotic.

Ernst walked into the hall with the cup in his hand, and put the cup on the small coffee table in front of the sofa. There were a lot of scattered papers on it, and he couldn't see the original appearance of the table at all. Ernst didn't mind either, he put the hot water cup on it, "I only have tea leaves, you can drink it." Then he raised his head and glanced at Hugo, who was still standing at the entrance, "Why, don't you come in? I don't think so. Where to stay?"

Hugo twitched the corners of his mouth, walked in, and sat down on the sofa, but after sitting down, he felt very strange. He stood up slightly and saw that there was a pen under his butt. He put the pen on the table and held up the teacup. Looking at the pile of papers on the coffee table through the curling heat, Hugo was surprised to find that these were actually scripts.

Ever since I learned that Ernst was a well-known screenwriter, and that he had helped Hugo, the relationship between Hugo and Ernst had not changed much, unlike what was told in the movie or novel— - Hugo was very grateful to Ernst, and Ernst helped Hugo to kill the Quartet. The two soon recovered their normal neighbor relationship. Hugo still remembered Ernst during the holidays and sent some small gifts , while Ernst remained fidgety and grumpy.

The main reason is that Ernst didn't think that was a help, he just mentioned through his friends and Nora Ephron that Hugo is an actor who deserves a second chance, and Hugo himself is the one who really takes the chance. So Ernst didn't take it to heart at all.

As for Hugo, he felt that if he kept trying to repay Ernst, he would have misunderstood, or it would make Ernst feel that he was pulling the relationship away. , hatred is settled clearly; or it makes Ernst feel that he can curry favor with him, which is annoying.

Ernst usually seems to be a cold and lonely person. He will never help others easily, so he is willing to help Hugo, which shows that he treats Hugo differently. Naturally, Hugo would not settle Ernst's attention with any thank-you gift, but he just took care of Ernst more often.

Looking at the scripts on the table, Hugo could see at a glance that these were abandoned scripts, unfinished scripts, which reminded Hugo of Ernst's reaction when he mentioned Ernst as the screenwriter last time.

Ernst condemned Hugo very irritably, but there was a touch of loneliness in his words. Maybe he also hated and loved the profession of screenwriting. Although he had not been involved in this job for seventeen years, he still remembered it. .

Hugo suddenly thought of the situation that Ernst faced at the beginning. In fact, Ernst is best at adapting Broadway plays. That is to say, he is very handy in adapting classic plays, but after entering the second half of the 1970s, the film circle But great changes have taken place.

The first is that there are not many Broadway plays worthy of being put on the big screen. In fact, Broadway is also facing a shortage of scripts. After entering the 21st century, there are even many Broadway adaptations for TV dramas and movies. The second is the endless stream of technology and art. Streaming and action-streaming movies have changed the demand for scripts in the entire market. A script similar to "Jaws" that combines business, special effects and novelty is the direction of the market.

Therefore, at that time, the object of adaptation of the script was gradually developing in the direction of novels, and Ernst just couldn't keep up with the changes of the times, and as a result, he was eliminated from the mainstream film market.

What a sad thing this is.

If it is a commodity that is gradually eliminated by the market, then it is the progress of the times, then it is a process of survival of the fittest; but if it is a work of art, the market will never be eliminated, but will only bloom with the precipitation of time. true artistic value.

Logically speaking, the film should be an art form, and the script is also a kind of creation, but Ernst was eliminated like a commodity. Perhaps, this is the greatest irony of Ernst's work.

What's even more hurtful is that Ernst has been a screenwriter for more than 20 years and has created many absolutely classic works. Many works written by him have become famous works of art in history, but the problem is that he Never received recognition, either by the Oscars or by the Screenwriters Guild.

Therefore, Ernst's mood is complicated. On the one hand, he hates everything about screenwriters and everything about Hollywood. When Hugo mentioned that he was a screenwriter, his reaction was very fierce; when Hugo mentioned the interests of Hollywood When it came to the supreme thing, his reaction was even more hated.

But on the other hand, he is unwilling. He still lives near Sunset Plaza and is lonely. At the same time, he still has nostalgia. The screenwriting work is the greatest proof of value in his life. Only those scripts prove that he once existed, not one Dispensable seniors living alone.

Hugo looked at the scattered script fragments in front of him with mixed emotions. Although he didn't know whether his guess was right or not, even if this guess was the most realistic idea, all Ernst's actions were fine. Answered; but Hugo was still reluctant to judge Ernst according to his own speculation, because he did not have the qualifications, to be precise, no one has the qualifications to judge other people.

However, since Ernst allowed him to enter the house, and at the same time did not clean up the script on the table, this also proved that Ernst was at least magnanimous in this regard. Hugo wondered if it was his performance in the past two years. He won Ernst's trust, but he knew that this was Ernst's confidence in himself.

Hugo looked away from the script, looked at Ernst, showed a shallow smile and said, "Ernst, it's been two years since I moved here, but this is my first time. When I entered your house, I originally thought that I had finally moved you, and I planned to go home and show off to my friends. But now it seems that this is not the case. "

Hugo's words made Ernst stunned, looking at Hugo's impatient face, but Hugo didn't care at all, he said with a smile, "I think the reason you let me in is because I Did you just get the Oscar statuette yesterday? That's why you treated me differently and allowed me to come in and drink tea." After speaking, Hugo raised the water glass in his hand and took a sip, "Huh, It's really not easy to drink this cup of tea."

Hugo's naughty remarks made Ernst sit in a daze for a while, then he threw a chirp and laughed.