Chapter 322: The End of the Torment

Jennifer Love Hewitt filming after taking drugs? Duke may be a workaholic, but he wasn't truly crazy. These remarks from the other party were just a way of showing their attitude to him as the director.

However, Jennifer Love Hewitt's hard work was indeed commendable. Her excellent performance not only earned Duke's approval but also gained recognition from the entire crew.

In front of the camera, Jennifer Love Hewitt, playing the daughter, was having a heated argument with Liam Neeson, who portrayed the police officer father.

"Now you care about me?"

Standing unsteadily in the room, she seemed to vent her dissatisfaction with her father through her posture. "Isn't your focus always on your work? LAPD, huh… Are they your real family? A justice-serving cop? You couldn't even keep my mom around…"

Saying this, she glanced resentfully at Liam Neeson, then turned and walked toward the room, the cross pendant of a necklace swinging to her back.

Liam Neeson watched his daughter's disappearing back but had no idea how to communicate with her, let alone knowing that she had started using drugs.

The door slammed shut.

"Great!"

Duke rarely spoke words of praise. "Jenny, Liam, well done, both of you! Outstanding!"

As time passed, filming continued, and Duke discovered that Jennifer Love Hewitt's potential far surpassed that of Kate Beckinsale. However, transitioning from a teen idol was a steep climb—not just for her, but even Britney Spears hit roadblocks when trying to break away from her teen pop image.

Jennifer Love Hewitt was talented and hardworking, but Duke remembered clearly that her career nosedived quite quickly. In Hollywood, opportunities often mattered far more than effort.

If she encountered a role as suitable as Ellen Page's in Juno, she might soar to new heights. Without such a role, she could very well fade into obscurity.

Of course, if this film succeeded, it might change her career trajectory.

By late November, Duke led the crew to Wellington for on-location shoots. The film didn't require extensive outdoor scenes. For wide-angle shots, Anna Prince had already gone back to Los Angeles to handle them.

It's challenging to identify a city solely from unmarked close-up shots. However, wide-angle views are unmistakable.

While the plot of this film aligns with the North Hollywood shootout only about fifty percent of the time, Duke was careful not to make the rookie mistake of passing off Wellington as Los Angeles in panoramic shots.

The on-location shoot in Wellington's streets lasted just over a week. Afterward, the crew returned to the studio to prepare for the most pivotal and climactic scene—the chaotic shootout.

In the open studio to the west of the main soundstage, the set and props teams had recreated the American Bank's Los Angeles branch and part of Laurel Canyon Boulevard through intricate set dressing and models. Several repurposed and scrapped cars were placed where they needed to be. From a close-up perspective, it looked strikingly similar to the morning of the real bank heist.

This scene involved nearly a hundred police officers, hundreds of bystanders, dozens of reporters and cameramen, and hundreds of vehicles. Over 1,500 rounds were fired, leaving 14 people injured and 2 dead—one of the most chaotic bank robberies in Los Angeles and U.S. history.

However, for Duke, who had directed realistic war scenes in Saving Private Ryan, such large-scale scenes posed no real challenge.

In fact, the overall filming of this movie wasn't difficult. The real challenge lay in post-production editing—how to piece the filmed material into a coherent triple-thread narrative.

If not for honing his skills in triple-thread storytelling, this project would have little significance for Duke.

The shootout sequence was broken into countless small segments, each filmed separately and later stitched together during editing. This approach was the simplest and most time-efficient. Though Warner Bros. had confidence in Duke and added $2 million to the initial budget, raising the total to $10 million, Duke, accustomed to handling $50 million-plus projects with massive spectacle, knew that lack of meticulous planning could easily lead to budget overruns.

Although the filming had only lasted a little over a month—faster than initially planned—Duke was eager to wrap things up as quickly as possible because the process had become a torment.

During filming, Duke also had to stay fully involved in the preparation for The Lord of the Rings.

Unlike during The Matrix, when The Lord of the Rings was only in its planning and conceptual stages, the trilogy's pre-production was now entering a critical execution phase. Even if he wasn't directly responsible for specific tasks, he still had to personally inspect and approve props, sets, costumes, visual effects, and locations to ensure they met requirements.

Without his oversight, issues with props or locations would inevitably arise during filming.

This kind of workload wasn't just exhausting for Duke but also for his cinematographer John Schwartzman and production designer Hannah Selina, who were essential partners during these inspections.

If this grueling pace continued, Duke believed the team's nerves would snap. Humans aren't machines, and while he might endure the stress of simultaneous productions, others might not.

Fortunately, this realistic shootout scene wasn't overly difficult for Duke and his team.

Jason Statham and Gerard Butler, playing the two bank robbers, had the toughest time. Larry Phillips and Emil Mătăsăreanu were armed to the teeth during the real heist, wearing at least two layers of Kevlar armor, with each man's load exceeding that of a Navy SEAL. They looked like bloated humanoid beasts.

While Statham and Butler didn't have to carry such extreme weights, they were still heavily padded to match the robbers' appearances. Shooting in Wellington's summer heat—even with breathable materials—was far from comfortable.

Thankfully, Wellington's summers weren't excessively hot. Shooting under Southern California's blazing sun would've been a nightmare.

Even so, Duke called for breaks every hour, allowing Statham and Butler to shed their heavy gear and breathe. Though it slowed filming, actor health issues could cost even more time.

In the three days of shooting the shootout, noise became the defining feature of the set. Cars turned into Swiss cheese, and gunfire and shattering glass filled the air.

During a break, Duke called over Liam Neeson.

"Did I mess up?" Neeson asked upon arrival.

"No, you did great," Duke said, glancing at Neeson's suit. "In the next scene, Liam, keep this in mind: saving the wounded always comes first."

Neeson nodded knowingly. "Understood."

Aside from the climactic shootout, Duke's script had largely diverged from the real-life event. However, the shootout wasn't just about action—it had to showcase human bravery, especially from the LAPD.

While on the surface, two heavily armed robbers nearly overwhelmed a hundred officers, giving the impression of LAPD incompetence, the reality was different. Many officers were injured protecting civilians, earning public and media praise.

In the film's conclusion, the LAPD would be depicted as resilient, brave, and unwavering heroes who triumphed through sheer willpower over superior firepower. As the movie ended, they would receive the full Hollywood-style hero treatment.

Gunfire, shattering glass, panicked screams, and cries of pain dominated the set for the next week as the remaining scenes dwindled, bringing the shoot to its conclusion.

On December 18th, after Don Cheadle's SWAT team surrounded Jason Statham's character and shot him down, Duke finally announced the end of filming.

Completing the shoot in just over a month and a half, Duke moved faster than planned. However, neither he nor cinematographer John Schwartzman could hide their exhaustion. A break was necessary.

Yet Duke couldn't leave New Zealand just yet. Even his downtime had to be spent in Wellington. A wrap party was planned at a large rented beach, giving him some space to rest quietly.

After instructing Anna Priz to send the day's footage to a bank vault, Duke returned to his office and called Tina Fey, who had updates on negotiations with Google and The Matrix's worldwide box office results.

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