Chapter 30: Investments and Movies

"I come at the summons of the College of Cardinals…" George Clooney, playing the Papal Chamberlain, limped towards the brightly dressed guards and spoke in a low voice.The guards exchanged glances and opened the door for him.Inside, a group of Cardinals engaged in hushed discussion fell silent, their heads turning towards the Chamberlain.The Chamberlain, his face impassive and bearing fresh wounds, limped into the room. His gaze swept over the Cardinals, finally settling on several men in suits standing among them—agents.Without hesitation, the Chamberlain turned to leave.Several agents pushed past the Cardinals, moving to intercept him.A leading Cardinal spoke quietly, "No excessive force. Handle this within the Church."The agents nodded and pursued the Chamberlain.The scene shifted to the Chamberlain limping down a long staircase."Excellent!" Milo, monitoring the camera, exclaimed. "George, your expression is spot on. Jess, superb work, especially the subtle eye movements. And Arthur, equally impressive, your emotions are precisely what we need. Well done, everyone!"After giving individual feedback, he announced, "That pre-capture scene is a wrap. Five-minute break, then we continue."George Clooney's acting was indeed impressive. Having received the script, he'd immersed himself in the role, studying it meticulously. Casting him as the Papal Chamberlain—a character who was essentially the second or third male lead and the ultimate antagonist—was a brilliant decision. Though he'd only recently gained some recognition for his role in the medical drama ER, his acting ability was undeniable.Of the cast, he was in the best shape, both physically and mentally. Having adapted to Milo's directing style, Clooney had been consistently cooperative.The crew cheered, taking a short break before resuming filming.Though the story still had hundreds of shots to film, they completed it in just five days.November 15, 1995.Angels & Demons officially wrapped after nearly four months of filming.This pace was astonishingly fast.Due to Milo's influence, this version of Angels & Demons differed from the original. He had revised the scenes that had been criticized for being slow and tedious, and he and Wally, the director of photography, had significantly enhanced the already strong sense of fate and religious atmosphere.One could argue that the filming involved at least as much work as the original, if not more. Yet, it was completed in only four months, a remarkable feat.Several factors contributed to this rapid progress. Almost all the scenes were filmed in indoor studios, except for some city shots. The crew maintained high morale and worked well together. Most remarkably, both Tommy Lee Jones and George Clooney, the two main actors, gave exceptionally strong performances.No one knew what had gotten into them, but most scenes were completed in just two or three takes. Even the most complex scenes rarely required more than a few retakes.It was uncanny. The little blue pill hadn't even been invented yet.Such things were best not overthought. Some actors simply had their moments, as if struck by a bolt of inspiration. This energy spread to the rest of the cast and crew, accelerating the filming schedule.Even Zeta-Jones, who replaced Ayelet Zurer in the role of the female scientist Vittoria Vetra, delivered a compelling performance.Crucially, Milo had the original film in his mind. He was essentially using it as a template, meticulously recreating the scenes while revising those that had been criticized. Having a blueprint naturally sped things up.In any case, Angels & Demons was finally completed before mid-November. The next step was post-production.While post-production work proceeded, they would also negotiate with Disney about the film's release and distribution.Wendy, who had been involved in almost every aspect of filming and had acted more like the film's main producer than Milo himself, finally breathed a sigh of relief.After a celebratory dinner, on the drive back to Beverly Hills, Wendy, sitting in the passenger seat, said with a smile, "It's finally over. After post-production, it'll be ready for release. I can't wait to see your first film in the cinema!"Then she heard Milo say, with a grin, "Take three days off. We'll be busy again after that.""What business is it this time? Have you set your sights on another Silicon Valley company?" Wendy asked eagerly.Previously, Milo had inexplicably wanted to buy Netscape stock, even resorting to using the Blackburn family's connections.Wendy had been against it at the time.Later, Milo had invested over twenty million dollars to acquire stakes in a bunch of small, unknown companies in the San Francisco Bay Area.Wendy had briefly considered quitting and passing this troublesome young master onto someone else.But events had proven Milo right.His $4 million investment in Netscape, along with some networking, had yielded over $60 million in profit.And the nearly $20 million investment in other companies had left Wendy speechless.Take Yahoo, for example. Several Wall Street investment funds were now offering valuations.The highest one valued Yahoo at $130 million!If they could sell now, Milo's $5 million investment from three months ago would be worth nearly $50 million!And Milo hadn't just invested in Yahoo and Netscape; there was also eBay and others.A few days ago, Wendy had done some calculations for Milo.Not counting the investments from the end of October, the $20 million plus that Milo had invested three months previously… if all his stock in these companies could be liquidated, it would be worth nearly $200 million.In other words, in three months, Milo's investments had increased tenfold in value.Based purely on valuations, this twenty-two-year-old Blackburn was already a multi-millionaire.Wendy now had complete faith in Milo's investment acumen—at least regarding internet investments.Even back home, stories of Milo's investing prowess were circulating."I don't need a break," Wendy said, then immediately added, "I can go tomorrow, even tonight. Just tell me the company, and I'll get you the stock!"In the back of the car, reclining on the seat and watching the Beverly Hills mansions flash by, Milo looked surprised. "Huh… did I say I was going to buy another company?"Wendy was confused. "What? No buying?""I'm giving you three days off so you can rest. I think you've been working hard lately.""But in three days…" Milo smiled. "I plan to start preparing for my second film. Then you'll be busy again.""What!" Wendy exclaimed in shock. "You just finished filming your first movie today, post-production hasn't even started, and you're already going to start on the second?"Milo nodded."This…" Wendy was almost speechless. "You… aren't you tired? Don't you need to rest? And the investment from the first film hasn't even been recouped yet, and you're already starting on the second? Most directors in Hollywood only release a film every two or three years…"What Wendy said was true. Directing a film was an incredibly draining process.Many directors took long breaks after completing a project before considering the next.Even Woody Allen's yearly output was considered remarkably fast.But someone like Milo, who announced that he'd start preparing for his second film just three days after wrapping his first… aside from back-to-back sequels, Hollywood had never seen such a workaholic.This translation attempts to capture the nuances of the original text, adding descriptive details and internal thoughts to create a more novelistic feel. It also clarifies some of the more implicit meanings and cultural references for an English-speaking audience.