Chapter 74

"Is it a divine revelation, or the truth of humanity? At the end of the film, the lead actor Sean Connery leaves behind the phrase 'a-man.' Is this phrase meant to say 'a person,' 'a human,' or a variant of 'amen'? Miss Catherine Edison, a genius, has generously shown us the wasteland. Is this world, these humans, our future? Or is this the ugly true face of humanity?" — The New York Times

"This is a revelation from God." — The Christian Science Monitor

"This is a new chapter in the film industry. The special effects of Catherine Edison's DreamWorks have put all of Hollywood's film production companies underfoot." — The Los Angeles Times

New York was in a frenzy.

Los Angeles was in a frenzy.

All of North America was in a frenzy.

Radiation achieved unexpected success, even Catherine did not expect that people would love this film so much.

Compared to the usual moviegoers who are mostly white, this time, many blacks also went to the cinema.

Because they knew that the opening of the film was their own folk song, and there was also a black lead actor in the film.

Even the Chinese, who form a separate small society in the United States, were also attracted by this film.

However, compared to the whites who focus more on the plot, they heard that there was a Chinese person in the film, and he was the lead actor.

Just a month ago, President Kennedy was assassinated, plunging the entire United States into a state of confusion. The speech in August also directly boosted the box office of "Wasteland."

When Catherine received the news, she was actually planning the film adaptation of "Harry Potter."

In Eastwood's view, making a film was not a problem, but creating special effects like those in "Wasteland" was difficult. Many magical elements required special effects, which were generally hard to portray unless Catherine really developed a supercomputer capable of post-production.

However, that was impossible in the near future.

Catherine now spends her days reading books, but not academic ones; rather, books about filmmaking and special effects.

"Harry Potter" does not require montage techniques or profound music, but it does have high demands for special effects.

Devil's vine, giant spiders, double-faced people...

Filming such a movie would likely take more time and effort than "Wasteland."

Thus, Catherine had an idea: to make an animated film!

Until "Wasteland" was released, Catherine had been thinking about this problem.

However, with the release of "Wasteland," Catherine's plans were temporarily interrupted.

The response to "Wasteland" was far better than Catherine's expectations. Originally, Catherine estimated the box office to be around 50 million, which was already a doubling. But now, the estimated box office might reach 80 million, which would be 500 million in 2010!

Throughout the Christmas season, this film held the top spot at the box office.

Catherine was about to become rich, but she knew that compared to giants like IBM, her company was still very young.

Those companies worth billions or even tens of billions were far beyond her reach.

And in the future, there would be companies worth trillions, like Microsoft, which is worth a trillion dollars. Not to mention the military-industrial complexes.

Catherine's dreams went far beyond 50 million or 80 million; she wanted to aim higher!

"Wasteland" continued to perform well, and the name of Miss Catherine, the genius, became even more prominent. Although she rarely made public appearances, people always talked about this magical "magical girl" with great interest.

But at this moment, some unpleasant things happened...

Catherine's film was very popular, and as a result, the sales of "Fallout" books and board games also became hot.

The release of "Wasteland" in Europe was also on the schedule.

Because a black person rarely became one of the main characters in a film, it was very popular among blacks.

Moreover, the film resonated with Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech in August and subtly addressed racism, gaining support from anti-racists and black power activists.

But at this moment, white supremacist rallies unexpectedly broke out in many places!

In the original history, in 1964, the KKK set fire to black churches, beat parishioners, and brutally killed three blacks. Many perpetrators were acquitted, and those who were imprisoned did not serve more than six years. This incident later became a cause of conflict.

The hippie movement began to flourish, but racists also became increasingly rampant, making the United States seem like a deformed society where two worlds were intertwined.

In the unauthorized or authorized rallies that broke out in January, many black churches were vandalized, and many people were beaten, even to death, for no apparent reason.

On the surface, this had nothing to do with Catherine's film, but in fact, her film inadvertently became a catalyst for ethnic tensions!

After many illegal rallies were dispersed, many flyers and slogans opposing Catherine's "racial unity" and "satire on racial discrimination" were found.

These actions by white supremacists pushed many neutral and sympathetic people to the anti-racist camp, making them the targets of public criticism.

However, this did not improve Catherine's current situation.

Catherine was originally well-prepared.

But the impact of "Wasteland" far exceeded Catherine's judgment, leading to a loss of control...

Especially the Edisons.

When they received the news, they were terrified.

After all, Kennedy was assassinated in November because of the Civil Rights Act, wasn't he?

"Kate, maybe you should go into hiding for a while..."

Emma said to Catherine with concern.

"Yes, do you know? Both sides (racists and anti-racists) are crazy! The whites are crazy! The blacks are crazy! Who knows if the Chinese in Chinatown and the Japanese will also go crazy! Oh, my God, I encountered at least three rallies on my way to the company today, and the police are overwhelmed. It's the first time I've seen the NYPD doing serious work..."

Bruce also complained.

"But what can we do?"

Catherine didn't know what to do after stirring up the hornet's nest.

"I've discussed it with your father, Kate. We've decided to send you to Britain, at least to find your aunt. Remember that assignment on 'genealogy' you did? That was with her help..."

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