The Best Director

Chapter 228: Chapter 228 Sharp Edge Revealed!

As light rock music played, the MIT group members were getting disguised and made up before the action in the hotel room on the big screen, with similar consecutive close-up shots; Natalie put on a golden wig, Alexis donned a black wig… In the 3354 movie theaters’ audience seats, there was silence, but not due to a lack of attendance, not because it was so boring that people fell asleep, but because everyone was watching with excited, rapt attention.

They were finally going to count cards at the casino! After all that learning, they were about to see how they would win the big money! Watching Jeff Ma on the screen put on black-rimmed glasses, Clair, sitting in her seat, excitedly sipped a big gulp of Coke through her straw. What she most looked forward to was just this, making big bucks by using addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division to count cards! She couldn’t do it, but it was great to see how the geniuses did it!

Next to her, Adam’s heart was also beating excitedly. Although he hated how his girlfriend was infatuated with Wang Yang every day, he had to admit that Wang Yang’s movies were always so compelling! It felt like playing “Diablo,” where he had leveled up high and geared up well, and now he was about to go up against a powerful boss!

“Genius, genius, genius…” Evelyn muttered unconsciously a few times, quite moved by the MIT group’s disguises; Kelly glanced at her and muttered, “It hasn’t even started yet.”

In the same theater, Allen Lee, Jonas Lin, Sophia Zhou… and other Asian American viewers were also full of eager anticipation; a very small number of viewers who felt the opening was too long also perked up. For almost all of the 3354 movie theaters’ audiences, this segment was exactly what they had been waiting for, the reason they had come to the cinema: the story of genius students taking Las Vegas by storm! Counting cards!

Watching the familiar scenes of the past on the big screen, Kevin Spacey’s face bore a nostalgic smile. The film had artistic embellishments and fiction, yet it definitely made him relive the passion of those days. It wasn’t the thrill of winning money; it was the youthful feeling of being able to “conquer the world,” and in the entire casino, only they knew what they were doing!

That’s how he put it to Wang Yang, who then said, “Great! I will capture that.”

“To win money, finding the right table is extremely important!” Daniel Wu, dressed as an ordinary office worker, sighed on screen and entered the casino. The camera rotated from a close-up of his face to his back, surveying the scene! Suddenly it flashbacked to the society classroom where Natalie was swiftly writing on the blackboard with chalk, speaking quickly, “One, find a table with fewer people. The fewer the people, the more you play within a shoe…”

Before her voice even finished, the sounds of slot machines began faintly and then grew louder. The brief supplementary course introduction ended in less than ten seconds, and the audience felt “no wonder; these are the team operation details!”

The scene returned to the glittering casino, with Daniel Wu strolling toward the blackjack table inside, curiously scanning around, as the camera slowed down. Slot machine screens spun, the big roulette wheels turned… Gamblers were shouting in excitement and frustration. Their yells of “COME ON!” also gradually became blurred and slow until a female voice timely spoke up: “Card counting is not gambling!”

The camera and sound suddenly resumed normal speed, and the disguised Natalie and others were already seated and in action; seeing the signal from the controller, Alexis casually twirled a lock of hair by her ear with her pinky finger extended. Daniel Wu walked over to her table and sat down, pulling out a stack of cash and smiling at the dealer, “Give me ten thousand in chips.”

At the moment he received the chips, Alexis beside him suddenly murmured in a wronged tone, as if venting, or perhaps speaking to the dealer, “Ah, what should I do? I’ve lost a lot of money! My mom’s definitely going to kill me… that nagging, big-nosed, vulgar, boring woman!”

Nagging = 15 points; Big-nosed = 1/3, about 1/3 of the cards left; Vulgar = 25, there are still 25 ten cards; Boring = 2, there are still 2 Ace cards… Quick cuts made Daniel Wu seem lightning-fast in thought, with voice-over and subtitles clarifying the situation at the table, he placed several chips to bet and join the game, as the dealer dealt each poker card, Daniel Wu quickly calculated the points, 16, 15, 14, 15…

What surprised the audience was that, during the rapid dealing and starting of new rounds, Jeff Ma had already lost several times with small bets, although he had said before that “card counting requires absolute patience.” But they were all a bit impatient, however, the music that should only be heard when blood is pumping gently played in the background. Suddenly, a thought struck Daniel Wu, “17 points, 82 cards remaining, 17 ten cards, 2 Ace cards… It’s time!”

The gradually intensifying music and the phrase “It’s time,” revived the spirits of all the audience members, whether they understood clearly, vaguely, or were completely confused, they could anticipate that Jeff Ma’s showtime had arrived!

“Phew!” Daniel Wu appeared rather agitated on the big screen, grabbing a large stack of chips and pushing them forward for a high bet! The nonchalant dealer continued to deal, with the camera’s shots speeding up and slowing down. A nine of spades and then a nine of diamonds were placed into the betting spot, and in slow motion, Daniel Wu’s voiceover quickly said, “Don’t take a card, the EV value (expected value) is +12%, splitting nines each has an EV value of +10%, both hands mean +20%! Unless the dealer’s face-up card is a 7, 10, and A…”

“Split!” The camera showed the dealer’s six of hearts upcard, Daniel Wu laughed and said something, as Alexis’s finger touched the chips on the table that weren’t bet yet but didn’t pick them up, the subtitle showed, “It’s not advisable to split!” The white dealer asked, “Are you sure?” Ignoring Alexis’s suggestion, Daniel Wu nodded, “I’m sure!”

A jack of spades was dealt, 19 points; followed by an ace of hearts, 20 points! Daniel Wu exclaimed “Oh” with surprise and joy, while Alexis pretended to look envious. The white dealer revealed his hole card to be a ten of diamonds, choosing not to take another card: “Dealer has 16 points!”

“Da da da—” The music abruptly erupted in a climax, the camera focused on the dealer’s hands moving two large stacks of chips out and pushing them towards Daniel Wu, who already had nearly half more than the initial ten thousand chips! Daniel Wu’s lips curled into a smile as he said, “Next round!”

In fast-forward, the chips on the table kept increasing, interspersed with his shouts of joy: “YES!” “Blackjack!”…

“The deck’s gone cold!” Just as the audience was enjoying the feeling of winning and making money, Alexis, holding her few chips, stood up and left. After a close-up of Daniel Wu, the music gradually died down and flashed back to Natalie’s lecture, “Give back! Don’t try to take 100% profit, we’ve made a fortune with 90%!”

Under the fast cuts, Daniel Wu placed several sizable bets and lost before seeming to have had enough and saying, “Turn these chips into cash for me!”

Clutching a roll of over thirty thousand dollars, he stood up and looked back, only to see the MIT team had already switched to different seats. Through a series of quick cuts on the screen, everyone appeared different. Natalie yelled like a gambler who had lost her reason, “Blackjack, blackjack, AAAA… I want blackjack!” Alexis stood by watching the play… Daniel Wu smiled and walked towards Jay Baruchel’s table.

“Hahaha—” The next shot was of the hotel room’s coffee table, where several thick rolls of money were thrown onto it, amid the laughter of men and women, and more rolls of money were tossed into the frame, “Welcome our genius, Jeff Ma!”…

“Phew!” Watching the MIT team members frolic and tally up the spoils of the night, countless viewers felt like Clair, taking a deep breath; card counting is really complicated! Hearing Natalie laugh and say, “One hundred thousand and sixteen hundred dollars!” they all felt a deeply satisfying rush, yet they craved more, although they now had a clearer understanding of card counting, including team operation and the techniques of card counting itself…

Tonight, after watching these gambling scenes, many viewers and film critics naturally thought of The Hangover, thought of Rain Man… and all those gambling movies from the past with blackjack card counting content, which were all full of errors. Messing around like in The Hangover, without any team coordination like in Rain Man and others, never switching tables… That’s no way to win money!

So far, “MIT-21-TEAM” has perfectly showcased card counting and how the MIT team made money. So this is what card counting is, real card counting!

Evelyn wiped the fine sweat from her forehead, excitedly, and exclaimed, “Genius, genius…! So cool!” Kelly nodded and sighed, “Cool!”

“It’s awesome, truly awesome!” Nancy excitedly tugged at her beanie, not only in admiration for the MIT team but also in awe of the magical Yang. From the moment Rachel McAdams appeared, they arrived in Las Vegas, and indeed everything changed! The brightness of the colors on screen, the rapid cuts and transitions… It felt like switching to a different film, or rather, revealing its true face, with an MTV style mixed with a cult film vibe.

What she found even more awesome was that the film didn’t simply deal with the team and the gambling tables. It didn’t betray the psychological expectations set earlier, which, if compared to previous gambling films, is truly astonishing! Gestures, secret codes, team tactics, mathematical theories… without a doubt, Jeff Ma was playing at the most professionally detailed table, and the intricate editing was a treat for the eyes.

Nancy also roughly knew why she thought it was cool. The beautiful cinematography of the gambling scenes was one reason, but more importantly, it was the realism. Realism is cool, and thus, fully restoring realism is the coolest!

Why did people burst out laughing while watching the film? She went to the University of Southern California to study and only after a systematic education did she understand more profoundly. One of the main reasons humans burst out laughing at certain things is the sense of superiority. It’s not exactly about mocking, but the feeling of superiority can bring pleasure, making you feel smarter and stronger than others. Like in The Hangover, the audience feels superior watching people do stupid things and speak foolishly, behaving absurdly and oddly, and they laugh heartily, thoroughly enjoying themselves.

So why do they shout cool? It’s the opposite, lacking a sense of superiority. Seeing others achieve something amazing that they can’t do, convincing them thoroughly, stirring up their own desire for those abilities and experiences, they exclaim cool! Awesome, unbelievable…

The big screen now displays the art of card counting nearly flawlessly, although many people are probably confused by it, she thought the same, but she had already felt a profound admiration, “How are their brains wired? So smart!”

This intense convincing power of the big screen, which leaves no room for doubt, stems from the fact that the movie is based on a true story, as well as these absolutely clear and detailed professional specifics… Thus, a sense of reality and coolness surged in her heart. However, Nancy felt that there must be more than just that, it couldn’t be the most important gambling scene, otherwise it wouldn’t be satisfying enough, yet Wang Yang had said, “It’s very thrilling!”

“Yang, are Jeff and the others really that good?” Jessica’s eyes flickered with disbelief, remembering the many secret signs and hand signals, the ultra-fast mental calculation speed, and the different aspects like counting, 10s, and aces… Seeing Wang Yang nod with a smile: “The techniques are real, their highest record was winning close to a million dollars in one night.” Jessica couldn’t help but exclaim, “I can’t believe it!”

On the other side, Natalie let out several soft, eerie laughs, according to the script of the story, the best part was still to come! Hearing this strange laughter, Rachel turned her head and glanced at Natalie, then burst out laughing too; it was their turn to be cool next.

The mysterious veil of card counting had been completely lifted, so what else could be interesting to watch? This question lingered in the minds of many film critics. Betsy Sharkey of the “Los Angeles Times,” though engrossed and not disappointed, sensed this issue — professional as the gambling and card counting scenes might be, they would need a compelling plot to keep viewers watching! And the movie still had more than an hour to go.

The big screen provided the answer, with the intelligent battle between MIT’s Team 21 and the casinos becoming the theme. As the team attained a qualitative change after receiving an Intel Chip from Jeff Ma, heading to Las Vegas every weekend to sweep the major casinos; meanwhile, under an inverted structure, the role of the female detective Beverly increased, as she searched for clues, investigated and deduced, inching closer to the target.

And because the casinos received information that “they are likely students,” they were closely watching any suspicious young people, and the MIT team, winning big money, also caught the attention of the conservative security teams.

“Madam, madam! Please stop… I know it now, it must be you!” In the dimly lit casino on screen, a burly security manager, with his team, stopped Natalie, who was carrying a bag of chips. With her long brown hair, heavy black eyeshadow, and thick lashes, she spoke French with a confused expression, “De-quoi-tu parles? Quest-ce-qui-me-retient? (What are you talking about? Why are you stopping me like this?)”

The swift switch of camera angles revealed Daniel Wu, Jay Baruchel, Alexis, Karen Mok, and others also looking confused, some acting righteous like foreigners, and others appearing a bit scared but trying to look innocently naive.

Seeing the subtitle translations and their cunning ways, the audience in the theater all smiled amusingly and burst into soft laughter again.

Onscreen, surrounded by the most security, Natalie appeared very angry, like a fierce shrew, pointing at the guards and spewing a mix of English and French in a long tirade, “Casino-est-la-façon-de-traiter-vos-clients-ne!? Baffling! Stupid! Simplement-trop-brutal!… (Is this how your casino treats customers? It’s incomprehensible, foolish, simply too disrespectful!)”

The hapless security manager, who was being berated, gradually looked uncertain, not understanding French, and finally apologized: “Sorry, Madam, we have disturbed you! We wish you a pleasant time in our casino.” But Natalie, seizing the advantage, continued to scold angrily, “Stupid! Crétin! Stupid!” Under the screen, numerous fans couldn’t help but mutter, “This girl is cool—!”

Several different male voices apologized at once, “Sorry, to interrupt!” Suddenly, the sound of a rock song “Ding! Dong dong dong dong,” filled the air, AC/DC’s “T.N.T.” In the video, the previously bewildered and scared Alexis raised her feet, and a close-up of her face revealed a playful smile; accompanied by the “Oi, oi, oi, oi” of the music, smiling faces flashed one after another, and Natalie, who had finished cursing, turned around, wickedly twitching the corner of her mouth.

“See-me-ride-out-of-the-sunset! …” As the fiery song played on, the MIT team members, in slow-motion edits, calmly exchanged chips, and left with an easy smile. They met one by one in the hallway, outside the hotel, climbed into a convertible, and as they sang “T.n.t.-and-I’ll-win-the-fight,” they returned to normal camera speed. The sports car flew down the road with Jay Baruchel driving, Daniel Wu and others changing outfits and wigs… heading to the next casino!

It was so exhilarating! The audience in 3,354 cinemas felt their emotions surging; some even couldn’t help but want to whistle, finding these geniuses too arrogant and too cool! Clair clenched her fist and raised it a little, repeatedly murmuring, “Cool, cool!” She wanted to see this group conquer Las Vegas! To take Las Vegas by storm!

Yet another segment that made the blood boil and filled with a sense of achievement, a perfect fusion of music and cinematography!

Nancy took a deep breath, as did many film critics, finding the feeling of dominating the gambling city hard to resist, they could only marvel at how daring and emotionally engaging Wang Yang’s work was! Earlier, the scene depicting the MIT team sweeping through the casinos during the summer with “Shoot-you!” had already been immensely satisfying, and now, after outsmarting the casino security, it offered a different kind of thrill.

But then, the audience’s excitement began to calm as the plot and scenery shifted back to Boston, showing the busy life of the MIT team “juggling both sides,” winning big in Las Vegas over the weekend and facing a calculus exam on Monday morning! On the big screen, the weary Jeff Ma was furiously scribbling in the classroom, yawning from time to time as he fluently completed the exam; the role of the student cameoed by Wang Yang appeared again, pressing his ballpoint pen, staring painfully at the exam paper.

“Wow, SO-COOL!” Evelyn exclaimed with hearts all over her face, “Would Wang Yang be even more handsome playing Jeff Ma?” Kelly shrugged, “I have no objections, but can Wang Yang act that many roles? This one…” she thought for a moment before saying, “I think this Daniel is doing very well.”

The story on the big screen continued. The MIT team had fully realized the change in the casinos’ attitude and guessed that someone was investigating them. They discussed strategies and continued to cunningly spar with Las Vegas, including a scene not in reality but in the novel, where the team, to divert attention, gathered several dozen strippers to exchange chips and so on.

On the other hand, the female detective was closing in, leading to a chase scene where only the silhouettes could be seen. Almost caught, the proud MIT team decided to prank their pursuers: “Let’s give him something fun to chase!”

“Zzz—” On the screen, in the suburban outskirts of Las Vegas, a large empty sandy piece of land during bright daylight, Rachel, wearing a detective-style coat, followed the clues on a piece of paper and arrived at the location, heading towards a prominent “big rock.” Suddenly, three black spheres appeared not far from the ground around her, forming a triangle and rapidly expanding…

Rachel immediately wanted to step back in confusion, but before she could run away, the three giant black spheres burst with a “bang,” and a flurry of playing cards flew into the sky! In slow motion, they fluttered down like rain, completely enveloping the detective with paper cards.

“Cool!” That one word was tirelessly repeated in over three thousand movie theaters by audiences who, mouth agape with laughter, couldn’t count how many times they had said it tonight—Clair wasn’t sure either. Was it fifty, a hundred? The MIT crew was just too entertaining!

They shone brightly! Many film critics immediately thought of the same praise. Watching the beautifully slow-motion scene on the screen, Walter Addiego of the San Francisco Chronicle felt both unsurprised and thrilled. He was taken by everything—the characters and plot of the movie, the team behind it led by the director, the dialogue, shots, editing, music…

It was all so sharp and distinct! Walter Addiego thought he would probably have to use the word COOL in his review too.

In the big screen, Rachel reached out to catch a playing card that flew towards her face. She flipped it over to look—it was the queen of spades. As cards rained down, Rachel flashed a faint smile, realizing she had been fooled. She was about to walk away when her brow furrowed in doubt. She took another look at the queen of spades in her hand she hadn’t yet discarded and then the camera followed her gaze to the floor where it focused on several face cards, then on another queen of spades.

The designs on the two queen of spades cards were different! The audience knew trouble was looming—the MIT team had outsmarted themselves! Rachel’s eyes darted around, scanning the KQJA cards scattered across the floor. There were two distinct designs: one in abundance and one scarce. The abundant ones were classic Las Vegas, the style commonly seen in the West, while the scarce ones…

The camera zoomed in on the rare queen of spades in Rachel’s hand, growing until it filled the entire screen, then shrinking until the scene shifted to an office where the detective was now in front of a computer. Looking at the identical queen of spades on the screen, she whispered with a soft laugh, “Boston.”

Unbeknownst to the MIT team, the detective had arrived in Boston, first setting her sights on MIT, known for its math prowess and pranks. Snowflakes fluttered down the pathways of the MIT campus, and the dimly lit streetlights cast a peaceful winter night’s ambiance. Rachel in her white coat brushed past Natalie in her black coat.

“Oh.” Seeing this, the audience grew tense, while those with a keen sensibility sensed even more. They had been sparring without ever meeting face to face, and now they had finally encountered each other! Evelyn’s heart skipped a beat; feeling that as the two of them passed each other in the scene, either time slowed or their steps did, making the air feel almost frozen…

Their gazes seemed to bristle like a cat’s, yet also seemed like old friends reuniting after a long separation.

So beautiful! Watching the two close-ups and then the side long shot, with the snowflakes still dancing and the two women walking farther apart, Nancy couldn’t help but cheer silently. It was not just this scene, but the whole movie approaching its end, filled with many very unique, very beautiful shots… Contrasting with the explosive rock ambiance of the casino, these scenes felt comfortable and memorable, making her feel as if she were right there.

Though they had known all along that the MIT team would eventually be caught and blacklisted from the casinos, the audience still felt a sense of loss and sighed when the female detective followed the trail in her investigation, finally catching the conceited geniuses with her security team during one of the MIT team’s operations.

Outsmarting oneself, sometimes the greatest enemy is oneself; sometimes a slip occurs in an inadvertent moment, just like when they inadvertently inserted the practice cards they brought from Boston into the balloon.

“Game over,” Rachel slowly approached through the path cleared by the security guards, a smile hanging at the corner of her mouth as she looked at the MIT group opposite her, her eyes filled with a sense of victory.

The members of the MIT group had varying expressions. Alexis said angrily, “Are you a superhero? Casinos aren’t gods; they’re not entitled to rake in money. We were just making legal gains off them!” She mocked, “You’re helping the casino – you’re just aiding an evil devil!”

“I’m sorry?” Rachel tilted her ear slightly, bewildered, and a wicked smile began to spread across her face, one that made most of the audience want to punch her. Devilishly, her features turned slightly fierce. Evelyn in front of the screen shivered, feeling suddenly as if her heart were blocked and uncomfortable. Rachel looked up slightly with a derisive and increasingly fierce laugh, “What’s that to me? Let those idiots dreaming of getting rich overnight die; let them go! That’s legal too.”

“But I have no interest in that, what I’m interested in is catching you guys.”

“Game over.” Just as Daniel Wu beside her was about to say something, Natalie suddenly chuckled with a dash of flair. Ignoring the female detective, she picked up a large bag full of chips and looked at the menacing head of security, asking, “By the way, these chips can still be exchanged, right?”

Is this how it ends? Is the legend of the MIT-21-TEAM coming to an end? The audience in the MIT camp felt a bit unwilling to let go, Clair and Adam both shook their heads with a sigh, discussing, “Such a pity.” The surrounding audience similarly let out soft sighs.

But the MIT members on the screen suggested that maybe there was still one chance! Listening to their laughter, the audience immediately revived in spirit. It turned out that the big headshots of Jeff Ma and others taken were all in disguise; their true faces had never been used!

The facial recognition systems of that era were still limited to research; ARPA (Advanced Research Projects Agency of the Department of Defense) and ARL Company had just established the FERET database for testing. It wasn’t until after the year 2000 that facial recognition algorithms began to mature, and commercial facial recognition systems appeared. So, at that time, casinos had only surveillance cameras and stored headshots, relying on cash loss alerts at the tables, then manually identifying and expelling the card counters.

In reality, after people like Kevin Spacey were caught for the first time, they remained active for a few more years until the late 90s when they became too well-known, and even small casinos treated them as “honored guests.” It was then that the MIT21 group announced their disbandment.

In the story on the screen, the female detective was outsmarted by her own cleverness, having failed to thoroughly check their true identities, and the casinos filled with delight had also been careless; a single oversight could allow the MIT group to be caught, as well as for the casinos to suffer a thorough bleed.

With a ‘bang’, the car door opened.

Amidst the gradually stirring music, at night, outside the Caesars Palace hotel, Daniel Wu in a black suit, and Natalie in a similarly black business suit with sunglasses stepped out of a black sedan. In slow motion, Natalie slowly took off her sunglasses, bit on the orange temples, and smiled wickedly, “Let’s do something fun!” Daniel said softly with a laugh, “Winner-winner, Chicken-dinner.”

The two walked towards the hotel entrance with an unrestrained stride, Daniel with one hand in his pocket, Natalie with a smile, biting on her sunglasses, and made a shooting gesture towards the hotel… The car that followed came to a stop, and the door opened, revealing Alexis and Jay Baruchel, also without makeup, getting out of the car…

As the thrilling music played, and the MIT members either got out of the car or entered the hotel in slow motion, the audience couldn’t help but feel excited, their heart rates accelerating!

“Cool—!” Clair bit her lip excitedly and made shooting gestures toward the screen several times. She realized that a real sweep was about to take place! It would surely be more thrilling than any previous card-counting heist, because this time the two big players were uniting!

The audience’s breathing grew heavier around her, the emotions built up all night ready to erupt! The conquest of Las Vegas!

More slow motion! Nancy couldn’t help but smile; so many slow and long shots had been used throughout the movie, but such shots were just too cool! Knowing full well it was just showing off, she willingly fell for it, it was just too cool, too brash! Indeed, slow motion was the epitome of cool…

Only a dozen minutes remained in the film, and undoubtedly, what followed would be the climax, the most crucial gambling scene of the whole movie. She thought… it would indeed be as thrilling as Wang Yang had said!

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PS: ^0^ Wow! Lee knows it’s frustrating to break the story here, but it’s too late. To ensure quality, the continuation will come tomorrow. Thank you for your support! Those with tickets, throw some to Wow! Lee, yeah! (To be continued, for further developments, please log on to www.qidian.com. There are more chapters, support the author, support genuine reading!)