After watching the second trailer of Lucy, Vincenzo was extremely excited.
With the unknown parts of the plot filled in, he quickly wrote on his blog:
"After watching the trailer, I have pieced together the storyline of Lucy."
"The story begins with Scarlett being persuaded by her boyfriend to deliver that silver-white case. We don't know what's inside, but it might have something to do with the superpowers inside Scarlett's body."
"After entering the hotel, a shooting occurs. Her boyfriend is killed, and Scarlett is taken by the security guards to the villain's room."
"Here, two voices appear—one old, one young. I suspect they belong to a father and son villain duo. When I zoomed in on Scarlett's shocked expression by fifty times, I vaguely saw a fully metallic figure. Just like the cybernetic prosthetic on the poster, I believe this should be a cyborg, possibly the villain's son."
"Next, at the 1-minute-12-second mark, I captured a scene where Scarlett is fighting others in a room. The red and yellow color scheme, sculptures, and décor match the place where she was kidnapped. So, I suspect that after being captured, she accidentally comes into contact with something that grants her abilities, leading her to fight the villain's son."
"After defeating the villain's son, Scarlett's brain development begins to soar. The scene at the 1-minute-21-second mark, where she is wearing a hospital gown, might indicate that she visits a hospital to understand her condition, only to be surrounded by police."
"The key thing is that these superpower scenes are not all coming from Scarlett alone. I noticed that the hands performing telekinesis had painted nails, which doesn't match Scarlett's character design. So, there must be other superpowered villains in the movie."
"As for those bombers, I identified them as B-52 bombers, which are still in active service today. This makes me suspect that the military might be involved, possibly as the masterminds behind everything."
After finishing his analysis of the trailer, Vincenzo admired his work, then hit "Send."
He then shared the article's link on various film forums.
Sipping on his soda, he eagerly watched his website's traffic counter.
In no time, the quiet numbers started jumping—1, 2, 5, 10…
Within moments, there were over a hundred views.
"So fast!" Vincenzo's excitement soared. This was the first time he truly felt the joy of traffic. When he checked the article, he saw two new comments.
HorrorGlasses: "I think your theory about the father-son villain duo is questionable. I feel like he's more of a subordinate."
"That makes sense." Vincenzo thought for a moment and didn't argue.
After all, the trailer didn't contain enough dialogue to confirm their relationship.
He then refreshed the video site and noticed that the displayed brain development progress had reached 7%.
"So fast! At this rate, we might hit 20% by tomorrow. I wonder what new content will be unlocked then?"
"Man, Ethan, this idea is so sneaky," Jimmy commented as he walked into Ethan's office after work to chat.
"20%, 40%, 60%… Look at these forums—people are already dragging their family members to sign up just to watch the video." Jimmy placed his bulky IBM laptop on his lap, talking excitedly.
"It's a win-win. The website gains users, and I gain attention," Ethan chuckled. "Once they hit 100%, I'll release the third trailer."
"That's so evil, Ethan. The audience is like fish on a hook, and you've got them biting hard." Jimmy sighed in admiration before asking, "So what kind of content is being unlocked at each milestone?"
Ethan shrugged. "That's a trade secret."
"Oh, come on, Ethan. Spill it." Jimmy was eager to know more about Superbody.
"Alright." Seeing that Jimmy wasn't going to give up, Ethan finally answered, "Behind-the-scenes footage and character design photos."
"That's it?" Jimmy was surprised. It didn't seem like Ethan's usual style—too plain.
"It's more than enough. You can't let the audience feel satisfied. If they're satisfied, they won't be as eager to watch the movie." Ethan understood the importance of keeping the audience hooked. Every new piece of content had to deepen their curiosity.
"Alright, I guess I'll just wait and see for myself."
A week later, Lucy's brain development progress on the video site had reached 85%.
During this week, Vincenzo and Milon had been closely following all the new material released by Superbody.
At the 20% milestone, the production team released behind-the-scenes footage.
The clips showcased various fight scenes, glimpses of the military, and shots of fighter jets. Though the details were minimal, the high production value was evident in every frame.
Director Ethan also made an appearance, discussing the challenges of filming in 3D.
It was only then that audiences started paying attention to the film's heavy emphasis on 3D visuals.
"Is 3D really that amazing?" Vincenzo had never watched a 3D movie before, but he knew that in a month, the highly anticipated Avatar, with its reported $250 million budget, was set to release. Maybe then, he would know if 3D films could truly succeed.
At the 40% milestone, new content featured interviews with the lead actors. They shared fun anecdotes from the filming process, sparking fans' imaginations.
At the 60% milestone, the reveal was a set of character photos—including Scarlett, Morgan Freeman, and the film's two villains: Rob Sari and Choi Min-sik.
Vincenzo was thrilled by their inclusion. But even more exciting were their cybernetic prosthetics.
Rob Sari, in particular, looked incredibly cool with his black-and-silver cybernetic body. His hard-edged metallic aesthetic, intricate mechanical components, and mysterious facial metal engravings made him stand out with a unique, futuristic charm.
"This design is amazing! The perfect fusion of flesh and machine!" Vincenzo was so inspired that he even considered painting silver metal patterns on his own face to mimic the film's villains.
And with this new set of photos, even more details about the movie became clear.
Especially the worldbuilding—it suddenly made complete sense.
"So it's cyberpunk," Vincenzo muttered after researching the genre.
He was instantly fascinated by it and began exploring other cyberpunk works.
Milon, on the other hand, wasn't as interested in cyberpunk aesthetics. While it looked cool, it wasn't enough to make him dive in headfirst.
Instead, he and Judy were busy watching the 80% milestone content.
It was a lecture by an unfamiliar neuroscientist, recorded from a hidden camera perspective. The footage showed an audience listening intently to a lecture on brain development.
The scientist explained concisely, "The human brain is an endless treasure trove..." He elaborated on theories of brain potential, scientific advancements in neuroscience, and current research projects in the U.S.
At the end, he even mentioned Area 51, extraterrestrials, and secret Soviet experiments as supporting evidence.
In the U.S., Area 51 is a well-known military base, and whether real alien corpses exist there has always been a topic of discussion.
Now that the neuroscientist linked aliens with brain development, it seemed to make perfect sense.
Milon and Judy were fascinated. When the video ended, Judy asked Milon, "Does brain development really have such incredible power? A 500% increase in IQ? Super memory? Various supernatural abilities?"
"I don't know, but I think the expert made a good point. Maybe aliens are just humans who have developed their brains beyond 50%," Milon replied.
"Then how did they die?" Judy was puzzled.
"Because although their brains are highly developed, their bodies are very fragile. They must rely on spacecraft for protection. If their ship malfunctions and crashes, they wouldn't be able to survive."
That was the neuroscientist's speculation in the video.
Judy frowned. "But why would their spacecraft malfunction? That doesn't make sense—they're so advanced."
"Yeah, I don't know." Milon shrugged and casually said, "Maybe Earth has some kind of defense mechanism?"
Then he added, "Alright, don't dwell on those minor details. We only need 15% more to unlock the third promotional video."
"But all my friends have already watched it," Judy shook her head.
"Same here." For the first time, Milon was frustrated that he didn't have more friends.
"Looks like we'll have to go on the forums and pull in some people to watch the video."
While audiences were passionately discussing Lucy, Avatar finally hit North American theaters on December 18.
Ethan was invited to its premiere.
When a reporter stopped him, they asked, "Ethan, which movie do you think will have a higher box office—Lucy or Avatar?"
The question was somewhat sharp, but Ethan smiled and replied, "I believe James Cameron's Avatar will be a milestone in film history. This movie will start a 3D revolution, allowing every movie fan to experience the magic of 3D cinema."
"Lucy is also a 3D film. We used the same technical standards as James Cameron's team, so in terms of visual effects, we are just as advanced. If you think Avatar looks great, you'll feel the same about Lucy."
The reporter, caught off guard by Ethan's promotional plug, looked a bit awkward since they didn't get the answer they wanted.
But Ethan didn't care and walked straight into the theater.
Over two hours later, Avatar's premiere concluded. At the same time, moviegoers everywhere were raving about how the film was ahead of its time!
"Although the story is a bit cliché, the movie creates a whole new world of Pandora!"
This was the unanimous evaluation from media and film critics. While they weren't completely satisfied with Cameron's storytelling, the 3D effects were so stunning that they overshadowed all flaws.
Avatar quickly took off at the box office.
It broke through $100 million, $200 million, and $300 million.
By the 32nd day of its release, its North American box office alone had reached a staggering $500 million!
That was already the total global revenue for many blockbuster films.
But Avatar had done it in just one month, surpassing The Dark Knight's 45-day record.
Its global performance was even more astonishing—China brought in 1.3 billion yuan, Russia reached $100 million, and its total global box office hit $1.3 billion.
In just one month, Avatar grossed $1.8 billion.
Cameron's ability to generate revenue was undeniable. Once again, he proved his status as a top-tier director.
Instantly, every Hollywood studio put 3D movies on their agenda. Even films that had already been shot were being converted to 3D just to grab a share of the market.
At this moment, Ethan's promotional campaign went full throttle. Ads began appearing on major radio stations, TV networks, and billboards.
"This is the top 3D movie after Avatar!"
The ad was extremely simple, just one line, but it was enough to grab attention.
Many viewers, upon seeing this slogan, immediately focused on the movie.
"Does it really have Avatar-level 3D effects?"
"Are there action scenes?"
"Is it set on another planet?"
"Will the storyline be more interesting?"
These questions flooded the media, prompting journalists to investigate Lucy and provide answers in their articles.
Among those benefiting most from this surge in interest was Vincenzo.
The official Norton's Eye website recommended several high-quality articles, including Vincenzo's blog.
Within two weeks, his blog attracted over 100,000 users, and every one of his articles received more than 999 comments. Everyone was discussing Lucy, praising his in-depth analysis, making him ecstatic.
Seizing the opportunity, he borrowed a camera and started filming his first video analysis.
After an entire day of effort, he finally, albeit clumsily, completed his first video.
Normally, writing articles didn't take him this long, but being on camera was a real challenge for him.
However, after uploading the video, its growth didn't match his blog's success. It only got 2,000 views overnight, with very few comments.
Vincenzo felt his lack of fluency on camera was dragging the video down.
"Maybe I should wear a mask?" He glanced at a gorilla mask on the wall and thought about trying a new style. Wearing a mask might help him be himself again.
Besides Vincenzo, other creators analyzing Lucy were also gaining attention. Suddenly, analyzing Lucy became a trend in the movie community. Everyone was scrambling to come up with fresh insights to prove they were the ultimate expert on the film.
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