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How Real is Reality TV?

真人秀有幾分真?

No doubt you've seen the famous YouTube footage of Susan Boyle wowing the judges and audience on the UK show Britains Got Talent. It was a surprise for everyone when this dumpy middle-aged woman burst out into glorious song. Many thought she was a surefire victor of the competition, where acts are gradually eliminated each week until only a few remain, but she was frustrated at the last moment by dance group Diversity. But what went on behind the scenes at the show?

毫無疑問,你們肯定已經(jīng)欣賞了蘇珊?博伊爾在英國電視節(jié)目《英國達人》上令評委和觀眾贊揚不已的著名YouTube片段。當(dāng)這位又矮又胖的中年婦女唱起優(yōu)美的歌曲時,眾人皆感到驚奇。許多人都認為比賽冠軍非她莫屬,每周都有選手被淘汰,后來只剩下少數(shù)幾個人,但她在最后關(guān)頭敗給舞蹈組合“多樣化”。不過舞臺的背后都發(fā)生了什么事呢?

So-called 'reality' TV shows are almost always carefully manipulated by the programmers. One of the differences between them and documentaries is that documentaries are normally filmed in their entirety, then broadcast later, whereas 'reality TV' continues week-by-week. As a result, the directors of the show can manipulate the storylines in order to react to public opinion, pushing some forward and letting others drop. Careful editing can make people appear stupid, kind, or wise as the directors want, especially using scenes shot outside the main studio - if the directors want one competitor to win, for example, they'll show lots of shots of them with family. Equally, off-screen questions – not included in the final edit – can be used to prompt competitors into saying foolish or arrogant things.

所謂的電視“真人”秀幾乎都由節(jié)目編導(dǎo)牢牢操縱。它們和紀錄片的不同之一在于,紀錄片通常先全部拍完,然后再播放,而“電視真人秀”則是一周一次。因此,真人秀的導(dǎo)演為了回應(yīng)公眾的反應(yīng),會操縱情節(jié),讓一些人晉級,讓其他人落敗。經(jīng)過認真的編輯,人們可以按照導(dǎo)演的要求,顯得愚蠢、善良,或者聰明,拍攝外景時尤其如此。例如,如果導(dǎo)演希望一位選手獲勝,就會播出很多其與家人在一起的鏡頭。同樣,舞臺下的問題雖然不在最終節(jié)目里,但卻能促使選手出言愚蠢或傲慢。

This process of selection and editing takes place at every level of the competition. For instance, it's extremely unlikely that the judging panel – or at least the head, Simon Cowell – didn't know about Boyle's vocal ability beforehand. Out of the thousands of thousands of applicants, only a few dozen are actually filmed and screened, and all of those would have been heard and recorded by production assistants first. It's likely, in fact, that the makeup department deliberately made Boyle seem even frumpier in order to create a greater contrast with her voice and make a bigger impact.

比賽的每一個階段都有選擇與編輯。比如,評審團(至少是團長西蒙?考威爾)事先不可能不了解博伊爾的歌唱才華。報名者成千上萬,但只有一小部分真正拍攝并播放,所有的這些事先都由制作助理收聽并錄制下來。其實,化妝部門可能故意使博伊爾顯得邋遢不堪,目的是使她同其聲音形成更強烈的反差,并產(chǎn)生更大影響。

After Boyle's initial sensational appearance, there were a number of stories in the press about her which made her appear in a worse light. Some of these were likely leaked to the media by the staff of Britain's Got Talent, looking to 'keep the story alive' and to generate more conflict at the end – after all, a shock victory is a more newsworthy story than the favorite winning!

博伊爾首次閃亮登場后,媒體上有大量關(guān)于她的報道,使她顯得更糟糕。一些是《英國達人》節(jié)目工作人員透露給媒體的,目的是“讓故事繼續(xù)下去”,并最終引起更多爭議——畢竟,爆冷門比眾望所歸的獲勝更有新聞價值。

Boyle wasn't the first favorite to be pipped at the post. The first British Pop Idol became a face-off between shy, stammering Gareth Gates, and the charming, boyish Will Young. Gates, whose story of overcoming his stammer in order to become a singer appealed to grannies and teenage girls alike, was odds-on favorite to win after topping the voting in previous rounds, but Young took the final victory. Boyle's reportedly checked in to the Priory, a mental health clinic for celebrities, to cope with the stress of losing. Don't feel too sorry for the losers, though – Gates went on to a six million pound singing career anyway! The exposure alone normally guarantees people a place in the celebrity world, although their musical careers tend to be short-lived and unoriginal; Boyle will no doubt be on stage yet.

博伊爾并非第一個功敗垂成的熱門人選。首屆《英國流行偶像》成了害羞而口吃的格瑞?蓋茨同魅力男孩威爾?楊的對峙。無論是耄耋老太還是花季少女,都被蓋茨為了成為歌手而克服口吃的故事所感動,他在之前幾輪的投票中位居榜首,是奪冠的大熱門,但最終的冠軍則屬于楊。報道稱博伊爾曾到“小修道院”(一家針對明星的精神健康診所)排解失敗之痛。不過不要為失敗者感到太傷心,蓋茨唱歌掙了600萬英鎊!曝光通常能確保藝人在演藝圈有一席之地,但他們的音樂生涯往往是曇花一現(xiàn),還缺乏原創(chuàng)性,不過博伊爾無疑還將在舞臺上活躍。

Star Trek

《星空奇遇記》

This year's Star Trek movie was a charming hit, a revival of a stale franchise that appealed to both old and new fans. It was a great film, but for millions unfamiliar with the series, perhaps a little confusing; what exactly is Star Trek? There are TV shows, films, books – where to start?

今年的大片《星空奇遇記》風(fēng)靡一時,老戲新演,新老粉絲皆喜愛。這是部優(yōu)秀的電影,但成百上千萬不熟悉該系列的人可能會感到有些迷惑不解,究竟什么是《星空奇遇記》?有電視版、電影版和小說版,先看什么呢?

Star Trek originally started in 1966 as a TV series, the brainchild of producer Gene Roddenberry. It was meant to depict a semi-utopian future, where the basic problems of want and prejudice had been solved, and mankind was instead dedicated to exploring the stars. The Starship Enterprise, led by Captain Kirk, was charged with 'seeking out new life and new civilizations' and 'to boldly go where no man has gone before.' Its crew was, for the time, extremely multiethnic, including Japanese, African, and Russian – although the black woman was still basically a secretary, doing little beyond answering the phones! The show became a sci-fi showcase, with scripts contributed by many popular writers of the time, such as Harlan Ellison, Robert Bloch, and Theodore Sturgeon; one week the Enterprise would be travelling in time, the next encountering god-like alien beings, overrun by cute furry aliens, or dealing with intergalactic con artists. The show worked because of the appealing trifecta of heroic, emotional Kirk, his coolly detached alien science officer Spock, and the older, cynical Dr McCoy. It only ran for three seasons, and much of it looks outdated nowadays, but its energy and charm still make many episodes worth watching.

《星空奇遇記》誕生于1966年,起初是一部電視連續(xù)劇,由制作人吉恩?蘭登伯利一手打造。它意在描繪一個半烏托邦的未來,那時候欲望和偏見等基本問題已得到解決,人類轉(zhuǎn)而去探尋星系。在科克船長的帶領(lǐng)下,星艦奮進號擔(dān)負起“尋找新生命和新文明”和“勇敢前往無人去過的地方”的使命。在當(dāng)時,它上面的船員非常多民族化,包括日本人、非洲人和俄羅斯人,不過其中的非洲女人只是個秘書,做些接電話的瑣事!該劇成了科幻小說的“櫥窗”,當(dāng)時許多廣受歡迎的作家都為其提供劇本,如哈蘭?埃里森、羅伯特?布洛克和西奧多?史鐸金;這一周奮進號會進行時空穿梭,下周就會遇到神一般的外星生物,被毛茸茸的可愛外星人侵占,或者同星系間的慣偷斗智斗勇。該劇之所以取得成功,在于勇敢而情緒化的科克船長的三連勝,帥氣而超然的科學(xué)官斯布克和老頑童麥考伊醫(yī)生。它只播出了三季,現(xiàn)在看起來大多內(nèi)容已過時,但它充滿活力與魅力,許多劇集仍值得一看。

After the show's cancellation, a dedicated group of fans kept support for the show going, including an animated series and numerous conventions. Eventually a Star Trek film was produced; although not a great success, it spawned a sequel, which was a huge hit and revised the franchise. As a result, a new TV show was launched, Star Trek: The Next Generation in 1987. More cerebral and less energetic than the original, it ran for many seasons and was a solid hit, making a star out of Patrick Stewart, who played the older, thoughtful captain Jean-Luc Picard. It seems a little dull nowadays, but is still worth watching if nothing else was on. Three more spin-off series were created. Star Trek: Deep Space Nine is the most interesting, with a darker universe and more complicated continuing plot than its predecessors. Set on a single fixed starbase, it had to rely on character drama rather than the planet-of-the-week of other shows. Star Trek: Voyager and Star Trek: Enterprise are, unfortunately, ninety percent crap; skip them entirely.

該劇停播后,不少忠實的粉絲一直支持該劇播下去,包括一個動畫版和許多真人版。最終《星空奇遇記》的電影版出爐,雖然沒取得巨大成功,但衍生了一部續(xù)集,后者大受歡迎,改變整個系列的命運。一部新的電視劇隨后問世,即1987年的《星空奇遇記:新一代》。它同原版相比,多了幾分智慧,少了幾分吵鬧,播出了好多季,深受歡迎,捧紅了帕特里克?斯圖爾特(更年長、更有智慧的船長讓?盧克?畢凱的扮演者)?，F(xiàn)在看來,它似乎有些無聊,但如果沒有別的可看,還是值得一看的。它衍生了三部連續(xù)劇。《星空奇遇記:深空九號》是最有趣味的,那里的太空更加深邃,劇情更加復(fù)雜。由于其背景是一個固定的太空站,因此它必須依靠角色,而在其它劇集中,艦船每周都會飛往一個新的星球。很遺憾,《星空奇遇記:航海家號》和《星空奇遇記:奮進號》非常糟糕,這里就不加以敘述了。

Of the previous Star Trek films, only a handful are worth watching. Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan is a swashbuckling classic with a tremendous villain, the best of the movies and a fun ride even if you don't know the series at all. Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home is an amusing time-travel comedy where the Enterprise visits 1980s San Francisco to help save the whales. Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country is a complicated and moody piece about the difficulties of war and peace, made at the end of the Cold War; a good film, but you need to be familiar with the characters and background to understand it. The other movies are largely missable – Star Trek V is especially bad. The first two Next Generation movies are also moderately good fun, though the last two are terrible. There are also numerous novels and comic books set in the Star Trek world, but these are only really worth reading if you really enjoy the TV series!

在之前的《星空奇遇記》系列電影中,只有一部分值得看?！缎强掌嬗鲇汭I:可汗的憤怒》是經(jīng)典的俠盜片,有可怕的反派角色,是整個系列中最好的一部,即使你對這個系列一點也不了解,也會覺得它看著很過癮。《星空奇遇記IV:搶救未來》是一部有趣的時間穿梭喜劇,電影里奮進號前往1980年代的舊金山,幫助搶救鯨魚?！缎强掌嬗鲇沄I:未知國度》拍攝于冷戰(zhàn)末期,講述了戰(zhàn)爭與和平的困難,劇情復(fù)雜、壓抑,是部好電影,但你必須先熟悉人物和背景才能看懂。其他幾部可忽略不計,其中《星空奇遇記V》尤其垃圾。頭兩部《新一代》電影挺有趣,但最后兩部則非常糟糕。以《星空奇遇記》為背景的小說和漫畫書很多,但如果你真的喜歡電視版,那只有幾部值得看。

Chuck

《超市特工》

It's time to catch this likeable, funny series before it probably gets cancelled. Despite being a cult success, this show about a charming geek who accidentally becomes the repository of a ton of secret government information hasn't quite matched up in the ratings. It's been given another chance next season, though with a reduced episode order and a shrunk budget it's touch and go whether it'll pull through. We can only put this down to bad taste on the part of American audiences; it's a very good series.

在它可能被砍掉之前,我們來看看這部有趣的連續(xù)劇。該劇講述了一名偶然掌握政府大量秘密情報的魅力奇客的故事,受到觀眾的追捧,但收視率低迷。它已獲得再拍一季的機會,不過集數(shù)減少,預(yù)算萎縮,很難確定它是否會度過難關(guān)。我們只能將其受冷落歸結(jié)為美國觀眾的品位低下,它的確是一部優(yōu)秀的電視劇。

Chuck Bartowski (played by Zachary Levi) is a member of the 'Nerd Herd' at 'Buy More' superstore (a version of the real life 'Geek Squad' at BestBuy, a technical support group). After being framed for cheating by the man he thought was his best friend and kicked out of Stanford a few years ago, his life doesn't seem to be going anywhere – until said best friend, now a rogue CIA agent, sends him an e-mail which implants top-secret government information in his brain. As a result, he's forcibly drafted into intelligence work – including a glamorous CIA protector, played by the gorgeous Yvonne Strahovski, who pretends to be his girlfriend as part of her cover identity.

恰克?巴特維斯基(扎迦利?利瓦伊飾)是“買多多”超市“電器修理小組”(就像現(xiàn)實生活中百思買超市的“奇客小組”,即技術(shù)支持小組)中的一員。幾年前,他被自認為最好的朋友陷害,并被斯坦福大學(xué)開除。之后,他的生活似乎已無路可走,直到那個現(xiàn)在已經(jīng)是中央情報局流氓特工的“最好朋友”給他發(fā)了一封電子郵件,他將政府的頂級機密牢牢記在腦海。因此,他被迫去從事情報工作,一名迷人的中央情報局特工(大美女伊馮?斯徹霍斯基飾)假裝成他的女朋友,負責(zé)保護他。

One of the best things about the series is Adam Baldwin as the hard-nosed NSA agent Casey, also assigned to guard Chuck. Baldwin is great at playing this kind of tough, funny badass, as he showed in another great cult show, Firefly. Casey is forced to work alongside Bartowksi and his co-workers at the Buy More as Chuck tries to balance the two halves of his life, keeping his secret from his best friend, Morgan, and his beloved sister Elie.

該電視劇的亮點之一是頑固的國安局特工凱西(亞當(dāng)?鮑爾溫飾),他也受命保護恰克。鮑爾溫扮演這種強硬而滑稽的負面角色得心應(yīng)手,跟他在另外一部怪誕片《螢火蟲》中一樣。凱西被迫同巴特維斯基及其同事一起在買多多超市工作,恰克努力平衡他的兩種生活,向他最好的朋友摩根和深愛的姐姐艾麗隱瞞自己的秘密。

The show is a nice combination of gentle humor, character development, and action scenes – including at least one good fight scene an episode. Well-written, well-acted, and generally good fun, you should check it out while it lasts.

該劇帶著幾分幽默,角色的發(fā)展與動作場景巧妙融合其中,每集至少有一處打斗場景。劇本出彩,演員表演精湛,挺好的一部片子,不妨趁它還在播看一看。

Truly Bloody – The Southern Vampire Mysteries

南方吸血鬼謎案系列小說

It's a pleasure to be able to recommend a good vampire series for once; most of the entries in this genre, particularly the bloody awful but also appallingly popular Twilight series, are crap. The 'Southern Vampire Mysteries' are set in a world where vampires have 'come out of the coffin' (a parody of the expression for gay men becoming open about their sexuality, 'coming out of the closet') and become a legal part of American society. Sookie Stackhouse is a young, blond Southern waitress with an unfortunate gift – she's telepathic, and she can't turn it off, so she's constantly assaulted with other people's thoughts. When a hundred and thirty year old vampire, Bill, walks into her diner, she finds herself drawn in to the world of vampires and other supernatural beings. With nine books so far, the series has proved very popular among those looking for both a good vampire story and a decent mystery – Bill is a kind of vampire detective, and Sookie inevitably ends up helping him.

很樂意向大家推薦一套好的吸血鬼系列;大多數(shù)此種類型的書都是垃圾,糟糕透頂?shù)惓Ｊ軞g迎的《暮光之城》系列更是如此。在“南方吸血鬼謎案”系列中,吸血鬼已經(jīng)“出棺”(模仿同志公開其性取向時的說法——“出柜”),并成為美國社會的合法組成部分。蘇姬?斯塔克豪斯是一名年輕的南方金發(fā)女服務(wù)員,有著不幸的特異功能:她會讀心術(shù),而且取消不掉,因此她經(jīng)常被其他人的思維打擾。當(dāng)130歲的吸血鬼比爾走進她的酒吧時,她被吸血鬼和其他超自然生物的世界所深深吸引。該系列到現(xiàn)在已經(jīng)有9本書,喜歡好的吸血鬼故事和謎案故事的讀者非常喜歡讀。比爾算得上是吸血鬼偵探,而蘇姬則幫助他。

The vampires in the story are nicely inhuman – not utter monsters, but definitely with a different moral code to regular people. Bill thinks nothing of having Sookie's uncle brutally killed after he discovers the uncle molested her as a child, and is adept at ripping his enemies into small pieces. Many vampires are near-feral, amoral creatures who delight in their animal strength; it's only those who are 'mainstreaming' – trying to live in the human world – who make even an effort at being normal. The supernatural politics get more complicated as the series goes on, and other strange creatures – werepanthers, faeries, maenads, and other spirits – begin to emerge from the woodwork.

這個故事里的吸血鬼非常殘忍,雖然不是徹頭徹尾的魔鬼,但有著與普通人不一樣的道德準則。比爾發(fā)現(xiàn)蘇姬小時候被叔叔性侵害后,想都沒想就把他給粗暴地殺害了,并經(jīng)常將自己的敵人撕碎。許多吸血鬼都是兇殘且不道德的,以大發(fā)獸性為樂;只有“想融入主流”的吸血鬼為了生活在人類社會,才會下功夫成為正常人。隨著這一系列的進展,超自然的勾心斗角變得越來越復(fù)雜,半豹人、仙女、狂女和其他精靈等奇怪的生物開始從棺材里走出來。

The series is spiced with a bit of sex, though nowhere near as much as in some other vampire series, such as the more-or-less pornography Anita Blake series of books by Laurel Hamilton. Sookie is a virgin in the first book – her telepathic abilities mean that any potential lover has thoughts which end up putting her off, and it's only with the psychically blank Bill that she can relax and enjoy sex for the first time. There's nothing here that's terribly shocking, though, just enough to add a touch of romance to the series.

該系列有一些性描寫,不過絕沒有其它吸血鬼系列里頭的多,如勞倫?漢密爾頓所著《吸血鬼獵人》,后者可稱得上是色情小說。在第一本書里,蘇姬是一名處女,她的讀心術(shù)使她了解到任何有可能的戀人都有令她厭惡的想法,只有精神一片空白的比爾才能令她放松,并和他第一次享受魚水之歡。不過這并無特別駭人之處,只是為該系列增加了一絲浪漫。

The books are great fun; nothing very serious, but intriguing enough to keep you reading, and with a keen nose for Southern manners and senstivities. I especially like the scene where Sookie's grandmother, upon learning she's dating a vampire, is terribly keen to have him come to talk to her 'Daughters of the Glorious Dead' group – a parody of the real-life groups of descendants of Confederate veterans – and their rather bruised reaction when Bill describes the horror and brutality of the real war, rather than the idealized version in their heads. For those who prefer the small screen to the page, HBO have made a television series out of the books, True Blood, which is also very likeable – of course, you could always try both.

這套書趣味盎然,雖然內(nèi)容純屬虛構(gòu),但能吸引你讀下去,還有著濃郁的南部風(fēng)格與敏感性。我尤其喜歡蘇姬的祖母得知蘇姬在同一個吸血鬼交往后,便很想讓他過來跟其“光榮捐軀者之女”團體說話的情景,這是對現(xiàn)實生活中南部聯(lián)邦老兵后裔的嘲仿,以及當(dāng)比爾描述真實戰(zhàn)爭是多么的恐怖與殘忍,與她們想象中的理想情況完全不同時,她們感覺受挫的樣子。對于喜歡電視勝過書本的人,HBO電視臺將該系列拍成了電視劇:《真愛如血》,也很討人喜歡,當(dāng)然你可以既看書又看電視。

Dr Atomic

《原子博士》

We tend to think of opera as a thing of the past, associated with fat Italian singers, stories about nobles and peasants, and librettos designed more for singing than story. Peking Opera is even worse, not having changed or innovated since the end of the nineteenth century. It can come as a surprise, then, to discover that opera is very much a living art form, and one increasingly involved with modernity.

我們往往以為歌劇是老古董,將其跟肥胖的意大利歌者、貴族與農(nóng)夫的故事和更側(cè)重于歌唱而非講故事的劇本聯(lián)系起來。京劇的處境更不妙,自從19世紀末以來都沒有變化或創(chuàng)新。因此,發(fā)現(xiàn)歌劇是活生生的藝術(shù)形式,越來越具有現(xiàn)代感,不免令人驚詫。

Perhaps the greatest modern opera composer is John Adams, an American master who started working in the form in the early 1980s. His first two major operas, Nixon in China and The Death of Klinghoffer, both dramatized recent historical events; Nixon's meeting with Mao Zedong in 1972 and the hijacking of the cruise ship Achille Lauro in 1985, when a wheelchair-bound Jewish-American tourist, Leon Klinghoffer, was murdered by Palestinian terrorists. Both are works of stunning beauty and complexity, and have amazing libretti. Adams' librettist, Alice Goodman, is a considerable poet in her own right, and her strong, insightful writing contributes greatly to the operas' impact.

或許當(dāng)代最偉大的歌劇作曲家是約翰?亞當(dāng)斯,這位美國音樂大師從上世紀80年代起就開始從事歌劇創(chuàng)作。他的前兩部重要歌劇《尼克松在中國》和《克林格霍芬之死》都將最近的歷史事件搬上了舞臺;1972年尼克松同毛澤東的會晤,以及1985年阿基萊?勞倫號客輪劫持事件,當(dāng)時一名坐輪椅的游客——美籍猶太人利昂?克林格霍芬被巴勒斯坦恐怖分子殺害。這兩部歌劇都異常美麗而復(fù)雜,歌詞優(yōu)美。詞作者愛麗絲?古德曼也被認為是一名卓越的詩人,她強烈且富有洞察力的歌詞大大提升了歌劇的影響力。

Adams' most recent opera, Dr. Atomic, is about Robert Oppenheimer, the creator of the first atomic weapons, and their testing and use in 1945. It's a considerable work, though, sadly, Goodman only contributed a little to the libretto; the rest is taken from poetic sources ranging from John Donne to the Bhagavad Gita. Although it first premeried in 2005, a recent TV version has just been made, making it far more easily available for music and drama lovers. Anybody with an interest in great modern music, and in history interpreted through poetry, should certainly check out this and Adams' other works.

亞當(dāng)斯的最新力作《原子博士》講述了羅伯特?奧本海默的故事,奧本海默是核武器之父,還參與了1945年核武器的測試與使用。這是一部極有分量的作品,只是很遺憾,劇本只有一小部分是古德曼所作,其它則選自約翰?多恩和巴哥維得?吉它的詩作。該劇早在2005年就進行了首演,不久前電視版問世,更加方便音樂和歌劇愛好者欣賞。任何人,只要對當(dāng)代優(yōu)秀音樂和用詩歌演繹的歷史感興趣,都應(yīng)該看看《原子博士》和亞當(dāng)斯的其他作品。