论文部分内容阅读
《微光城市》改编自珍妮·杜普洛（Jeanne DuPrau）于2003年创作的同名小说。小编在找资料的时候被导演的“娃娃脸”吓了一跳，还以为是电影的男主角呢。后来才知道原来这位年轻的导演大有来头，曾经执导过2006年的票房大热《怪兽屋》（Monster House），真是有眼不识泰山啊。这部电影的另一个卖点就是凭《赎罪》（Atonement）声名鹊起的童星西尔莎·罗南。就连导演也说，幸亏他在罗南出名之前找到她，不然制作费也许要直线上升了。
Plot Summary
For generations, the people of the City of Ember[灰烬] have flourished in an amazing world of glittering lights. But this won’t last forever.
In order to save the citizens after things in Ember start getting bleak[黯淡的], builders of Ember decide to leave instructions for escape in a special sealed box, which will open automatically in 220 years.
Unfortunately, the box is lost and forgotten when the seventh Mayor unsuccessfully tries to open it.
The action then shifts to the year 241 in Ember. Lina Mayfleet and Doon Harrow are two children that find themselves on a mission to save their dying city, for the city’s lights are beginning to flicker[闪烁], and the food supplies are running out. Doon manages to get a job in the Pipeworks[管道工程], to see if he can fix the generator, from which the city’s electricity comes. Lina’s
job is simple. She is a messenger, but she soon finds herself in over her head[太高深而不能了解] when she discovers
the instructions left by the builders. She and Doon then discover the way out of Ember. But corrupt[腐败的]
officials and a treacherous[背信弃义的] mayor stand against their wishes of saving the city. With courage and heart they brave[勇敢地面对] the darkness, all to help their
citizens escape the dying city, and lead them to another world.
Director Gil Kenan Interview
It isn’t often the director of a film looks younger than the teenagers he’s guiding through their lines. Gil Kenan is just such a director – a wunderkind[少年得志者]
who showed incredible talent during his college years at UCLA注1. He made such an overwhelming[无法抵抗的]
impression with his student thesis film[毕业电影作品]
that producer Robert Zemekis introduced him to famed director Steven Spielberg. A boy wonder himself, Spielberg took an immediate liking to the youngster and handed
him the director’s chair for the 2006 animated film Monster House. Kenan came home with an Oscar nomination[提名] for his first film, and that put his name on the tongues of every studio in Hollywood.
Rebecca Murray was fortunate to have an interview with him, who provided a little insight into what we can expect from the film adaptation[改编].
Rebecca Murray: Tell me about keeping close to the source material – how difficult was that?
Gil Kenan: Well, it was easy because the source
material was fantastic. The thing I really had to do was to take something that was word-based, you know, a puzzle…puzzle-based novel, and turn it into a sort of cinematic adventure. And to do that, it was kind of…part of what was really fun about making this movie. I had to think about the design of this town, and how to weave[编织] a puzzle into it. And so to make this kind of living puzzle, it was actually a real, you know, it was a real treat[乐事].
Murray: Did you have to lose anything that you
regretted having to lose from the source material?
Kenan: Probably, but they don’t…they don’t come to mind. I mean, my process is that I read the book, you know, was inspired by it. It kicked off this entire journey. But I don’t go back and like flip[翻动书页] a page and make sure if I missed a line. It’s really…it’s an interpretation[诠释] of the novel. It’s not a page-to-screen translation.
Murray: Because they never are.
Kenan: No, and I think that that does a disservice[损害]
to both. I think you have to let a movie be a movie. And you know, there’s a really interesting process that every reader goes through when they read a book for the first time. They always say, you know, “I saw…I saw a movie in my head.” I feel like my duty is to sort of put a lid[盖子] on that first movie that played in my head, and try to, you know, nurture it to the screen.
Murray: That makes sense. Now, how hard was it to find the two leads[主角], because if they don’t work, the whole movie doesn’t work?
Kenan: No, and that’s a good point. Thanks for the pressure. It was really hard. I waited to make sure that I got it right, and I…and I did. And to do that I had to sort of…I had to be a little bit less than precise[精确的] about the ages of the kids in the novel. But to me it was more important that I got the spirit of the character, their nature, their chemistry. And Saoirse Ronan as Lina and Harry Treadaway as Doon, they really…they pop off the screen. They’re alive.
Murray: You got her注2 before she hit big.
Kenan: That’s right. Yeah.
Murray: She may never want to do another action movie again, I think.
Kenan: Well, she’s…she’s really good. She moves well, so it would be a shame if she didn’t do another one.
情节概要
多少代人以来，微光城的人们在这个只有些许微光的奇妙世界里生生不息。但这般好景不会长存。
为了在微光城的光亮变黯淡以后拯救市民，这座城市的建造者决定将逃生指南保存在一个被封印的特殊盒子里，这个盒子将在220年后自动打开。不幸的是，当第七任市长企图打开盒子而未能得逞后，盒子丢失了，并被人们逐渐遗忘。
转眼间到了微光城的第241个年头。此时，微光城的灯光渐渐闪烁不定，食物也日渐短缺，两个孩子——莉娜·梅弗利特和杜恩·哈罗担负起拯救这座岌岌可危的城市的重任。杜恩在管道系统里谋到一份工作，想试试看能否修好整座城市的电力来源——发电器。而莉娜的工作则比较简单。她只是一名信使。但当她找到微光城建造者留下的逃生指南后，她发现自己一筹莫展。她和杜恩后来发现了逃离微光城的方法。然而他们拯救城市的愿望遭到来自一帮腐败官员和背信弃义的市长的重重阻挠。最终，他们凭借勇气和信心勇敢面对黑暗，决心帮助市民逃离这座垂死之城，奔向新世界。
导演吉尔·凯南访谈
导演比受其指导的小演员看起来还年轻的情况实不多见。吉尔·凯南就是这样一位导演——他少年得志，在加利福尼亚大学洛杉矶分校读大学时已展现出惊人才华。他的毕业电影给人留下了深刻的印象，制片人罗伯特·泽米基斯随后将其推荐给著名导演斯蒂文·斯皮尔伯格。同样是神童出身的斯皮尔伯格马上喜欢上了这位年轻人，并让他坐上了2006年动画片《怪兽屋》的导演席。这部处女作为凯南赢得一项奥斯卡提名，他的名字也在好莱坞各大电影公司之间流传开来。
丽贝卡·默里有幸采访吉尔·凯南。他将让我们更深入了解这部改编电影的看点
何在。
丽贝卡·默里：谈谈如何贴近原著的问题吧，做到这点有多难？
吉尔·凯南：不难，因为原著本身就很出色。我实际上要做的事情就是接手一部以文字为基础，你知道，一部以谜团……以谜团为基础的小说，然后把它变成一场由电影表现的历险。而这个过程，这是……制作这部电影很有趣的部分。我必须考虑这座城市的构造，以及如何将这个谜团编织在其中。所以制造这样一种生动的谜题，确实是一种，你知道，确实是一件乐事。
默里：从小说改编成电影，原著中是否有你后悔删减但又必须去除的内容？
凯南：也许有吧，但它们……它们不太要紧。我是说，我（改编）的过程是先阅读原著，你知道，从中受到启发。原著是整个过程的起点。但我不会回头重新一页一页地翻阅原著，看看是否漏掉某句台词。这实际上是……这是对小说的一种解读，而不是从纸页到荧幕的转换。
默里：因为从来就不是这么回事。
凯南：没错。我认为那样做无论对原著还是电影都有害无益。我认为电影就要有电影的样子。你知道，读者第一次读一本书时，会有一个很有趣的过程。你知道，他们总是说：“我看到……我的脑海里浮现出一部电影。”我觉得自己的职责就是为我脑海中的第一部电影加上一个盖子，你知道，然后试着把它呈现在荧幕上。
默里：有道理。那寻找两位主演困难吗？因为如果他们演得不好，整部电影就不会成功了。
凯南：没错，这点说得很对。谢谢你给我这份压力。找演员真的不容易。我一直在等，等我确信找对人，而我……我的确没找错。要做到这点，我必须……我不能太在意小说里孩子们的年龄。但对我来说，更重要的是能抓住角色的神韵，他们的本性和相互之间的情感互动。饰演莉娜的西尔莎·罗南和饰演杜恩的哈利·特雷德韦，他们确实……他们都活灵活现，把角色演活了。
默里：（西尔莎）还未成名以前你就已经找到她了。
凯南：没错。是的。
默里：我想她可能再也不想拍动作电影了。
凯南：呃，她……她真的演得很好。她的动作流畅，要是真的不再拍动作电影，那真是太可惜了。
注1：UCLA 是美国加利福尼亚大学洛杉矶分校（University of California at Los Angeles）的英文缩写。
注2：指西尔莎·罗南。
Plot Summary
For generations, the people of the City of Ember[灰烬] have flourished in an amazing world of glittering lights. But this won’t last forever.
In order to save the citizens after things in Ember start getting bleak[黯淡的], builders of Ember decide to leave instructions for escape in a special sealed box, which will open automatically in 220 years.
Unfortunately, the box is lost and forgotten when the seventh Mayor unsuccessfully tries to open it.
The action then shifts to the year 241 in Ember. Lina Mayfleet and Doon Harrow are two children that find themselves on a mission to save their dying city, for the city’s lights are beginning to flicker[闪烁], and the food supplies are running out. Doon manages to get a job in the Pipeworks[管道工程], to see if he can fix the generator, from which the city’s electricity comes. Lina’s
job is simple. She is a messenger, but she soon finds herself in over her head[太高深而不能了解] when she discovers
the instructions left by the builders. She and Doon then discover the way out of Ember. But corrupt[腐败的]
officials and a treacherous[背信弃义的] mayor stand against their wishes of saving the city. With courage and heart they brave[勇敢地面对] the darkness, all to help their
citizens escape the dying city, and lead them to another world.
Director Gil Kenan Interview
It isn’t often the director of a film looks younger than the teenagers he’s guiding through their lines. Gil Kenan is just such a director – a wunderkind[少年得志者]
who showed incredible talent during his college years at UCLA注1. He made such an overwhelming[无法抵抗的]
impression with his student thesis film[毕业电影作品]
that producer Robert Zemekis introduced him to famed director Steven Spielberg. A boy wonder himself, Spielberg took an immediate liking to the youngster and handed
him the director’s chair for the 2006 animated film Monster House. Kenan came home with an Oscar nomination[提名] for his first film, and that put his name on the tongues of every studio in Hollywood.
Rebecca Murray was fortunate to have an interview with him, who provided a little insight into what we can expect from the film adaptation[改编].
Rebecca Murray: Tell me about keeping close to the source material – how difficult was that?
Gil Kenan: Well, it was easy because the source
material was fantastic. The thing I really had to do was to take something that was word-based, you know, a puzzle…puzzle-based novel, and turn it into a sort of cinematic adventure. And to do that, it was kind of…part of what was really fun about making this movie. I had to think about the design of this town, and how to weave[编织] a puzzle into it. And so to make this kind of living puzzle, it was actually a real, you know, it was a real treat[乐事].
Murray: Did you have to lose anything that you
regretted having to lose from the source material?
Kenan: Probably, but they don’t…they don’t come to mind. I mean, my process is that I read the book, you know, was inspired by it. It kicked off this entire journey. But I don’t go back and like flip[翻动书页] a page and make sure if I missed a line. It’s really…it’s an interpretation[诠释] of the novel. It’s not a page-to-screen translation.
Murray: Because they never are.
Kenan: No, and I think that that does a disservice[损害]
to both. I think you have to let a movie be a movie. And you know, there’s a really interesting process that every reader goes through when they read a book for the first time. They always say, you know, “I saw…I saw a movie in my head.” I feel like my duty is to sort of put a lid[盖子] on that first movie that played in my head, and try to, you know, nurture it to the screen.
Murray: That makes sense. Now, how hard was it to find the two leads[主角], because if they don’t work, the whole movie doesn’t work?
Kenan: No, and that’s a good point. Thanks for the pressure. It was really hard. I waited to make sure that I got it right, and I…and I did. And to do that I had to sort of…I had to be a little bit less than precise[精确的] about the ages of the kids in the novel. But to me it was more important that I got the spirit of the character, their nature, their chemistry. And Saoirse Ronan as Lina and Harry Treadaway as Doon, they really…they pop off the screen. They’re alive.
Murray: You got her注2 before she hit big.
Kenan: That’s right. Yeah.
Murray: She may never want to do another action movie again, I think.
Kenan: Well, she’s…she’s really good. She moves well, so it would be a shame if she didn’t do another one.
情节概要
多少代人以来，微光城的人们在这个只有些许微光的奇妙世界里生生不息。但这般好景不会长存。
为了在微光城的光亮变黯淡以后拯救市民，这座城市的建造者决定将逃生指南保存在一个被封印的特殊盒子里，这个盒子将在220年后自动打开。不幸的是，当第七任市长企图打开盒子而未能得逞后，盒子丢失了，并被人们逐渐遗忘。
转眼间到了微光城的第241个年头。此时，微光城的灯光渐渐闪烁不定，食物也日渐短缺，两个孩子——莉娜·梅弗利特和杜恩·哈罗担负起拯救这座岌岌可危的城市的重任。杜恩在管道系统里谋到一份工作，想试试看能否修好整座城市的电力来源——发电器。而莉娜的工作则比较简单。她只是一名信使。但当她找到微光城建造者留下的逃生指南后，她发现自己一筹莫展。她和杜恩后来发现了逃离微光城的方法。然而他们拯救城市的愿望遭到来自一帮腐败官员和背信弃义的市长的重重阻挠。最终，他们凭借勇气和信心勇敢面对黑暗，决心帮助市民逃离这座垂死之城，奔向新世界。
导演吉尔·凯南访谈
导演比受其指导的小演员看起来还年轻的情况实不多见。吉尔·凯南就是这样一位导演——他少年得志，在加利福尼亚大学洛杉矶分校读大学时已展现出惊人才华。他的毕业电影给人留下了深刻的印象，制片人罗伯特·泽米基斯随后将其推荐给著名导演斯蒂文·斯皮尔伯格。同样是神童出身的斯皮尔伯格马上喜欢上了这位年轻人，并让他坐上了2006年动画片《怪兽屋》的导演席。这部处女作为凯南赢得一项奥斯卡提名，他的名字也在好莱坞各大电影公司之间流传开来。
丽贝卡·默里有幸采访吉尔·凯南。他将让我们更深入了解这部改编电影的看点
何在。
丽贝卡·默里：谈谈如何贴近原著的问题吧，做到这点有多难？
吉尔·凯南：不难，因为原著本身就很出色。我实际上要做的事情就是接手一部以文字为基础，你知道，一部以谜团……以谜团为基础的小说，然后把它变成一场由电影表现的历险。而这个过程，这是……制作这部电影很有趣的部分。我必须考虑这座城市的构造，以及如何将这个谜团编织在其中。所以制造这样一种生动的谜题，确实是一种，你知道，确实是一件乐事。
默里：从小说改编成电影，原著中是否有你后悔删减但又必须去除的内容？
凯南：也许有吧，但它们……它们不太要紧。我是说，我（改编）的过程是先阅读原著，你知道，从中受到启发。原著是整个过程的起点。但我不会回头重新一页一页地翻阅原著，看看是否漏掉某句台词。这实际上是……这是对小说的一种解读，而不是从纸页到荧幕的转换。
默里：因为从来就不是这么回事。
凯南：没错。我认为那样做无论对原著还是电影都有害无益。我认为电影就要有电影的样子。你知道，读者第一次读一本书时，会有一个很有趣的过程。你知道，他们总是说：“我看到……我的脑海里浮现出一部电影。”我觉得自己的职责就是为我脑海中的第一部电影加上一个盖子，你知道，然后试着把它呈现在荧幕上。
默里：有道理。那寻找两位主演困难吗？因为如果他们演得不好，整部电影就不会成功了。
凯南：没错，这点说得很对。谢谢你给我这份压力。找演员真的不容易。我一直在等，等我确信找对人，而我……我的确没找错。要做到这点，我必须……我不能太在意小说里孩子们的年龄。但对我来说，更重要的是能抓住角色的神韵，他们的本性和相互之间的情感互动。饰演莉娜的西尔莎·罗南和饰演杜恩的哈利·特雷德韦，他们确实……他们都活灵活现，把角色演活了。
默里：（西尔莎）还未成名以前你就已经找到她了。
凯南：没错。是的。
默里：我想她可能再也不想拍动作电影了。
凯南：呃，她……她真的演得很好。她的动作流畅，要是真的不再拍动作电影，那真是太可惜了。
注1：UCLA 是美国加利福尼亚大学洛杉矶分校（University of California at Los Angeles）的英文缩写。
注2：指西尔莎·罗南。