《武媚娘傳奇》因露乳溝遭審查

In “The Empress of China,” Fan Bingbing portrays Wu Zetian, the only woman in Chinese history to rule in her own right. When the highly anticipated Television show “The Empress of China” was abruptly pulled from Chinese airwaves just days after its premiere on Dec. 21, many speculated that the reason might have had less to do with technical problems, as the show’s producers claimed on its official microblog account, than with one aspect of the show that was, well, impossible to miss: the plunging necklines and tightly squeezed bosoms.

在《武媚娘傳奇》中，范冰冰飾演中國歷史上唯一一位直接統治國家的女皇帝武則天。12月21日，這部備受期待的電視劇開播，但僅幾天後就突然停播，許多人猜測原因或許並非製片方在其官方微博賬戶上所說的技術問題，而更多的是因爲該劇不可忽視的一個特徵：低開的領口和被緊緊擠壓的胸部。

That speculation was confirmed on Thursday evening when the show, a palace drama set in the Tang dynasty (A.D. 618-907) and featuring the actress Fan Bingbing, who also had roles in the Hollywood films “X-Men: Days of Future Past” and “Iron Man 3”, resumed. Although the story line appeared to have been unaltered, it was clear that the show’s aesthetic had undergone a major transformation. The ample chests that once filled television screens were suddenly nowhere to be seen.

週四傍晚，當該劇復播時，這一猜測被證實了。儘管故事情節似乎沒有變，但顯然，該劇的審美經歷了重大轉變。曾經佔滿屏幕的豐滿胸部突然不見了。該劇是一部宮廷劇，時間設定在唐代（公元618年-907年），由曾出演過《X戰警：逆轉未來》(X-Men: Days of Future Past)和《鋼鐵俠3》(Iron Man 3)的女星范冰冰擔綱主演。

The online reaction among the show’s loyal fans has been nothing short of outrage.

在網上，該劇的忠實粉絲對此舉大爲光火。

“I really hate SAPPRFT!” wrote one user on Sina Weibo, referring to the State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television, China’s top broadcast regulator. “The show was so beautiful! It’s the Tang dynasty — the characters are supposed to have plump bosoms! Now you’ve cut it so all that’s left is a big head. Thumbs down.”

“真恨廣電總局！”一名用戶在新浪微博上寫道。這名用戶指的是中國廣播電視最高監管機構國家新聞出版廣電總局。“這部劇這麼美！那是唐代，那些人物就應該是大胸！現在被你剪得只剩大腦袋了。抗議。”

Another user wrote: “I really had no idea that 21st-century people could be this conservative. They’re not even as open-minded as people from the Tang dynasty one millennium ago.”

另一名用戶寫道：“真沒想到21世紀的人會這麼保守，甚至不如千年前的唐人開放。”

Revealing décolletage is only the latest target to come into the cross hairs of China’s entertainment censors. In the past, the regulator cracked down on television shows that depicted time travel (thought to “lack positive thoughts and meaning”), adultery and one-night stands, and, most recently, wordplay and puns, which are thought to be “contradictory in spirit to the continuation and enhancement of outstanding traditional Chinese culture,” according to regulators.

中國娛樂審查機構對很多東西發起過指責，袒胸露肩服裝不過是最新的一個。早前，監管機構還曾打擊過講述穿越（被認爲“缺乏積極的思想意義”）、通姦和一夜情的電視劇。就在最近，監管機構還以“與傳承和弘揚中華優秀傳統文化的精神相違背”爲由，禁止使用文字遊戲和雙關語。

Nor is it the first time that the authorities have stepped in to disrupt the screening of a television show or film. Minutes after the midnight premiere of “Django Unchained” in 2013, the Quentin Tarantino film was suddenly pulled from theaters, ostensibly because of objections to graphic scenes involving nudity and bloodshed that censors had apparently overlooked earlier. And, just last month, the premiere of the Chinese director Jiang Wen’s new film, “Gone With the Bullets,” was postponed at the last minute, also for reasons that are thought to be related to racy scenes.“The Empress of China,” or “The Saga of Wu Zetian,” as it is known in China, is broadcast on Hunan Satellite Television, a provincial television station known for its popular programs. The station, often seen as one of the major competitors to CCTV, China’s state broadcaster, has been the target of censors in the past. In 2003, the authorities canceled a weather show with scantily clad presenters, and in 2011, they pulled the plug on the hugely popular talent show “Super Girl,” similar to “American Idol,” which had been criticized by government officials for being “vulgar” and “manipulative.”

這也不是當局第一次介入、中斷電視劇或電影的播出。2013年，在《被解救的姜戈》(Django Unchained)舉行零點首映幾分鐘後，昆汀·塔倫蒂諾(Quentin Tarantino)的這部影片突然在影院被叫停，表面上是因爲反對涉及裸體和流血暴力的畫面。監管機構早前似乎忽略了這些畫面。此外，就在上月，中國導演姜文的新片《一步之遙》的首映式在最後時刻被推遲，原因也被認爲和露骨的畫面有關。《武媚娘傳奇》在以流行節目著名的省級電視臺湖南衛視播出。該電視臺常被視作中國的國家級電視臺中央電視臺的主要競爭對手之一，是審查機構的目標。2003年，當局取消了一檔由衣着暴露的主持人主持的天氣節目。2011年，他們叫停了極受歡迎的才藝節目《快樂女聲》。政府官員指責這檔類似於《美國偶像》(American Idol)的節目“低俗”且“具有操縱性”。

Speaking after the cancellation of the talent show, a spokesman for the television station said it would be replacing the show with programs that promoted healthy morals, public safety and “practical information about housework.”

在這檔才藝節目被取消後，湖南衛視的一名發言人稱將代之以宣傳美德、增強社會穩定和“家務活小助手”等健康向上的節目。

“The Empress of China” is based on the life of Wu Zetian, the only woman in Chinese history to rule in her own right. Ms. Fan plays the seventh-century imperial concubine-turned-empress, celebrated in historical accounts for her cunning, ruthless drive for power, wanton sexuality and, in her younger years, mesmerizing beauty.

《武媚娘傳奇》取材於中國歷史上惟一一個由本人直接統治國家的女皇帝武則天的生平。范冰冰飾演的便是生活在7世紀的武則天，她從皇帝的一個妃子，變成了女皇。在歷史記載中，她因巧妙且執着地追求權力、肆意的性生活以及年輕時令人着迷的美貌而著稱。