年排查美國優質影片點評大綱

Back in the movie wasteland of last January, no one could have guessed what a bounty of good films the year would bring. Not just good films, but several that measure up to our idealized notions of what the medium once was. Two candidates for the top of the heap pretty much chose themselves. For sheer entertainment, the clear call is 'American Hustle,' David O. Russell's joyous celebration of 1970s-era con artists and their intricate cons. For innovation-a new theatrical experience born of new technology-'Gravity' whirls in its own orbit. With the understanding that there's nothing to be said against 'American Hustle,' and everything to recommend this screwball comedy for the ages, I think 'Gravity' is the best movie of the year.
Columbia Pictures克里斯蒂安•貝爾、艾米•亞當斯和布萊德利•庫珀在電影《美國騙局》中早在1月份鬧片荒的時候，人們不會想到今年會迎來如此多好電影。不僅如此，有幾部影片甚至達到了被我們在心目中理想化了的那些老電影的水準。今年有兩部電影脫潁而出。純娛樂片方面，贏家顯然是《美國騙局》(American Hustle)，這部由大衛•歐•拉塞爾(David O. Russell)執導的影片講述了上個世紀七十年代的行騙高手和他們的微妙騙術的故事，幽默詼諧，令人捧腹。而從創新角度看，《地心引力》(Gravity)的全新拍攝技術給觀衆帶來了新的觀影體驗。人們普遍認爲《美國騙局》無可挑剔，這部瘋狂喜劇片是一部時代佳作。我個人則認爲，《地心引力》是今年的最佳影片。

Alfonso Cuaron and his colleagues, most notably the cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki, the production designer Andy Nicholson and the filmmaker's co-writer, Jonas Cuaron, have made a motion picture that expands the way motion pictures will be made. Readers with an interest in technology can get a sense of their extraordinary achievements from last month's cover story of American Cinematographer, which is available online. But the emotional essence of the film is already known to anyone who has seen it, and has been swept away by it-into the outer space of silence and menace, into an inner space of deep delight.
在導演阿方索•卡隆(Alfonso Cuaron)和同事們（其中包括知名電影攝影師艾曼努爾•盧貝茲基(Emmanuel Lubezki)、製片設計師安迪•尼克爾森(Andy Nicholson)和編劇霍納斯•卡隆(Jonas Cuaron)）的共同努力下，《地心引力》豐富了電影的拍攝手法。《美國電影攝影師》(American Cinematographer)雜誌上個月的封面故事刊載了關於《地心引力》製作過程的文章，對電影技術感興趣的讀者可以一探究竟。讀者們可以在網上閱讀該雜誌。不過任何看過《地心引力》的觀衆都已經領會到了該片的情感內涵，這部電影把觀衆們帶進入了一個寂靜危險的外太空和一個深度愉悅的內心世界。

After 'Gravity' and 'American Hustle,' my picks are in alphabetical order:
除了《地心引力》和《美國騙局》，我還選出了其他一些口碑不錯的影片（按字母順序排列）：

'12 Years A Slave' is shattering and anguishing, a singular anomaly in an entertainment medium. More than that, Steve McQueen's hugely ambitious chronicle of slavery in America is revelatory, a work of art that has been embraced by mainstream audiences. That's a testimony to the power of art (as expressed in John Ridley's script and performances by Chiwetel Ejiofor, Lupita Nyong'o and Michael Fassbender, among others), and heartening evidence of moviegoers' hunger for substance and meaning in the films they choose to see.
《爲奴十二載》(12 Years A Slave)：這是一部奇特的文娛片，令人震動、悲傷。本片導演史蒂夫•麥昆(Steve McQueen)大膽拍攝了一個關於美國奴隸制時代的故事，發人深省，是一部迎合主流觀衆口味的佳作。這部影片證明了藝術的力量，同時說明影迷們在他們選擇觀看的電影中渴求影片的本質和意義，這一點也令人振奮。該片編劇爲約翰•裏德利(John Ridley)，主演包括切瓦特•埃加福特(Chiwetel Ejiofor)、露皮塔•尼永奧(Lupita Nyong'o)、邁克爾•法斯賓德(Michael Fassbender)等人。

'Blue Jasmine' belongs, chronologically, to Woody Allen's late period of self-renewal. Artistically, however, it's a comfortable fit with some of the brightest comedies-the brightest/bleakest/wriest comedies-he's ever done. The centerpiece is Cate Blanchett's astonishing performance as Blanche duBois re-imagined to be the half-mad ex-wife of Alec Baldwin's crypto-Bernie Madoff. Not all that far from the center, Sally Hawkins, Andrew Dice Clay, Bobby Cannavale and Louis C.K., among others, maneuver their way through mine fields of deceit and disappointment.
《藍色茉莉》(Blue Jasmine)：按年代順序排列，本片屬於導演伍迪•艾倫(Woody Allen)自我更新晚期的作品。不過，從藝術角度看，該片算得上是伍迪•艾倫作品中最優秀的喜劇之一。該片的賣點是凱特•布蘭切特(Cate Blanchett)的出彩演繹，曾在《慾望號街車》中出演布蘭奇•杜布瓦(Blanche DuBois)的凱特•布蘭切特這一次出演女主角茉莉，離婚後精神狀態有些癲狂。亞歷克•鮑德溫(Alec Baldwin)在劇中扮演茉莉的丈夫，是一個類似於馬多夫(Bernie Madoff)的行騙者。其他人物方面，在經歷了欺騙和失望後，莎莉•霍金斯(Sally Hawkins)、安德魯•戴斯•克萊(Andrew Dice Clay)鮑比•坎納瓦爾(Bobby Cannavale)以及路易•C.K(Louis C.K.)等人扮演的角色最終都找到了自己的方向。

'Cutie and the Boxer' was hardly noticed by the movie-going public, but a list of fine films isn't a rundown of box-office triumphs. The reach of Zachary Heinzerling's debut feature-length documentary is equaled by its grasp. On the surface it's about nothing more-or less-than a troubled marriage that has somehow managed to last 40 years. Beneath the surface, then startlingly out in the open, is a history of rivalry (both husband and wife are artists), enmity, reluctant devotion and, most startling of all, enduring love.
《小可愛與拳擊手》(Cutie and the Boxer)幾乎沒有受到觀影公衆的注意，但好電影名單並非票房大片的羅列。這部達到正片長度的紀錄片是扎克利•海因策林(Zachary Heinzerling)的處女作，其影響與感悟同樣出色。表面上它只是講述了一段勉力維持了40年的問題婚姻。然而在表面之下，又驚人地暴露出來的是一段有關競爭（夫妻雙方都是藝術家）、怨恨、不情願的奉獻以及持久的愛（這是最讓人震驚的）的歷史。'Fruitvale Station' represents another remarkable feature debut, by the director Ryan Coogler. Its subject matter-the fatal shooting of Oscar Grant, a black, unarmed 22-year-old by a white transit cop in Oakland, Calif.-might have made a documentary. Mr. Coogler had the better idea of exploring it as a dramatized, and to a considerable extent fictionalized, account of the day in Oscar's life that preceded his death. He's played by Michael B. Jordan, whose performance can break your heart or fill it with joy, sometimes simultaneously.
《弗魯特維爾車站》(Fruitvale Station)是另一部出色的故事片處女作，由瑞安•庫格勒(Ryan Coogler)執導。這部影片的主題是赤手空拳的22歲黑人奧斯卡•格蘭特(Oscar Grant)在加州奧克蘭與一名白人交警發生衝突而遭到誤殺，這本來可以成就一部紀錄片。庫格勒有更好的想法，將這個真實事件加以戲劇化改編，並在很大程度上進行了虛構，講述了奧斯卡死亡前一天的生活。飾演這個角色的是邁克爾•喬丹(Michael Jordan)，他的表演能讓你心碎，也能令人歡樂不已，有時是兩者兼具。

'Her,' which was written and directed by Spike Jonze, takes romance into the virtual realm, and its hero on a gently crazed journey of genuine passion. Joaquin Phoenix is the poignantly lonely guy who falls in love with his smartphone's new operating system. The basic conceit is a fragile one, but it's beautifully and bravely developed, as well as elegantly photographed by Hoyte Van Hoytema, with perfectly calibrated performances by Mr. Phoenix, Amy Adams and Scarlett Johansson, who is that system's voice and soul.
《她》(Her)，由斯派克•瓊斯(Spike Jonze)擔任編劇兼導演，將浪漫帶入了虛擬世界，影片的主人公展開了一場有些瘋狂的真正激情之旅。華金•菲尼克斯(Joaquin Phoenix)扮演的男主角是個令人心酸的孤獨小夥子，他愛上了自己智能手機的新操作系統。影片的基本構想有些脆弱，但故事非常華麗地展開，霍伊特•範•霍特瑪(Hoyte Van Hoytema)的攝影也很精妙，完美地烘托了菲尼克斯、艾米•亞當斯(Amy Adams)和斯嘉麗•約翰遜(Scarlett Johansson)的表演。斯嘉麗•約翰遜在片中扮演的是智能手機操作系統的聲音和靈魂。

'Inside Llewyn Davis' finds the Coen brothers, Joel and Ethan, in a hauntingly somber mood that somehow translates into memorable drama. I think my review should have made it clearer that this elegy for a casualty of pop culture is a special taste; some of it is fairly glum. So much of it, though, gets to something stirring by way of Oscar Isaac's phenomenal performance as a self-defeating folk singer fatefully dedicated to his art.
在《醉鄉民謠》(Inside Llewyn Davis)中，編劇兼導演喬爾•科恩(Joel Coen)和伊桑•科恩(Ethan Coen)兄弟倆揮之不去的憂傷情緒轉化成了令人難忘的戲劇性場面。我覺得我的評論本應澄清，這部關於流行文化犧牲品的悲歌有一種特別的味道；其中一些部分相當陰鬱。奧斯卡•伊薩克(Oscar Isaac)在片中出演一位自暴自棄的民謠樂手，宿命般地獻身於他的藝術，他的卓越表演令這部影片極其震撼人心。

'Nebraska' gets to the heart of Bruce Dern's prickly old geezer, Woody Grant, by way of a road trip across Montana and Nebraska, shot in radiant black-and-white. (Here again one of the movie's stars is its cinematographer, Phedon Papamichael.) Alexander Payne directed, flawlessly, from Bob Nelson's stellar script, which is all about thwarted love, and reconciliation, between Woody and his son Will; he's played with painfully quiet eloquence by Will Forte. Here's the American heartland as it's seldom portrayed on screen, with humor and almost palpable fondness.
《內布拉斯加》(Nebraska)以明快的黑白片形式拍攝，通過一次穿越蒙大拿和內布拉斯加的旅行揭示了由布魯斯•鄧恩(Bruce Dern)扮演的易怒老頭伍迪•格蘭特(Woody Grant)的內心世界。（這部電影的攝影師芬頓•帕帕邁可(Phedon Papamichael)也參演了影片。）編劇鮑勃•尼爾森(Bob Nelson)炮製了優秀的劇本，而亞歷山大•佩恩(Alexander Payne)的導演工作也無懈可擊。這部影片講述的是伍迪和兒子威爾(Will)關係不佳、最終和解的過程；扮演兒子的威爾•福特(Will Forte)極度平和的表演征服了觀衆。這裏是很少在銀幕上得到刻畫的美國心臟地帶，帶着幽默和幾乎可以感知的深情。

'Short Term 12' is one of those small indie features that stays with you in a big way. It's only 96 minutes long, a modest production set in a foster-care facility for troubled teens. Yet Destin Cretton's direction and Brie Larson's performance elevate the film to, well, one of the year's very best. Ms. Larson is almost a sure thing for not getting an Oscar-this year's competition is unusually fierce-but do catch up with her portrayal of Grace, a 20-something supervisor who is far from untroubled in her own life.
《少年收容所》(Short Term 12)是獨立製片的小型影片之一，然而卻會大大地影響觀衆。這部低成本電影片長僅96分鐘，背景是一個針對問題青少年的收容設施。然而德斯汀•克里頓(Destin Cretton)的導演和布里•拉爾森(Brie Larson)的表演讓這部電影躋身年度最佳影片之列。拉爾森幾乎可以肯定無緣奧斯卡獎（今年的競爭異常激烈），但她對所扮演的女主角格蕾絲(Grace)的刻畫極具水準，格蕾絲是一名20多歲的年輕保育員，她自己的生活遠非平靜無波。