EZCNN 易英网

Crossed Swords: The Genius of Akira Kurosawa’s Seven Samurai 刀剑交锋真英雄：黑泽明的七武士

课文朗读

课文讲解

繁體中文譯本

With the recent appearance of several high-profile Hollywood samurai films, like Kill Bill or The Last Samurai, it is worth revisiting one of the genre’s classics: Akira Kurosawa’s Seven Samurai. Made in 1954, Seven Samurai is widely acknowledged by critics as one of the greatest films ever made.

最近几部以日本武士为卖点的好莱坞电影颇受观众瞩目，例如「追杀比尔」或「末代武士」就是。这个现象值得读者重温这种类型电影的其中一部经典之作：黑泽明的「七武士」。摄制于1954年的「七武士」，已被影评人公认为影史上最佳影片之一。

The story itself is simple: a farming village hires a group of wandering samurai to protect them from raiding bandits. Much of the film details the samurai’s preparation for battle, juxtaposing moments of tranquility with moments of stirring violence.

这个故事本身很单纯：一个农村雇用一群四处流浪的武士来保护村子免于土匪的劫掠。影片大多在描写武士备战的细节，以交叉剪接把宁静时刻和骇人暴力场景并陈。

With their succinct yet dynamic plots, many of Kurosawa’s films have inspired other well-known action films – especially westerns. Yet it was John Ford’s classic western, Stagecoach (1933), with its long, sweeping shots of open space, that particularly influenced Kurosawa when making Seven Samurai. Kurosawa combined Ford’s broad, epic style of camerawork with extreme action close-ups. The resulting cinematography – combining sweeping battle shots with slow-motion death scenes – has since been adopted by filmmakers from Sergio Leone to John Woo.

许多黑泽明电影的情节简练但却很有震撼力，启发了其他知名的动作片──尤其是西部片。然而，是约翰福特在他的经典西部片「驿马车」(1939)里采用长镜头大远景拍外景的手法，特别影响了黑泽明拍摄的「七武士」。黑泽明结合了福特广角、史诗风格般的摄影技巧、以及动作的超大特写。这样的电影运镜手法──结合连绵不断的激战镜头以及死亡场景的慢镜头──此后便成为塞吉欧李昂尼和吴宇森等电影创作者引用的手法。

Because of his enormous influence on American and European filmmakers, many Japanese critics accused Kurosawa of ignoring Japanese audiences. Kurosawa vehemently dismissed these charges, and insisted instead on privileging the story of individuals over any one group or nation.

因为黑泽明对美国及欧洲电影工作者的巨大影响力，许多日本影评人批评他忽视日本观众。黑泽明强烈地反驳这些指控。反而坚持优先考虑以人物而非任何族群或国家为故事的主体。

Vocabulary

单词发音

high-profile 倍受瞩目的; 高姿态的

samurai [ˋsæmʊ͵raɪ] n.【日】（日本封建时代的）武士阶级

genre [ˋʒɑnrə] n.【正式】〔艺术﹑写作﹑音乐等的〕类型﹐体裁

wandering [ˋwɑndərɪŋ] adj. 流浪的

raid [red] v. 侵略；掠夺

bandit [ˋbændɪt] n. 强盗，土匪

detail [ˋditel] v. 详述，详细说明

juxtapose [͵dʒʌkstəˋpoz] v.【正式】把…并列[并置]〔以作比较或制作新东西〕

tranquility [træŋˋkwɪlətɪ] n. 平静；安静

stirring [ˋstɝɪŋ] adj. 激动人心的﹐令人振奋的

succinct [səkˋsɪŋkt] adj. 简练的；简洁的

dynamic [daɪˋnæmɪk] adj. 有活力的；有生气的；强有力的

sweeping [ˋswipɪŋ] adj. 广阔的；广泛的；全面的

close-up（电影、电视等的）特写镜头，特写

cinematography [͵sɪnəməˋtɑgrəfɪ] n.【术语】电影摄影术[学]; 电影制片术[学]

slow-motion [ˋsloˋmoʃən] adj. 高速摄影机拍的，慢镜头的

vehemently [ˋviəməntlɪ] adv. 激烈地；强烈地

dismiss [dɪsˋmɪs] v. 拒绝考虑〔某人的观点﹑意见等〕

instead [ɪnˋstɛd] adv. 反而，却

privilege [ˋprɪv!ɪdʒ] v. 给予……特权（或优待）

Sentence of the Day

Kurosawa’s peasants decided to fight fire with fire.

黑泽明电影中的农民决定以彼之道还治彼身。

fight fire with fire  以火攻火，以毒攻毒

课文讲解

Co-workers Adam and Margaret are leaving the theater after watching The Last Samurai:  亚当和同事玛格丽特看完「末代武士」后离开戏院：

M: So what did you think of the film?

这部电影你觉得如何？

A: It was pretty sweet! I loved the battle scene between the samurai and the army with machine guns.

满好看的！我很喜欢武士和用机关枪的部队交战的那场戏。

M: Yeah, that was a cool scene. I got a sense the director was influenced by Akira Kurosawa. Have you seen his film, Seven Samurai?

是啊，很棒的一场戏。我觉得这部电影的导演受到黑泽明的影响。你看过他的电影「七武士」吗？

A: Of course, I love that movie! Remember the first battle in The Last Samurai that takes place in the forest? That scene reminded me of all those rainy, muddy fights in Seven Samurai.

当然，我超爱那部电影！还记得「末代武士」发生在森林里的第一场战役吗？那场戏让我想起「七武士」那些在泥泞雨中的打斗戏。

M: I see the similarity. Also, both films focus on keeping one’s honor, or rediscovering it.

我看得出这相似处。而且，这两部电影都在强调维护自身的名誉，或是重新找回失落的荣誉感。

A: The samurai code of Bushido was tough to follow. A samurai was always preparing for his death.

武士道不容易遵守。武士总是随时准备就义。

M: What did you think of the scene in which Tom Cruise’s character is allowed to wear a dead samurai’s armor?

当你看到汤姆克鲁斯演的角色获得允许去穿殉节武士的盔甲，你有什么看法？

A: It reminded me of a similar in Seven Samurai. Remember when the farmer’s son led the other six samurai to a secret stash of armor?

那一幕让我想到「七武士」有一场很类似的戏。还记得那个农民之子带着其他六位武士去一个藏着盔甲的地方吗？

M: But that scene unfolded differently: Kurosawa’s samurai were angry because the armor had been stripped from the bodies of dead samurai.

但那场戏呈现的角度不太一样：黑泽明的武士们很生气，因为那套盔甲是被人从死去的武士身上给剥下来的。

A: It’s amazing to watch themes recur that started with Kurosawa!

看到黑泽明原创的主题又再被人重新表现，真是令人感到惊奇。

－by Charles Leary

Vocabulary

单词发音

muddy [ˋmʌdɪ] adj. 泥泞的

code [kod] n. 行为准则; 道德规范

Bushido [ˋbuʃɪ͵do] n.（日本之）武士道

armor [ˋɑrmɚ] n. 盔甲

stash [stæʃ] n. 藏匿处

unfold [ʌnˋfold] v. 呈现; 展开

strip [strɪp] v. 剥，剥去

recur [rɪˋkɝ] v.（往事等）再现

Sentence of the Day

Tom Cruise started the film as a hired gun.

汤姆克鲁斯在本片一开始扮演的是位作战训练专家。

hired gun 【俚】职业杀手

Reference:

Seven Samurai by Akira Kurosawa

The Last Samurai