美国国家公共电台 NPR 'La La Land' Scoops Up 14 Academy Awards Nominations

 

ARI SHAPIRO, HOST: 

Now let's talk about movies.

(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "LA LA LAND")

RYAN GOSLING: (As Sebastian, singing) City of stars, are you shining just for me?

SHAPIRO: Academy Award nominations¹ are out today, and the musical "La La Land" sang and danced its way to 14 Oscar nominations, tying a record. "La La Land" will compete for Best Picture with "Moonlight," an intimate drama about a gay black man growing up in Miami...

(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "MOONLIGHT")

MAHERSHALA ALI: (As Juan) Let me tell you something, Man. There are black people everywhere. Remember that, OK - no place you can go in the world ain't got no black people. We was the first on this planet.

SHAPIRO: ...Also the science fiction film "Arrival" in which a linguist² introduces aliens to human beings...

(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "ARRIVAL")

AMY ADAMS: (As Louise Banks) Louise - I am Louise.

UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: (As character) What is that? Is that a new symbol? I can't tell.

SHAPIRO: ...Along with six other Best Picture nominees³. And joining us to talk about the nominations are Linda Holmes of NPR's pop culture blog Monkey See and our film critic Bob Mondello. Hey you guys.

BOB MONDELLO, BYLINE⁴: Good to be here.

SHAPIRO: OK.

LINDA HOLMES, BYLINE: Hey, Ari.

SHAPIRO: First, what are the other six best picture nominees?

MONDELLO: Well, let's see. There's "Fences," which is Denzel Washington's adaptation of the August Wilson play - Pulitzer Prize-winning play - "Hacksaw Ridge," which is a World War II story about a conscientious⁵ objector; "Hell Or High Water," which is essentially⁶ a Western, although it takes place in cop cars and things like that; "Hidden Figures," which is the story of three African-American women who were in - or actually a whole bunch of African-American women who were in NASA's space program - "Lion," which is a story about adoption⁷ in India to Australia and "Manchester By The Sea," the cheeriest movie of the whole bunch.

SHAPIRO: (Laughter).

HOLMES: Bob's being sarcastic⁸.

MONDELLO: I am being sarcastic. That is a really rough slog - but, oh, my God, what a movie.

SHAPIRO: So this time last year, we were talking about #OscarsSoWhite, and this year - not so white, Linda.

HOLMES: Yeah. I want to point out. We were not just talking about #OscarsSoWhite. We were talking about the fact that the Oscars were in fact...

SHAPIRO: Were so white.

HOLMES: ...So white.

MONDELLO: Two years running.

HOLMES: And I think that there is some progress, particularly in the acting⁹ categories here. You do have three black women nominated in best sporting actress. Ruth Negga was nominated in lead actress for "Loving." She's wonderful in that movie. That's the story of the Supreme¹⁰ Court case...

SHAPIRO: Loving v. Virginia, which legalized interracial marriage.

HOLMES: Interracial marriage - so I think there was some progress. Dev Patel is nominated for "Lion." You know, they're a bit less white, but you know, it's important in these kinds of things not to get too excited too quickly. Barry Jenkins from "Moonlight" is still only the fourth black director ever nominated in best director.

SHAPIRO: Beyond diversity, what stands out to you when you look at the entirety of these nominations, Bob?

MONDELLO: Well, what's intriguing¹¹ to me is how these are not - especially the nominees for Best Picture are not big studio movies. These are movies that are essentially smaller pictures. The whole notion of doing ten nominees or as many as 10 - this year, there are nine - was to get more films into the mix. Well, we really got them into the mix this year because almost none of these are the big, splashy, big production movies that you'd expect.

SHAPIRO: Well, that's what strikes me - is that when I look at the list, they're all of these sort of, you know, socially conscious movies that make you feel like a better person when you leave, whether we're talking about "Hidden Figures" or "Moonlight."

And then there is the 800-pound gorilla¹² of "La La Land," which is this splashy, vibrant¹³, sunny musical that is not about social issues or making you feel (unintelligible).

MONDELLO: I'd like to point out that Ari was doing jazz hands when he was doing that.

(LAUGHTER)

HOLMES: It's true. It's true. I think that one theme for me in these nominations is you do see some more films here that have more moments of giving pleasure, which, for some people, that's not really what awards are about. They're about the art. But if you look at these films, it's not just "La La Land," which really takes pride I think in its ability to be aesthetically¹⁴ pleasing and in some places fun.

You also have films like "Hidden Figures," which in many places is a lot of fun despite having a lot to say. You have a film - even, like, you know, "Lion" has a lot of really upbeat, you know, kind of uplifting moments even though many parts of it are sad. I would say the same thing about "Arrival" - has some moments that are fun to watch even though it has a lot of sad themes. Now, you have your "Manchester By The Sea," which seriously is a...

SHAPIRO: (Laughter) One in every bunch.

HOLMES: ...Very sad movie.

MONDELLO: It's so sad - oh.

HOLMES: But it - but there are some years when the Oscar films just feel like a grind, like you're...

SHAPIRO: Like you're rewarding suffering.

HOLMES: Like you're just being asked to be sad and miserable¹⁵ all the time. And I don't get that feeling from these.

SHAPIRO: Linda, give me your I'm-so-glad-this-made-the-list and really-this-made-the-list.

HOLMES: Yeah. My I'm-so-glad-this-made-the-list would be "Hidden Figures," which is a terrific, terrific film that I loved...

SHAPIRO: For Best Picture.

HOLMES: ...For Best Picture. The one that I would take back - and it's kind of a technicality 'cause I love it.

SHAPIRO: OK.

HOLMES: But the documentary project "O.J.: Made In America" was nominated for outstanding documentary feature.

SHAPIRO: Was it a movie?

HOLMES: To me, that's a television project. It was mostly watched on television. It was produced in chapters with the intention of it being on television. Although it qualified¹⁶ under the rules, I would have left that space open for something like perhaps "Wiener," which is the movie about Anthony Weiner's run for mayor of New York City, which is a crazy and fascinating film perhaps now more than ever.

MONDELLO: (Laughter).

SHAPIRO: Bob, give me your yes and your really.

MONDELLO: Well, my really is Viggo Mortensen, who I - listen. I am crazy about Viggo Mortensen, but "Captain Fantastic" is a movie that I just can't imagine getting nominated in any category. So I just - I didn't get that. My oh-I'm-so-pleased was "The Lobster¹⁷" for best original...

SHAPIRO: Oh, yeah.

MONDELLO: ...Screenplay. And I - it's mostly because if you gave an award for most original screenplay, that would have to be it - a film about a guy who is on the verge¹⁸ of turning into a lobster. I - it's wonderful.

SHAPIRO: NPR's film critic Bob Mondello and Linda Holmes of NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast, thanks to you both.

HOLMES: Thanks, Ari.

MONDELLO: It's always a pleasure.

(SOUNDBITE OF LORD HURON SONG, "FOOL FOR LOVE")

1 nominations   

n.提名，任命( nomination的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Nominations are invited for the post of party chairman. 为党主席职位征集候选人。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Much coverage surrounded his abortive bids for the 1960,1964, and 1968 Republican Presidential nominations. 许多消息报道都围绕着1960年、1964年和1968年他为争取提名为共和党总统候选人所做努力的失败。 来自辞典例句

2 linguist   

n.语言学家；精通数种外国语言者

参考例句：

• I used to be a linguist till I become a writer.过去我是个语言学家，后来成了作家。
• Professor Cui has a high reputation as a linguist.崔教授作为语言学家名声很高。

3 nominees   

n.被提名者，被任命者( nominee的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• She's one of the nominees. 她是被提名者之一。 来自超越目标英语 第2册
• A startling number of his nominees for senior positions have imploded. 他所提名的高级官员被否决的数目令人震惊。 来自互联网

4 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

5 conscientious   

adj.审慎正直的，认真的，本着良心的

参考例句：

• He is a conscientious man and knows his job.他很认真负责，也很懂行。
• He is very conscientious in the performance of his duties.他非常认真地履行职责。

6 essentially   

adv.本质上，实质上，基本上

参考例句：

• Really great men are essentially modest.真正的伟人大都很谦虚。
• She is an essentially selfish person.她本质上是个自私自利的人。

7 adoption   

n.采用，采纳，通过；收养

参考例句：

• An adoption agency had sent the boys to two different families.一个收养机构把他们送给两个不同的家庭。
• The adoption of this policy would relieve them of a tremendous burden.采取这一政策会给他们解除一个巨大的负担。

8 sarcastic   

adj.讥讽的，讽刺的，嘲弄的

参考例句：

• I squashed him with a sarcastic remark.我说了一句讽刺的话把他给镇住了。
• She poked fun at people's shortcomings with sarcastic remarks.她冷嘲热讽地拿别人的缺点开玩笑。

9 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。

10 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

11 intriguing   

adj.有趣的；迷人的v.搞阴谋诡计(intrigue的现在分词)；激起…的好奇心

参考例句：

• These discoveries raise intriguing questions. 这些发现带来了非常有趣的问题。
• It all sounds very intriguing. 这些听起来都很有趣。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 gorilla   

n.大猩猩，暴徒，打手

参考例句：

• I was awed by the huge gorilla.那只大猩猩使我惊惧。
• A gorilla is just a speechless animal.猩猩只不过是一种不会说话的动物。

13 vibrant   

adj.震颤的，响亮的，充满活力的，精力充沛的，(色彩)鲜明的

参考例句：

• He always uses vibrant colours in his paintings. 他在画中总是使用鲜明的色彩。
• She gave a vibrant performance in the leading role in the school play.她在学校表演中生气盎然地扮演了主角。

14 aesthetically   

adv.美地，艺术地

参考例句：

• Segmental construction contributes toward aesthetically pleasing structures in many different sites. 对于许多不同的现场条件，分段施工都能提供美观，颇有魄力的桥型结构。
• All isolation techniques may be aesthetically unacceptable or even dirty. 所有的隔离方法都有可能在美观方面使人难以接受，或甚至是肮脏的。

15 miserable   

adj.悲惨的，痛苦的；可怜的，糟糕的

参考例句：

• It was miserable of you to make fun of him.你取笑他，这是可耻的。
• Her past life was miserable.她过去的生活很苦。

16 qualified   

adj.合格的，有资格的，胜任的，有限制的

参考例句：

• He is qualified as a complete man of letters.他有资格当真正的文学家。
• We must note that we still lack qualified specialists.我们必须看到我们还缺乏有资质的专家。

17 lobster   

n.龙虾，龙虾肉

参考例句：

• The lobster is a shellfish.龙虾是水生贝壳动物。
• I like lobster but it does not like me.我喜欢吃龙虾，但它不适宜于我的健康。

18 verge   

n.边，边缘；v.接近，濒临

参考例句：

• The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.国家的经济已到了崩溃的边缘。
• She was on the verge of bursting into tears.她快要哭出来了。