老规矩，先介绍母鸡：www.asiaobscura.com是个老外的博客，老外住在北京，不出所料地有个中国老婆，喜爱亚洲文化，用这个博客来记录他觉得有意思的事情。
《珊瑚岛上的死光》对于70后应该不陌生，对80+后恐怕有点外星了。但不管你是否熟悉电影，这篇博客都是很有趣的阅读材料。这个人的其他博客文章也很值得一读，基本上这种native English speaker来谈论我们熟悉的话题的材料总是对学习英语很有用的，特别是语法和用词的细微之处。
China’s first sci-fi movie: Death Ray on Coral Island (1980)
POSTED BY DEAN PICKLES ON FEBRUARY - 24 - 20112 COMMENTS
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Sci-fi books? China’s got tons of those.
But when it comes to sci-fi movies, China’s really falling behind. One that really did impress me, though, was the very first to be produced in China: 1980′s gorgeous, fun, and campy “Death Ray on Coral Island” (珊瑚岛上的死光).
In “Death Ray,” a good-hearted team of Chinese scientists, based in what appears to be San Francisco, finally succeed in completing their fabulous futuristic invention. That is, until the sinister back-stabbing Americans, played with Bond-villainous glee by Chinese actors in whiteface and prosthetic noses, decide to steal the invention for their evil plots. They use sabotage, death-ray guns, murder, and even cocktails, to get what they want. The head scientist, shortly after being gunned down with a 激光 laser and left for dead, hands off the circuit board to his brave son-in-law. “Take this, and flee!” But those lousy Americans don’t give up… they shoot down the kid’s plane over shark-infested, death-ray-filled waters, and he ends up on a mysterious Dr Moreau island. On this island? Oh, just more death rays, a robot, a mute dogsbody (ahem), some cool sound effects, and loud disembodied “Number Two” announcements. Oh, it just keeps going!
Okay, “Death Ray” is very cheesy… The effects are terrible, the plot– based on the story by Tong Enzheng — is wildly convoluted, and it really reminds me a lot of the 1950s American sci-fi films. With more awesome Hawaiian strings on the score.
But it’s also earnest, and a really interesting slice of Reform & Opening Up China. At its core is the duelling lust & hate for the West… shots of the futuristic and desirous overseas American life, which is ruined only by the evil Americans who live there. (I remember experiencing the same duality as a schoolboy in England: all of my classmates were obsessed with America, but hated Americans. I guess we all experience this everywhere…)
And then there’s the dancing, the glorious ballroom dancing! It was all the craze in the mainland at the time, so there’s a great extended (8 minutes or so?) scene, which is set in a ballroom dancing party. Not much point to the scene, except to watch (and study) the moves. If you haven’t already, don’t miss Ginger Huang’s wonderful article from The World of Chinese magazine about “The Last 30 Years of Dancing in China.” Not only is she a great writer, it’s a fascinating story. (Executions for holding dance parties… and more.)
The film remains unsubtitled, which is a crime — it’s delicious fun — so I’m working on fan-subtitling it. (Help always appreciated!) But in the meantime, here are some colorful pix from a VCD copy.
Hope you will like it
评论
珊瑚岛上的死光' 这名字绝对不陌生
评论
对60、70年代生的这一代人确实不陌生，但这年头，00代的都能上网跟咱们交流了...
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