语音:美式发音 适合讨论
语速:175词/分钟
关键词:pop culture, vampire, mortal
Well, you know, talking pop culture, as I say, this summer film and TV and book critics are saying that this summer is gonna go down as the history of vampire madness. So what’s behind this decep…obsession that we all have for the undead that will not die?
Well clearly we love the undead, but it’s actually just that we like the hot actors who play the undead. Have you seen all these beautiful, beautiful children? The Twilight Saga: Eclipse killed at the box office this weekend. So far the movie has sold $162 million worth of tickets and the fans are still lining up.
Reporter: They call themselves, “Twi-hards,” and like vampires rising from the grave, they came to movie theatres everywhere.
The love 1)triangle between Bella, Edward and Jacob has fans 2)swooning and screaming.
Harry Medved (Fandango.com): This film has it all. It’s got the romance, it’s got some great battle 3)sequences.
Reporter: The Twilight series has created a cultish following among “’tweens.” A hundred million copies sold of the books, and over one billion in ticket sales.
So is this the year of the vampire?
Remember Tom Cruise’s turn in Interview with the Vampire? It grossed more than $36 million on opening weekend in over 2,000 theatres; Eclipse, nearly $162 million in over 4,000 theatres.
But it’s not just movies. Vampires are killing it on TV. True Blood, HBO’s hit, drew over five million viewers in this season’s premiere, up nearly 40% from last season. And from the CW’s Vampire Diaries to ABC’s The Gates, the undead are taking over, turning heads and even pages. This summer’s “must read” book, Justin Cronin’s The Passage, No.7 on the best seller list. The author has a theory on why our love of vampires is more than just lust.
Cronin: At its heart it asks the question, “What part of your humanity would you be trading away if you got to live forever?” It’s ultimately a4)fable to reassure us that it’s better to be mortal.
说到流行文化,就像我说的,这个夏天,电影、电视和书籍评论家都说,今夏将掀起一股吸血鬼狂潮。人们对不死的吸血鬼痴迷的原因是什么呢?
显然我们都爱吸血鬼,但其实我们是爱那些俊男美女——吸血鬼的扮演者。你没见到那些漂漂亮亮的孩子吗?《暮光之城:月蚀》本周末票房大卖。截止目前为止,电影门票收入已达1.62亿美元,影迷依然在大排长龙。
记者:影迷们以“重度暮光迷”一词自称。吸血鬼从墓地里爬出来,吸血鬼迷们充斥各处的剧院。
贝拉、爱德华和雅各布之间的三角恋为影迷们所津津乐道,并且连声尖叫。
哈里·默维德(网络票务网站方丹戈网):电影集合了所有(受欢迎)的要素。有浪漫情节,也有打斗场景。
记者:《暮光》系列在“吞世代”当中创造了一众信徒。书籍已经售出了一亿册,电影门票销售突破10亿美元。
那么说,今年是吸血鬼年吗?
记得汤姆·克鲁斯的《夜访吸血鬼》吗?在上演的第一周周末,它在2000多家剧院的门票收入就突破3600万美元。而《暮光之城:月蚀》在超过4000家电影院收获了将近1.62亿美元。
然而不仅仅是电影,吸血鬼还同时横扫了电视荧屏。美国家庭电影台的热播电视剧《真爱如血》在今季首集就吸引了超过500万的观众,比上一季上升了将近40%。从哥伦比亚及华纳兄弟联合电视台的《吸血鬼日记》,到美国广播公司的《狼门血影》,吸血鬼横空出世,所向披靡,甚至波及图书市场。这个夏天的“必读”书籍榜单中,贾斯廷·克罗宁的《通道》位列畅销书榜第七。人们对吸血鬼的狂热为何经久不息,该书作者有自己的见解。
克罗宁:关键的是它从根本上提出了这样一个问题:“如果你可以用人性的一部分去换取永生和不朽,你会交出哪一部分?”说到底,这只是一个寓言而已,其实,终有一死更好。
Comments 观点参考
With the popularity of the Twilight series currently raging, many people are wondering what the big deal is about a story that revolves around vampires. Here is a list of three reasons why vampire stories are awesome.
1. We like to be scared—When the thing to fear is fictional we feel safe in allowing ourselves to indulge in a made-up menace[威胁,危险].
2. Vampires are interesting—Vampires are often depicted as very intriguing characters. They are immortal! They drink blood! Some sleep in coffins, and some spontaneously combust[燃烧,耗尽] when exposed to sunlight!
3. People fear their own mortality—The concept of wanting to live forever is not new, and neither is the legend of vampires. Enjoying eternal youth is something people have always fantasized about, which makes the appeal of vampires obvious!