流利阅读0822

The Academy announces a misguided new category

奥斯卡宣布新奖项，被指是一步错棋

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced on August 8th that it will be introducing a new category in time for next February’s awards ceremony, one that honours “achievement in popular film”. The idea is that, alongside the time-honoured “Best Picture” category, there will be another for films which have a broader appeal: blockbusters, in other words.

8 月 8 日，美国电影艺术与科学学院宣布，将在明年二月的颁奖典礼上介绍一个新奖项，该新奖项将表彰“受欢迎电影的成就”。也就是说，除了历史悠久的“最佳影片”以外，将会出炉另一个奖项，专供那些有更广吸引力的电影，说直白点，就是大片们。

Ironically, the announcement has been anything but popular. On social media, responses to this idea have ranged from hostile to very hostile indeed. Many feel that the once-prestigious Oscars are dumbing down to the level of the MTV Awards. What’s next—Best Kiss? Loudest Shoot-Out? Most Skyscrapers Flattened by Aliens in a Single Action Sequence?

讽刺的是，这一公告根本不受欢迎。在社交媒体上，人们对这个想法要么不买账，要么非常不买账。许多人认为，昔日享有盛誉的奥斯卡金像奖是在把自己的逼格降到 MTV 电影大奖的档次。下一步会是什么，最佳吻戏？最激烈枪战？在一组动作镜头中，被外星人夷为平地的摩天大楼最多奖?

The concept of the “Hit Oscar” or the “Popcorn Oscar”, as it has been nicknamed, raises other questions, too. To start with, who decides whether or not a film is popular? What are the criteria or thresholds? And isn’t it an insult to nominees, the implicit suggestion being that hit films can’t be artistic (and vice versa)?

“热门奥斯卡”（或它的绰号“爆米花奥斯卡”）的概念也引发了其他问题。首先，谁来决定一部电影是否受欢迎？什么是标准或阈值？而且，暗示热门电影不可能有艺术性（反之亦然），这不是对提名者的侮辱吗？

There was a time when the likes of “Braveheart”, “Titanic” and “Gladiator” could make zillions at the box office, while also scooping up armfuls of golden statuettes. But in the past decade the top Oscar has gone to auteur projects such as “The Shape of Water”, “Moonlight” and “Birdman”: terrific films, but by no means the so-called “tentpoles” that keep a roof over the studios’ heads.

曾几何时，像《勇敢的心》、《泰坦尼克号》和《角斗士》这样的电影可以在票房上大赚一笔，同时还能斩获大把的小金人。但在过去十年里，奥斯卡最佳影片奖被授予给诸如《水形物语》、《月光男孩》和《鸟人》这样的有导演强烈个人风格的电影，它们是好电影，但绝不是所谓的能保证帮电影公司收回成本的创收影片。

The new division between best picture and popular picture may be ill-judged, but it reflects a pre-existing dichotomy between arthouse and multiplex fare. So have pity on the poor Academy. If Hollywood studios weren’t quite so obsessed with superhero franchises, the Oscars might not be in this mess in the first place.

最佳影片和最流行影片之间的新划分可能是不当的，但它反映了长久以来艺术和票房之间的对立。可怜的奥斯卡。如果好莱坞的电影公司不那么痴迷于超级英雄系列，奥斯卡奖或许根本不会陷入这种困境。

—————  文章来源 / 经济学人