Scorsese's "Hugo" enters Chinese theaters

 BEIJING, May 30 (Xinhua) -- U.S. director Martin Scorsese's 3D fantasy film "Hugo" will be screened on the Chinese mainland starting Thursday, according to Huaxia Film Distribution Co., Ltd, the film's mainland distributor.

 

The film, which has been described as Scorsese's personal salute¹ to early cinema, is set in 1930s-era Paris and follows a young boy who tries to unravel² the mystery behind a clockwork robot left behind by his dead father.

 

"Hugo" contains several major references to Georges Melies, the film pioneer who wrote and directed the 1902 silent classic "A Trip to the Moon," as well as references to early filmmakers like the Lumiere Brothers and D.W. Griffith.

 

The film has already earned great critical acclaim³, including five Academy Awards for cinematography, art direction, visual effects, sound mixing and sound editing.

 

The comedy fantasy film "Mirror Mirror" starring Julia Roberts, as well as stop-motion animated⁴ adventure film "The Pirates! Band of Misfits" are also scheduled to join the mainland's box office battle on June 1, which happens to be International Children's Day.

 

A growing number of overseas filmmakers and groups are aiming for a share of China's booming film market. The country's box office soared by 28.93 percent to reach 13.12 billion yuan (2.08 billion U.S. dollars) in 2011.

1 salute   

vi.行礼，致意，问候，放礼炮；vt.向…致意，迎接，赞扬；n.招呼，敬礼，礼炮

参考例句：

• Merchant ships salute each other by dipping the flag.商船互相点旗致敬。
• The Japanese women salute the people with formal bows in welcome.这些日本妇女以正式的鞠躬向人们施礼以示欢迎。

2 unravel   

v.弄清楚（秘密）；拆开，解开，松开

参考例句：

• He was good with his hands and could unravel a knot or untangle yarn that others wouldn't even attempt.他的手很灵巧，其他人甚至都不敢尝试的一些难解的绳结或缠在一起的纱线，他都能解开。
• This is the attitude that led him to unravel a mystery that long puzzled Chinese historians.正是这种态度使他解决了长期以来使中国历史学家们大惑不解的谜。

3 acclaim   

v.向…欢呼，公认；n.欢呼，喝彩，称赞

参考例句：

• He was welcomed with great acclaim.他受到十分热烈的欢迎。
• His achievements earned him the acclaim of the scientific community.他的成就赢得了科学界的赞誉。

4 animated   

adj.生气勃勃的，活跃的，愉快的

参考例句：

• His observations gave rise to an animated and lively discussion.他的言论引起了一场气氛热烈而活跃的讨论。
• We had an animated discussion over current events last evening.昨天晚上我们热烈地讨论时事。