美国国家公共电台 NPR Amandla Stenberg 'Infiltrates' Teen Romance World In 'Everything, Everything'

 

MARY LOUISE KELLY, HOST:

You may recognize our next guest from her role as Rue¹ in the movie "The Hunger Games." Amandla Stenberg made her mark as the smart sidekick to Katniss Everdeen played by Jennifer Lawrence. Stenberg is also making her mark outside Hollywood in the arena² of social media. Her commentary on race and cultural appropriation³ has earned her zillions of new fans and also a lot of controversy⁴. Here's her most famous YouTube video from 2015 called "Don't Cash Crop My Cornrows."

(SOUNDBITE OF VIDEO, "DON'T CASH CROP MY CORNROWS")

AMANDLA STENBERG: Braids and cornrows are not merely stylistic. They're necessary in order to keep black hair neat. So I've been seeing this question a lot on social media, and I think it's really relevant. What would America be like if we loved black people as much as we love black culture?

KELLY: Amandla Stenberg is now 18, and she is starring in three films this year, including "Everything, Everything" which comes out this Friday. We wanted to talk to her more about it, along with everything, everything going on in her life. Amandla Stenberg, thank you for joining us.

STENBERG: Of course. I'm so happy to be talking to you.

KELLY: We're glad to have you. So in this movie, you play a girl with a rare disease. Her name is Maddy. She is 18, like you. And she has never left her house because her immune system is so weak that the outside world would kill her. So I have to start by asking how the heck do you prepare for a role like that? How do you get into that mindset?

STENBERG: (Laughter) Well, something that was really helpful in preparing for the role was the fact that it's based off this book by Nicola Yoon.

KELLY: And has the same title. It's also called "Everything, Everything."

STENBERG: Yes. I think in many regards, the film is less about this girl with this disease and more of a fairy tale. And so in thinking about how to play this character is often thinking about striking a sense of realism with the character and making her feel like a teen that kids who are watching the movie could relate to, but also keeping the movie in the realm of magic and fantasy.

KELLY: Was it hard playing a character who for much of the movie, certainly, at least the first half, never gets to leave the four walls of her house?

STENBERG: (Laughter) Yeah. It definitely got a little bit claustrophobic at times, but it was cool because it allowed us to really explore all of the feelings within that space. I think Maddy's relationship with her mother is something that we never really get to see. There's a lot of relentless⁵ love, and in many ways a lot of things that are somewhat abusive, as you learn. I won't reveal anything because there's the large twist that you have to learn for yourself when you see the movie.

KELLY: Right. I mean, Maddy - because she's stuck inside and there's fear about bringing germs in from the outside world, her mother is one of only three people in her life. So by definition you're going to have an intense relationship there if that's one of the only people you ever get to see.

STENBERG: Yeah, absolutely. While Maddy is experiencing this isolation⁶, and I think this kind of depression, at the same time, she's been so protected and so nurtured⁷ by her mother that I think there's a naiveness⁸ (ph) to her.

KELLY: She has been very fiercely loved, and that brings us to the early plot twist which is Maddy's life changes when a new family moves in next door, and she spots the son, Olly, who's played by Nick Robinson. He wears all black. His favorite word he tells her is macabre⁹. They're communicating at first just through the window because, as we said, Maddy can't go outside. He is very much a pessimist¹⁰ compared to innocent, sweet Maddy. And you can hear that in this next clip I'll play which is when these two finally meet.

(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "EVERYTHING, EVERYTHING")

NICK ROBINSON: (As Olly Bright) Where would you go if you could?

STENBERG: (As Maddy Whittier) The ocean.

ROBINSON: (As Olly Bright) The ocean? Why?

STENBERG: (As Maddy Whittier) Well, it cover 72 percent of the planet, and it's approximately three miles from here. And I've never seen it.

ROBINSON: (As Olly Bright) It's a bad choice.

STENBERG: (As Maddy Whittier) Why?

ROBINSON: (As Olly Bright) I'm assuming you can't swim.

STENBERG: (As Maddy Whittier, laughing) Yeah, you're right. But I'd like to try.

KELLY: It's this very sweet relationship that emerges between these two. However, I was sitting there wondering where is this ever going to go given that she can't leave the house?

STENBERG: Yeah. That was a huge concern, I think, in making the movie and the way that the director Stella Meghie reacted to the fact that she had to create a film about two teenagers texting for half of it was by creating these sequences of magical realism within Maddy's imagination.

KELLY: One thing that has gotten a lot of buzz is that the relationship between these two is an interracial relationship. I've seen you talk about that that is one reason you were attracted to the role. Why?

STENBERG: Honestly, I don't know if I ever have seen a movie like this with a black girl in the lead.

KELLY: And Olly's white, we should say.

STENBERG: Yes, of course. And, you know, we're living in a world that is increasingly more diverse and increasingly more nuanced. And it makes sense for our films, specifically the films that have target audiences that are teenage to reflect that in a way that's authentic¹¹. And that would be bringing up this conversation, but also never bringing it up. And this movie is not about race. It's never a conversation in the film. What it does is it just shows us existing.

KELLY: It's a total non-issue between Olly and Maddy which is almost a more powerful statement than if it had been an issue in their relationship.

STENBERG: Yes. Absolutely. When I originally received the script, I figured that this would be a character that'd be played by a white actress. And so I kind of initially¹² immediately wrote it off in my head. But when I looked into it further, I saw that Nicola Yoon had created this book that was specifically written for a biracial girl in the lead role. And that was so exciting to me because I never got to see that as a kid. It was something that I always wished I could have seen.

KELLY: Well, I'm curious how then this role fits in with your other work. We played that clip of your video "Don't Cash Crop My Cornrows." You have used social media as a platform for speaking about your identity and your thoughts on race and culture. Is there a moment that you can point to when you decided¹³ this is something I want to be out there talking about?

STENBERG: I don't know if there ever was one particular moment. I think that I'm constantly trying to re-evaluate how best to utilize¹⁴ my voice. And during that time period when I put out that YouTube video about cornrows was a moment when social media was the most integral tool to having these sorts of conversations. Social media in general is really saturated¹⁵ with dialogue and saturated with these conversations.

And I think that's important and good and necessary, but I don't know if my contributing to more dialogue when I've already said things I've wanted to say would necessarily be that productive in social activism and creating change. And so I think I can be more productive by doing things like "Everything, Everything," which is something that a couple of years ago maybe I wouldn't have done. But now I can see the power in kind of - I like to use the word infiltration¹⁶ - in infiltrating¹⁷ these larger corporations that would traditionally put out media that would just feature white people.

KELLY: I mean, have you found that being outspoken¹⁸ outside of Hollywood on issues of race and culture, has it hurt, has it helped your film career?

STENBERG: I think it's only helped, and I think there's a reason for that. I think the reason why it's helped is because teenagers nowadays are so wicked smart. I mean, we've grown up with computers in our hands, and we know when we're seeing something that is being sold to us because we're used to filtering ads. We're used to filtering through media constantly.

And so I think that a lot of teenagers are getting really bored of the same stuff coming out. And they're getting bored of seeing the same white people in roles, and they want diversity, especially black teenagers, of course. And I think that studios have had no other option than to respond to that and because I've been someone who has had this direct connection to people my age, this direct connection to these teenagers who care about social activism and who would go see a movie like "Everything, Everything," I'm the person that they're casting. It's really, really an interesting, tricky¹⁹ and beautiful dynamic to navigate²⁰ at this age. I just graduated from high school about a year ago, and it feels wild to have jumped from, you know, using kind of the safer space of the internet to do this kind of work to now being in a very adult world.

KELLY: Well, congratulations on this new movie. And I want to end by noting that on top of everything else, you've just dropped a new song which you actually sing.

STENBERG: Yeah.

KELLY: It's in the soundtrack for "Everything, Everything." And it's called "Let My Baby Stay." We're going to play a little bit of that.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "LET MY BABY STAY")

STENBERG: (Singing) I was made to love her, been working at it, half of my life. I've been an addict²¹. And she's been good to me.

KELLY: That is the singer and activist²² and actress Amandla Stenberg. Her new movie "Everything, Everything" is out on Friday. Amandla Stenberg, it was a pleasure talking to you. Thanks so much.

STENBERG: Thank you so much.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "LET MY BABY STAY")

STENBERG: (Singing) So please don't take my love away.

1 rue   

n.懊悔，芸香，后悔；v.后悔，悲伤，懊悔

参考例句：

• You'll rue having failed in the examination.你会悔恨考试失败。
• You're going to rue this the longest day that you live.你要终身悔恨不尽呢。

2 arena   

n.竞技场，运动场所；竞争场所，舞台

参考例句：

• She entered the political arena at the age of 25. 她25岁进入政界。
• He had not an adequate arena for the exercise of his talents.他没有充分发挥其才能的场所。

3 appropriation   

n.拨款，批准支出

参考例句：

• Our government made an appropriation for the project.我们的政府为那个工程拨出一笔款项。
• The council could note an annual appropriation for this service.议会可以为这项服务表决给他一笔常年经费。

4 controversy   

n.争论，辩论，争吵

参考例句：

• That is a fact beyond controversy.那是一个无可争论的事实。
• We ran the risk of becoming the butt of every controversy.我们要冒使自己在所有的纷争中都成为众矢之的的风险。

5 relentless   

adj.残酷的，不留情的，无怜悯心的

参考例句：

• The traffic noise is relentless.交通车辆的噪音一刻也不停止。
• Their training has to be relentless.他们的训练必须是无情的。

6 isolation   

n.隔离，孤立，分解，分离

参考例句：

• The millionaire lived in complete isolation from the outside world.这位富翁过着与世隔绝的生活。
• He retired and lived in relative isolation.他退休后，生活比较孤寂。

7 nurtured   

养育( nurture的过去式和过去分词 )； 培育； 滋长； 助长

参考例句：

• She is looking fondly at the plants he had nurtured. 她深情地看着他培育的植物。
• Any latter-day Einstein would still be spotted and nurtured. 任何一个未来的爱因斯坦都会被发现并受到培养。

8 naiveness   

自然； 朴素

参考例句：

9 macabre   

adj.骇人的，可怖的

参考例句：

• He takes a macabre interest in graveyards.他那么留意墓地，令人毛骨悚然。
• Mr Dahl was well-known for his macabre adult stories called 'Tales of the Unexpected'.达尔先生以成人恐怖小说集《意料之外的故事》闻名于世。

10 pessimist   

n.悲观者；悲观主义者；厌世

参考例句：

• An optimist laughs to forget.A pessimist forgets to laugh.乐观者笑着忘却，悲观者忘记怎样笑。
• The pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity.The optimist sees opportunity in every difficulty.悲观者在每个机会中都看到困难，乐观者在每个困难中都看到机会。

11 authentic   

a.真的，真正的；可靠的，可信的，有根据的

参考例句：

• This is an authentic news report. We can depend on it. 这是篇可靠的新闻报道, 我们相信它。
• Autumn is also the authentic season of renewal. 秋天才是真正的除旧布新的季节。

12 initially   

adv.最初，开始

参考例句：

• The ban was initially opposed by the US.这一禁令首先遭到美国的反对。
• Feathers initially developed from insect scales.羽毛最初由昆虫的翅瓣演化而来。

13 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

14 utilize   

vt.使用，利用

参考例句：

• The cook will utilize the leftover ham bone to make soup.厨师要用吃剩的猪腿骨做汤。
• You must utilize all available resources.你必须利用一切可以得到的资源。

15 saturated   

a.饱和的，充满的

参考例句：

• The continuous rain had saturated the soil. 连绵不断的雨把土地淋了个透。
• a saturated solution of sodium chloride 氯化钠饱和溶液

16 infiltration   

n.渗透；下渗；渗滤；入渗

参考例句：

• The police tried to prevent infiltration by drug traffickers. 警方尽力阻止毒品走私分子的潜入。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• A loss in volume will occur if infiltration takes place. 如果发生了渗润作用，水量就会减少。 来自辞典例句

17 infiltrating   

v.（使）渗透，（指思想）渗入人的心中( infiltrate的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Be vigilant against the danger of enemy agents infiltrating the government and boring from within. 要警惕敌特渗入政府内部进行暗中破坏。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• The metastatic melanoma is seen here to be infiltrating into the myocardium. 图示转移性黑色素瘤浸润到心肌。 来自互联网

18 outspoken   

adj.直言无讳的，坦率的，坦白无隐的

参考例句：

• He was outspoken in his criticism.他在批评中直言不讳。
• She is an outspoken critic of the school system in this city.她是这座城市里学校制度的坦率的批评者。

19 tricky   

adj.狡猾的，奸诈的；(工作等)棘手的，微妙的

参考例句：

• I'm in a rather tricky position.Can you help me out?我的处境很棘手，你能帮我吗？
• He avoided this tricky question and talked in generalities.他回避了这个非常微妙的问题，只做了个笼统的表述。

20 navigate   

v.航行，飞行；导航，领航

参考例句：

• He was the first man to navigate the Atlantic by air.他是第一个飞越大西洋的人。
• Such boats can navigate on the Nile.这种船可以在尼罗河上航行。

21 addict   

v.使沉溺；使上瘾；n.沉溺于不良嗜好的人

参考例句：

• He became gambling addict,and lost all his possessions.他习染上了赌博，最终输掉了全部家产。
• He assisted a drug addict to escape from drug but failed firstly.一开始他帮助一个吸毒者戒毒但失败了。

22 activist   

n.活动分子，积极分子

参考例句：

• He's been a trade union activist for many years.多年来他一直是工会的积极分子。
• He is a social activist in our factory.他是我厂的社会活动积极分子。