VOA标准英语2012--Iran, Israel Among Contenders for Best Foreign Language Film Oscar

Iran, Israel Among Contenders for Best Foreign Language Film Oscar

"Will you come?" asks the wife. "No, I won't" he responds. She wants to leave Iran; he wants to stay. Iranian writer-director Asghar Farhadi has been collecting numerous awards for his film, A Separation, including the Golden Globe, which he accepted with a reference to international tensions.
"What should I say here? Should I say here?" Farhadi asked during his acceptance speech. "Should I say something about my mother? My father? My kind wife? My daughters? My dear friends? I just prefer to say something about my people. I think they are a truly peace-loving people."
From Poland, the film In Darkness recounts a true story of survival in the Nazi¹ occupied city of Lvov during World War II. A sanitation² worker there named Socha helped a group of Jews hide in the sewers³.
"Tell me if you find any Jews," warns the officer. "It is our duty." "Absolutely," replies Socha, even though he risks his life to bring food to the fugitives⁴.
In an interview at the Polish Embassy in Washington, D.C., director Agnieszka Holland said Socha's story is still relevant today.
"It had this universal dimension. It didn't only speak about that time and those people, but in some way it spoke⁵ about human nature," Holland says.
"Bachir means bearer of good news" explains "Monsieur Lazhar," the title character in a French-language film from Canada that tells the story of an Algerian immigrant teacher and his students.
"It is also about the dignity of immigrants," explains writer-director Philippe Falardeau speaking about the movie at the Sundance Film Festival. "We don't know what they've been through, how difficult it is for them to adapt and how difficult is for them to be 'the other.'"
Bullhead, from Belgium, is a dark tale of brutality⁶ and vengeance⁷ in the illegal underworld known as the "hormone⁸ mafia." Writer-director Michael Roskam says that real criminal enterprise is just the backdrop for his story.
"I wanted to tell the story of a tragedy of my main character, who is a beef trader, who is involved in the illegal growth hormone business," explains Roskam. " But I just wanted to have the whole reality as a background."
Footnote is the tenth Israeli film to be nominated for an Oscar. But none has won.
Written and directed by Joseph Cedar⁹, it's the story of a father and son. Both are scholars of the Talmud, ancient discussions by rabbis pertaining¹⁰ to Jewish law and philosophy. When the father is named the winner of the prestigious¹¹ Israel Prize, their relationship and core beliefs are tested. Cedar considers the Academy Award nomination¹² high praise.
"The Oscars actually have content, and there is substance to a lot of the discussion. So it's really a worthy¹³ event and more than just the glamor¹⁴ …I think," Cedar says.
This year films submitted from 63 countries were narrowed down to the five nominees¹⁵ by a diverse committee of the Motion Picture Academy. The winner, chosen by the entire Academy membership, will be revealed along with the other Oscars in the global telecast on February 26.

1 Nazi   

n.纳粹分子，adj.纳粹党的，纳粹的

参考例句：

• They declare the Nazi regime overthrown and sue for peace.他们宣布纳粹政权已被推翻，并出面求和。
• Nazi closes those war criminals inside their concentration camp.纳粹把那些战犯关在他们的集中营里。

2 sanitation   

n.公共卫生，环境卫生，卫生设备

参考例句：

• The location is exceptionally poor,viewed from the sanitation point.从卫生角度来看，这个地段非常糟糕。
• Many illnesses are the result,f inadequate sanitation.许多疾病都来源于不健全的卫生设施。

3 sewers   

n.阴沟，污水管，下水道( sewer的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The sewers discharge out at sea. 下水道的污水排入海里。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Another municipal waste problem is street runoff into storm sewers. 有关都市废水的另外一个问题是进入雨水沟的街道雨水。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法

4 fugitives   

n.亡命者，逃命者( fugitive的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Three fugitives from the prison are still at large. 三名逃犯仍然未被抓获。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Members of the provisional government were prisoners or fugitives. 临时政府的成员或被捕或逃亡。 来自演讲部分

5 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

6 brutality   

n.野蛮的行为，残忍，野蛮

参考例句：

• The brutality of the crime has appalled the public. 罪行之残暴使公众大为震惊。
• a general who was infamous for his brutality 因残忍而恶名昭彰的将军

7 vengeance   

n.报复，报仇，复仇

参考例句：

• He swore vengeance against the men who murdered his father.他发誓要向那些杀害他父亲的人报仇。
• For years he brooded vengeance.多年来他一直在盘算报仇。

8 hormone   

n.荷尔蒙，激素，内分泌

参考例句：

• Hormone implants are used as growth boosters.激素植入物被用作生长辅助剂。
• This hormone interacts closely with other hormones in the body.这种荷尔蒙与体內其他荷尔蒙紧密地相互作用。

9 cedar   

n.雪松，香柏(木)

参考例句：

• The cedar was about five feet high and very shapely.那棵雪松约有五尺高,风姿优美。
• She struck the snow from the branches of an old cedar with gray lichen.她把长有灰色地衣的老雪松树枝上的雪打了下来。

10 pertaining   

与…有关系的，附属…的，为…固有的(to)

参考例句：

• Living conditions are vastly different from those pertaining in their country of origin. 生活条件与他们祖国大不相同。
• The inspector was interested in everything pertaining to the school. 视察员对有关学校的一切都感兴趣。

11 prestigious   

adj.有威望的，有声望的，受尊敬的

参考例句：

• The young man graduated from a prestigious university.这个年轻人毕业于一所名牌大学。
• You may even join a prestigious magazine as a contributing editor.甚至可能会加入一个知名杂志做编辑。

12 nomination   

n.提名，任命，提名权

参考例句：

• John is favourite to get the nomination for club president.约翰最有希望被提名为俱乐部主席。
• Few people pronounced for his nomination.很少人表示赞成他的提名。

13 worthy   

adj.(of)值得的，配得上的；有价值的

参考例句：

• I did not esteem him to be worthy of trust.我认为他不值得信赖。
• There occurred nothing that was worthy to be mentioned.没有值得一提的事发生。

14 glamor   

n.魅力，吸引力

参考例句：

• His performance fully displayed the infinite glamor of Chinese dance.他的表演充分展示了中华舞蹈的无穷魅力。
• The glamor of the East was brought to international prominence by the Russion national school.俄罗斯民族学派使东方的魅力产生了国际性的影响。

15 nominees   

n.被提名者，被任命者( nominee的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• She's one of the nominees. 她是被提名者之一。 来自超越目标英语 第2册
• A startling number of his nominees for senior positions have imploded. 他所提名的高级官员被否决的数目令人震惊。 来自互联网