VOA标准英语2012--Fantasy Woman Comes to Life in 'Ruby Sparks'

 

Fantasy Woman Comes to Life in 'Ruby¹ Sparks'

"Ruby Sparks," a romantic comedy from the directors of "Little Miss Sunshine," explores the challenges of creativity and love when a young author's fantasy woman comes to life.

After a long bout² of writer's block, Calvin, a novelist, creates a new character, Ruby. He writes incessantly³ about her and falls in love.

When his fictional⁴ character appears to materialize in real life, Calvin is terrified. He calls his brother Harry⁵ for help. Harry believes Calvin has an overactive imagination, until he meets Ruby.

Believing Ruby is an imposter, Harry suggests Calvin write something about her to see if it comes true. So when Calvin writes that his fictional character speaks French, true-life Ruby begins speaking the language as well.

Although the film starts out as a romantic comedy, it becomes darker as it addresses issues of control.

"This is insane," Harry says to Calvin in the film. "You manifested a woman with your mind. So, you can, like, change her."

But Calvin's creation has her own personality. 

The movie addresses the philosophical⁶ aspects of love, loneliness, and the line between the real and the imaginary.

Ultimately, Calvin has to relinquish⁷ control of his beloved no matter her origin.

The story also questions whether creative genius can be beckoned⁸.

Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris directed "Ruby Sparks." They say, thanks to the script's intelligent dialogue and twists, this romantic comedy deviates⁹ from Hollywood's formulaic love stories.

"There is a lot of them out there and at a certain point they can be pretty tired," Dayton says, "and this was a really different kind of comedy.

Faris doesn't think of their film as a romantic comedy. "I think there are funny elements. This is a little more dramatic in my mind."

Actors Paul Dano and Zoe Kazan, a real-life couple, portray¹⁰ Calvin and Ruby as refreshingly¹¹ unpredictable.

Like the directors, the lead actors didn't want Hollywood to produce the film, so they produced it themselves with the help of Fox Searchlight Pictures, a smaller enterprise.

Kazan, the grandaughter of famous director Elias Kazan, who wrote the script and plays Ruby, says it's not easy to make films outside Hollywood's studio system. 

"It's a really strange time for independent films right now," Kazan says. "Movies get made at a very tiny budget or not at all basically, especially without movie stars in the lead roles."

According to Kazan, her family credentials¹² didn't help.

"Sometimes I wish it was more of an advantage because it's a really hard business," she says. "You need a break basically."

Dano, who plays Calvin, explains how the project got started.

"Zoe and I have been dating for five years," he says. "She started writing it in our apartment and about 10 pages into her writing I said 'We should send this to Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris,' and she said 'Yes.'" 

The directors say the film was a labor¹³ of love.

"And hopefully it shows up on the screen," says Dayton.

"Ruby Sparks" is an intelligent story, as breezy as it's hearbreaking. Its superb cast makes it one of the season's best. 

1 ruby   

n.红宝石，红宝石色

参考例句：

• She is wearing a small ruby earring.她戴着一枚红宝石小耳环。
• On the handle of his sword sat the biggest ruby in the world.他的剑柄上镶有一颗世上最大的红宝石。

2 bout   

n.侵袭，发作；一次(阵，回)；拳击等比赛

参考例句：

• I was suffering with a bout of nerves.我感到一阵紧张。
• That bout of pneumonia enfeebled her.那次肺炎的发作使她虚弱了。

3 incessantly   

ad.不停地

参考例句：

• The machines roar incessantly during the hours of daylight. 机器在白天隆隆地响个不停。
• It rained incessantly for the whole two weeks. 雨不间断地下了整整两个星期。

4 fictional   

adj.小说的，虚构的

参考例句：

• The names of the shops are entirely fictional.那些商店的名字完全是虚构的。
• The two authors represent the opposite poles of fictional genius.这两位作者代表了天才小说家两个极端。

5 harry   

vt.掠夺，蹂躏，使苦恼

参考例句：

• Today,people feel more hurried and harried.今天，人们感到更加忙碌和苦恼。
• Obama harried business by Healthcare Reform plan.奥巴马用医改掠夺了商界。

6 philosophical   

adj.哲学家的，哲学上的，达观的

参考例句：

• The teacher couldn't answer the philosophical problem.老师不能解答这个哲学问题。
• She is very philosophical about her bad luck.她对自己的不幸看得很开。

7 relinquish   

v.放弃，撤回，让与，放手

参考例句：

• He was forced to relinquish control of the company.他被迫放弃公司的掌控权。
• They will never voluntarily relinquish their independence.他们绝对不会自动放弃独立。

8 beckoned   

v.（用头或手的动作）示意，召唤( beckon的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He beckoned to the waiter to bring the bill. 他招手示意服务生把账单送过来。
• The seated figure in the corner beckoned me over. 那个坐在角落里的人向我招手让我过去。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 deviates   

v.偏离，越轨( deviate的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• The boy's behavior deviates from the usual pattern. 这个男孩子的举止与一般人不同。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The limit occurs when the ordinate deviates appreciably from unity. 这个限度发生在纵坐标明显地从单位1偏离的时候。 来自辞典例句

10 portray   

v.描写，描述；画(人物、景象等)

参考例句：

• It is difficult to portray feelings in words.感情很难用言语来描写。
• Can you portray the best and worst aspects of this job?您能描述一下这份工作最好与最坏的方面吗？

11 refreshingly   

adv.清爽地，有精神地

参考例句：

• Hers is less workmanlike than the other books and refreshingly unideological. 她的书不像其它书那般精巧，并且不涉及意识形态也让人耳目一新。 来自互联网
• Skin is left refreshingly clean with no pore-clogging residue. 皮肤留下清爽干净，没有孔隙堵塞残留。 来自互联网

12 credentials   

n.证明，资格，证明书，证件

参考例句：

• He has long credentials of diplomatic service.他的外交工作资历很深。
• Both candidates for the job have excellent credentials.此项工作的两个求职者都非常符合资格。

13 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。