VOA标准英语2013--Most Entertaining Documentary May Win The Oscar

 

Most Entertaining Documentary May Win The Oscar

Dick Kirby’s Oscar nominated documentary The Invisible War is a gut-wrenching expose on rape¹ in the U.S. military.

The film contends that since 1991 about half a million military men and women have been sexually assaulted by their peers, and the U.S. military has done nothing to punish the culprits.

“The more we did these interviews, the more we really felt this is a film we had to really make and finish," said Dick Kirby. Like Kirby, most award-winning documentarians reveal hard truths that make their films tough to watch.

The Gatekeepers is a critics' favorite. Israeli director Dror Moreh interviewed six former heads of the Shin Bet, Israel's domestic spy agency, responsible for gathering² intelligence in the occupied West Bank.

They said fighting Palestinian terrorists meant they had to bend the rules of morality and justify³ collateral⁴ damage. The film exposes Israel's internal divisions and offers a grim prediction of the country's future if it doesn't make peace with its enemies.

Five Broken Cameras by Emad Burnat, a Palestinian villager, and Israeli filmmaker Guy Davidi, is a video diary of Emad's life under Israeli occupation in the West Bank. 

It's an account of how Palestinian villagers fought against the Israeli security barrier that was cutting them off from their lands.

How to Survive a Plague chronicles the early years of the AIDS epidemic⁵ and how a handful of activists⁶ stemmed its deadly tide. David France made the film. “Everything about the way medicine and healthcare is delivered and practiced today is an outgrowth of AIDS and AIDS activism," he explained. "So I wanted to tell a story of triumph and accomplishment⁷.”

These four nominees⁸ tell powerful stories with groundbreaking footage. But, none so far has captured the hearts of the Academy's voters as much as Searching for Sugarman.

Malik Bendjelloul’s film is about Rodriguez, a '70s rock musician from Detroit who had no idea that he became a music icon⁹ in South Africa.

“Right now, you'd have to say that that’s the putative¹⁰ favorite,” stated filmmaker Nina Seavey. The Emmy Award-winning filmmaker says the Academy seems to be going more for entertainment-driven documentaries and Searching for Sugarman fits the bill.

Although the Oscars may be a popularity contest, all five documentaries were selected primarily for their merit, not for their box office allure¹¹. 

1 rape   

n.抢夺，掠夺，强奸；vt.掠夺，抢夺，强奸

参考例句：

• The rape of the countryside had a profound ravage on them.对乡村的掠夺给他们造成严重创伤。
• He was brought to court and charged with rape.他被带到法庭并被指控犯有强奸罪。

2 gathering   

n.集会，聚会，聚集

参考例句：

• He called on Mr. White to speak at the gathering.他请怀特先生在集会上讲话。
• He is on the wing gathering material for his novels.他正忙于为他的小说收集资料。

3 justify   

vt.证明…正当(或有理)，为…辩护

参考例句：

• He tried to justify his absence with lame excuses.他想用站不住脚的借口为自己的缺席辩解。
• Can you justify your rude behavior to me?你能向我证明你的粗野行为是有道理的吗？

4 collateral   

adj.平行的；旁系的；n.担保品

参考例句：

• Many people use personal assets as collateral for small business loans.很多人把个人财产用作小额商业贷款的抵押品。
• Most people here cannot borrow from banks because they lack collateral.由于拿不出东西作为抵押，这里大部分人无法从银行贷款。

5 epidemic   

n.流行病；盛行；adj.流行性的，流传极广的

参考例句：

• That kind of epidemic disease has long been stamped out.那种传染病早已绝迹。
• The authorities tried to localise the epidemic.当局试图把流行病限制在局部范围。

6 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 accomplishment   

n.完成，成就，（pl.）造诣，技能

参考例句：

• The series of paintings is quite an accomplishment.这一系列的绘画真是了不起的成就。
• Money will be crucial to the accomplishment of our objectives.要实现我们的目标，钱是至关重要的。

8 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

9 icon   

n.偶像，崇拜的对象，画像

参考例句：

• They found an icon in the monastery.他们在修道院中发现了一个圣像。
• Click on this icon to align or justify text.点击这个图标使文本排齐。

10 putative   

adj.假定的

参考例句：

• There have been many attempts to track down the putative Loch Ness monster.人们为追踪假定存在的尼斯湖水怪做了许多努力。
• He is the putative father of this child.他是这孩子的推定的父亲。

11 allure   

n.诱惑力，魅力；vt.诱惑，引诱，吸引

参考例句：

• The window displays allure customers to buy goods.橱窗陈列品吸引顾客购买货物。
• The book has a certain allure for which it is hard to find a reason.这本书有一种难以解释的魅力。