美国国家公共电台 NPR New Exhibit Shows Off Special Effects Pioneer Ray Harryhausen's Lasting Works

 

MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:

We're going to spend the next few minutes hearing about two unusual stories about the film industry. Long before CGI and digital animation¹, creatures like those in "Clash Of The Titans" came alive through the world of stop-motion model animation. And one of the legends of that world was Ray Harryhausen. Now, for the first time since his death in 2013, his work is on display in Oklahoma City. Nomin Ujiyediin of member station KGOU has this report.

NOMIN UJIYEDIIN, BYLINE²: A cyclops, a sea monster and a three-headed dog guard the office of Scott Henderson.

SCOTT HENDERSON: When I got to open the crates³ there it was like Christmas 10 times. It was pretty amazing. I never get tired of looking at them.

UJIYEDIIN: He's a gallery director at the Science Museum Oklahoma. And the exhibit, titled Ray Harryhausen - Mythical⁴ Menagerie, was his idea. He's loved Harryhausen movies since childhood and shares them with his 10-year-old daughter. And now, more than 100 of Harryhausen's models, prototypes, posters and designs are on display right outside his office door. His favorites are from the 1963 film "Jason And The Argonauts."

HENDERSON: They're evil-looking skeletons wielding⁵ swords, getting ready in a fight position. And these were the actual models he used in the film from the famous skeleton warrior⁶ fight.

UJIYEDIIN: In the scene, seven animated⁷ skeletons burst from the ground and attack three live actors. The skeletons chase the men around sunlit Greek ruins and react to every swing of a sword and wave of a shield. The skeletons themselves look a little bit like toys, but their movements look astoundingly real. Harryhausen spent four months on that 5-minute sequence, incorporating stop motion into live-action footage. Sculptor⁸ Mike Hill says that passion and attention to detail is Harryhausen's legacy⁹ among special effects artists.

MIKE HILL: He's part of our blueprint¹⁰ as monster makers¹¹.

UJIYEDIIN: Hill designed a main character in the upcoming film "The Shape Of Water," a blue sea creature with fins¹² and a humanoid body. He says that creature wasn't directly based on a Harryhausen creation, but you can see his influence in its broad shoulders and narrow waist.

HILL: It's the design sense. It's the movement. It's the fluidity. Ray somehow put a soul in there. You almost know what they're thinking, what they did and what their life is without anybody giving us that exposition already. It's inspiring.

UJIYEDIIN: Harryhausen has influenced generations of filmmakers, including Guillermo del Toro, the "Shape Of Water's" director. Maureen Furniss is the head of the Experimental Animation program at the California Institute of the Arts. She still sees animation students who are inspired by Harryhausen's technical and artistic¹³ abilities.

MAUREEN FURNISS: He had a very creative, inventive mind, as well as being an artist. He, you know, went to art school. He thoroughly¹⁴ learned about anatomy¹⁵ and the way that figures moved. And all these come together in his films.

UJIYEDIIN: Those films are known not so much by their actors or directors but by their monsters, like 1981's "Clash Of The Titans," which happens to star Laurence Olivier and Maggie Smith. But what everyone really remembers is...

(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "CLASH OF THE TITANS")

LAURENCE OLIVIER: (As Zeus) Release the kraken.

UJIYEDIIN: ...And Bubo, the goofy mechanical owl¹⁶. Longtime fan Matt Hanke came to see them with his 8-year-old son.

MATT HANKE: It's almost like a religious experience for me. It's tangible¹⁷. Even when you're watching those films, you know it's not real, but it works like something that could have been touched. When a movie's done with CGI, you can't have exhibits like this.

UJIYEDIIN: Visitors can see the kraken and Bubo the owl alongside Medusa, Pegasus and other stars of the movie at the Science Museum Oklahoma until December 3. For NPR News, I'm Nomin Ujiyediin in Oklahoma City.

1 animation   

n.活泼，兴奋，卡通片／动画片的制作

参考例句：

• They are full of animation as they talked about their childhood.当他们谈及童年的往事时都非常兴奋。
• The animation of China made a great progress.中国的卡通片制作取得很大发展。

2 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

3 crates   

n. 板条箱, 篓子, 旧汽车 vt. 装进纸条箱

参考例句：

• We were using crates as seats. 我们用大木箱作为座位。
• Thousands of crates compacted in a warehouse. 数以千计的板条箱堆放在仓库里。

4 mythical   

adj.神话的；虚构的；想像的

参考例句：

• Undeniably,he is a man of mythical status.不可否认，他是一个神话般的人物。
• Their wealth is merely mythical.他们的财富完全是虚构的。

5 wielding   

手持着使用（武器、工具等）( wield的现在分词 )； 具有； 运用（权力）； 施加（影响）

参考例句：

• The rebels were wielding sticks of dynamite. 叛乱分子舞动着棒状炸药。
• He is wielding a knife. 他在挥舞着一把刀。

6 warrior   

n.勇士，武士，斗士

参考例句：

• The young man is a bold warrior.这个年轻人是个很英勇的武士。
• A true warrior values glory and honor above life.一个真正的勇士珍视荣誉胜过生命。

7 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。

8 sculptor   

n.雕刻家，雕刻家

参考例句：

• A sculptor forms her material.雕塑家把材料塑造成雕塑品。
• The sculptor rounded the clay into a sphere.那位雕塑家把黏土做成了一个球状。

9 legacy   

n.遗产，遗赠；先人(或过去)留下的东西

参考例句：

• They are the most precious cultural legacy our forefathers left.它们是我们祖先留下来的最宝贵的文化遗产。
• He thinks the legacy is a gift from the Gods.他认为这笔遗产是天赐之物。

10 blueprint   

n.蓝图，设计图，计划；vt.制成蓝图，计划

参考例句：

• All the machine parts on a blueprint must answer each other.设计图上所有的机器部件都应互相配合。
• The documents contain a blueprint for a nuclear device.文件内附有一张核装置的设计蓝图。

11 makers   

n.制造者，制造商（maker的复数形式）

参考例句：

• The makers of the product assured us that there had been no sacrifice of quality. 这一产品的制造商向我们保证说他们没有牺牲质量。
• The makers are about to launch out a new product. 制造商们马上要生产一种新产品。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 fins   

[医]散热片；鱼鳍；飞边；鸭掌

参考例句：

• The level of TNF-α positively correlated with BMI,FPG,HbA1C,TG,FINS and IRI,but not with SBP and DBP. TNF-α水平与BMI、FPG、HbA1C、TG、FINS和IRI呈显著正相关，与SBP、DBP无相关。 来自互联网
• Fins are a feature specific to fish. 鱼鳍是鱼类特有的特征。 来自辞典例句

13 artistic   

adj.艺术(家)的，美术(家)的；善于艺术创作的

参考例句：

• The picture on this screen is a good artistic work.这屏风上的画是件很好的艺术品。
• These artistic handicrafts are very popular with foreign friends.外国朋友很喜欢这些美术工艺品。

14 thoroughly   

adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地

参考例句：

• The soil must be thoroughly turned over before planting.一定要先把土地深翻一遍再下种。
• The soldiers have been thoroughly instructed in the care of their weapons.士兵们都系统地接受过保护武器的训练。

15 anatomy   

n.解剖学，解剖；功能，结构，组织

参考例句：

• He found out a great deal about the anatomy of animals.在动物解剖学方面，他有过许多发现。
• The hurricane's anatomy was powerful and complex.对飓风的剖析是一项庞大而复杂的工作。

16 owl   

n.猫头鹰，枭

参考例句：

• Her new glasses make her look like an owl.她的新眼镜让她看上去像只猫头鹰。
• I'm a night owl and seldom go to bed until after midnight.我睡得很晚，经常半夜后才睡觉。

17 tangible   

adj.有形的，可触摸的，确凿的，实际的

参考例句：

• The policy has not yet brought any tangible benefits.这项政策还没有带来任何实质性的好处。
• There is no tangible proof.没有确凿的证据。