美国国家公共电台 NPR 'Lady Macbeth' Turns Sound And Fury Into Victorian Noir

 

KELLY MCEVERS, HOST:

The new movie "Lady Macbeth" doesn't deal with royalty¹ or take place in medieval Scotland. It's not even based on Shakespeare. But our critic Bob Mondello says the leading lady still lives up to the title.

BOB MONDELLO, BYLINE²: We first spy Katherine at her wedding as she's looking around during a hymn³. The only female voice she hears is her own. It's 1865, rural England, and this teen bride doesn't know the wedding guests or her husband. But she's a forthright⁴ gal⁵. When he comes to her bedroom on their wedding night, she makes a stab at getting acquainted.

(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "LADY MACBETH")

FLORENCE PUGH: (As Katherine) I like the fresh air. I like being outside.

PAUL HILTON: (As Alexander) Take it off. Your night dress - take it off.

MONDELLO: He's settled into a chair on the other side of the room.

(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "LADY MACBETH")

HILTON: (As Alexander) Face the wall. Face the wall.

MONDELLO: Katherine may be an innocent, but this is not the way she thinks her wedding night with an older husband should go. She's done nothing to upset him. So what has?

(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "LADY MACBETH")

HILTON: (As Alexander) My father...

MONDELLO: Ah, his father.

(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "LADY MACBETH")

HILTON: (As Alexander) ...Bought you along with a piece of land not fit for a cow to graze upon.

MONDELLO: They're not going to get on, but she said she likes the outdoors. There's still the estate.

(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "LADY MACBETH")

HILTON: (As Alexander) You will remain here, indoors with your prayer book.

MONDELLO: Now, this is dangerous. Close off enough options, and even the most pliant⁶ person will rebel. And Katherine is not pliant. Played by a then-19-year-old Florence Pugh, she seethes⁷. She drinks and, when her husband leaves her unattended, embarks⁸ on an affair with a handsome stable hand. He seduces⁹ her not realizing how fiercely her freshly awakened¹⁰ passion will attach to him.

(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "LADY MACBETH")

PUGH: (As Katherine) You know I shan't be parted from your life, Sebastian. Through hell and high water, I will follow you to the cross, to the...

FLORENCE PUGH AND COSMO JARVIS: (As Katherine and Sebastian) ...Prison, to the grave, to the sky.

PUGH: (As Katherine) I'd rather stop your breathing than have you doubt how I feel.

MONDELLO: His brow furrows¹¹ as that remark sinks in. Pugh is mesmerizing¹². Her Katherine is uninhibited went out-of-doors as the rushing wind. Indoors, though, her life is a prison. The air feels close, and everything registers as loud - the tightening¹³ of a corset, the scrape of a chair, the clatter¹⁴ of cutlery and crockery. The house is full of sound and then, after a bit, full of sound and fury.

(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "LADY MACBETH")

PUGH: (As Katherine) Sit back down.

NAOMI ACKIE: (As Anna) No.

PUGH: (As Katherine) Sit down.

MONDELLO: Theater director William Oldroyd is working here from a script based loosely on the Russian novel "Lady Macbeth Of Mtsensk." That 19th century book has already been adapted a few times, most famously in 1934 as a Russian opera, one that so outraged¹⁵ Stalin it nearly got composer Dmitri Shostakovich sent to Siberia. This new version, transposed to Victorian England, makes some intriguing¹⁶ alterations¹⁷ to explore not just the strictures 19th century society placed on women but also issues of class and race.

Katherine's lover and her maid are black, which goes entirely¹⁸ unremarked but affects how things play out when the hurly-burly's done, as it were. This young wife may be abused, but she's still privileged. And as Katherine, unnervingly still and chilly¹⁹, sits at the center of rooms so sparsely²⁰ furnished they seem entirely devoid²¹ of comfort, you understand how a woman so aggrieved²² could become a Lady Macbeth, the milk of human kindness no longer flowing in her veins²³. I'm Bob Mondello.

(SOUNDBITE OF SWR STUTTGART RADIO SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA PERFORMANCE OF SHOSTAKOVICH'S "LADY MACBETH OF THE MTSENSK DISTRICT, OP. 29A")

1 royalty   

n.皇家，皇族

参考例句：

• She claims to be descended from royalty.她声称她是皇室后裔。
• I waited on tables，and even catered to royalty at the Royal Albert Hall.我做过服务生， 甚至在皇家阿伯特大厅侍奉过皇室的人。

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 hymn   

n.赞美诗，圣歌，颂歌

参考例句：

• They sang a hymn of praise to God.他们唱着圣歌，赞美上帝。
• The choir has sung only two verses of the last hymn.合唱团只唱了最后一首赞美诗的两个段落。

4 forthright   

adj.直率的，直截了当的 [同]frank

参考例句：

• It's sometimes difficult to be forthright and not give offence.又直率又不得罪人，这有时很难办到。
• He told me forthright just why he refused to take my side.他直率地告诉我他不肯站在我这一边的原因。

5 gal   

n.姑娘，少女

参考例句：

• We decided to go with the gal from Merrill.我们决定和那个从梅里尔来的女孩合作。
• What's the name of the gal? 这个妞叫什么？

6 pliant   

adj.顺从的；可弯曲的

参考例句：

• She's proud and stubborn,you know,under that pliant exterior.你要知道，在温顺的外表下，她既自傲又固执。
• They weave a basket out of osiers with pliant young willows.他们用易弯的柳枝编制篮子。

7 seethes   

（液体）沸腾( seethe的第三人称单数 )； 激动，大怒； 强压怒火； 生闷气(~with sth|~ at sth)

参考例句：

• The place seethes with enthusiasm. 全场沸腾。
• Water seethes under the falls. 在瀑布下水激起泡沫。

8 embarks   

乘船( embark的第三人称单数 )； 装载； 从事

参考例句：

• Patricia is a free-spirited girl who embarks on an erotic odyssey. 翠茜亚是个任性少女、毅然踏上一次性爱之旅。
• Passenger train driver: Punctually embarks. 客车司机：准时出发。

9 seduces   

诱奸( seduce的第三人称单数 )； 勾引； 诱使堕落； 使入迷

参考例句：

• The city seduces visitors with its natural beauty. 这个城市以其自然美吸引着游客。
• Dilettante: a philanderer who seduces the several arts and letters each in turn for another. 业余艺术爱好者——是轮流引诱文学与艺术的不专一者。

10 awakened   

v.（使）醒( awaken的过去式和过去分词 )；（使）觉醒；弄醒；（使）意识到

参考例句：

• She awakened to the sound of birds singing. 她醒来听到鸟的叫声。
• The public has been awakened to the full horror of the situation. 公众完全意识到了这一状况的可怕程度。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 furrows   

n.犁沟( furrow的名词复数 )；（脸上的）皱纹v.犁田，开沟( furrow的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• I could tell from the deep furrows in her forehead that she was very disturbed by the news. 从她额头深深的皱纹上，我可以看出她听了这个消息非常不安。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Dirt bike trails crisscrossed the grassy furrows. 越野摩托车的轮迹纵横交错地布满条条草沟。 来自辞典例句

12 mesmerizing   

adj.有吸引力的，有魅力的v.使入迷( mesmerize的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• I think you must be mesmerizing me, Charles. 查尔斯，我想你一定在对我施催眠术啦。 来自辞典例句
• The attendant one-dimensional wave equation has mesmerizing harmonic properties. 伴生的一元波平衡具有迷人的和谐特性。 来自电影对白

13 tightening   

上紧，固定，紧密

参考例句：

• Make sure the washer is firmly seated before tightening the pipe. 旋紧水管之前，检查一下洗衣机是否已牢牢地固定在底座上了。
• It needs tightening up a little. 它还需要再收紧些。

14 clatter   

v./n.(使)发出连续而清脆的撞击声

参考例句：

• The dishes and bowls slid together with a clatter.碟子碗碰得丁丁当当的。
• Don't clatter your knives and forks.别把刀叉碰得咔哒响。

15 outraged   

a.震惊的，义愤填膺的

参考例句：

• Members of Parliament were outraged by the news of the assassination. 议会议员们被这暗杀的消息激怒了。
• He was outraged by their behavior. 他们的行为使他感到愤慨。

16 intriguing   

adj.有趣的；迷人的v.搞阴谋诡计(intrigue的现在分词)；激起…的好奇心

参考例句：

• These discoveries raise intriguing questions. 这些发现带来了非常有趣的问题。
• It all sounds very intriguing. 这些听起来都很有趣。 来自《简明英汉词典》

17 alterations   

n.改动( alteration的名词复数 )；更改；变化；改变

参考例句：

• Any alterations should be written in neatly to the left side. 改动部分应书写清晰，插在正文的左侧。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Gene mutations are alterations in the DNA code. 基因突变是指DNA 密码的改变。 来自《简明英汉词典》

18 entirely   

ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
• His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。

19 chilly   

adj.凉快的，寒冷的

参考例句：

• I feel chilly without a coat.我由于没有穿大衣而感到凉飕飕的。
• I grew chilly when the fire went out.炉火熄灭后，寒气逼人。

20 sparsely   

adv.稀疏地；稀少地；不足地；贫乏地

参考例句：

• Relative to the size, the city is sparsely populated. 与其面积相比，这个城市的人口是稀少的。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The ground was sparsely covered with grass. 地面上稀疏地覆盖草丛。 来自《简明英汉词典》

21 devoid   

adj.全无的，缺乏的

参考例句：

• He is completely devoid of humour.他十分缺乏幽默。
• The house is totally devoid of furniture.这所房子里什么家具都没有。

22 aggrieved   

adj.愤愤不平的，受委屈的；悲痛的；（在合法权利方面）受侵害的v.令委屈，令苦恼，侵害( aggrieve的过去式)；令委屈，令苦恼，侵害( aggrieve的过去式和过去分词)

参考例句：

• He felt aggrieved at not being chosen for the team. 他因没被选到队里感到愤愤不平。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• She is the aggrieved person whose fiance&1& did not show up for their wedding. 她很委屈，她的未婚夫未出现在他们的婚礼上。 来自《简明英汉词典》

23 veins   

n.纹理；矿脉( vein的名词复数 )；静脉；叶脉；纹理

参考例句：

• The blood flows from the capillaries back into the veins. 血从毛细血管流回静脉。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I felt a pleasant glow in all my veins from the wine. 喝过酒后我浑身的血都热烘烘的，感到很舒服。 来自《简明英汉词典》