美国国家公共电台 NPR In 'Sword Of Trust,' A Questionable Antique, An Unquestionable Cast

In 'Sword Of Trust,' A Questionable¹ Antique, An Unquestionable Cast

AUDIE CORNISH, HOST:

Knocking down conspiracy² theories is an exhausting business. Fresh ones seem to crop up every day. But critic Bob Mondello says the new comedy "Sword Of Trust" looks at what happens when folks try leaning into a conspiracy theory instead of fighting it.

BOB MONDELLO, BYLINE³: Cynthia thinks she's inheriting a house when she and her partner arrive in small-town Alabama for the reading of Grandpa's will. But to pay for his final years, there was a reverse mortgage. So...

(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "SWORD OF TRUST")

UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR #1: (As character) Here you go.

JILLIAN BELL: (As Cynthia) What is it?

UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR #1: (As character) It's a sword.

BELL: (As Cynthia) What kind of sword?

UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR #1: (As character) An antique one. Congratulations (laughter).

MONDELLO: It comes with some papers which explain why Gramps was so attached to the sword. They do not, however, offer a whole lot of comfort.

(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "SWORD OF TRUST")

MICHAELA WATKINS: (As Mary) Was he...

BELL: (As Cynthia) Demented - yeah, very.

WATKINS: (As Mary) This is not saying anything.

BELL: (As Cynthia) Yeah, it's bad.

MONDELLO: So they head to the local pawn⁴ shop, there to spin a tale that will seduce⁵ a pawnbroker⁶ into parting with substantial cash.

(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "SWORD OF TRUST")

BELL: (As Cynthia) This is a Union sword. This was given to my great-great-great-great-grandpappy, who was a field marshal in the Confederate Army.

MARC MARON: (As Mel) Yeah.

BELL: (As Cynthia) And this was surrendered to him by General Sherman (ph).

WATKINS: (As Mary) Sheridan.

BELL: (As Cynthia) Sheridan.

MARON: (As Mel) It was surrendered to him by a Union general. What battle are we talking about here?

WATKINS: (As Mary) This battle - oh, it's Chickaboga (ph).

MARON: (As Mel) Chickaboga?

WATKINS: (As Mary) Chickabowga (ph).

MARON: (As Mel) I don't think that battle is - that's...

WATKINS: (As Mary) Not familiar with it?

MARON: (As Mel) I don't think it happened.

MONDELLO: That's because, they tell him, Grandpa had evidence that it was buried from the history books by the deep state.

(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "SWORD OF TRUST")

MARON: (As Mel) Deep state?

WATKINS: (As Mary) Deep state, yeah.

BELL: (As Cynthia) Shadow government.

WATKINS: (As Mary) What you are looking at...

MARON: (As Mel) Yes...

WATKINS: (As Mary) ...Is a genuine relic⁷, a very valuable piece of evidence that supports the actual truth, which is, the South won the war.

MARON: (As Mel) The South won the war.

WATKINS: (As Mary) That's right.

BELL: (As Cynthia) Show him the documentation.

MONDELLO: An Internet search establishes that Gramps wasn't alone in believing this. And what follows is the shaggiest of shaggy sword stories involving deer ticks, potentially lethal⁸ screwdrivers⁹ and an online community of nutjobs who will pay a small fortune for what they call prover items.

(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "SWORD OF TRUST")

UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR #1: (As character) Forty thousand dollars.

MARON: (As Mel) Forty thousand dollars.

UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR #2: (As character) All right.

MARON: (As Mel) That's crazy.

MONDELLO: Director Lynn Shelton and screenwriter Mike O'Brien created a framework for the story, then turned a cast of terrific comics loose during a two-week shoot to improvise¹⁰ inside that framework. Among them - Jillian Bell as heir to the sword and, doing riffs that would be the envy of many a scripted comedy, Marc Maron as the cranky pawn shop owner.

(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "SWORD OF TRUST")

MARON: (As Mel) Fries - I can't eat them anymore. You know that. I've got sludge in my heart.

UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR #3: (As character) Oh, really? I thought you gave up on that organ years ago.

MARON: (As Mel) I did, but I still need it to function so I can stay alive. What are you doing?

UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR #3: (As character) Do you have any ketchup¹¹?

MARON: (As Mel) I think there's a couple of packs of ketchup over there where you're usually sitting away from me without - you're like a growth.

UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR #3: (As character) All right.

MONDELLO: Shelton being a filmmaker who's always looking at how relationships work, "Sword Of Trust" isn't content to be just funny. Maron's pawnbroker has an issue with an ex-girlfriend who's played by the director. And if you know that in real life Maron's a recovering addict¹² who's been clean for 20 years, the way he frames that relationship can't help resonating.

(SOUNDBITE OF FILM, "SWORD OF TRUST")

MARON: (As Mel) She keeps taking, taking till I'm drained, I got nothing left, I got no store, I got no life, I got no car. It'll just be me and her strung out with a shopping cart, maybe a cat. Have you seen those cats that can be with homeless people? You'll be like, man, this is sad. And then I'll be like, yeah, but look at the cat.

MONDELLO: The story often does not go where you expect it to and sometimes doesn't go much of anywhere at all. But as its cast of terrific comics thrusts and parries, "Sword Of Trust" makes improvisation¹³, something really difficult to pull off at feature length, seem an absolute snap.

I'm Bob Mondello.

1 questionable   

adj.可疑的，有问题的

参考例句：

• There are still a few questionable points in the case.这个案件还有几个疑点。
• Your argument is based on a set of questionable assumptions.你的论证建立在一套有问题的假设上。

2 conspiracy   

n.阴谋，密谋，共谋

参考例句：

• The men were found guilty of conspiracy to murder.这些人被裁决犯有阴谋杀人罪。
• He claimed that it was all a conspiracy against him.他声称这一切都是一场针对他的阴谋。

3 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。

4 pawn   

n.典当，抵押，小人物，走卒；v.典当，抵押

参考例句：

• He is contemplating pawning his watch.他正在考虑抵押他的手表。
• It looks as though he is being used as a political pawn by the President.看起来他似乎被总统当作了政治卒子。

5 seduce   

vt.勾引，诱奸，诱惑，引诱

参考例句：

• She has set out to seduce Stephen.她已经开始勾引斯蒂芬了。
• Clever advertising would seduce more people into smoking.巧妙策划的广告会引诱更多的人吸烟。

6 pawnbroker   

n.典当商，当铺老板

参考例句：

• He redeemed his watch from the pawnbroker's.他从当铺赎回手表。
• She could get fifty dollars for those if she went to the pawnbroker's.要是她去当铺当了这些东西，她是可以筹出50块钱的。

7 relic   

n.神圣的遗物，遗迹，纪念物

参考例句：

• This stone axe is a relic of ancient times.这石斧是古代的遗物。
• He found himself thinking of the man as a relic from the past.他把这个男人看成是过去时代的人物。

8 lethal   

adj.致死的；毁灭性的

参考例句：

• A hammer can be a lethal weapon.铁锤可以是致命的武器。
• She took a lethal amount of poison and died.她服了致命剂量的毒药死了。

9 screwdrivers   

n.螺丝刀( screwdriver的名词复数 )；螺丝起子；改锥；伏特加橙汁鸡尾酒

参考例句：

• No, I have everything: hammer, screwdrivers, all that stuff. 不用了，我什么都有了：锤子、螺丝刀，全套家伙。 来自休闲英语会话
• Aussies are injured each year by using sharp knives instead of screwdrivers. 每年有58个澳洲佬因使用锋利的刀子来代替螺丝刀而受伤。 来自互联网

10 improvise   

v.即兴创作；临时准备，临时凑成

参考例句：

• If an actor forgets his words，he has to improvise.演员要是忘记台词，那就只好即兴现编。
• As we've not got the proper materials,we'll just have to improvise.我们没有弄到合适的材料，只好临时凑合了。

11 ketchup   

n.蕃茄酱，蕃茄沙司

参考例句：

• There's a spot of ketchup on the tablecloth.桌布上有一点番茄酱的渍斑。
• Could I have some ketchup and napkins,please?请给我一些番茄酱和纸手巾？

12 addict   

v.使沉溺；使上瘾；n.沉溺于不良嗜好的人

参考例句：

• He became gambling addict,and lost all his possessions.他习染上了赌博，最终输掉了全部家产。
• He assisted a drug addict to escape from drug but failed firstly.一开始他帮助一个吸毒者戒毒但失败了。

13 improvisation   

n.即席演奏(或演唱)；即兴创作

参考例句：

• a free-form jazz improvisation 自由创作的爵士乐即兴演出
• Most of their music was spontaneous improvisation. 他们的大部分音乐作品都是即兴创作的。