2006年VOA标准英语-Poseidon Remake Aims to Add More Realism

By Alan Silverman
Hollywood
27 May 2006

Kurt Russell, Josh Lucas and Richard Dreyfuss in Poseidon  
  
Kurt Russell and Josh Lucas lead a ragtag group of survivors¹ on a desperate quest to escape an overturned ocean liner in a remake of the film that launched the disaster genre² more than 30 years ago.

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The adventure begins in mid-ocean as passengers on the luxury liner "Poseidon" celebrate New Years Eve. With no warning a massive wave swamps the ship pushing it over ... over ... until it is fully³ capsized: still afloat, but upside down:

The captain's assurances notwithstanding, professional gambler Dylan Johns, played by Josh Lucas, has sailed enough voyages to know that the odds⁴ are not in their favor if they just wait for rescue; and several passengers agree with him:

Kurt Russell and Josh Lucas in Poseidon   
  
In a world literally⁵ turned topsy-turvy, the small band sets out to find a way up (what used to be down) to the engine rooms where they hope the propeller⁶ shafts⁷ will provide a way out of the sinking vessel⁸.

Based on The Poseidon Adventure, a 1969 novel by Paul Gallico, the 1972 film version became the template for the disaster drama genre. Josh Lucas says this new Poseidon tries to add realism to the conventions of the genre:

"The original, to me, is good fun, but there's really nothing about it that is that realistic when you go back and look at it," said Mr. Lucas.  "That's kind of the joy of it and I felt the battle that we had was trying to make a movie that, yes, is a fun, action, summer ride ... yes, it's escapism - joyful⁹ Hollywood escapism, in a way ... and yet, at the same time we have a movie that deals with a terrible disaster scenario¹⁰ and tries to make it seem as genuine and legitimate¹¹ as possible and yet be fun to watch. It's a big, fun action movie; but what we tried to battle with was making it have some sense of integrity.

Kurt Russell plays politician Robert Ramsey, who had been a firefighter earlier in his career, so he knows something about escape from danger; but Russell likes that these details only come out during the course of the adventure:

"You don't know anything about these people [and] they really don't know anything about each other," he explained.  "Some of them, you don't even know their names. That struck me as interesting when I was reading the script because I think it can often be true in our lives that the four or five most critical hours could be spent with people you don't know at all and you could be entirely¹² dependent upon them to save your life at some point (and they on you)... and you don't know anything about them.

Poseidon is a return to a watery¹³ setting for German-born director Wolfgang Peterson, who first won international acclaim¹⁴ with the 1981 submarine drama Das Boot.

"Obviously, I like to work with water. I find it very, very dramatic," he explained.  "I grew up in Hamburg in the north of Germany, close to the water. I always liked hanging out there looking at the endless horizon ... wonderful to let your imagination just fly. Also, watching when it really gets bad: the power of water is unbelievable. I was always impressed as a kid by how strong (it was). Also, as a filmmaker, I had the feeling that if you are out lost on a boat and you don't know how to get back, or the boat is sinking or whatever, and you are just stuck, it's a great dramatic setting."

Rather than rely on computer-generated images, Peterson built elaborate upside-down sets complete with flames and flooding waters to drench¹⁵ his Poseidon cast with the reality of their characters' situations. But co-star Richard Dreyfuss says, in the end, it is a disaster movie meant to entertain:

"You have to surrender to the genre," he noted¹⁶.  "Yes, you've got to go with it. You can't fight it. You can help it. You can critique it. You can try to make it better within itself; but you can't make apples out of oranges.

Poseidon also features Australian actress Jacinda Barrett as a single mom traveling with her young son. New Yorker Emmy Rossum plays the headstrong daughter of Kurt Russell's character; and Argentina-born Mia Maestro (known for the TV adventure Alias) is a stowaway¹⁷ who joins the attempt to escape.

1 survivors   

幸存者，残存者，生还者( survivor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The survivors were adrift in a lifeboat for six days. 幸存者在救生艇上漂流了六天。
• survivors clinging to a raft 紧紧抓住救生筏的幸存者

2 genre   

n.(文学、艺术等的)类型，体裁，风格

参考例句：

• My favorite music genre is blues.我最喜欢的音乐种类是布鲁斯音乐。
• Superficially,this Shakespeare's work seems to fit into the same genre.从表面上看， 莎士比亚的这个剧本似乎属于同一类型。

3 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

4 odds   

n.让步，机率，可能性，比率；胜败优劣之别

参考例句：

• The odds are 5 to 1 that she will win.她获胜的机会是五比一。
• Do you know the odds of winning the lottery once?你知道赢得一次彩票的几率多大吗？

5 literally   

adv.照字面意义，逐字地；确实

参考例句：

• He translated the passage literally.他逐字逐句地翻译这段文字。
• Sometimes she would not sit down till she was literally faint.有时候，她不走到真正要昏厥了，决不肯坐下来。

6 propeller   

n.螺旋桨，推进器

参考例句：

• The propeller started to spin around.螺旋桨开始飞快地旋转起来。
• A rope jammed the boat's propeller.一根绳子卡住了船的螺旋桨。

7 shafts   

n.轴( shaft的名词复数 )；（箭、高尔夫球棒等的）杆；通风井；一阵（疼痛、害怕等）

参考例句：

• He deliberately jerked the shafts to rock him a bit. 他故意的上下颠动车把，摇这个老猴子几下。 来自汉英文学 - 骆驼祥子
• Shafts were sunk, with tunnels dug laterally. 竖井已经打下，并且挖有横向矿道。 来自辞典例句

8 vessel   

n.船舶；容器，器皿；管，导管，血管

参考例句：

• The vessel is fully loaded with cargo for Shanghai.这艘船满载货物驶往上海。
• You should put the water into a vessel.你应该把水装入容器中。

9 joyful   

adj.欢乐的，令人欢欣的

参考例句：

• She was joyful of her good result of the scientific experiments.她为自己的科学实验取得好成果而高兴。
• They were singing and dancing to celebrate this joyful occasion.他们唱着、跳着庆祝这令人欢乐的时刻。

10 scenario   

n.剧本，脚本；概要

参考例句：

• But the birth scenario is not completely accurate.然而分娩脚本并非完全准确的。
• This is a totally different scenario.这是完全不同的剧本。

11 legitimate   

adj.合法的，合理的，合乎逻辑的；v.使合法

参考例句：

• Sickness is a legitimate reason for asking for leave.生病是请假的一个正当的理由。
• That's a perfectly legitimate fear.怀有这种恐惧完全在情理之中。

12 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。

13 watery   

adj.有水的，水汪汪的；湿的，湿润的

参考例句：

• In his watery eyes there is an expression of distrust.他那含泪的眼睛流露出惊惶失措的神情。
• Her eyes became watery because of the smoke.因为烟熏，她的双眼变得泪汪汪的。

14 acclaim   

v.向…欢呼，公认；n.欢呼，喝彩，称赞

参考例句：

• He was welcomed with great acclaim.他受到十分热烈的欢迎。
• His achievements earned him the acclaim of the scientific community.他的成就赢得了科学界的赞誉。

15 drench   

v.使淋透，使湿透

参考例句：

• He met a drench of rain.他遇上一场倾盆大雨。
• They turned fire hoses on the people and drenched them.他们将消防水管对着人们，把他们浇了个透。

16 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

17 stowaway   

n.（藏于轮船，飞机中的）偷乘者

参考例句：

• The stowaway masqueraded as a crew member.偷渡者假扮成乘务员。
• The crew discovered the stowaway about two days into their voyage.船员在开船约两天后发现了那名偷乘者。