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John Kerry, right,
talks to his friend David Thorne at a Vietnam Veterans Against
the War demonstration in Washington, D.C, in April 1971. The
image is from a documentary film by George Butler titled
'Going Upriver: The Long War of John Kerry.' (AP
Photo).
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George Butler says he hasn't seen the ads that attack U.S. presidential
hopeful John Kerry's record in Vietnam, noting that his documentary "Going
Upriver: The Long War of John Kerry," was well under way before the
commercials were first aired.
"It's about war and peace, it goes beyond being an anti-war film," he
said on September 15 about "Going Upriver," which made its world premiere
this week at the Toronto International Film Festival.
But when asked what he hopes audiences will take from the 90-minute
profile of Kerry's war service patrolling the Mekong Delta on gunboats,
and his subsequent role in the anti-war movement, he betrays more than a
passing interest on getting the message out about his longtime friend.
"That John Kerry, contrary to some reports, served with distinction in
Vietnam and was in ferociously heavy combat. I'd like to underline
'ferociously'," he said.
The film, one of a number with a political theme at this year's
festival.
Relying on archived news footage and interviews with veterans,
politicians and family members, Butler tells the story of Kerry's
transformation from eager young soldier to committed anti-war activist.
With a general release date of Oct. 1, just a month before the Nov. 2
election, the film would seem to be ideally timed to have an impact on the
final days of the campaign.
But the filmmaker, who admits he turned down a Hollywood studio that
wanted to hold the movie until after the election and release it late in
the year to cash in on Oscar buzz, said he doesn't think documentaries are
a tool to influence people.
" Has 'Fahrenheit 9/11' thrown the election against George Bush? I
don't think it has," he said.
"It's very hard to change the course of history and people's minds with
a film."
Butler, who met Kerry as a college student in Massachusetts, had his
first major success in 1977 with "Pumping Iron," the legendary documentary
about then-unknown bodybuilder Arnold Schwarzenegger, now California
governor.
Kerry himself only appears in "Going Upriver" through still
photographs, news clips and old interviews, except for a silent shot at
the very end of the film.
(Agencies) |
乔治·巴特勒说，他没有看过攻击美国总统候选人约翰·克里在越南战争中服役记录的广告。他特别强调他的记录片《力争上游：约翰·克里的漫长战争》在这个广告播出以前就已经开始制作了。
9月15日，当谈到《力争上游》时巴特勒说：“这是一部关于战争与和平的电影，而不仅仅是一部反战影片。”本周，这部电影将在多伦多国际电影节上首映。
这部电影讲述了克里在湄公河三角洲的炮艇上巡逻的经历，以及他后来在反战运动中所扮演的角色。当被问及他希望观众从这部90分钟的电影里领悟到什么时，巴特勒表现出非同一般的兴趣，极力宣传他这位相识多年的好友。
他说：“和一些报道的内容相反，约翰·克里在越南服役时表现出色，参加了残忍而艰苦的战斗。我想强调‘残忍’这两个字。”
这部电影是今年电影节上反映政治主题的一系列影片之一。
巴特勒采用了拍摄历史新闻的电影胶片，并采访了一些老兵、政治家和（克里的）家庭成员。影片讲述了克里从一名热血沸腾的年轻士兵成长为一位有责任感的反战斗士的经历。
影片将于10月1日全面上映，离11月2日的大选正好还有一个月时间。这部影片在这个时候上映正是适逢其时，刚好可以在竞选的最后一段日子里对大众产生一定的影响。
该片的制片人承认，他拒绝了一个好莱坞工作室提出的要求，后者希望在大选之后发行该片，把上映时间推迟到年底，以便在奥斯卡热潮中大赚一笔。他说他认为记录片并不是影响大众的工具。
他说：“《华氏９／１１》就能使乔治·布什在竞选中失利吗？我不这样认为。”
“仅靠一部电影来改变历史的进程和人们的想法是非常困难的。”
巴特勒认识克里时，克里还是马萨诸塞州的一名大学生。1977年巴特勒凭借影片《举重》一举成名，这部影片记录了当时默默无闻的健美运动员阿诺德·施瓦辛格的传奇经历，现在阿诺已是加州州长。
影片中，克里的形象只是在照片、新闻片段和以前的采访中出现，只有在电影的结尾处才出现了一个镜头，克里也没有说话。
（中国日报网站译） |
Updated: 2004-09-20 10:00