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Updated: 2005-05-23 15:27

Time's list of 100 greatest films

《时代》杂志最近选出了影史上一百部最佳电影,除好莱坞经典电影《教父》一、二集及《沙漠枭雄》等片入围外,出彩的华语片包括王家卫的《重庆森林》、胡金铨71年的武侠经典《侠女》、成龙与刘家良首度合作的《醉拳2》,以及陈凯歌勇夺康城金棕榈大奖的《霸王别姬》,而已故日本大导演黑泽明执导的经典作品《留芳颂》及《用心棒》亦有入围。

The movie, Hsia nu (A Touch of Zen), directed by Mr. King Hu was selected for the Festival de Cannes in France in 1975, and won the Grand Technical Prize.
The movie, Hsia nu (A Touch of Zen), directed by Mr. King Hu was selected for the Festival de Cannes in France in 1975, and won the Grand Technical Prize.

A list of the greatest films of all time without "North by Northwest?" No "Annie Hall," "Bicycle Thief" or "Apocalypse Now"? Take a deep breath and relax. This is supposed to be fun.

The movie critics for Time magazine, Richard Schickel and Richard Corliss, have compiled an unranked list of the 100 greatest films. It was posted Sunday on www.Time.com. Included are traditionally acclaimed flicks like "Lawrence of Arabia," "Casablanca" and "Citizen Kane," as well as more atypical choices like "Finding Nemo," "Star Wars" and the 2002 Brazilian gang story, "City of God."

Disagree? Schickel says that's the idea.

"100 lists are fun to discuss, fun to argue over," Schickel told The Associated Press. "I don't think anybody should say, `That's it, that's the final 100! No disputing this for the rest of eternity !' You know, stuff changes. Life changes. You change."

That perspective is even more difficult for contemporary movies, says the critic who has also produced many documentaries and led the acclaimed reconstruction of Samuel Fuller's 1980 war pic, "The Big Red One." Recent films on the list include Pedro Almodovar's "Talk to Her," the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy and, of course, "Pulp Fiction."

Schickel acknowledges some regret for a few older reviews of his — like not trumpeting "Bonnie and Clyde" more or failing to immediately recognize "Chinatown" as "close to a perfect movie." All the original reviews from Time will be linked on the subscription Web site — but perusing old write-ups can be a cringing experience for a critic.

Though it was before Schickel's time, the original 1942 review of "Casablanca," for example, read, "Nothing short of an invasion could add much to `Casablanca.'"

"If you're involved with movies, they are a living organism in your memory," Schickel says. "It's like some creature in a sci-fi movie that keeps shape-shifting."

The most popular director turned out to be Martin Scorsese, who has three films on the list. Scorsese's frequent actor of choice, Robert De Niro, leads actors with five.

Since Schickel and Corliss also have divergent tastes, much of the finalized list is one of compromise.

"Most 100 lists are the product of a single sensibility and this is a compromised list because his sensibility and mine, I think, agreed between 40 percent and 50 percent of the time ... and then it gets to a wrangle."

In Monday's issue of the magazine, the two critics also name the best film from each decade since Time began: "Metropolis" (1927), "Dodsworth" (1936), "Citizen Kane" (1941), "Ikiru" (1952), "Persona" (1966), "Chinatown" (1974), "Decalogue" (1988), "Pulp Fiction" (1994) and "Talk to Her" (2002).

But Schickel still says to reserve any great reverence for the result of their toil.

"In a way this is supposed to be fun. ... The notion that any kind of movie reviewing or movie commentary is an opinion handed down from on high by somebody in judicial robes is nonsensical. They're all kind of first opinions and depends on, I don't know, what you ate for breakfast that morning."

(CRI)

 

Vocabulary:
 

flick: a movie(电影)

atypical: not conforming to type; unusual or irregular(非典型的,不标准的,反常的)

eternity: the state or quality of being eternal(无穷无尽;永恒)

peruse: to read or examine, typically with great care(细读,细察)

write-up: 捧场文章,[会计]帐面价值的提高

divergent: differing from another有分歧的;不同的)

 

 
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