外国映画 in USA(メモ)

A. O. SCOTT*1 “A Golden Age of Foreign Films, Mostly Unseen” http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/30/movies/awardsseason/30scott.html


『ソーシャル・ネットワーク』が話題となった今年のゴールデン・グローブ*2。A. O. SCOTTは別のこと、仏蘭西のOlivier Assayasという人が監督したCarlosという作品がBest Mini-Series Or Motion Picture Made for Television賞を受賞したこと*3に注目している。(ベネズエラのスターÉdgar Ramírezが演じる)1970年代から80年代にかけて悪名を馳せたテロリストCarlos the Jackalの生涯を再構成した5時間の大作。ヨーロッパと中東の10箇所以上でロケし、映画の中で話される言語は11種類という多言語映画でもある。しかしながら、これはTV用に作られたということでアカデミー賞のノミネーションからは排除されている。しかし、これに限らず米国において多くの外国映画は大都市の限られた映画館、或いはケーブルTV若しくはヴィデオ・オン・ディマンドを通じて観客に届いているのであって、この排除は「何かしら恣意的」であるという。さらに、オスカーの外国語映画賞における「一国一作品」ルールの恣意性;


For some reason, the Academy insists on a one-film-per-country rule, which places a large part of the decision-making process in the hands of film industries at least as corrupt and agenda-driven as our own. Why should “Of Gods and Men”*4 have been France’s only shot? And what determines the nationality of a film in any case? Why is Rachid Bouchareb’s “Outside the Law”*5 an Algerian rather than a French film, given that its director is a French citizen and that it was made with mostly French financing and therefore within that country’s extensive legal statutes governing cinematic production? And what makes “Biutiful,”*6 shot in Barcelona with a Spanish cast, a Mexican film?
そして、”the peculiar and growing irrelevance of world cinema in American movie culture, which the Academy Awards help to perpetuate”について;

There are certainly examples from the last decade of subtitled films, nominated or not, that have achieved some measure of popularity: “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon”*7; “Pan’s Labyrinth”*8; “The Lives of Others”*9; “The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo.” But these successes seem more and more like outliers. A modest American box office gross of around $1 million is out of the reach of even prizewinners from Cannes and masterworks by internationally acclaimed auteurs, most of whose names remain unknown even to movie buffs. This is less a sea change than the continuation of a 30-year trend. As fashion, gaming, pop music, social media and just about everything else have combined to shrink the world and bridge gaps of culture and taste, American movie audiences seem to cling to a cautious, isolationist approach to entertainment.
こうした米国の映画ファンの「孤立主義的アプローチ」をオスカーという制度が助長している。ハリウッドそれ自体の国際性*10にも拘わらず;

And the Oscars reinforce this, frequently ignoring accessible and entertaining movies from other countries and settling on a frequently random-seeming list of finalists. Every year, the world turns its attention to Hollywood, and Hollywood remains, in keeping with long tradition, a notably welcoming place for far-flung talent. There has always been room — work, money and even a measure of glory — for British and Australian actors, intercontinental sex symbols and émigré directors seeking freedom or fortune.
また問題なのは「米国の文化帝国主義(American cultural imperialism)」ではなく「文化保護主義(cultural protectionism)」なのだと。しかし、メジャーな配給から外れた都会のアート・シアターやケーブルTVといったマイナー(マージナル)な上映形態では様子が違ってくる;

But on the outskirts of the commercial mainstream, in redoubtable art houses and on the upper reaches of the cable-TV spectrum, there is perhaps more variety and vitality than ever. Yes, it is fashionable in some circles to lament the old days when foreign directors and stars — mostly European and Japanese — were household names in many of the same households that housed best-selling French, Italian and Asian cookbooks. But in terms of volume and distinction, the last 15 years also qualify as a golden age. What has changed is the sense of cultural cachet and social currency.
観るべき外国映画は年々増えている。仏蘭西、伊太利、独逸というヨーロッパの映画大国は勿論のこと、Scott氏がその動向から目が離せないとしているのは、韓国、セルビアカザフスタン南アフリカ、タイの映画。そして、露西亜。さらに今年 Giorgos LanthimosのDogtooth*11がオスカーにノミネートされた希臘。