Cinema and censorship

What two films reveal about China

A low-budget movie about a sensitive social theme outshines a state-approved spectacular

“I CAN'T believe the censors let this one slide[1]”, remarks an online commentator on Zhihu, a question-and-answer forum. He was referring to “Dying to Survive*”, a dark comedy released on July 5th which is on track[2] to become one of China's highest-grossing[3] productions of all time. The film, which raked in[4] a record $200m in its opening weekend on a budget of just $15m, is based on the true story of Lu Yong. Mr Lu was arrested in 2013 for peddling[5] knock-off cancer drugs imported illegally from India (the actor playing him is pictured, wearing sunglasses, along with two others in roles as smugglers-cum-patients[6]).

*Dying to Survive 《我不是药神》英文译名，可译为向死而生，更多阅读>>>「我不是药神」我还想活着，我不想死

[1]let sth slide

1) to let a situation get gradually worse 任某事恶化，放任不管某事

2) to ignore a mistake, problem, remark etc, without becoming angry or trying to punish it 〔对错误、问题、言论等〕不加改进，不加制止，不加理睬

Management has let safety standards slide at the factory.

管理层对工厂的安全标准放任不管。

[2]on track: making progress and likely to succeed 有望成功；在正轨上

They're on track to make record profits.

他们有望获得创纪录的利润。

[3]highest-grossing: means making the most money. 赚最多钱，票房最高的，与它相近的是 top-grossing: used to describe a product or service, especially a film, that earns more money than any other

It is this year's top-grossing film.

这是今年票房最高的电影。

▲List of highest-grossing films

中文版▼

[4]rake sth in: to earn a lot of money without trying very hard 轻易赚得〔许多钱〕

Lou's been raking in the dollars since he opened his business.

自从生意开张以来，洛乌就财源滚滚。

[5]peddle

1) to sell goods to people, especially goods that people disapprove of because they are illegal, harmful, or of not very high quality 售卖〔非法的、有害的或劣质的货品〕

2) to try to sell things to people, especially by going from place to place 〔尤指挨家挨户地〕兜售

3) to try to persuade people to accept an opinion or idea which is wrong or false 散布，兜售〔错误的观点、主张〕

They were accused of peddling drugs.

他们被控贩卖毒品。

文中也是说peddle drugs，什么样的drugs？knock-off cancer drugs 翻版抗癌药，knock-off就是指“（流行产品的）翻印本，仿制品”。并且是imported illegally from India 从印度非法进口来的。

[6]smugglers-cum-patients: 这里的cum用于两个名词之间，表示“兼，两用”，指的就是“走私犯兼病人”。

a kitchen-cum-dining room 厨房兼饭厅

a lunch-cum-business meeting 商务午餐会

This month will also be noted in Chinese cinematic history for a different reason. On July 15th “Asura*”, the most expensive film ever made in China at $113m, was pulled[7] from cinemas just three days after its launch owing to dismal[8] box-office takings[票房收入]. The fantasy film had collected a humiliating $7m.

*Asura 是电影《阿修罗》的译名，于2018年7月13日在中国内地上映，于2018年7月15日晚22点起撤档停映。历时6年打造，耗资7.5亿，豆瓣3.0分...

[7]这里的pull表示cancel，取消，撤销（活动、广告等）的意思

They pulled the concert.

他们取消了音乐会。

[8]dismal: Something that is dismal is bad in a sad or depressing way. 惨淡不良的，此外还有“(尤指外表) 沉闷的，忧郁的”等意思。

...Israel's dismal record in the Olympics.

…以色列在奥运会上的惨淡纪录。

The contrasting popularity of the two films should worry China's cultural commissars. “Dying to Survive” has been a huge success despite being a radical departure from China's film policy, which is to encourage the production of uplifting fare that presents the government in a good light. Chinese-made films hardly ever touch on sensitive social issues. “Dying to Survive”, however, confronts the problem of unaffordable drug prices head-on[9]. A study in 2012 found that a fifth of commonly used Western medicines were more expensive in China than anywhere else.

[9]head-on可以作形容词也可以作副词，表示“正面地/迎面地、(解决问题)积极地/认真地，”

The police are trying to tackle car crime head-on.

警方正在积极处理汽车罪案。

The film has clearly touched a raw nerve[10] among viewers. Perhaps to stave off[11] criticism, the medical-insurance administration announced last week that it had invited ten foreign and eight domestic drug companies for “negotiations” in a bid to drive down[12] prices. On July 10th the food and drug authority said it would speed up approval of foreign drugs. Bruce Liu of Fudanin, a health-care consultancy in Shanghai, predicts that cinema-goers'[13] spirited reaction will prompt the government to include more drugs on its public-reimbursement scheme[14]. Government censors may have come to regret giving the film the green light.

[10]hit/touch a (raw) nerve: to upset someone 触到痛处

She touched a raw nerve when she mentioned that job he didn't get.

她提到那份他没有得到的工作，触到了他的痛处。

[11]stave sth/sb off: to stop something bad from happening, or to keep an unwanted situation or person away, usually temporarily （通常指暂时地）挡住，阻止，避开；延缓

We were hoping to stave off these difficult decisions until September.

我们希望将这些难以抉择的事搁到9月份。

[12]drive sth down: to force a price, value, etc. to go down 压低，降低(价格，价值等)

The boss drove his pay down.

老板压低他的工资。

[13]-goer: 这个用法很出现，表示“常去...的人”，cinema-goer 或者movie-goer都可以表示影迷，电影观众。还有诸如gym-goer, shopping-goer, ...

[14]reimbursement: If you receive reimbursement for money that you have spent, you get your money back, for example because the money should have been paid by someone else. 报销; 偿还

She is demanding reimbursement for medical and other expenses.

她在要求医疗和其他费用的报销。

This article appeared in the China section of the print edition under the headline "Mark-up madness"  (原文略有删减)

小程序·安利