MkGenie Polaris

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中国人民大学出版社在迈克尔·杰克逊去世后不久，便与我联系，说希望做一本书来纪念他。我知道，在现在这个时刻，无论我做什么，都会被看做是在发死人财。作多年来一直喜爱着MJ的人，我真的也很不想遭遇这样的非议。

不过，我觉得是时候整理这么多年的一些资源，来做这样一本书。一是纪念，二是对某些问题，可以正视听，以免市面上各种乱七八糟的MJ“特刊”和“图书”迷惑了大众的眼睛。

其实做书的想法，我和朋友们一直都有，只是从来没有太多出版社真正感兴趣，我们也一直遇到很多阻碍和挫折。譬如以前给《HIT轻音乐》杂志发过两次特刊的策划，都石沉大海。MJ没死的时候，不做MJ的书，是“安全”的选择，要么就做八卦的。客观并支持MJ的书，是很难有人青睐。所以很遗憾，没想到最终是以这样的方式，且在这样的情形之下，这本书才诞生。但我也知道，也只能是在这样的情形下，这样的书才可能出。

因此这本书里不少材料，其实很多人可能都在网上看过了（不过记得网上很多关于杰克逊的资料都是出自我和我团队之手），真正新鲜的东西只有一部分。所以不用期望太高，那也就不会太失望。你觉得不值，尽可以不买。但请了解,这些材料和文字，实际上都是我们花十年工夫辛辛苦苦磨出来的。现在终于结了集。

这次的书，16开，彩色印刷，用的是质量最重的铜板纸印刷，找的是大印刷厂，用的是进口油墨。成本是抬上去了很多，但我和出版社协商下来，价格还是坚持定在39.8元，不想它太贵。在做这本书的过程中，（我自己就不说了），我发现整个编辑团队，发现中国人民大学出版社，都是真正真心想为MJ做点事情：好好怀念他，传播他的精神和事迹。在这段时间聊天和讨论的过程中，我感觉的到我们有着同样的想法和目标，我们也都尽力在把书做好，做的有价值。而且我们每个人都对MJ有着珍贵的青春回忆，而且都是无比美好的。因此为了争取到用目前使用的铜板纸印刷内页，出版社的费老师都是去硬生生的争取下来的，这在该出版社历史上，是从来没有先例的。

书的封面和内部设计，是出版社从外面请来的一位40多岁的老设计师做的。他也是歌迷。或许他的风格不是大家都喜欢，但在这么短时间内，他也是几天几夜不眠不休做出来的，很辛苦。封面和内页的一些设计，其实在激烈讨论后，最终也在我们的坚持下，做了修改。这本书，作为赶社会时事热点的类型，当然不可能做到精益求精，很多遗憾是有的，许多事情也注定完美不了。有错误和不满意的地方，欢迎大家提出指正。谢谢了。或许我将在接下来几个月里慢慢沉淀，抽空再写一本详细的MJ传记出来，在一周年时推出。这样不赶时间的话，很多这次没做到的工作，就可以好好做了。

走到今天，有的事情现在想起来还是很恍惚。很多人以为我伤心得要死，缓不过来什么的，要我节哀之类，那都是不知道我的真实状况。

由于忙，我其实根本没时间悲伤。我天天都要被采访（从《中国日报》到《外滩画报》到《时代周报》到《看天下》……）、或者被人找到合作（从索尼音乐公司、北京电视台、新浪、搜狐、优酷、土豆到组织活动的、卖杂志的、卖书的、做U盘的……）；同时我还有工作；工作完了还要写这本书；然后还要给杂志写文章，管理网站；还要帮助北京粉丝会的朋友们，给8月12日的星光致敬演唱会提提意见；上周末还和《鲁豫有约》的节目组见面，聊了一下午怎么做一期特别节目（7月13日下午开录，但我不会抛头露面上节目）……请问到了这种程度，我还有可能去细想和琢磨么？在每次叹息中，我知道我的悲伤在那里，只是我全埋掉了，让路给繁忙。

有人说，该move on了，生活总会move on的。这是我们的共识。

其实如果不是这个变故，我现在应该已经踏上了去伦敦的航班。一次永远没有成行的旅程，我会永远的记住。

毫无疑问，杰克逊不仅是美国商业文化的代表，更是全世界流行文化的至尊。从小到大，他就在公众的目光里成长，而我们也伴随着他成长。他是历史上最长的真人肥皂剧，一辈子都生活在热爱和非议的漩涡中。他已经超越了音乐和艺术，成为泛文化的代表，他被人爱戴，被人嘲笑，被人解读，被人研究，被人引用。藉以猫王和披头士时代不可想象的传播手段，他渗透到了社会的方方面面，渗透到了地球的每一个有人类居住的角落。当你每每以为已经遗忘或者已经不在乎时，他总能以各种细微不察的方式从你的灵魂和记忆深处走出来，引得你泪流满面。

从他3月宣布演唱会以来，我就在积极筹备去伦敦看他的演唱会。6月，英国签证下来，一切都在按照程序走着。我本淡定地生活着，工作着，行走着。梦想就在前面，七月即将引爆，世界将为之震撼，而对我来说，仿佛一切都是已经设定好的程序，正有条不紊地推向时光的聚点。

当然，哪怕是这个按部就班的过程中，也有小小的意外。5月20日的晚上，就在我们几个人约好一起去递签的前一夜，也就在我刚刚填好签证申请表的那一刻，大洋的彼岸恰时地传来Michael推迟四场演唱会的决定。香港的一个朋友在21日的零点14分在MSN上对我惊叫：“did u get the email??? om my god! i cant belive it! omg im dead!!!”然后崩溃于电脑前。我还没有意识到梦想破灭带来的冲击。再接着，我知道了我7月12日的约定，已变成了一纸空谈。

有的时候，我觉得这是上帝在告诉我：不要去了——你看看H1N1，你看看飞机消失，你看看经济危机，你看看我再取消你的场次，你还敢来吗？但是，真正实现梦想的人，又何尝不经受上帝的考验？又何尝不惮于经受上帝的考验？

然而，现在上帝却永远带走了他。

我还记得几个月前刚抢到票时，和歌迷们一起的兴奋。我甚至联系上了迈克尔·杰克逊现任的化妆师卡伦·菲，并约好伦敦相见。然而在现在，我们曾经的幸运、努力和喜悦，已经再没有意义。人生无常就是这个意思。

杰克逊今年开演唱会，我原本是真没那么激动的。我其实很自私地曾希望他永远不要再开了。我在读高中的时候，渐渐成为了他的歌迷，读着关于他乱七八糟的文字。拿着他的《历史》专辑，我懵懂地对同学说，要是他在很早之前就死了多好，那他的辉煌就可以永远定格在历史中了，而不是像现在这个样子。他在伦敦演唱会上宣布演出的时候，我觉得他是在给歌迷最后一个交代，因为这几天走下去的，正是家人和歌迷给予他的爱。一种失落感在他宣布演唱会的那天扑面袭来。我最怕去人多的地方，我最不爱去闹烘烘的演出现场，但是我还是决定去了，这也是给自己一个交代，给自己青春记忆一个交代。

迈克尔·杰克逊其实本在我的生命中已经淡去。尽管天天都会翻译一些关于他的资料和新闻，但他的音乐，我已经快两年没再听过。太熟悉了。记在心里了。不再听了。九年了，还是十年了，我的生命里发生了很多事情，也太多不是关于MJ。我都默默忍受着，往前走。

2003年-2005年，当杰克逊的娈童案闹得满城风雨，最困难的时候，我还在坚持。那时，是真正最虔诚地相信好人有好报，上帝有公正的日子。仿佛一个不服输的孩子在任性地打赌，只身与所有的媒体较量。有时处于乱局的时候，只有选择无来由的相信。尽管有坚实的证据证明他的清白。最后杰克逊赢了。我赢了。所有歌迷赢了。我因此还拿到了杰克逊亲笔签名奖励给中国歌迷的认证，让我们觉得所有的努力都没有白费。

只是四年以后，当我已经变成一个冷静的新闻工作者，当懵懂的小歌迷都已经长大，当大家都以为一切荣耀都将重新回归的时候，却突然之间，再也看不到我们梦想实现的可能。哪怕那么一点点的机会和希望。

的确，杰克逊的名誉终于恢复了。再没有人对那些八卦和丑闻感兴趣。他的唱片销量以几何级的程度飙升。以前痛恨他的人都出来致哀。各色人等都出来说话。你不觉得人生有些讽刺？拥有的时候不曾珍惜，失去了之后才来怀念。这是以生命为代价的回归。或许杰克逊对我们，对整个中国来说，依然是一个神话，一个梦，从来没有真正现实过。这样也好，就让我们的思绪伴随着他的王朝在尘世的结束。

但是，又他给我们留下了太多的遗产，无论是音乐上、舞蹈上、艺术上、慈善上、精神上……。这些遗产，可以让我们用一生的时间去品味和珍藏。他其实从来没有离开过我们，他是永远的迈克尔·杰克逊。

回想起最初去听杰克逊，完全是出于学习英语而顺便开发的兴趣。回想起为什么喜欢上杰克逊，竟然不是因为他的音乐和舞蹈，而是因为一首《拯救世界》里蕴藏的博爱而纯洁的力量，让善良的我为之倾倒。那时的我，喜欢得多么纯粹。无论我之后如何懂得辨别音乐的优劣，品评文化的万象，或是甚至回过头来不屑自己当年的品味，……可我始终记得第一次感动时的味道。

我本希望这次演唱会能够顺利的开完，每个人心中的梦想都能尽可能的实现。然而一切都太快了。我们还没来得及准备告别。我们无法体会你的孤独，但谢谢你曾经给了我们所有的阳光，所有的眷恋，和一个可以去努力的方向。你救济苦难，治愈世界的情怀和雄心，将在热爱你的人们的心中和行动上，绵延传承。

这本书献给迈克尔·杰克逊。献给这些年来一直支持着我的父母、亲人和朋友们。献给我所爱的人。献给全中国的歌迷们。

我是真心的。和那些在人死了以后就拿各种垃圾和不垃圾的资料攒成一本书来卖的书贩子有本质的区别。

我也要感谢Tara、Little-Susie、Kian和梦舞，他们是我多年的朋友，对此书亦有贡献。我们因为迈克尔而走到一起，并升华了我们的友谊。还要感谢所有那些建立MJJCN的元老，感谢所有那些和我并肩走过的朋友。最后特别感谢MJJCN.com的老站长何杰婷，没有你，就没有我们今日的聚会。

纪念的时候，请静静地为他点上一盏烛光。

记得我们在一起，记得我们曾经在一起，记得我们永远在一起。

一个是当红小天后，一个是老天王（Say You Say Me那人）养出的社交名媛

两人同一天在同一家医院做妈，还一个生男一个生女，多巧啊，我看，要不定个娃娃亲得了。

By Zhang Ming'ai & Keen

On January 10, 2008, fifteen Zhejiang villagers, including Chen Guoliang, received the verdict from the Beijing No. 1 Intermediate People's Court, notifying them that they had won their lawsuit against the National Development and Reform Commission, the 21st Century Business Herald reported today. 

The Beijing No. 1 Intermediate People's Court ruled on December 24, 2007, repealing the NDRC's decision to refuse administrative reconsideration of the case. It also ordered the NDRC to reexamine the application for administrative reconsideration put forward by the fifteen Zhejiang villagers. 

The Hangzhou Zhijiang National Tourist and Holiday Resort (ZNTHR) planned to construct a new road project called the Lijing Road Project. In order to do this the houses and lands of 15 Wang Sha villagers in Zhuantang County of Hangzhou West Lake area were slated for purchase and destruction.    

The two parties differed greatly regarding house area specifications and compensation. Villager Kong Xiangbiao said, "The Administration Commission of the ZNTHR had agreed to compensate us 100,000 yuan for every mu of land in the contract with us. But we villagers only got 30000 yuan for each mu of land." The Wang Sha villagers also doubted the legitimacy of this project.

According to one villager, approved construction on land requiring house demolition and land acquisition has to be confirmed by both parties. This procedure had been omitted in this project. Villagers here had not been consulted at all.  

On October 20, 2006, while the two parties were disputing hotly about the legitimacy of the Linjing Road Project, the Zhejiang Provincial Development and Reform Commission (ZPDRC) published a list of 16 ZNTHR roads, whose construction had violated rules. The names of these roads were not specified. 

Five ministries, including the NDRC and the Ministry of Land and Resources, jointly formulated the Guiding Opinions on Clarifying New Projects, stipulating that with regard to new projects with problems, their existing problems and corresponding solutions must be published in primary local media.     

Wangsha villagers who doubted the legitimacy of the Lijing Road Project believed that Lijing Road was one of the unlawful roads. They had to present definitive evidence to the court to prove their premise so they hired the lawyer Yuan Yulai to collect evidence for them.

On October 27, 2006 Yuan Yulai came to the ZPDRC for details of these 16 unlawful roads. The ZPDRC refused to give him access to those details because they were considered confidential. On December 10, 2006 fifteen villagers applied to the NDRC for administrative reconsideration of the Lijing Road case. They legally requested the NDRC to order the ZPDRC to provide materials concerning the 16 roads for consultancy and copy.

The NDRC rejected their application later by saying the villagers didn't provide the materials held by ZPDRC in a timely fashion, proving the necessity of administrative reconsideration. Yuan Yulai responded that the NDRC had not even asked the ZPDRC before making any decision. Later the lawyer tried to sue the NDRC for this but the Beijing No. 1 Intermediate People's Court denied the case.

On January 30, fifteen villagers sent their application to the NDRC again, demanding that the NDRC tell ZPDRC to publicize the details of the 16 roads in question. Later on February 1, the NDRC denied the application again by answering that the application had surpassed the legal stipulated time. Yuan Yulai countered that the NDRC misunderstood the application, because they didn't focus on the announcement made on October 20, 2006, but on the ZPDRC – who had never publicized the details regarding the 16 roads.

On February 4, the fifteen villagers sued the NDRC again, asking the NDRC to withdraw their negative decision, and make an administrative reconsideration decision again. This time, the court allowed the case to proceed. On September 24, the court opened and finally ruled in favor of the villagers.

Now it is not known if the NDRC will appeal. But the legal defense, Yuan Yulai, was definitely excited. He stated that he took on this case as a typical example for resolving disputes via administrative procedures and administrative reconsiderations.

台湾版2分钟预告片

台湾版的预告片才对味，从旁白到背景音乐。大陆版的预告片明显被和谐了，尽管听得到熟悉的石斑鱼的声音（点击观看大陆版）。周星驰是恶搞大师，他连自己都恶搞。还是创意缺失？到现在为止，看出来了，的确是个儿童片。也可能是个比较另类的儿童片，因为感觉很奇怪。但的确是儿童片。也应该在儿童节上映。电影里的特技明显成问题，这就是万宽公司的水平？当然，当年连他的《百变星君》都看下去了，也就不在乎，因为周星星的片子，特技有多好或有多烂并无关系，只要有他。《鲁豫有约》那期节目据说是1月25日播出，我在凤凰台看了点片段，还真有我傻笑的镜头在里面……

Celine Dion高亢而不含杂质的嗓音，一直深深打动着我，甚至让我一度抛弃了Mariah Carey和Whitney Houston。人人都在谈论《铁达牛号》的主题曲如何成就她的事业，错了，远在此之前，Celine就已经是超级巨星了，《我心永恒》，不过一次锦上添花。

但是，当一个人抵达了这样的高度，正常的下滑也就无可避免。更何况，Celine或许在她的领域能做到最好，却无法改变整个音乐工业在新时代挑战下的命运。于是，唱片愈发卖得少了，批评声也多了；同时，她的精力，也分了一部分给她的孩子，2002年，她签下了在拉斯维加斯恺撒宫里驻唱的五年合同。

我一向把这个事情往坏的方面看，因为我觉得它牵扯了Celine在创造性、嗓音和选曲等方面的精力，因此一直无法在新世纪里交代出一份满意的答卷。《A New Day Has Come》后，我就基本没再买过她的专辑了。当然，恺撒宫的驻唱，在另一方面，被证明是成功的。毕竟这种驻唱，不是小酒吧里的那种。这是绝对的成功。717场演出，基本场场爆满，总共赚了四亿美元，300万歌迷到场观看，某位据说还翻来覆去看了100多遍（真TMD有钱，我爱资本主义）。

2007年12月11日，在她终幕演出的四天前，她发行了双碟装的现场DVD。第一张是精致的演出现场，加上致敬歌迷的花絮；第二张则是两个讲述幕后故事的记录片（分别为120分钟和53分钟）。这套碟，已收到手中。看过了，我还是叹服。

可以说，这是任何一个热爱音乐的人的必藏品。通过它，你才能知道拉斯维加斯现场是多么的不可思议。首先，你将听到的是所有最美最经典的旋律配合着最动人的声音在回响；其次，你会目瞪口呆地看见这个砸了两亿美金修起来的可以容纳4100人的“圆形剧场”有多么的豪华高级庞大且舞台效果惊人：尤其是那个北美最大的室内LED屏幕，令人叹为观止，亦在营造现场气氛方面，起到了不可替代的关键作用——看，闪电！看，火焰！看，繁星！看，风云！看，夜色！看，耀月！……光在电视上看碟，你都感觉不在现实，完全卷入，若入仙境，更别提那些身在现场的人们！我嫉妒他们！

诚然，DVD里收录的Celine演出并非完美：有她唱不上高音的时候，有舞蹈纷乱无章的时候，Celine的现场煽动力自然也不及以前的Freddie Mercury之流，而她也不可能如小甜甜那样扭来扭去跳舞（即便她也尝试了）；同时，由于是Franco Dragone创意又执导，所以从舞者到杂耍，都有浓烈的太阳马戏团痕迹……不过很多时候，你都不能说这是缺点。正是这些元素，才组合成了这台上演了五年坚持了五年而不衰的独特大show。是的，这不是演唱会，这是一个真正的show。Celine只是其中最主要的一份子罢了。如是，这个show，发散着傲人的光辉和永恒的魅力，高科技与古典情怀，典范结合，从中，将旧时歌舞团、百老汇和当代流行演唱会中最勃发的生机拈取出来，呈现。在这一点上，就足以让所有当代现场表演者去观摩和参考。

尽管演出的前半段都是或轻或重的浪漫歌谣，我们耳熟能详，如《The Power of Love》、《To Love You More》、《Because You Loved Me》等；但后半段才是最好看的，劲歌多起来，热度也高起来，当唱到《River Deep Mountain High》那里，你会觉得整场演出终于达到了最high点。碟片里和你深有同感的观众们，纷纷站起来鼓掌数分钟之久……我们或许知道，但或许又没有意识到，最美丽的瞬间就在此曲之后——那首“老掉牙”的《My Heart Will Go On》。

《My Heart Will Go On》曾被唱得大街小巷无人不晓，这个现象可算是那一年的《老鼠爱大米》。但是，它倒不至于那么低档和廉价。James Horner的谱曲已经给它赋予了经典的内核，Celine的演绎则让它不朽——永远永远的隽永而凄美。LED屏幕上，是大大的月，是点点的星；小丑在仰望、在微笑；小提琴手在伞下拉起了扯人心扉的前奏；一个身着纱织长裙的姑娘，在咏叹调里，如天使一般出现在夜空，又带着期许的眼神飘然而去；长笛吹响，Celine端庄在一束白光之中，在人造的梦幻夜境中演唱……我的眼眶，这时非常不争气地湿润了……

（新闻）（专题）（图片）（恐怖图片）

（视频）（凤凰直播）（凤凰相关视频）（凤凰咨讯台直播）
（中文视频） （分析）（英文论坛综合）

基地组织说（据说）：“我们终结了美国最宝贵的资产。”

小布什说：“谋杀成性的极端分子的怯懦袭击。”

安全顾问：“遇刺前先被袭击者枪击中脖子和胸部。”

丈夫：“我们崩溃了，完全的震惊。”

反对党官员：“她是烈士。”

穆沙拉夫：“哀悼三天。”

前总统谢里夫：“巴基斯坦历史上最悲哀的一天。”

某位CNN网友：“贝布托是一个腐败的总理，穆沙拉夫倒是这个国家迄今发生过的最好的事。对她暗杀是可耻的，可能引发抗议和暴力，但说她是巴基斯坦唯一的希望则是荒谬可笑的。”

我：“谴责暴行，对她不哀悼。”

最重要的是：股票跌了，油价涨了。

今天听他做报告。（此人的介绍： http://www.fmprc.gov.cn/chn/wjb/zzjg/zcyjs/default.htm）

我最想知道的是南海、越南、钓鱼岛等问题上咱们该如何应对越来越猛烈的挑战和挑衅。会后和他聊了一句，回答说：保持不变，搁置争议。

那天，我是为了看看昆西·琼斯《你行我也行》的MV是否在网上已有下载，才到处去搜索的。结果想找的没找着，倒是闯进了唱这首歌的年轻歌手刘金的的博客里，更看到她提起Ray Charles大爷的《A Song For You》，颇为惊讶和触动。没想到刘金是这么soulful的一位。有前途。

这首《A Song for You》诞生于1970年，最初是由Leon Russell创作和表演的。词曲里边，满是哀怨，满是痛苦，满是凄凉。感觉就是绝望中的最后挽留或道别，唱完这首歌的人我怀疑都要去自杀了……真的真的很适合殉情前唱，同时可以录下来，死前寄给你的ex-，作为一个陌生男人的来信。

《A Song for You》是Russell最著名的歌曲之一，有多个翻唱版本，比如Donny Hathaway、The Temptations、Natalie Cole、Michael Bublé、Whitney Houston等小牌大牌头牌都唱过。不过就我个人喜好而言，最欣赏的还是Carpenters版本。

《A Song for You》貌似简单，却决不好唱。这是咱经过实践而得出来的切身感受——因为我每次去卡拉OK房，都必选这首来K，可是哪怕那天超常发挥，把其它歌都唱得勉强过关，唯有这首，却次次都让我心凉：不是索然无味就是跟不上趟。

已经在天堂的Ray Charles曾在1993年录过一个版本，收在《My World》专辑上。这也是我第二最喜欢的版本。该版本还很争气地给老爷子再挣了一座“格莱美最佳R&B男歌手”奖。MV中，Ray唱得满脸是笑，丝毫不见悲伤和凄绝，反而令人感觉幸福得想哭。这是饱经世事后的逍遥、从容和淡定吗？是给绝望的人们开导和指路吗？尽管他几乎一生都看不见阳光，但他心里却满溢是阳光吧。

然而好戏还在后头：2003年4月9日，在纽约灯塔戏院里举行的Willie Nelson七十岁生日致敬晚会上，Ray Charles弹着钢琴，和原作者Leon Russell、Nelson合唱《A Song for You》。这一幕多么珍贵，终成经典，连Nelson最后都感动得泪光闪闪。

需要重温一下了，我想。遂前往YouTube……也正是在那年那月那日那时，才发现YouTube被突然封杀，上不去了。愁煞我也。但我下定决心要找到的东西就一定要找到。于是接下来这几天里，我辗转反侧通过各种方法和搜索，终于从其它站点挖到了这两段录象。为了对得起我这几天执着的劳动，我决定把它们转手上传到我的土豆网帐户里，并专门写一篇如上所述的文章来纪念我又一次努力去老音乐里雕刻时光。

录影如下：

Ray Charles《A Song for You》的音乐录影

Ray Charles与Leon Russell、Willie Nelson的经典合唱

A Song for You

I've been so many places in my life and time
I've sung a lot of songs, I've made some bad rhyme
I've acted out my life in stages
With ten thousand people watching
But we're alone now and I'm singin' this song for you

I know your image of me is what I hope to be, baby
I've treated you unkindly but girl can't you see
There's no one more important to me
So darling can't you please see through me
'cause we're alone now and I'm singin' my song for you

You taught me precious secrets of the truth, withholdin' nothin'
You came out in front and I was hiding
But now I'm so much better so if my words don't come together
Listen to the melody cause my love's in there hiding

I love you in a place where there's no space or time
I love you for my life, 'cause you're a friend of mine
And when my life is over, remember when we were together
We were alone and I was singin' my song for you

I love you in a place where there's no space or time
I've loved you for my life, yes, you're a friend of mine
And when my life is over, remember when we were together
We were alone and I was singin' my song for you, yes
We were alone and I was singin' this song for you, baby
We were alone and I was singin' my song,
Singin' my song, singin' my song, singin' my song
Singin' my song

今天有网友跑来这里怀念曾经的乔治·迈克尔，我也跟着激动了一把、怀旧了一把。威猛乐队啊，第一只来中国演出的西方乐队呵。1985年4月，他们来了，北京的门票是5块一张，相当于普通中国人半个礼拜的工资，黄牛票卖到了25元一张。在Youtube上神奇地翻到几个视频，知道最后一个视频结尾处在酒店里会见威猛的那个是谁吗？

经典的《无心快语》，我特喜欢这场的前奏。

Love Machine

Blue

Everything She Wants

抵达Peking！

The relationship between French and Chinese cinema has traditionally seen French audiences responding very warmly to Chinese movies. Wong-Kar Wai's In The Mood For Love and 2046 made lasting impressions both at the box office and in people's minds. Similarly, Stephen Chow's Shaolin Soccer made younger generations of French film-going audiences reminisce back to their childhood when Japanese soccer anime, Captain Tsubasa, was all the rage.

On a four-day tour across China to present his new movie Arthur and the Minimoys to mainland audiences, Luc Besson, director of Leon and The Fifth Element, met his fans yesterday after his movie's first public showing in Beijing.

The film absorbed over four years of Besson's life and cost an estimated 65 million Euros to make, the highest in French film-making history. At a press conference in Beijing on Tuesday, Luc Besson said, "There are too many bad things shown on TV nowadays: like theft, pollution and racial discrimination. As a grown-up, I feel ashamed about what we often let our kids watch. I want to say sorry to them through this movie."

The Arthur, mixing animation with real actors, tells of young Arthur, a 10-year old boy living with his grandmother in a country home. His parents being much away most of the time and with his grandfather having recently disappeared, Arthur buries himself in fantastical tales, including one about the Minimoys, minuscule beings with an empire based in his grandparents' garden.

It is not long before adventure calls for Arthur, moved by his grandmother being threatened with eviction, should she not be able to pay off the venal property developer who has bought the house from the bank.

The first part of the tale bears no great originality as compared to other similar fables but Arthur's vitality, portrayed by a wonderfully vibrant Freddie Highmore, holds the interest. The grandmother's troubled and weepy soul remains unfortunately under-developed while Arthur's caricatured parents seem to leap out of the mind of Roald Dahl.

His journey into the Minimoys' world and his transformation into one of their own smacks of a modern Wizard of Oz in the film's leap from real action to animation and of Alice in Wonderland. The Minimoys themselves quickly appear very much as can be guessed from their appearance. Cute, lovable and kind, they are also hardy and living under the constant threat of Maltazard and his mosquito-riding horde.

The Minimoys' princess Selenia, both brave and beautiful (there's a shock), her younger brother and Arthur soon volunteer to stop Maltazard's plan to conquer the Minimoys' kingdom by flooding it. Setting off into the wild, the trio face a number of obstacles and it is in their progress and the relationships they develop that the film's true charm emerges.

Since Pixar dynamited the animation film industry, it seems to have become compulsory for every animated movie to appeal both to children and adults. While Besson proves deft at handling a younger audience by bombarding them with well-chosen themes, and a good mix of humor and action, it is in his attempt to reach out to the parents that the film becomes clunky. Its frequent and evident references to Star Wars, Saturday Night Fever and Sword in the Stone are not discreet pastiches, available only to the keenest eye, but used to bludgeon viewers into letting off a forced smile.

Besson revealed that he had never worked on an animated film before but it is regrettable that for a film that took over four years and 1.7 million hours of labor to complete, more attention was not paid to the pacing. For a children's movie, even one laden with serious themes, Arthur and the Minimoys alienates its audience through choppy editing with gratuitous and unnecessary scenes haphazardly thrown together.

It was John Lasseter, Pixar's grand master, who once said that due to the cost-prohibitive nature of an animated movie, the story needed to be injected with something special that would truly capture the interest of the audience without only relying on animated technical prowess. In this, Arthur and the Minimoys meets with mixed success.

Its story, although by no means an original one, bears enough freshness and life that it does not get boring. The characters, although stereotypical, often have an additional and surprising dimension and the rapid plot contains a few surprises. In one action scene, Selenia, the doughty warrior princess who quickly becomes Arthur's love interest, is at one point disrobed in a scene breathtaking for its risqué audacity.

Chinese parents may be concerned about the relationship between Selenia and Arthur -- which will be viewed as forbidden puppy love by traditional Chinese parents, if their children are close to Arthur's.

Ultimately, Arthur and the Minimoys, though possessing all the right elements for a good family film, fails in its composition. It relies too heavily on the presence of the animation for inspiration, something which Pixar and Dreamworks proved to be no longer enough. It may have been Besson's to include references to other tales to provide a point of identification for audiences but misjudges their use and allows them to dominate over the film's rare innovations.

Speaking of his film's appeal to Chinese audiences, Besson said: "It's a film for children which carries a message of love. I hope Chinese parents will show this film to their kids, because it will do them a lot of good."

The film will officially hit Chinese screens nationwide on January 19, 2007. But Besson confessed on Tuesday that he didn't care too much about Chinese box office revenue. "It is my first movie openly shown in China. I'm happy and proud that my movie has become one of the only 20 movies China imports every year." He said he would have loved to enter the Chinese movie market many years ago, but he regretted that a Chinese movie policy limiting foreign movie imports kept him out for a long time. He said he understood it since the Chinese government is trying to protect the country’s home-made movies.

Responding to media reports that Arthur is just another Hollywood product and many bad reviews, Luc Besson disagrees. He pointed out that Arthur had topped box office takings in many European countries, receiving "positive" reviews from film critics, but revealed it has failed in the United States, although American pop star Madonna lends her voice. "Hollywood believes in American values, but this movie appreciates the general value of human beings, that is, to learn to share, to respect people and nature. Arthur is pure French, its whole soul belongs to Europe." He revealed he will probably do sequels due to the box office success in Europe.

The director expressed his affection for Chinese movies, such as Lu Chuan's Tibetan antelope movie Ke Ke Xi Li Mountain Patrol when he gave a lecture at the Beijing Film Academy on Monday. One week earlier, Luc Besson had purchased the French distribution rights to last year's Chinese box office hit comedy Crazy Stone.

However, during the presentation at Beijing's UME movie theatre yesterday, Besson's audiences bitterly let him down. As the credits rolled, Besson was introduced to an applauding full house. Jovial and funny, Besson seemed to earnestly relish engaging in a debate with his Chinese fans.

Unfortunately, a negative impression of the members of the public attending the premiere was difficult to quell when instead of the interesting questions he awaited, Besson was subjected to a barrage of pointless and often insulting comments. One lady argued with the French director about exactly how many times he had visited the Chinese mainland while another man arrogantly inquired as to why Besson had not seen fit to hire major Chinese stars to provide the voices for the Mandarin dub. The puzzled Besson tried to maneuver his way past these oddities before asking to judge a quiz on the movie and being gently shuffled off stage by the Chinese host, clearly feeling her moment in the spotlight becoming an embarrassment. 

(China.org.cn by Chris Dalby and Zhang Rui, January 18, 2007)