Roman Holiday

On Aug. 27, 1953, Roman Holiday, starring Audrey Hepburn and Gregory Peck, opened at Radio City Music Hall in New York. The film would go on to win three Oscars at the 26th Academy Awards, for costume design, Dalton Trumbo's screenplay and for Hepburn as best actress. The Hollywood Reporter’s original review, titled “Roman Holiday Smash”, is below:

William Wyler’s first comedy in almost 20 years proves a charming and laugh-provoking affair. With Gregory Peck and Audrey Hepburn turning in superb performances, Roman Holiday is 118 minutes of sheer entertainment. The critical acclaim and word-of-mouth praise that is bound to come should help make it a box office bonanza.

Out of one of the most ancient premises in story-telling-that of hopeless love between royalty and a commoner-Ian McLellan Hunter and John Dighton have created a delightful screenplay that sparkles with wit and outrageous humor that at times comes close to a foolish comedy. As staged with artistic subtlety and tongue-in-cheek (半开玩笑的)restraint by Wyler, Roman Holiday comes out with great fun that will be enjoyed by all types of audiences.

Miss Hepburn makes her American screen debut a memorable occasion. A beauty, she reveals sensitivity and sincerity in her portrayal of a princess, next in line for the throne of an unnamed country, making a good-will tour of Europe. By the time she reaches Rome, she is so exhausted from the series of dull public appearances, she gets hysterical and is given a sedative (镇静剂). But before the shot takes effect, she slips out of the embassy, determined to find a little fun for herself. She is found sound asleep on a bench by a poor American newspaperman (Peck) who, thinking she is tight, lets her sleep it off in his very small apartment. It isn't until the next day, when the scheduled press conference with the princess is canceled because of her “illness” that he realizes the identity of his guest. Knowing the financial value of such a piece of shocking news, he turns to his news service’s ace photographer（Eddie Albert）and sets off on a fun-seeking tour of the city with the princess, with Albert busily getting pictures with a camera concealed in his cigarette lighter. Naturally the princess and Peck fall in love and, of course, it is a hopeless romance. But the final parting still manages to stay within the funny mood, taking place at a crowded press conference. It is one of those rare scenes that get the audience to burst into laughter.

The Wyler production was filmed entirely in Rome, with all the high quality associated with his name. Frank F. Planer and Henri Alekan have done a fine shooting job of putting Roman landmarks into the story line. Georges Auric’s music is a definite mood contribution, and Robert Swink has got credit for a film editing clip.

-Milton Luban, originally published on June 30, 1953.

Do you still remember the scene in the famous movie Titanic, directed by Cameron, where Jack was frozen to death in the icy cold water so that Rose could survive on the floating door alone? It broke many people’s heart.

Two decades later, people are still asking the question, “wasn’t there enough room on the door for both of them?”

Cameron once responded by saying it wasn’t a question of room, but buoyancy (浮力) — if both of them had tried to stay on the door, he argued, the whole thing would sink.

But several guys from “Mythbusters”, an Australian-American science entertainment television program, decided to test the theory themselves. They discovered that if Rose had took off her life jacket to the bottom of the door, there would have been enough buoyancy to keep both of them afloat.

“It was an artistic choice, the thing was just big enough to hold her, and not big enough to hold him,” Cameron said. “I think it’s all kind of silly, really, that we’re having this discussion 20 years later. But it does show that the film was effective in making Jack so attractive to the audience that it hurts them to see him die. The film is about death and separation; he had to die.”

Since Jack was doomed to die, Cameron said, it could have happened in a variety of different ways. It’s not about the door not being big enough: that’s just a practical method for his death. “Whether it was that, or whether a chimney (烟囱) fell on him, he was going down,” Cameron said. “It’s called art: things happen for artistic reasons, not for physics reasons.”

Many Chinese people have awakened their interest in classical Chinese poetry recently thanks to a popular TV show that aims to “appreciate classical Chinese poetry, explore cultural genes and enjoy the beauty of life” by combining traditional literary form with light-hearted TV quizzes.

The ten-episode “Chinese Poetry Competition”,since its broadcast, has been praised for injecting vitality(活力) into TV programs with fantastic performances of contestants, impressive comments from judges as well as its innovative interactive mode. In the show, poems can be adapted into songs or depicted(描绘) through artistic pictures. Any contestant who can memorize the largest number of poems may not necessarily be the final winner, while fast reaction and usage of poems matter a lot more in the competition.

Wu Yishu, a 16-year-old student from the High School Attached to Fudan University in Shanghai, is the champion of this season. Her rich knowledge of classical poetry impressed everyone and she rose to become famous online. In an earlier episode, Wu wowed the audience when performing in a section. She amazingly recited lines from the Classic of Poetry(《诗经》), the earliest collection of poems in China.

“Learning poems isn‘t about winning or losing. The power of poetry lies in shaping one‘s view of life and developing one‘s inner world,” said Li Bo, an expert guest at the Chinese Poetry Competition‘s second season.

When it comes to teaching people about poetry, Li Dingguang, the show‘s academic advisor, suggested that teachers should explain more about the beauty of the poetry from both the aesthetic(审美的) and emotional sides, and guide students to lose themselves in the poems‘ rhythmic and rhyming(押韵的) lines.

“Although the proportion（比例) of ancient Chinese poems in the textbooks of primary and secondary schools has increased, many students still learn them for exams,” Li Dingguang said.“Therefore, it‘s important to help students truly appreciate the artistry and fun of poetry.”