《天將雄師》有可能是對時事的隱喻和聯想
All fighting, all grimacing — though sometimes all smiling, weeping and singing — “Dragon Blade” is the kind of nutsy maximalist entertainment that isn’t content merely to tap a handful of influences. Instead, it stuffs an entire encyclopedia of dicey ideas (visual, narrative, political) into a blender to create a wacky, eyeball-popping and -glazing extravaganza that suggests a Cecil B. DeMille Bible epic, a Chinese military parade and a Busby Berkeley musical, at times all at once. And while it can be tough to find the human pulse amid the spectacle noise, Jackie Chan, John Cusack, Adrien Brody and a trillion horse-riding extras are also part of the very big picture.
所有人大打出手、所有人面露痛苦表情——不過有時所有人也微笑、流淚、歌唱——《天將雄師》是那種瘋瘋癲癲的多數派娛樂，不僅僅滿足於造成一點點影響。它把各種百科全書般的冒險點子（視覺的、敘事的、政治的）統統塞在一起，創造出這樣一部瘋狂古怪、令人大開眼界，也讓人目瞪口呆的盛大表演，猶如把塞西爾·B·戴米爾(Cecil B. DeMille)的聖經史詩、中國閱兵隊列還有巴斯比·伯克利(Busby Berkeley)的音樂劇一股腦結合在一起。光怪陸離的喧囂，成龍、約翰·庫薩克(John Cusack)、阿德里安·布洛迪(Adrien Brody)的表演與萬馬奔騰的壯觀景象不過是大場面的一部分，但在這一切盛大景象之中卻很難尋覓一絲人性的脈搏。
The least interesting question to ask about a Movie like “Dragon Blade” is whether it’s any good. Of course it isn’t, not especially, but questions of quality pale next to the greater headscratcher: What is it? For starters, it is a Jackie Chan vehicle, a period story, a Chinese production and a huge 2015 box-office hit in the People’s Republic. (It opened in China in February.) Written and directed by the genre-smashing Daniel Lee, who has epic DeMille-level ambitions, the movie takes place in the first part of the Han dynasty, when the court, supported by its elites, ruled its far-flung empire with military muscle and bureaucratic administration. So the movie, which involves a government squad protecting the Silk Road, may be a resonant, topical metaphor — or not.
對於《天將雄師》這樣一部影片來說，最掃興的問題莫過於，“這樣一部片子究竟有什麼好？”它當然沒什麼好的，反正沒什麼特別好的。但是在另一個更讓人撓頭的問題面前，關於影片質量的追問也不禁相形見絀——“它到底是什麼東西？”從預告片來看，它是一部成龍大片、一部古裝劇、一部中國片，2015年在中國收穫了巨大票房（該片於2月在中國首映）。影片由極擅長類型片的李仁港編劇並執導，他有着戴米爾級的史詩抱負。電影的故事發生在西漢年間，朝廷內精英雲集，依靠強大的武力和官僚行政體系統治着幅員遼闊的帝國。所以這部關於政府行動隊保護絲綢之路的影片有可能是一種對時事的隱喻和聯想——也可能不是。
Whatever it is, it is also about putting on a really big show with your pals, who here include both the fantastically outfitted constituencies of 36 nations who swirl around the Silk Road and a legion of Roman soldiers who materialize on it one day, having apparently taken a wrong turn on the Appian Way. The clotted story involves how these different groups are juggled with a broad smile and some fancy footwork by Huo An (Mr. Chan), the leader of the Silk Road guard. A jolly, friendly warrior with chin fuzz, some swinging Heidi braids and the kind of intricately detailed costume that turns seamstresses blind, Huo insists on giving peace a chance, even when dodging arrows shot by Cold Moon (Lin Peng), one of the few women in what is otherwise an enormous brotherly be-in.
不管究竟是什麼，它總歸是大家齊心協力奉上的一部鉅獻，包括身穿奇妙服裝往來於絲綢之路的36個民族，還有一夜之間現身的古羅馬軍團——他們顯然是在亞壁古道上走錯了方向。故事中包括兩股勢力，他們面帶微笑，勾心鬥角，還有絲綢之路守軍領袖霍安（成龍飾）的花哨步法。霍安是個風趣友善的武士，下巴上留着小鬍子，編着飄飄蕩蕩的海蒂辮，身穿複雜細密的服裝，足以把一堆女裁縫的眼睛累瞎。霍安堅持給和平一個機會，就算在躲避冷月（林鵬飾演）射來的飛箭時也不例外——影片基本上是兄弟們的大集會，冷月是片中僅有的幾個女性角色之一。
Mr. Chan has slowed considerably since his glory action years, even if he still dodges and darts with elastic grace. His character is on the dull side and is mostly a hub for all the swirling parts that Mr. Lee puts into motion. There are many of these, because Mr. Lee, like Michael Bay and other specialists in the art of cinematic mayhem, likes to throw everything at the screen that a monster budget can give him. And, other than women, “Dragon Blade” has a whole lot of everything, including armies of extras, herds of horses, truckloads of feathered-and-furred costumes, bushels of strikingly styled hair, innumerable crane shots and choreographed fights. There’s also a blind Roman boy with a blond mop who sings a nationalist ditty and brings the multitudes to collective tears.
和自己的輝煌年代相比，成龍的動作慢了不少，儘管閃避和疾馳的動作還是那麼靈活優雅。他的角色是影片中較爲沉悶的部分，在李仁港炮製的各種動作戲中，成龍大都處在各種紛擾場面的中心。片中有很多這樣的場面，因爲李仁港和邁克爾·貝(Michael Bay)這類擅長製造影院災難的專家們一樣，喜歡把多到可怕的鉅額預算能做出來的各種東西統統堆到銀幕上。除了女人，《天將雄師》裏真是什麼都有，大批軍隊、成羣的馬匹、一卡車一卡車用羽毛和皮毛裝飾的戲服、各種花樣翻新的髮型、數不清的俯拍鏡頭和精心設計的打鬥場面。還有一個滿頭金髮、雙目失明的羅馬男孩，唱了一首宣揚民族主義的小調，引得無數圍觀者潸然淚下。
There are special effects, too, though none as jaw-slackening as the performances from Mr. Cusack and Mr. Brody. Mr. Cusack plays General Lucius, who has ended up on the Silk Road in an effort to protect Publius (Jozef Liu Waite), the warbling babe, from his older brother, General Tiberius (Mr. Brody). Mr. Brody either took his role seriously or can keep a straight face better than Mr. Cusack, whose contortionist expressions tend to suggest someone desperate not to let loose either laughter or bowels. Mr. Brody, by contrast, takes to his villainous role with old-fashioned Basil Rathbone hauteur, swaggering and twirling while leading with his profile. At one point, Mr. Brody even runs his tongue over his bloody hand, as if to acknowledge just how finger-licking good his role is.
當然，也有不少特效，不過最讓人驚掉下巴的還要算是庫薩克和布洛迪的出演。庫薩克飾演盧魁斯將軍，在絲綢之路上保衛哭哭啼啼的小嬰兒帕比斯（Publius，約瑟夫·劉·韋特[Jozef Liu Waite]），躲避他的哥哥提比斯將軍（Tiberius，布洛迪飾）的迫害。布洛迪要麼就是真的很拿這個角色當回事，要麼就是比庫薩克更擅長憋笑，後者的柔軟體操式表情讓人覺得他得拼命才能不笑出聲，不把自己的腸子笑出來。相反，布洛迪以老派的巴茲爾·雷斯波恩(Basil Rathbone)式傲慢演繹了自己的反派角色，他昂首闊步，旋轉身體，莊嚴地發號施令。一次，他甚至用舌頭舔舐自己血淋淋的手，好像只是爲了展示自己的角色有多麼擅長舔手指。
“Dragon Blade” is rated R (Under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian). Swords, arrows, bodies!
《天將雄師》被標記爲R級（17歲以下需在家長或成年監護人陪伴下觀看）。刀劍、箭矢、屍體！
