片子的中文名是《爱-从心开始》，不是“重新开始”。电影的一个核心应该是“勇气”，不要说最后的机会，任何的机会都需要勇气。人年轻的时候失恋了，求爱被拒了，会撕心裂肺，死去活来，以为是世界末日，但是在一些酒精一些朋友的帮助下可能就过去了，毕竟你还有那么长的路走，满怀希望重新开始，时间会医治年轻的愁滋味。如果你已经老了，40，50岁了，事业就那么回事，但是没有完美的婚姻，也没有爱情可言，那会是什么状况？我不知道，片子中的Dustin Hoffman和Emma Thompson饰演的男女主角就是这样两个老人家。偶然碰到一起，虽然两个人都很随性很有情趣的人，但是故事不可能是一个轻松地浪漫剧（像before sunrise般），经历过那么多年的人生，经历过青春期的错误，经历过失败的婚姻，人生阅历让他们说话交流的样子看上去很轻松，很成熟，但其实依然很脆弱很敏感。心是收紧的无力的。勇气不再是荷尔蒙一瞬间的突增或对未知的美好未来的幻想。在面临一份感情的时候，女主角说她不敢接受是因为：“I think I'm more comfortable with being disappointed. I think I'm angry with you for trying to take that away.”即生活欺骗了你，你报复自己。看来单身时间太长太长，的确会有点心理扭曲，不过还好女主角还天天看小说，没有成为一个老怨妇。有点文艺的东西的滋润的确有利于保持身心健康。

      

这个片子和《Crash》、《Babel》一样是一个多线叙事。通过某个潜在的脉络将几个独立的故事联系在一起。不同的是，《The.Air.I.Breathe》没有不是把注意力放在政治社会现象上，而是带点哲学味道的讲述了关于人生的一些问题。

故事的灵感来源于一句中国的古老谚语，四个小故事展现人生的感情：幸福、欢乐、悲伤与爱。（没听说过）

第一个出场的是一个银行小职员，有着一般的工资一般的房子可以住。他从小明白怎样才能过上一个世人眼中幸福的生活：“When I was a kid, I knew the secret to a happy life. Play by the rules, work hard in school. And if you work hard in school, then your reward is... More school. And after more school, Then you give 'em the best...... that life has to offer. A job and money and a future...Filled with the unending singular pursuit of more. And this is where I was living for......My happy life.”。但是，他发现自己像一只被困在一个温暖但是狭小的壳里不能变成蝴蝶的毛毛虫，无法伸展，没有希望。“Sometimes risking everything is the only choice you have.”他决定赌一把，借了钱赌马，结果输了，结果fucked了，but “Sometimes being totally fucked can be a liberating experience.” 他决定去抢银行，结果被警察打死了，最后一个他将装着钱的包狠狠地扔向天空，开心的挨着子弹死去，倒在地上的样子竟然像一只美丽的蝴蝶。拯救他的不是钱，而是那自由，虽然是向死而生的自由。

第二个出场的是一个黑社会组织的打手。他有特异功能可以预见未来，所以不像小职员因为看不到未来而失去生命感，他是因为能看到一切未来而失去了生命感。但是在一次碰到一个流行歌手后，他开始失去了准确预见未来的能力，他发现未来充满了可能性，自己可以去改变未来了，这是他的pleasure。他爱上了这个他本该将之杀死的歌手，结果被老大做掉了。

第三个人物就是这个流行歌手，他代表了sorrow，在童年目睹父亲的死，悲伤总是缠绕着她。她成为一个拥有闪光灯却没有灵魂没有个体生命的商业歌手。她从来不告诉任何人自己真正姓名，她把自己当做别人来阻挡真是自己心中的悲伤。她爱上了打手，他为了她死了，她在他临死前告诉了他自己的姓名。

第四个人物是一个医生。他有自己的人生信念：“My purpose is to love the right person

wholly and completely.”自己最爱的姑娘成了自己最好的朋友的老婆。自己像个傻逼一样做他们最好的朋友。爱没有占有，却变成了默默地陪在她身边，看着她幸福，那么轻那么重。最后疯了一样的去救命在旦夕的姑娘。

这四个故事怎么连在一起呢？“no emotion, any more than a wave, can long retain its own individual form”这个是片子开头的一个字幕。Emotion 的意思是 a strong feel, like love; the part of a person’s character that consists of feeling。 所以这个四个部分不是机械的联系在一起，仅仅用蝴蝶效应之类的原理来解释会简单化了。几个人物是在相互拯救（不仅是物理意义上），歌手救了医生爱的姑娘，医生救了歌手，歌手救了打手，打手救了小职员，How? See it！最后你发现这都是打手的预见和改变。最后的最后happiness 、pleasure、love 消除了sorrow。

“女性的内衣等于她的心底秘密。很怕被人知道，又很想让人知道”

这个秘密是什么呢？这个秘密就是她愿不愿和你上床？

有的很怕被人知道。将virginity视为生命，坚决抵制婚前性行为或“一夜情”

有的很像被人知道。她今晚可以和你上床，只不过你得拿出点东西交换她的身体

有的又怕被人知道，又想要人知道。既不想轻浮太随便，又不想在这个开放时代因为过于保守而错过好的机会

第一类人非常值得尊敬，但是拒绝“自然而然”必然会付出代价，不停地用一种预设的观念压制自己的真实想法和感受，使得对男人的判断力的发展受到阻碍，只能靠是否结婚来判断一个男人是多么愚蠢的想法。不懂得性，不懂得爱，不懂得性爱的人要么独居要么就会受大更大的伤害。同时，性格和生活情趣也被严重扭曲，看似对自己的保护却将virginity做成了自己的枷锁，锁住了自己却锁不住别人。这样的人应该去做“神”。

第二类人只能给于鄙视。将身体作为一种交易筹码，她可能是调情专家，性爱高手，虽然不能叫做妓女，但只能是一个性爱的奴隶，永远将自己的灵和肉附属于物质和他人的意志和“权力”。这样的人只是“动物”的层次。

第三类人似乎很折中很正常，在身体和灵魂间来来回回，精明地算计着占有和被占有的后果。她给你看一点又不给你看一点，她要考验你愿不愿意拼命地追她，是不是完全服从她，她不仅想征服对方的身体还想征服对方的心灵。但是仍旧难逃爱情的主奴辩证法，时而觉得自己是主人，时而觉得自己的奴隶。在自尊心和自卑心之间摇摇摆摆。因为“占有”“追逐”“征服”这些想法已经将爱情变得不“自然”了。这样的人就是现代的“人”。

看来这个秘密并不能让女性找到真正的爱情。所以

“女人要解开内衣的扣

有时需要男人的一双手

但是，要解开内心的扣

必须要靠自己”

何谓“解开内心的扣”？就是不能依附于你的身体，也不能利用你的身体。

“其实我想找一个…

凡事都让我拿主意

但又最好什么都帮我作主

我想找一个，他全都听我的

但我又很想听他的话

我想做一个成功的事业女性

但我又不想做得那么辛苦”

这是电影快结束时的一段台词。可以将它理解为第四种，或者是第三种的优化版。这其实就是卢梭在《爱弥尔》中努力在爱弥尔和苏菲之间培养的理想爱情的一个侧面反映。同时是爱情的主人和奴隶。相互服从对方却有最大的幸福和自由。是一种“心灵之爱”而非“头脑之爱”。当然这需要对方也是同样的情况才行。它有可能吗？卢梭很悲观，这部电影的编剧很乐观。但是电影里的那个女孩是一个“傻得有些可爱”的没有被任何东西败坏的女孩，是一个卢梭眼中的“自然人”，一个心理上的处女。这样的人现实中还有吗？

和《傲慢与偏见》一样，这个故事(BBC的迷你剧)也展示了不同阶层之间的爱情，不过在《傲慢与偏见》里仅仅贵族社会中的上下阶层，而在《南方与北方》中，由于英国已经开始工业革命，南方与北方的对立代表了工业与农业、城镇与田园、或者说资产阶级与贵族之间的对立。至于爱情，则问题在于what are the honorable qualities ?

女主人公Hales，一个南方的一般贵族阶层的小姐，由于受过良好的教育和教养有着看不尽的气质，由于一些原因来到北方，失去了社会地位，家庭的经济收入也大为减少。

男主人公Thornton, 一个北方棉花厂的厂主，地方行政官，没有太多的哲学文学上的修养，表面上暴戾粗鲁，但是兢兢业业地经营工厂养活了母亲和妹妹，算是一方“成功人士”。

在Hales看来，Thornton根本不能算是一个gentleman, but rather a merchant.她对一个“好男人”的一些要求，如温和、博学、善良、不爱财等等在Thornton身上找不着。他让那么多的人辛苦的劳动，他殴打在车间抽烟的工人，他要和工会进行斗争，无数的算计和功利写在这个男人的脸上，这让她本能的讨厌。

这些能算是缺点吗？起码在现代人看来这叫有事业心，有能力，有本事！但是Hales 看重的那些古典德性的确曾经是人们所坚信不疑的。其实，Thornton 还并不是一个完全现代意义上的人，他仍然学习Plato and Aristotle，他勤奋务实但并不奸诈狡猾，他有同情心，并不为了利润而不责手段地压低工资，他表白被拒绝后有机会disgrace Hales 却没有做，我们仍然可以说他正直、明智、有良心有原则。也就是说并没有完全被工业社会金钱社会所“败坏”。男主演也非常好地brought many intricate layers to the character. 反观现在，有多少女孩子将高贵的品质、适度的举止、卓越的才华和“品位”放在首位来考虑呢？

这是一部没有“坏人”的作品，有几个一开始你不喜欢的人物，但到最后你都会理解并喜欢。没有大起大落的悬念，没有阴谋，却能够保持戏剧的张力，让人看得兴趣盎然， 也正是因为它深入的刻画了在那个转型时代社会的变化、人的变化，从而导致人与人之间，男人与女人之间相互认识，欣赏，爱慕的复杂过程。In a word, the acting is amazing, the cinematography is gorgeous and the story rivals Pride and Prejudice!

1.对你爱的人，你最希望给他/她什么？ 
a warm home

2. 用3个（或3个以上）的词语形容自己目前的生活状态： 
busy, lonely, but positive

3. 你喜欢怎么样的男生（女生）？
kind-hearted ，well-manner，good-taste.，cheerful temper . not a girl ,a young lady(more exactly)

4. 你有信念吗？是什么? 
belief is sth u are willing to risk your health\fortune\neck for it under sertain situation. right? so, i think it's the love and resposibility  toward my parents,friends,future wife and my country!

5. 讨厌什么样的的女生（男生）？ 
narrow-minded \selfish\ admire vanity

6. 如果有一次使用超能力的机会，你最想做的是什么？
把屋里所有的书用一个分钟全部看下去，我就彻底解放了…

7. 最近最快乐的事情是什么? 
腰伤开始恢复

8. 说说自己的坏毛病? 
没钱没车没房

9. 说出点你名的人的3个优点(不可删除题) 
心智成熟又活泼可爱，又会赚钱又有生活情趣的完美女性

10. 你的下一个五年计划是什么 
 找到女朋友就先工作、结婚；找不到就继续全身心学术，有机会的话出国看看

11. 你觉得最幸福的时候是什么时候？
本科的某段时间

12. 婚姻生活幸福不?如果还未结婚的.期待婚姻生活吗? 
非常期待，不过找个人很难

13. 在你的大学生活里，或者是以前的生活里，到目前为止，最后悔的事情是什么？ 
如果说是小时候，那就是没有学钢琴；大学里嘛，就let someone go

14. 你现在最想拥有的是什么？
a girlfriend ? or Oxford’ offer?

16、如果给你一个月的假期，你最想做的事情？ 
如果是比别人多一个月的时间，也有钱的话，就去国外旅行

17. 能描述一下30岁的你么？ 
努力地发展事业

18. 08年,最想要实现的愿望是什么? 
还有一天都不到了…还是期待明年吧

19. 你觉得目前的工作怎么样？热爱、喜欢、满意、没感觉还是很厌恶但为了维持生计不得

没有工作，学业还是挺热爱的

20.目前来说你作出的最艰难的抉择是什么？
目前没有

21： 你觉得你现在的状态和你小时候或者读书时候所期望的是一样的吗？
还在读书啊…但希望以后的生活没现在这么单调乏味，有时间做工作，有时间二人世界，有时间和朋友混混

    在电影《毕业生》中，霍夫曼演绎了一个处于 a very weird period 的年轻人。他刚刚从学校走出来已经不再是一个学生了，但还没有真正地grow up，不知道什么是自己需要的，什么是自己应该去争取的，什么是应该去节制的。这是人生中非常重要又很有意思的一个转变期。你能感觉到那个毕业生的整个人在慢慢地发生着某种化学反应。渐渐地，一个懵懂的充满好奇心的无忧无虑的小伙子变成了一个懂得对妻子和家庭的责任，具有了事业心的成熟男人。但是似乎更残酷的画卷才刚刚展开。因为你要面对由肉弱强食的丛林法则所支配的社会竞争。你发现即使你是一个good guy , good husband , good father，你还远远没有达到这个社会所定义的“成功男人”。这部轻喜剧就用一个非常小的故事展现了这个问题。

    Doug is a blandly functional guy with a sweet, supportive wife; Richard, fresh from Canada, is a recovering addict starting over with his new family, clinging to sobriety via self-help tapes and the kind of mild but consistent ingratiation that, in a small supermarket chain, might border on ruthlessness. They both want to manage a new branch of the grocery chain. 编剧并没有把这个故事写成一个坏家伙用各种阴招在职场上招踩着一个好家伙往上爬，然后又自食其果不得好报这样的陈词滥调。这两个人在某种意义上都值得获得这个工作，都很爱妻子，工作都很努力，人品也都没有大的问题（虽然性格上有些weakness）。但是生存的压力让他们都必须得到这个promotion，比如其中一个就是要为老婆买房子，不知道在中国有多少兄弟们也在为这个问题苦恼。所以两个男人开始用一些不那么诚实、正直的招数来占对方便宜对手从而抢夺机会。他们没有当然也不可能一下子变成很坏很下流，仅仅是那么些小小的心计去让对方出丑，或者说仅仅是没有去给与一个你本来很愿意给与的善意的忠告或帮助。现实生活中天天在发生的恐怕也就是这种微小地你都不愿去反思的剧情。

    但是，不知不觉中他们还是在某种意义上被争取成功的欲望扭曲了。很多人可能都会觉得这是不可避免的现实，“人不为己，天诛地灭”，他们不得不这样做，你总不能为了保持自己的道德而让老婆天天和你挤在小小的租房里吧？你可以找很多正当的理由。你还可以说：我只是强迫自己去做有些ugly的事，但是我整个人被没有被这个社会所败坏。我非常明白这个怎么一回事，我会不停的反省自己。All right! 但是，如果你在看这个故事的时候没有感一丝sad，没有感到无奈和一丝的沉重，你的直觉仅仅是：不过如此而已。那么这一套自我辩解就只是自欺欺人的shit，你已经成为了那个带着面具的人而不再是原来的自己了。你已经觉得这个面具比你原来的面孔还自然舒服。我一直认为这是非常的恐怖的事情，人被社会甚至被自我所改造。最近也听说了很多朋友在工作时被小人所害，或者为是否在职场中需要保持善良、正直的自我而苦恼。我希望他们能够小心那些卑鄙无耻的小人，但更希望他们小心自己不要在受到一些打击和伤害后，在一些外在的压力之下，就不自觉地去拥抱那些灰暗的功利的人性。片子的最后男主人公保持了自己的正直也得到了升迁，他自言自语说：

 ＂So was I the better man?

     I don't know.

     I just felt like a man. 〃

    Nowadays, maybe it's wasy for us to be a successful man, but it become very difficult to be the man you once was, to be a ture man! 

  ．

《BL》结束了，一部我看得最多也最欣赏的美剧。最近也没有时间好好写个东西，转篇文章以表怀念。

《10 Reasons We'll Miss 'Boston Legal'》

As the series signs off, we run down its many merits  By Dave Lake    MSN TV

After five seasons and 101 episodes, one of television's most-beloved legal series will conclude. The partners and lawyers of Crane, Poole and Schmidt will leave the airwaves (and potentially their high-rise offices if the firm goes bankrupt in the finale), but not before leaving an indelible imprint on audiences thanks to its quirky characters, smart writing and memorable performances. Though the series never took home the Emmy for Best Drama (it was nominated twice), its actors have taken home several awards, including multiple victories for James Spader and William Shatner, who won Emmys not just for their work on "Boston Legal" but also on "The Practice," the show from which their characters were spun-off.David E. Kelley, a former Boston lawyer, created the series and is one of the few writer-producers in Hollywood to have had more successes than failures. His creations include "Doogie Howser, M.D.," "Chicago Hope," "Ally McBeal" and "The Practice," the serious legal drama that begat the decidedly wackier "Boston Legal." As that show's lawyers make their final closing arguments, we thought we'd do the same, cross-examining the multitude of reasons we'll miss the series. And yes, an appeal is pending.

The Denny-Alan Balcony Scenes
No series on television offered up more satisfying final minutes than the recurring balcony conversations between Alan Shore (Spader) and Denny Crane (Shatner) as they drank tumblers of scotch and puffed cigars. They're the part of the show you most look forward to, like guessing how "South Park" might kill Kenny or how each death would begin "Six Feet Under." Ruminating on life, love and their relationship, the sometimes profound, frequently foolish discussions between these colleagues/confidants were the great big beating heart of the series, and as likely to make you smile as cry.  Theirs was a bromance of epic proportions and their friendship will be remembered as one of the great prime-time partnerships. All we need now is one of those smartly edited YouTube tributes, an extended homoerotic mash-up of all their best moments, available for on-demand viewing whenever we get nostalgic for some of that Denny-Alan magic.

The Stellar Cast
Though James Spader, William Shatner and Rene Auberjonois are the only actors to have stayed on the show for its entire run, there's a string of equally great actors who have passed through the firm's halls for at least a season, namely Candice Bergen, who managed to land another plum role after a decade-long run on "Murphy Brown." Other notable cast members through its five seasons include John Larroquette, Rhona Mitra, Mark Valley, Julie Bowen and Betty White. One wonders whether it was this very detail that was partially responsible for the show's demise: It's expensive. Or at least its actors are.

The Guest Stars
Perhaps only "30 Rock" makes better use of their guest actors, but looking at a list of  guest stars on "Boston Legal" through the years reads like a who's who of TV greats: Michael J. Fox, Heather Locklear, Carl Reiner, Tom Selleck and on and on. Sometimes appearing as judges (Bernadette Peters), lawyers (Scott Bakula), clients (Valerie Bertinelli) and even murderous former flames (Megan Mullally), the show kept viewers guessing as it mixed and matched its guest-starring roles from the campy to the courageous.

The Self-Referential Wit
Part of what makes "Boston Legal" so fun and not just another dull legal drama is that the show is so self-referential. It is constantly winking at the audience, never afraid to break that proverbial fourth wall to let viewers know it's in on the joke. Sometimes the references are overt, such as when Alan remarks to Denny: "Hell, you'll probably outlive us all. We'll be dead and buried and you'll still be kicking, doing Priceline commercials," referencing the real-life series of spots Shatner has done for the company. Or more subtly, when Catherine Piper's (Betty White) cell phone ring was revealed to be the theme to "The Practice" (we only discovered this little nugget while watching the show with the captions turned on).

The Music
The show may not have been a showcase for hip young artists the way "The Hills" or "Gossip Girl" are, but its music supervision is varied and classy. The show doesn't overuse music, which means when it does insert the occasional piece of nonscored music, be it Etta James or Blink-182, it's quite effective. Which isn't to sound disparaging about its scored music either. Composed by Danny Lux, who, along with jazz singer Billy Valentine, performs most of the music for the series, the show's music is funky and a bit sophisticated. Kind of like its plotlines.

The Liberal Agenda of David E. Kelley
From political correctness to abortion to torture, "Boston Legal" has debated a smorgasbord of issues in and out of the courtroom during its five seasons, and the show has no doubt become a vehicle for its creator to explore topics both timely and titillating. Things got particularly heated this season with story lines about the presidential election, including a recent episode involving a woman who believed she was fired from her job for voting for McCain. But that's part of the fun of "Boston Legal": You can educate yourself listening to the impassioned closing arguments of the firm's many legal eagles.

The Singular Vision
Kudos to Kelley for not just wearing the creator and executive producer titles for vanity. His name appears as writer or co-writer of nearly every single episode of the series, and like Aaron Sorkin or David Milch, Kelley has a viewpoint you can hear from the mouths of the characters he created.

The Lovable Wackos
Through the years, the series has had a Harvard-educated lawyer with Asperger's syndrome, another with Alzheimer's (aka "mad cow") and a penchant for firearms, a cross-dressing secretary and an elderly two-time murderer as the office sandwich lady. And those are just the regulars. Yet somehow we aren't fazed by any of them. In the world of "Boston Legal," these folks fit right in. They may be wacky, but unlike the characters on shows of lesser quality, the inhabitants of this universe are not cartoonish or one-dimensional; they are fully realized, albeit often very silly, personalities. You may not know anybody like Jerry Espenson, who pops and putters and plants his hands firmly on his thighs when he walks, but you believe he could exist.

The Guns
There are plenty of guns on "Law & Order," another hour-long legal drama, but let's not forget that that show also features cops, unlike "Boston Legal," which has an equal amount of weekly gunplay. In fairness, most of that armament comes from one man, Denny Crane, who, on the recommendation of friend Tom DeLay, always has an assortment of pistols at his disposal. Whether fired for comic relief in the courtroom, in self-defense while being mugged or shooting paintball pellets at a homeless man, Denny is a modern-day cowboy, only he rides high on a mad cow, not a stallion.

The Cool Older Actors
John Larroquette is 61 years old. Candice Bergen is 62. And William Shatner is 77 (77!). Even young buck James Spader is just a few years shy of 50. Not since "The Golden Girls" (speaking of which, did we mention co-star Betty White is 86?) has a prime-time series had a principal cast with such a high median age (I could insert a joke here about Metamucil on the craft service table, but I'll resist). To boot, the show's primary sex symbol is Candace Bergen's Shirley Schmidt, whom nearly every lawyer in the firm is hot for -- and why not? She's a babe. Though the show may not attract the most members of the 18 to 49 demographic, that coveted group of TV watchers that advertisers pay the highest rates to reach, "Boston Legal" can at least claim it has the richest members of that demo -- boasting more six-figure earners than any other show in prime time.

      最近意外地从人大紫藤上下了这部BBC古典迷你剧《Cranford》,一共只有5集。第一次看此种“英剧”，所以第五集结束后出现“剧终”时让我很惊讶，竟然拍了这么几集就没了。后来查了一下BBC其他的古典剧，似乎都是这样的编排，短小精致，品质取胜。《Cranford》改编自是英国著名女作家Elizabeth Gaskell的小说。与众多打打闹闹、大起大落、火爆性感的美国商业剧完全不同，《Cranford》就像一幅英格兰乡村风景画，充满了田园般的色彩和气息。在故事情节上，《Cranford》展现了19世纪一个封闭保守的英国小镇在大时代发生变革时，人们生活中发生的种种变故.这些变化在平淡的日常生活中细小而缓慢，但却被展现得非常真实细腻。小镇的居民们主要是一群不同年龄的平凡女人，构成一个female community,剧中充斥着这些带着古老蕾丝草帽老小姐东家长西家短的gossip，啰嗦但很真切。面对她们的嬉笑怒骂、傲慢与偏见你会莞尔一笑。世界有时候就是这么得小，在细微的谈吐和思量中就能发现人的种种性情和百态。当然作为一部历史剧，你可以在其中看到那个时代传统的道德、宗教准则、看到当时的服饰衣着风俗习惯，听到古典地诗歌和民歌，看到人们一开始是如何面临着现代科技、工业的挑战。今天，接着又下了同样是改编自Elizabeth Gaskell小说的《南方与北方》，此剧也是好评一片。此外网上还有许多优秀的英国古典剧，如《荒凉山庄》、《傲慢与偏见》、《理智与情感》、《锦绣佳人》等等，让人兴奋！

扮演Dr.Harrison的Simon Woods在这里比在《罗马》里扮演屋大维，显然更为得心应手，更为本色。剧中他和Sophy（下图）的爱情也是含蓄、甜美、让人向往。

pretty,intelligent,bright，mature,very genuine——perfect girl!