奥巴马转行做制片人:《美国工厂》今日上线
2018年5月21日,美国在线影片租赁提供商Netflix电影公司宣布美国前总统巴拉克·奥巴马和他的妻子米歇尔·奥巴马与该公司签署长期协议,为Netflix公司制作电影和系列电视剧。
近日,奥巴马夫妇担任制片人的首部纪录片---《美国工厂》预告片正式上线,讲述中国企业家曹德旺在美国创建福耀玻璃工厂的故事。该纪录片于8月21日在Netflix上全球上映,它在美国圣丹斯国际电影节首映时曾大获好评。
这部纪录片的开播别有意味——俄亥俄州正是特朗普的票仓,他曾承诺给当地工人带来再就业机会,然而中美贸易摩擦却导致中国对美国投资骤减,片中的这家“美国工厂”反而成为当地仅存不多的“重要生命线”。
American Factory Film :
文化碰撞。希望幸存。当一位中国亿万富翁重新开了一家工厂,雇佣了2000名美国蓝领工人时,早期的希望和乐观被挫折所取代,因为高科技的中国公司与美国工人阶级发生了冲突。
The factory of the title is in Dayton, Ohio and exists in a building once run by General Motors which was closed in 2008. Given the vital role that the business had played in providing employment locally, it was an occasion for rejoicing when seven years later the site was taken over by the Chinese billionaire Cao Dewang in order to reopen it as a factory to provide glass for cars under the name Fuyao Glass America.
该工厂的位于俄亥俄州代顿市,并且曾经由通用汽车公司运营,不过该大楼已于2008年关闭。鉴于该公司在当地提供就业方面发挥的重要作用,七年后该网站被中国亿万富翁曹德旺接管,重新开放为福耀玻璃---为美国公司提供汽车玻璃的工厂。这是一件值得令人欢呼的事情。
2008年,导演现在这里拍摄了工厂凋敝的部分,在福耀玻璃接手投资后,又拍摄了中国管理者到来后的故事。
As it turned out, the factory struggled at first to run profitably and some of the Americans employed there in leading roles alongside Chinese who had been brought in were sent out to Cao's headquarters at Fuqing in Fujian Province: the purpose of this trip to China was to give them tips on how to inspire the other American employees and turn things around.
事实证明,工厂一开始就挣扎着盈利。一些在那里工作的美国人和被带来的中国人一起被派往福建省福清市的总部:此次中国之行的目的是,告诉他们如何激励其他美国员工,如何扭转局面。
The fact that the business is now profitable might suggest a success story but the cost of that achievement, the conditions under which the employees were expected to work, the limited pay, the hostility of the company to any involvement by the United Auto Workers union and the ruthless dismissal of those seen as trouble makers emerge clearly and chillingly here.
公司目前的盈利可能体现出它是成功的。但事实上,成功所需的成本,员工期望的工作条件,有限的薪酬,公司对美国汽车工人联合会参与的敌意,对那些被视为麻烦制造者的人的无情解雇,在这里变得明朗,令人不寒而栗。
Overall, however, this is both impressive (the fine colour photography gains from being seen on the big screen) and informative.
不过,总的来说,影片令人印象深刻(从大屏幕上看到的精美彩色摄影),信息丰富。
In particular the scenes shot in China and showing the total indoctrination of the employees there who put the company ahead of family life and accept a regime in which overtime work is mandatory are absolutely eye-opening - even more so than the frank business meetings in America during which Cao doesn't conceal for a moment the precedence he gives to company profits over concern for the quality of life of his employees.
尤其是在中国拍摄的那些场景,以及对员工灌输把公司置于家庭生活之上、接受加班制度的思想,这绝对让人大开眼界--- 甚至比美国坦诚的商务会议更让人大开眼界。在此期间,曹德旺并没有隐瞒相较于员工的生活质量,他更加关心公司的利润。
In this film the facts speak for themselves and powerfully so.
在这部影片中,事实不言自明,而且非常有力。
从纪录片介绍来说,结局是happy ending:文化冲突虽然爆发,但是最终大家弥合了分歧,并在全球化过程中受益。
但是从“hostility”,“ruthless”,“chillingly”等词来看,我们可以清晰地看到外媒的“一贯态度”。
究竟纪录片的内容如何,我们只能拭目以待。
这里是 美国之音 频道