纪录片观影指南

何航

Last year, A Bite of China, made by CCTV’s Documentary Channel, sparked discussion not only on Chinese food, but also on locally made documentary programs.
去年，由央视纪录频道制作的《舌尖上的中国》引发了人们对于中华美食以及本土纪录片的热议。
Silk Road: The Journey Goes On, a new CCTV documentary about traveling the ancient road, just finished broadcasting last month and, again, received critical acclaim.
上个月，央视最新纪录片、讲述丝绸之路的《丝路:重新开始的旅程》圆满收官，该片再次大获好评。
When you think of documentaries, you may think of them as long, boring programs. But documentaries can be wonderful and bring stories from the real world into our homes. With fascinating footage and stories, documentaries encourage us to think about interesting issues we wouldn’t necessarily know about.
提到纪录片，可能你脑海中浮现的是又长又闷的电视节目。但纪录片也可以精彩纷呈，将现实世界里发生的故事带到千家万户。凭借引人入胜的画面以及描述，纪录片激励人们去思考一些自身未必了解的有趣话题。
So, what makes a good documentary, and what should we pay attention to when we watch one? Here, we offer a few easy strategies to help you get the most out of watching documentaries.
那么，优秀纪录片要具备哪些要素呢？观看纪录片时又要注意哪些方面？为了让您充分享受纪录片盛宴，这里我们奉上一些简单易学的观影诀窍。
Pay attention to the themes
留意主题
While watching a documentary, keep your eyes and ears peeled for the themes people talk about and what ideas they focus on.
观看纪录片时，视听上要留意人们谈论的主题以及他们关注的观点。
The themes of a documentary can go a long way in telling you its purpose, which in turn provides strong preliminary hints as to the legitimacy of the information you’re getting. Is it meant to be informative or provoke a certain emotional response?
这些纪录片的主题可以帮助你获取主旨，从而为判断获取信息的合理性提供了有利线索。你要思考一个问题：该片是为了传递信息还是为了要引发一定的情感共鸣？
Think critically
辩证思考
Listen to what the people in the documentary are saying and ask yourself the following questions: If you were debating a point with someone or trying to accurately introduce a new concept, would you say the things the people in the documentary are saying? Do the arguments make sense?
倾听纪录片中人们的话语，并问自己以下几个问题：如果你与他人就某观点展开争论，或者你正试图精准地介绍一种全新理念，你会拿纪录片中人们的话来做论据么？这些论据是否有意义？
Check the sources
核实信息来源
If you’re sitting at the computer and can’t think of anything to do, why not look up the points the documentary made and see if they are accurate? You could even read about the people that were interviewed in the documentary to see if they had any concealed motives for appearing in it.
如果你坐在电脑前无所事事，何不查阅一下纪录片里提及的观点，看看它们是否准确呢？你甚至可以通过阅读查明纪录片中的受访者是否“别有用心”。
Who are the creators?
揭秘创作班底
The creators or financial backers of a film will usually be involved with how the subject matter is presented. For instance, as the documentary 2016: Obama’s America was directed in large part by conservative writer Dinesh D’Souza, it’s not surprising that it’s critical of President Obama at the outset. Similarly, Blackfish, which was partially backed by CNN, is sympathetic to the plight of the killer whales.
创作班底或赞助商通常与影片主题的呈现方式息息相关。例如，纪录片《2016：奥巴马的美国》很大程度上由保守派作家丹尼斯•迪索萨执导完成，因此美国总统奥巴马从全片一开始便饱受抨击也就不足为奇了。类似的状况还有纪录片《黑鲸》，该片的赞助方之一是美国有线电视新闻网CNN，该片对杀人虎鲸面临的困境持同情态度。