阅读理解 The film-awards season, which reaches its tearful climax with the Oscars next week, has long been only loosely related to the film business. But this year's Oscar awards are less relevant than ever. The true worth of a film is no longer decided by the crowd that assembles in the Kodak Theatre—or, indeed, by any American. It is decided by youngsters in countries such as Russia, China and Brazil.
Hollywood has always been an international business, but it is becoming dramatically more so. In the past decade total box-office spending has risen by about one-third in North America while more than doubling elsewhere. Falling DVD sales in America, by far the world's biggest home-entertainment market, mean Hollywood is even more dependent on foreign punters. The rising foreign tide has lifted films that were virtually written off in America, such as "Prince of Persia" and "The Chronicles of Narnia".
The growth of the international box office is partly a result of the dollar's weakness. It was also helped by "Avatar", an eco-fantasy that made a startling $2 billion outside North America. But three things are particularly important: a cinema boom in the emerging world, a concerted effort by the major studios to make films that might play well outside America and a global marketing push to make sure they do.
Growth is quick in China, where box-office receipts reached $1.5 billion last year. China's regulator has claimed that cinema screens are going up at a rate of three per day; some are IMAX screens that command higher ticket prices. The government allows only 20 non-Chinese films into the market each year, virtually guaranteeing big audiences for those that make the cut. Punters and censors alike warm to family films and movies that seem to reflect China's central place in the world. Thus, expect long queues for "Kung Fu Panda 2" this summer.
Unfortunately, Hollywood has learned that great sales in China do not always translate into great profits. In America distributors tend to receive 50-55% of box-office receipts, with the rest going to the cinemas. In China, where Hollywood must use a domestic distributor, the proportion is roughly 15%. American films may be yanked in favour of domestic ones. The WTO has ordered China to reform, but few moguls expect it to.
The success of a film outside America is not purely a marketing matter. As foreign box-office sales have become more important, the people who manage international distribution have become more influential, weighing in on "green-light" decisions about which films are made. The studios are careful to seed films with actors, locations and, occasionally, languages that are well-known in target countries.
The growing internationalisation of the film business suits the biggest outfits, and not just because they can afford explosions. The major studios' power lies not so much in their ability to make good films—plenty of smaller operations can do that—but in their ability to wring every possible drop of revenue from a film. With their superior global marketing system and their ability to anticipate foreign tastes, they are increasingly dominating the market. For everyone else, there is a chance to win a gold statue.
单选题 16.We can learn from Paragraph 1 and 2 that______.
【正确答案】 D
【答案解析】属推断题。选项A望文生义,原文第一段第二句话说的是今年的各种奖项与以往任何时候相比都谈不上意义重大,而并不是说今年的奥斯卡没有往年引人注目,故选项A错误。选项B偷换了关键词“the true worth”,各国在美国电影颁奖评比过程中是没有话语权的,故选项B错误。选项C犯了强加联系的错误,DVD的销量在美国衰退与美国是否还是世界最大的家庭娱乐市场并无直接联系,并且原文表示美国仍是最大的娱乐市场,故选项C错误。文章第二段最后一句提到了海外大潮的兴起使得一些在美国几乎一败涂地的电影重振旗鼓,故选项D符合题意。
单选题 17.According to the text, the reason contributing to the growth of global box office EXCLUDES ______.
【正确答案】 D
【答案解析】属细节题。从文中无法推知全球经济回暖是否促进了全球电影票房的增长,故选项D符合题意。其他选项在文中都有提及。
单选题 18.The author suggests in Paragraph 4 and 5 that the market in China______.
【正确答案】 A
【答案解析】属细节题。选项B偷换了关键词“international”,文中第三段首句谈到了国际电影票房在中国飙升,而并不单单指美国好莱坞电影,故选项B错误。选项C张冠李戴,迫使国外电影删减镜头的并不是中国电影市场,而是电影管理部门,故选项C错误。选项D不符合文意,称中国市场不喜爱美国电影过于武断,故选项D错误。从第五段能够看出国外电影,包括好莱坞电影在中国的发展受到了种种限制,可见现在的中国市场还不是好莱坞电影的伊甸园,故选项A符合题意。
单选题 19.By citing the example of Kung Fu Panda 2 the author intends to______.
【正确答案】 B
【答案解析】属意图题。根据题干的关键词“Kung Fu Panda 2”可迅速定位到第四段最后两句,文中提到中国观众和审查机构都热衷于能够体现中国在世界核心地位的电影,即带有中国元素的电影,故选项B为最佳答案。选项A和选项D强加联系,作者在此处提到《功夫熊猫2》同美国电影在中国发展所遭遇到的种种限制以及中国严格的审查制度并没有直接联系。选项C过于浅显,并不是作者拿该电影举例的直接原因。
单选题 20.According to the author, what is the essential element in the success of a movie?
【正确答案】 A
【答案解析】属细节题。文章在最后一段提到了一部成功的电影并不只在于质量的好坏,更重要的是公司要有一个更好的全球营销体系,这样一来才能做出迎合国外观众口味的电影,故选项A符合题意。其他选项也都是一部电影成功与否的必需条件,但并不是最重要的因素。