A low-budget film has made headlines in China, not for its
glowing success at the box office or critical acclaim, but simply because it
made it into cinemas at all.
一部低成本的電影在中國登上了頭條，不是因為它在票房上的成功，也不是因為它獲得了評論界的好評，而是因為它完全進入了電影院。
Looking for Rohmer, adapted from a novel, is a story of love and
friendship between two men, one Chinese the other French. A co-production
between China and France, the film was shot in Tibet, Provence, Paris and
Beijing.
《尋找羅麥》改編自一部小說，講述的是兩個男人之間的愛和友誼，一個中國人，另一個法國人。這部電影在中國和法國合拍，在西藏、普羅旺斯、巴黎和北京拍攝。
Three weeks on from its debut in April, the film's domestic
gross box office had barely surpassed $600,000 (£441,772). And it has received
relatively poor reviews from both moviegoers and critics, scoring only 4.5 out
of 10 on Douban, China's popular movie review platform.
從今年4月上映三周以來，這部電影的國內總票房僅突破了60萬美元(約合441772英鎊)。該片在中國廣受歡迎的電影評論平臺豆瓣上的評分僅為4.5分，而觀眾和影評人對該片的評價相對較差。
By any normal standard, it doesn't look like a box office hit.
But it is successful in a different sense, because is regarded
by many as China's first ever publicly screened movie about homosexuality.
按任何正常標準來看，它看起來都不像票房大賣。
但這在另一種意義上是成功的，因為這被許多人視為中國第一部公開放映的關於同性戀的電影。
Censorship battles
審查的戰鬥
Before any film can make it to the big screen in China, it must
be submitted to the State Administration of Radio Film and Television (SARFT)
for examination.
Many Chinese people hate SARFT because they believe it bans
interesting movies and makes ridiculous revision suggestions - and neither the
reasons nor the decision-making process are ever made public.
在任何一部電影可以進入中國的大銀幕之前，它必須提交給廣電總局進行審查。
許多中國人痛恨廣電總局，因為他們認為廣電總局禁止播放有趣的電影，並提出荒謬的修改建議——而這些理由和決策過程都沒有公開。
So whether a movie survives the SARFT's strict tests is often
discussed at Chinese dinner tables. Challenging topics such as homosexuality
are almost never granted the green light.
As a result, many LGBT-themed works can only be seen on
alternative platforms, or at overseas film festivals.
因此，一部電影是否能在廣電總局的嚴格測試中存活下來，在中國的餐桌上經常被討論。諸如同性戀之類的富有挑戰性的話題幾乎從未被批准過。
因此，許多 LGBT主題作品只能在其他平臺或海外電影節上看到。
There is one notable exception.
Back in 1993, Farewell My Concubine - regarded as one of the
great works of Chinese cinema - made it to the big screen.
It reveals the turbulence and brutality of
China's modern history through the lives of two Peking Opera artists, and also
explores the love and hate that burns between those two men.
有一個著名的例子。
早在1993年，《霸王別姬》被認為是中國電影史上最偉大的作品之一。
它揭示了中國現代歷史的動盪和殘酷，通過兩名京劇藝術家的生活，也探索了這兩個人之間的愛與恨。
The film also criticises the Cultural Revolution. The
award-winning film by renowned director Chen Kaige managed to clear the censorship tests
more than two decades ago, and is still screened proudly today. Mr Chen has
described it as a "miracle".
But that openness wasn't to last.
這部電影還批評了文化大革命。20多年前，由著名導演陳凱歌執導的獲獎影片成功地清除了審查制度的考驗，至今仍在驕傲地放映。陳導演稱這是一個“奇跡”。
但這種開放性並沒有持續下去。
Since Farewell My Concubine, the authorities seem to be moving
backward, tightening regulations and becoming even stricter.
In June last year, China published a set of general guidelines
for censoring audio-visual content on the internet. It listed categories of
content that must be prohibited, including material that is "obscene,
pornographic, vulgar and of low level interest".
自從霸王別姬之後，當局似乎在後退，規定越加嚴謹，變得更加嚴格。
去年6月，中國發佈了一套審查互聯網視聽內容的通用準則。它列出了必須禁止的內容類別別，包括“淫穢、色情、低俗和低級趣味”的內容。
Homosexuality is included under the category of "abnormal
sexual relationships and sexual behaviours", right next to sexual assault,
sexual abuse and sexual violence.
In response to those laws, last month social media network Weibo
said it would scrub all gay content
from the platform. But the move sparked a massive outcry, prompting the company
to reverse the ban a few days later.
同性戀被歸入“不正常的性關係和性行為”範疇，僅次於性侵犯、性侵犯和性暴力。
作為對這些法律的回應，上個月，社交媒體網路微博表示，將從平臺上刪除所有同性戀內容。但此舉引發了強烈抗議，促使該公司在幾天後撤銷了禁令。
The 'sleeve cutting addiction'
But homosexuality is not invisible in Chinese history.
Stories of kings, princes, aristocrats and their sexual partners
are dotted throughout Chinese literature - mostly using vague language
and metaphors.
斷袖
但在中國歷史上，同性戀並不是隱形的。
在中國文學中，國王、王子、貴族和他們的性夥伴的故事隨處可見，大多使用模糊的語言和隱喻。
There's also the famous tale of Emperor Ai, who woke up one
morning to find his sleeves pressed underneath his male companion Dong Xian's
body. So he could leave without waking his lover, the emperor cut his sleeve
off using a sword. Ever since, "sleeve cutting addiction" has become
a common euphemism for homosexuality in China.
還有一個著名的關於哀帝的故事，一個早晨醒來，發現他的袖子被壓在他的男寵董賢的身體下面。他為了不吵醒愛人，皇帝用劍把他的袖子割下來。自此，“斷袖”成為了中國同性戀的普遍委婉說法。
During the Cultural Revolution of the 1960s and 1970s,
homosexuality was openly prosecuted for the first time. People found to have
engaged in homosexual practices were sentenced as criminals, and faced severe
punishment.
Many were paraded publicly with the sign "buggery
offenders" on their chests. And China's homosexual communities have since
gone underground.
在20世紀60年代和70年代的文化大革命期間，同性戀第一次被公開起訴。發現有同性戀行為的人將會被判為罪犯，並面臨嚴厲的懲罰。
許多人在胸前掛著“雞奸犯”的標語。中國的同性戀社區已經轉入地下。
It wasn't until 2001 that China removed homosexuality from the
catalogue of mental diseases. And as Chinese society gradually opened up, gay
culture and gay movies started to spring up.
But even today, remaining obscure and
low key is vital to the survival of the homosexual genre in China's cultural
domain.
直到2001年，中國才從精神疾病目錄中刪除了同性戀。隨著中國社會逐漸開放，同性戀文化和同性戀電影也開始湧現。
但即使是今天，在中國的文化領域中，仍然存在著晦澀和低調的問題，這對同性戀題材的生存至關重要。
Directors and playwrights in China walk a fine line and often
have to play games in the script if they want commercial success.
They can give endless clues and hints, and leave the audience
guessing, but explicit gay sex scenes or pronounced gay love must be avoided.
在中國的導演和編劇們都走安全線，如果他們想要獲得商業上的成功，他們常常不得不在劇本中扮演遊戲角色。
他們可以提供無窮無盡的線索和暗示，讓觀眾猜測，但必須避免露臉的同性戀性愛場景或明顯的同性戀愛情。
Obscured from view
It took four years for Looking for Rohmer to clear all obstacles
and finally make it into the cinemas.
Movie reviewers have rushed to call it a "milestone"
moment in Chinese movie history.
模糊的觀點
花了四年時間，尋找羅麥掃清一切障礙，最終進入電影院。
電影評論家們紛紛將其稱為中國電影史上的“里程碑”。
Domestic media
described it as "China's first publicly shown gay movie" and some
even hailed it the "Chinese and French version of Brokeback
Mountain".
But despite the
fanfare, the two lead actors don't even hold hands during the entire 1.5 hours.
國內媒體將其描述為“中國首次公開放映的同性戀電影”，甚至有人稱讚它為“中國和法國版的斷背山”。
但儘管有這樣的大張旗鼓，這兩位主演在整個1.5小時內都沒有牽手。
That's why -
despite its significance - Looking for Rohmer hasn't been met with too many
cheers from China's LGBT community. They don't see it as a sign that a new era
of acceptance has arrived.
這就是為什麼——儘管它很有意義——尋找羅麥並沒有得到中國LGBT人群的熱烈歡呼。他們不認為這標誌著一個可以接受同志的時代來了。
Some think it is just a fluke. And others don't even consider it
a gay movie.
"I thought I'd come to the cinema to show support. But to
my disappointment, I didn't see much gay love. I only saw natural
sceneries," commented one Weibo user.
"The movie is still inside the closet," another user
added.
有些人認為這只是僥倖。還有一些人甚至不認為這是一部同性戀電影。
“我想我會到電影院來表示支持。但令我失望的是，我沒有看到太多的同性戀愛情。我只看到自然美景。''一位微博用戶評論道。
“電影還在櫃子裡，”另一個用戶補充說。
原文 http://www.bbc.com/news/blogs-china-blog-44000069
-----1115-1228----
練習翻譯，中文意思斟酌看
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