2. The Lives of Others (Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck, 2006)

　　《他人的生活》

　　There have been surprisingly few films made about the massive human cost inflicted by Soviet Communism, and its ruthless dominance of eastern and centralEurope over the course of nearly four decades. The Lives of Others (DasLeben der Anderen) is one of the very finest, and is a damning indictment of the to talitarian surveillance society run by the Secret Police inEast Germany. Set in East Berlin in 1984, the film tells the ultimatelyredemptive tale of a conflicted Stasi officer (played by Ulrich Mühe,in his final role) tasked with spying on a dissident playwright(Sebastian Koch). The Lives of Others deservedly won the Best Foreign Language Film at the 2007 Oscars, and was a huge success in its nativeGermany, where it forced the country to once again confront the ghostsof its recent past and the huge pain and suffering inflicted byCommunist rule in the east。

　　剧情简介：1984年的东德，整个社会笼罩在国家安全局的高压统治之下，特工魏斯曼(乌尔利希·穆厄饰)奉命监听剧作家德莱曼(塞巴斯蒂安·寇治饰)和他妻子演员克里斯蒂娜(玛蒂娜·杰蒂克饰)的生活，监听过程中，魏斯曼渐渐对这家人的生活产生了兴趣，开始暗中帮助他们。一篇刊登在西德《明镜》报上的文章引起了特工头目的注意，他们认为这篇文章是德莱曼写的，并逮捕了克里斯蒂娜，希望能够从她口中得出她丈夫的秘密？而审问克里斯蒂娜的正是魏斯曼……

　　入选理由：近年来最成功的德语电影，反应了特殊时期人与人之间的美好真挚。影片最后5分钟的情节设定尤为感人，是适合静静坐下来、细细品味的好电影。

　　正气指数：* * * * *

　　1. 300 (Zack Snyder, 2007)

　　《斯巴达300勇士》

　　Any film that prompts howls of indignation from Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and his brutal acolytes in Tehran deserves recognition. 300 achieved that in spadeswith its fiery retelling of the Battle of Thermopylae in 480 BC, wherethree hundred Spartan warriors took on a vast army of Persianscommanded by Xerxes. Zack Snyder’s faithful adaptation of the FrankMiller graphic novel featured incredible battle sequences shot with thelatest digital technology, and proved a major box office hit. As hecontemplates how to deal with the Iranian nuclear threat, Barack Obamashould ditch his failed appeasement strategy and take some tips fromthe Spartans about standing your ground in the face of an evil tyrant。

　　剧情简介：这部电影描述了人类史上最残酷的战争之一：温泉关之战。公元前480年，波斯国王薛西斯一世(罗德里格•桑托罗 Rodrigo Santoro 饰)亲率30万大军征战希腊。希腊各个城邦迅速派出军队结成了联军，准备抵御波斯军队的入侵。

　　防线的最前线设在希腊的温泉关，此处由斯巴达城的国王列奥尼达(杰拉德•巴特勒 Gerard Butler饰)率领本城300精兵和联军4000余人镇守。由于叛徒的出卖，希腊军队被波斯军队抄到了身后形成围剿之势。列奥尼达为了保存联军实力，让联军首先撤退，自己率领300精兵死守温泉关断后。

　　数以十万波斯大军浩浩商商蜂拥而至，自知必死的斯巴达士兵反而士气高涨，在战斗中爆发出惊人的战力。整个战争整整持续了2天，最后列奥尼达和他的300精兵全部阵亡，而波斯军队则损失了20000多士兵，薛西斯一世的两个兄弟也在此役中战死……

　　入选理由：西方历史上著名的以少敌多的战役。也因为如此，显得尤为壮烈。“悲壮”可以说是这部影片最好的入选理由。

　　正气指数：* * * * *