Hollywood is on the edge of a nervous breakdown1. Worried about an industry wide writersstrike, struck by a series of theater-chain bankruptcies, burdened with unreasonablecorporate profit, requirements and seemingly incapable of producing consistently2 creativemovies, the American film industry is in an intensive period of soul-searching. There's littledoubt it will survive this crisis. But most insiders agree there is disease at both ends of thebusiness —where films are conceived, and where they're shown — that may take years toovercome.

　　While boasting annual box-office revenue increases for nine straight years, largely due toincreased ticket prices, the number of actual tickets sold has declined for the second year in arow. The construction boom has added nearly 10, 000 theaters ( more than 200, 000 moreseats) in the last five years. But due to a static audience base, eight major chains have goneinto bankruptcy and several others are in dreadful financial straits.

　　In effect, insiders say, Hollywood is now in a business it does not want to be in. "There'sgeneral problem in that the companies that have the most consistent output of material areleast interested in what they're making, "says former 20 th Century Fox CEO3 Bill. And, Billadds,"We're in a period where movies are getting bigger and more costly and less interestingand fulfilling to an audience. "

　　Today the studios are under the stress to increase profit margins for their corporate parents,and profit margins are hard to control in a business whose products are seen as impulsebuys. Other business can increase profits by cutting costs — buying cheaper material, ormaking the candy bar smaller4 . Not Hollywood.

　　"What we're cutting is risk, "says the head of one major studio, who asked not to benamed,"And risk is what great film has always demanded. " While the studios are avoiding riskyconcepts, their rivals in the home entertainment business have been furiously expanding theboundaries of the imagination. It was this pressure — in electronic games, the Internet, EVDs— that forced the movie theater chains into a self-destructive frenzy of expansion.

　　Seduced by easy access to loans during the go-go5 economy of the mid to late 1990s, thechains plunged into debt in a feverish effort to be first on the block with the biggest 158theatres. In five years, the number of U. S. screens expanded from 27, 000 to more than 37, 000 .

　　" It's going to take three or four years for the complete recovery of the business, "says KurtHall, president of the United Artists Theater Circuit."It will take that long to get the number ofscreens down to a healthy level. The closer we get to 30, 000 the better off we'll be. "

　　練習題：

　　Ⅰ. Complete the summary of the passage:

　　Hollywood is on the 1 of nervous breakdown. It was struck by theater-chain2 , burdened with 3corporate profit, requirements, 4 of producing 5 creative movies. Most insiders allege thatboth ends of the business have disease. The annual box-office revenue increases because ofthe 6 ticket prices. The number of actual tickets sold has 7 for the second year in a row. In thelast five years 8 theaters has set up. Given the limited audience base, eight major chains havegone 9 bankruptcy and several others are in 10 11 .

　　Ⅱ. Questions:

　　1. Why Hollywood is now in a business it does not want to be in?

　　2. Why the studio is under stress? In what way is it different from other business?

　　Ⅰ. 1. edge 2. bankruptcies 3. unreasonable 4 . incapable 5. consistently 6. increased 7.declined 8. 10, 000 9 . into 10 . financial 11. straits

　　Ⅱ. 1. Because nowadays movies are getting bigger and more costly and less interesting andfulfilling to an audience.

　　2. They have to increase profit for their corporate parents and profit margins are hard tocontrol in a business whose products are seen as impulse buys. Other business can increaseprofits by cutting costs — buying cheaper material, but Hollywood can’t.

　　隱患叢生的好萊塢

　　好萊塢已處在崩潰的邊緣。美國的電影業受到來自各方面的困擾: 擔心業內作家的全面罷工; 面臨一系列劇院的連鎖破產; 承擔合伙人不合理的利潤要求; 無法不斷地制作有創意的片子。毫無疑問好萊塢能度過這場危機, 但是多數的業內人士認為這得花幾年時間,因為電影業的兩端——制作和放映都存在弊病。

　　159好萊塢吹噓它的票房收入連續九年增長, 但這主要是因為票價上漲了, 實際的售票量已經連續兩年下降。五年來的建設熱潮增加了1 萬多個電影院, 20多萬個座位。由于觀眾基數未變, 導致8個連鎖影院破產, 另外幾家則陷入經濟危機。

　　業內人士說, 事實上好萊塢電影業是欲罷不能。20世紀福克斯公司的前首席執行官比爾說:“ 電影業內有一個通病, 那些拍片最多的公司, 對自己的片子最沒興趣。”他還說:“ 現在我們的電影制作規模越來越大, 成本越來越高, 卻越來越沒意思, 也很少給觀眾滿足感。”

　　現在的電影制片廠要承受投資人要求擴大利潤空間的壓力, 但是像電影這種購買率難以預測的行業, 是很難控制利潤的。別的行業可以通過購買便宜的材料、縮減原料消耗來降低成本增加利潤, 但是這在好萊塢行不通。

　　一家大制片廠不愿透露姓名的主管說:“ 我們在規避風險, 但是要制作大片子往往要擔風險。”

　　制片廠都避開有風險的電影構思, 而家庭娛樂業的對手則在極盡能事地擴張他們的領域。來自電子游戲、互聯網和EVD 等方面的壓力, 迫使連鎖電影院走上自我毀滅的擴張之路。

　　在90年代末借貸容易的泡沫經濟大潮中, 連鎖影院瘋狂競賽, 在各個街區建設最大的電影院, 結果債臺高筑。五年間, 美國的電影屏幕從27 000個增加到了37000個。

　　“ 電影業要徹底恢復需要三到四年的時間。”美國藝術家影院協會的主席科特· 霍爾說:“ 將影院的數量減到正常水平需要這么長的時間。影院數量越接近30 000 個, 對我們越有利。”

　　1. breakdown n. ① ( 機器等) 損壞, 故障, 如: Our car had a breakdown on the road. ( 我們的子在路上出了毛病。) ② 拆除, 破裂, 如: a partial breakdown of traditional barriers ( 傳統障礙的部分掃除) ;prevent a breakdown between managers and teachers ( 防止管理人員和教師之間的分裂) 。文中的nervous breakdown 是“ 神經衰弱”的意思, 指好萊塢困難重重, 面臨精神崩潰。

　　2. consistent adj. ① 堅持的, 固守的, 一貫的, 如: a consistent supporter of women’s rights ( 堅持不懈的女權支持者) 。② 一致的, 和諧的, 如: The professor had a consistent attitude towards all hisstudents. ( 這位教授對他所有的學生一視同仁。) His story is not consistent with the fact. ( 他的報道與事實不符。) consistently 是副詞形式, 另外名形式是consistence。

　　3. CEO 是chief executive official ( 首席執行官) 的縮寫。另外COO 是chief operation officer( 首席運營官) 的縮寫, 注意兩者的區別。

　　4. making the candy bar smaller 字面的意思是“ 把糖塊做小些”。這里隱含的意思是“別的行業可以通過把產品體積做小來減少原材料的消耗, 節約成本”。

　　5. go-go adj. ①歌歌舞的, 搖擺舞的, 跳搖擺舞的小舞場的, 如: a go-go band ( 歌歌舞樂隊) 。②活躍的, 有進取心的, 大膽的無節制的, 如: the go-go generation ( 自我的、沖勁十足的一代) 。③買空賣空的, ( 投資) 投機性的, 如: These stocks have been the latest go-go favorites.( 這幾種股票是投資公司最近一個時期的熱門投機對象。)