法国当地时间5月17日，第59届戛纳国际电影节在法国戛纳开幕。戛纳电影节艺术总监泰瑞·法穆介绍说，本届电影节与往年最大的不同在于——今年的参展影片很多都是“新面孔”。同时，近几年，亚洲影片也开始受到评委们的重视和青睐。在本届戛纳影展中，举足轻重的两位华裔电影人——导演王家卫和女星章子怡，也已先后抵达戛纳，准备参与为期12天的评审。

Filmmakers, celebrities and the international media will descend on the French Riviera for the "grand dame" of the international film festival circuit: the 2006 Cannes Film Festival, which kicks off on May 17. The 12-day festival has undergone a big change in its character over time. In its first three decades, it used to showcase Hollywood and Europe (particularly France), their stars and products (with a rare, occasional nod to Asian Cinema).  Gradually, the Asian Cinema began to get noticed at Cannes, and now it is getting more than a look-in. As Cannes festival director, Thierry Fremaux admitted in an interview on the eve of this year's festival saying, "from an artistic point, a great festival can no longer exist without Asian films. From the point of view of the industry, professionals come in ever greater numbers to the Festival." Chinese film-director Wong Kar Wai is heading the 9-member Feature-film Jury at Cannes. Wong, 46, some of whose films have done the festival-circuit in India, belongs to the latest wave of Chinese directors. This time there is no one from India on any of the official juries at Cannes. However, in the main jury, there are some names Indian filmgoers would be familiar with. One Jury member whose presence could be of special interest to some back home is Monica Bellucci. The 41-year old Italian actress is reportedly being wooed by NRI producer, Jagmohan Mundhra to play the title role of Sonia Gandhi in his proposed biopic on the Indian Congress party president. Mundhra is also expected to be in Cannes for a private showing of his latest movie, "Provoked", based on the travails of a battered Indian housewife in Britain. (China Daily)

Vocabulary:

kicks off: 原指（足球等）中线开球，后引申为“开始”。 showcase: 展示 look-in: 依据上下文，与前句的get noticed（受到关注）同义，暗示“成功的机会（很大）”。