街头日记

   最初看到《自由作家》的片名，我以为是关于一个独立思考、反抗专制政体的作家的传记片，就像许多被关进监狱、被迫流亡国外甚至惨遭杀害的作家。看了王怡的影评《我曾是一篇童话的主人公》，才知道这不是描写一个人孤独的抗争，而是一群小孩子，通过写作，观察世界、释放自我、从而彼此间进行沟通、了解的过程。那个初出茅庐、充满了理想的年轻女教师艾恩•格鲁维尔交给每人一本记事本，要他们写下发生在他们身上的事，good things,bad things,anything。
    那天开家长会，看着优等班的老师送走最后一个家长，Ms.G的203班除了她等待的身影却空无一人。她孤独地坐在讲台前，突然想起和同学们之间关于写日记的约定，打开柜子，满满当当，是大家写着发生在自己身上的暴力、战争、遗弃等事件的记事本。从那一刻开始，孩子们的世界有了一个倾听者；也就是从那一刻开始，他们不再孤身一人面对丑恶的世界。其实，这些身体和心灵都伤痕累累的孩子，他们需要的不只是服从纪律、接受来自成人世界的灌输、教育（像傲慢的坎贝尔所说），他们需要的是倾听、沟通、理解、爱和宽容。
    因为一次漫画事件，老师讲起二战期间针对犹太人的大屠杀，她问，你们中有多少人知道大屠杀，只有那位白人小朋友犹犹豫豫举起了手。这引发了后面一系列的事件，老师通过兼职，筹钱带孩子们参观大屠杀纪念馆，自费给他们买书等等。王怡在他的影评最后说：“我能说什么呢，关于我们的艾恩，我们的童话，我们的大屠杀，我们的纪念馆，我们的课堂和我们的电影院。”是的，关于我们自己身上流淌着鲜血的历史，我们能说什么。我们，就像易大旗先生说的，一直在被“喂药”（《黄金甲.白馒头》），被袁伟时先生称为喝着“狼奶”长大的一代，是否已经失去了言说的能力。

又是关于老师的电影。
故事发生在现代，根据真人真事改变。
美国移民社区Long Bay的公立中学，新来了一位志向远大但没有经验的女教师。她想教孩子们奥德赛，让孩子们读安妮日记。然而，自打她踏进这个学校的第一天，她便发现一切并不像想象的那么简单：
Long Bay是LA一切冲突、恐怖的集中表现。不同种族、不同地域的移民者在这里聚集，歧视、犯罪、流血从幼年起就开始侵蚀少年们的心灵。这里的每个孩子都有各不相同的悲惨的童年，然而最终的结果却惊人地相似：仇恨、报复。学校里几乎每个孩子都有枪，白人是为了自我保护，有色人种是为了——就像他们自己说的“战斗”。
很多人死。很多孩子死去。很多人目睹他们的朋友倒在枪声之后。Long Bay的白人晚上不敢出门，有色人种也是如此。
这就是新来的女教师面对的。她决定改变，因为她想做好她的分内工作。但是她知道，自己要改变的不只是暴戾本身，还有暴戾背后受伤的心灵。
她用日记的方式，打开了这些孩子受伤的、脆弱的心灵。也是通过这些日记，孩子们开始思考、感悟生活。
这些孩子其实很单纯、质朴。女教师要做的只是用心去引导，用爱和执着去感化。虽然遇到资金、校方的重重阻挠，但是她的努力取得了效果令人叹服。她坎坷地但并不艰难地融化了孩子们内心的恐惧，灌输了勇气、正义和爱。最后，正如大家所期待地，取得了孩子们的信任、尊重和爱戴。影片的结局，初生牛犊的女教师破例将她的孩子们教到高中毕业（一般没有经验的教师不允许教高三和高四），她把孩子们的日记编成书，起名为“The Freedom Writers Diary”。
现在，这位女教师——Mrs.G在全美建立了名为“Freedom Writer”的基金会，来推广教育事业。
个人认为，Hilary Swan很适合这个角色。不漂亮，但是有种令人屈服的执着和坚韧。尤其是片中女教师的丈夫因受不了妻子全身心投入工作而离开她的那段，Hilary Swan拿捏地不错——不是夸张地泪流满面，而是挣扎着任由心口血流不止。只是导演似乎无意突出这个片段，或者做得不到位，女教师的悲恸并不很清晰，不然的话，这将是本片一大亮点。
总而言之，《街头日记》——《Freedom Writer》有起伏、有高潮、也有亮点。观看过程中，的确有被感动的瞬间。只是，这些瞬间总是一闪而过，略显苍白和无力，像转瞬即逝的流星，很多但不够明亮，并不能给人留下特别深刻的印象。这点，应该是影片最大的缺点了。
但是，话说回来，《Freedom Writer》的确不失为一部振奋人心的好电影，不吝啬地为它打7分！
最后要说的是，这部影片中有很多R&B, Hip-hop音乐，配合影片挺恰当的，很不错～

What is the picture of America in your mind? Tall buildings, high-tech, and fantastic movies in Hollywood…America is a dreamland for most people. It is a country which is filled with exciting adventures, top fashion, romantic love, and modern life. Actually, it is the world of America. However, there is still another world hided in the shadow of these fantastic things. The Freedom Writers unveils the cover of the hided world. It is the world which is filled with gang violence and racial tension. It is still America. But it is not the America in your dream.
Maybe you will be confused by the title of the movie. It is not a story of the real writers. It is a story of some rebellious students. Freedom Writers is a 2007 American drama film starring Hilary Swank, Scott Glenn, Imelda Staunton and Patrick Dempsey. It is adapted from the book The Freedom Writers Diary by teacher Erin Gruwell who wrote the story based on Woodrow Wilson Classical high School in Long Beach, California. It is a story about transformation. A group of people was abandoned by the world and saved by the brief. It is not just a story on the screen. It can be anyone’s story. Maybe it is yours.
The movie is real but out of the common. It shows a hard journey that some students who are labeled as “at-risk” and “unteachable” get rid of the past shadow with the help of their teacher, Erin Gruwell. Maybe you don’t know the history of segregation and the multiracial problems in America. You still can understand how badly the students who are labeled as “backward student” are treated. You still can understand how hard for these kinds of students to own a bright life. The movie calls up something my inner self. The hided world in America, which is neglected by us for a long time, harms some people. But there are still some people have the courage to choose their own life. They light the lamp for themselves. They stand up in the bad situation.
Your life is what you choose. I am impressed by Eva in the movie. She is a Hispanic girl and narrator for much of the film. She was surrounded by the racial hatred and gang wars since she was a child. She was affected by the kind of life. But a murder changed her life. One night, Eva’s boyfriend accidentally killed Sindy’s boyfriend. Eva became a witness. She must testify in court.
Formerly she must protect her own people in her testimony. But she learned something different from her teacher Eric. She hesitated to make the choice. For the benefit of her, she should against the law to lie. For the fair, she should tell the truth to the judge. “To be or not to be” is not one person’s problem. How to choose? What is the right thing for her? It is a kind of torture for her. Finally she chose to tell the truth, much to some of her family members’ dismay. The gang members caught her. It was the breathtaking moment. I was so afraid. Fortunately, for the respected for Eva’s father, the former gang members decided not to kill her. But she was abandoned by her father and her family. It is a turning point for her. She got a chance to change and went far away from gang life. I am happy for her and think a lot. How to control our own destiny? People make history; unusual people make history interesting; unlucky people can make their own history. The answer is answered.
The past evil thing is still alive in the modern world. We don’t understand the segregation. We think it belongs to the past and is pulverized by the history. We don’t understand the gang war. We think it only exist on the screen. Now we know the cruel life is still alive, even in America. How hard it is for these students in that situation. How shocking for us to know it. The movie widens our horizon. We know more and think more. If I were a girl in such situation, what should I have done? I don’t know. No accurate answers. Everyone makes the choice by themselves. It is not only the fight in outside world, but also the fight inside world. You need to win yourself. In the movie Eva shows us how to fight in her heart.
Besides her, in the movie all students make their choice fighting against original themselves. They are lucky and brave. Maybe you can learn to evoke yourself from them. The woman teacher, Eric Gruwell, is the angel for the students. She is responsible, warm-hearted, and tenacious—she is an admiring teacher. She makes her students become the new people. It is the best rewarding thing for her. Her father said: “What you’ve done with those kids…I don’t even have words for it. But one thing for sure, you are an amazing teacher. Special. You have been blessed with a burden, my daughter. And I envy you that. And I admire you.” She is not only the teacher but also a doctor—save those whose spirit is crushed.
All in all, it is an unmissable movie. You will be touched and inspired. The movie is a teacher for us. The plot is attractive and compact. The soundtracks touch your heart deeply. You will know more about the America. The movie deserves your appreciation. Don’t miss it.

影片后半段，师生们用一个叫John Tu的人赞助的几十台电脑将各自的日记编辑成书，因此《街头日记》才得以诞生。这个John Tu就是金士顿（全球第一内存品牌）的老板杜纪川。

转贴：在电影《街头日记》中，奥斯卡影后希拉里史旺饰演一名初出茅庐、充满理想的年轻教师古鲁威尔，她负责指导一群充满暴戾之气、身处于社会弱势阶层的高校新生。古鲁威尔透过一套别出心裁的教学方式，不但结合了音乐及生动的校外教学，同时鼓励孩子们用日记写下在黑帮暴力阴影下的生活，并且以古鉴今，对照书中的历史事件和他们自己的经历，将心比心，让学生们放下仇恨、学会宽容。而学生们的面对街头暴力及黑帮威胁的真实生活日记，是《街头日记》这本书的基本架构，进而成为了《街头日记》这部电影的故事主轴。

杜纪川正是被这些高中生孜孜不倦、跟随古鲁威尔学习精神，以及面对艰困环境坚强成长的毅力所打动。怀着回馈社会的热情，除了为学生们添购计算机和提供各种形式的赞助外，读万卷书不如行万里路，杜纪川更资助学生们实地游览曾在书中出现过的场景，例如位于波兰奥斯比次（Auschwitz）的纳粹集中营，和曾经饱受战火摧残的波斯尼亚。

今年正值金士顿科技公司创建20周年纪念，由海外华人孙大卫、杜纪川合力创建的金士顿科技公司已有计划在中国开展一系列慈善、公益活动，帮助中国的青少年和其他弱势群体。

信息来源http://www.kingston.com/china/press/2007/corporate/prc20070403.asp

关于电影“街头日记”：

1. 由派拉蒙电影公司及MTV音乐台发行
2. 上映日期 - 美国：1月5日 、 英国：3月2日、澳洲：3月22日、新加坡：3月29日 、马来西亚：4月12日、 泰国：4月26日、香港：5月10日、 台湾：5月12日。（中国、 日本、 韩国及菲律宾: 上映日期未定）
3. 奥斯卡金像奖影后 希拉里史旺（Hillary Swank）领衔主演
4. 导演及编剧:理查德拉葛瑞夫尼斯（Richard LaGravenese）。制片:丹尼 迪维托 （Danny DeVito）。
5. 电影幕后花絮:
* 电影耗时六年拍摄而成。
* 当时总计有150名学生日记被集结成册出版。电影灵感来自其中4-5个孩子的故事。
* 这群学生们不仅熟习名著《安妮日记》（Anne Frank），还研读了《莎拉塔的围城日记》（Zlata’s Diary）：一个名叫莎拉塔（Zalta）的14岁女孩，纪录的她在波斯尼亚内战中生存下来的真实生活故事。学生们深受这个故事的感动及鼓舞，莎拉塔后来更飞往洛杉矶与学生们见面。
* 电影中没收录的后续发展：毕业一年后，古鲁威尔（Erin Gruwell）带着孩子们实地考察波兰奥斯比次纳粹集中营、波斯尼亚和安妮法兰克（Anne Frank）的故居，亲眼看到书中出现过的场景。导演原本有意拍摄这段精彩的后续发展，后来还是因为与影片情节不搭而作罢。
* “街头日记”（Freedom Writers）计划至今仍延续更拓展了规模，古鲁威尔则正在全美各地推广实验性的教学计划，来指导教师通过多样化的管道及教学方式去启发孩子们。
* 本电影由MTV音乐台电影公司制作，音乐理所当然成为影片中的重要元素及一大卖点。

《街头日记》电影官方网站：http://www.freedomwriters.com/