迷媽追星去

要做自耕農真的很不簡單, 這篇專訪翻得我真後悔一開始想翻譯的念頭, 好多地方不知其意, 但是頭已經洗下去了又不想放棄, 所以還是請大家多多包涵, 隨便看看, 以下皆為不負責任翻譯: http://dmbarcroft.com/tag/susan-fallon/

DAMIAN: I understand that you were the first and only choice to play young Endeavour Morse. Can you tell us whose original idea this was and what work they had seen you in that made them think you would be suitable for the role? 我知道你是這個角色的唯一人選, 能否告訴我們你一開始聽到這消息時的想法嗎?SHAUN: Yes, well that’s my understanding of it. I was at the read through for a part I was about to play of a guy who leaves his wife, because she has a brain tumour, and the execs clearly thought, “ah, what a charmer…there’s our man!” –  and the rest is history. 是的, 我的瞭解是: 這是關於一個人離開他的妻子, 因為妻子有腦瘤……. ( Shaun 在開玩笑, 但我不懂這玩笑, 哈哈)

還是穿插一下 Shaun 的美照, 不然看完整篇會打瞌睡.

No seriously,  Mammoth Pictures were making a show called Monroe and I was in the first episode and I got the job from that. As to whose original idea the first film was, I can’t be sure, I suppose a combination of Damien, Michele, and Russ’. 不是啦, 嚴肅的說, Mammoth 公司製作了一個節目叫 Endeavor, 我在第一集而且從此得到了工作

DAMIAN: You weren’t familiar with the original TV series, Inspector Morse, hadn’t read Colin Dexter’s novels on which it was based, or even looked at a script at this very early point. What were your initial thoughts or perhaps even preconceptions regarding the character? 你並沒有熟悉原先的摩斯探長劇, 也沒有讀過 Colin 的原著, 這讓你原先對這角色的想法為何?

SHAUN: I didn’t have any preconceptions, as I didn’t really know anything about it, though that said, I wasn’t massively keen on the idea of a cheesy one off, that would just be a money spinner for the channel…however, given that, to my understanding, the execs had sought me out, I thought I have to repay that with a bit of research, and I’m glad I did… So I suppose I did have preconceptions! 這讓我沒有任何成見, 因為我之前對這沒有任何瞭解

DAMIAN: And after you’d read Colin’s books and the script for FIRST BUS TO WOODSTOCK, what was it about Morse that you connected with and thought you could make your own? 在你讀了 Colin 的小說以及第一幕的劇本後, 你認為你可以做甚麼讓你和 Morse 產生聯結呢?

SHAUN: I didn’t think I could make anything my own, but I was intrigued by the storytelling in the novels. The character seemed very clear and at the same time distant, I don’t know, I was intrigued I suppose. Then read Russ’ script and thought it was brilliant. So complex and interesting, that it allayed any of the perceptions that I thought I didn’t have! 我不認為我可以做甚麼, 但我覺得小說非常有趣, 讀了劇本後覺得角色的性格十分清晰, 輝煌的複雜的而且有趣.

DAMIAN: Were there any of the novels or short stories in particular that resonated most and what character details did you find in them that influenced your interpretation?有沒有什麼特別的共鳴小說或短篇故事，你在其中發現了什麼性格的細節，影響了你的解釋？

SHAUN: I particularly liked the penultimate novel, I can’t remember the name of it, something about it I just really liked. I’d long stopped reading them for research by that stage and was just enjoying them. It’s too hard to say specifically what influences your interpretation, it doesn’t really work that way in acting, for me at least, its a feeling.我喜歡倒數第二本的小說, 我不記得名字了但我喜歡. 我花長時間閱讀而且享受它. 很難說具體是甚麼影響, 我沒有真正用甚麼方法來演, 那是一種感覺.

DAMIAN: I wonder if you can describe the very first day of filming, the scene that was shot and at what point in the series did you think, yeah, I can do this – I’m Morse now?不知你能否描述第一天拍攝遭到槍擊, 在哪一點上你想--- 喔, 我現在是 Morse?

SHAUN: Again, that’s a very external way of looking at it, you just do your days work, and hope people like it. The first day was myself and Jimmy Bradshaw looking at a dead body by a riverside, and I remember…well actually, when I work I often think “no one will see this, its just a bit of a laugh”  and I do that to feel free so that I can be creative, but I remember coming into my trailer on the first morning and the producers had, very generously, left a first edition of “Last Bus to Woodstock”, signed by Colin, along with a replica Jag, (miniature unfortunately) and I thought, “oh shit” , I don’t know why, but I just felt a degree of pressure, which I’ve never felt before, expectation I suppose. So I put the gifts in a drawer until we’d finished (which I guess is significant) got on my knees, said a quick prayer to help me get on with it,  and then went out and had a laugh with Jimmy and the crew, forgot all of it and got on with the job.還是那句話，從外部來看，你只要做你一天的工作，並希望人們喜歡它。第一天我和Jimmy Bradshawy在河邊看著一具屍體，我記得......嗯，事實上，當我工作，我常常在想“沒有人會看到這些，它有一點好笑”，我感覺自由這樣我可以有創意，但我記得當我第一天進入我的拖車時, 製作單位非常慷慨，留下“末班車伍德斯托克”的第一版，由Colin簽署，與捷豹的複製品一起，（很不幸是小型的），我想，“Oh shit”，我不知道為什麼，但我感到一定程度的壓力，這是我以前從來沒有覺得的。所以我把禮物放在抽屜裡，直到結束 (我想很明顯）得到了我的膝蓋，說了快速地祈禱，以幫助我得到它，然後走了出去，並與吉米和船員笑，忘了這一切，並開始工作。

DAMIAN: Although the crosswords, the opera and the booze are all essential elements, I would argue that they have become almost a distraction in our understanding of the character. If I asked you to think of Morse as a man you had actually met and knew well, how would you describe him – how do you see him in your mind’s eye, where is he and what is he doing? 雖然填字遊戲，歌劇院和酒都是必不可少的因素，我認為，這已經讓我對角色的認識幾乎形成一種干擾。如果我問你已經如此熟悉 Morse ,你會如何形容他 - 你怎麼看他在你的腦海裡，他在哪裡，什麼是他在做什麼

SHAUN: Wow that’s a good question, erm, I like to think that’s how he rests, sitting in a comfy chair, opera on the turntable, scotch by his side, and crossword half filled, in a melancholy mood, quizzing over the big questions and being lost in his thoughts…ha I love this character, I know that sounds mad, but I do.？
SHAUN：哇，這是一個很好的問題，呃，我想，就是他休息，坐在舒適的椅子上，歌劇在轉盤上，蘇格蘭威士忌和填了一半的填字遊戲，憂鬱的心情，想著一些大問題以及遺失在他的想法中...哈哈我喜歡這個人物，我知道這聽起來很瘋狂，但我喜歡。

DAMIAN: Morse is very much a man shaped and moulded by his past – we all are to some extent I suppose. However, if we were looking for clues as to his loneliness and social awkwardness, would we find the most revealing pointers in his failed relationship with his college sweetheart, Susan Fallon, or perhaps his troubled home life with his father? Morse 的過去形成了他這樣的人格, 我們也一定程度上是這養的. 如果我們要尋找他為何如此孤獨以及身處群體中的格格不入, 我們會發現是在他大學時代失敗的戀愛關係, Susan Fallon, 或也許是家庭生活與他父親之間?

SHAUN: It’s too academic to want such solid reasons for things, the whys and wherefores, but life is more interesting and mysterious than that. “Thursday’s child has far to go”, who knows why, he just does. Over intellectualising ruins inspiration I think for the actor. 太學術的將事物固定住理由了, 但生活是有趣且神祕得多, 星期四探長的小孩還有很多路要走, 誰知道為什麼, 他只是做.

DAMIAN: There are some elements of Morse which very much remind me of Educating Rita and, given his working-class background and later education at University, has become something of a “Frankenstein’s monster”. He feels he doesn’t belong to, or is too good or educated for his own family, but by the same token, doesn’t belong to the more highbrow world of Oxford academia either because he constantly feels inferior to them, not because of his intelligence but because of his background. I suppose what I’m trying to say is that Morse, because of his great intellect, isolates himself, doesn’t speak anyone else’s language, and no one can ever fully understand his – he doesn’t truly belong anywhere does he? Morse 讓我想到” Educating Rita” 出身於工人階級之後受教育於大學, 變成像科學怪人般, 他覺得他不屬於, 他的高學歷相對於家中格格不入, 也不屬於牛津學術界這般更加曲高和寡的地方, Morse 覺得自己的智力不遜於他們, 但因為他的背景所以無法融入. 我想說的是因為 Morse 的偉大智慧, 因而隔離自己, 會說任何人愛說的話, 沒有人能夠完全理解他, 他並不真正屬於任何地方, 是嗎?

SHAUN: That’s right. 沒錯

DAMIAN: This situation is obviously intensified later in his police career and his refusal to either conform or “play the game”. Would you say that Morse is paradoxically both superior and inferior in all his personal and professional relationships? 這種情況倒致他的警察生涯, 因為拒絕配合所謂的玩遊戲而越演越烈, 你會說這種矛盾顯現在他個人生活及專業上

SHAUN: Er…yeah. 是的

DAMIAN: Except, of course, for Detective Inspector Fred Thursday? 除此之外, 當然還有星期四探長

SHAUN: Ah, Thursday. How cool is Roger Allam? 喔, 星期四探長, RogerAllam 多酷啊!

DAMIAN: It would be simplistic to describe the relationship between Thursday and Morse as merely father and son – there’s a more complex and intriguing connection between the two isn’t there? 簡化說星期四探長與 Morse 有著父子般情感的連結, 但其實有更複雜更有趣的連結是嗎?

SHAUN: I think so. 我想是.

DAMIAN: Is Roger usually in character between takes or is he simply a bit like his Thursday character in real life? Roger 真實生活中的個性與星期四探長相同嗎?

SHAUN: Oh no, he’s glorious…funny, and irreverent, and sharp, but most of all one of the most wonderful, coolest actors I know. 不, 他是輝煌的, 有趣, 不敬, 銳利, 是我所知的演員中最棒最酷的.

DAMIAN: In addition to yourself and Roger, I can honestly say that I believe Endeavour boasts one of the finest ensemble casts of any recent TV series. If we look at the progression and augmentation of characters from the pilot and series one, such as Max (James Bradshaw), Jakes (Jack Laskey), Bright (Anton Lesser), Strange (Sean Rigby) and Dorothea (Abigail Thaw), these really do seem like living breathing characters who inhabit both Oxford and our imagination in the most serendipitous way. Abigail told me that you both often try to play around with your scenes and their often inherent humour but the directors usually reign you in so I’m wondering to what extent is there room to improvise and take advantage of this beautiful chemistry that the whole cast seem to share? 除了你及 Roger allam 外, 我可以誠實的說這個劇組是最近以來最優秀之一, 我們看看這些演員, 賦予角色有生命的呼吸在牛津及尋常的角落. Abigail 告訴我妳倆經常玩弄場景及幽默感而導演來統整, 這種化學變化產生的優點到何種程度?

SHAUN: Well, if you cast well, and let the actors do their job, they’ll give you good stuff… yes we are blessed with a brilliant ensemble, all of the actors are prepared, have thought about the scenes and come offering something. They are all terrific. And yeah within the time constraints we play around as much as possible, it’s very much a team effort, it really is. And that goes on off stage too, if anyone is doing anything else, we usually organise a team outing to support, and also because I love watching them all work.

嗯，如果你投其所好，讓演員做他們的工作，他們就會給你的好東西......是的，我們被賦予了輝煌的合作，所有演員準備好，試過場景來提供任何東西。他們都是了不起的。在時間限制之內，我們盡可能多完一些，這是一個團隊的努力。如果有人做別了其它事情，都會得到一個團隊的支持，我也很喜歡看他們工作。

DAMIAN: Abigail also mentioned that she and Jimmy Bradshaw want their own spin-off series, Dotty and Max! – what are your thoughts on this? Abigail 提及她和 Jimmy Bradshaw 希望有他們的系列—Dotty and Max, 你怎麼看?

SHAUN: Can I be in it as a guest? 我可以當客人嗎?

DAMIAN: After the first Endeavour film, FIRST BUS TO WOODSTOCK, you chose to play quite a dark character in The Last Weekend (2012) and again, more recently you opted for another character who couldn’t be further away from Morse in The Scandalous Lady W (2015) – do you think roles such as these are deliberate attempts to avoid typecasting? 經過Endeavour , 你選擇了一個黑暗的角色在 The last weekend, 然後最近又演了一部與 Morse 角色很不同的 The Scandalous Lady W, 你想避免侷限在同一類型的角色中嗎?

SHAUN: I don’t believe in type-casting, you’re only limited to one role if that’s all you can play. I’m lucky that I’ve always had the opportunity to play parts far away from me, which I hope will continue. 我不相信類型角色, 你會侷限在一個角色中如果你可以演的話. 我很幸運總是有機會飾演不同的角色, 我希望可以這樣下去.

DAMIAN: Would you say that it might be more interesting for you as an actor to portray Morse as dark a character as audiences would be willing to accept for a primetime ITV drama? 你會說如果 Morse 的性格越黑暗會越有可能吸引黃金時段的 ITV 觀眾嗎?

SHAUN:  I don’t know, I don’t think about it, Russ does the writing, and if I have any ideas or anything jumps out I have the opportunity to air it, but I think that we’re all pretty much on the same page about the important stuff. I don’t really think about the audience, in that way.

DAMIAN: You have a very distinctive way of… Talking. And. Delivering your lines. I can only describe it as measured and introspective which really works for the character. However, I’ve noticed that, in comparison to Roger who is pretty much consistent and says the same line the same way take after take, you are a lot more unpredictable and perhaps even slightly capricious in your delivery. Is this something you are aware of and does it ever affect the interplay with other actors?

這裡的 line 指的是甚麼? 聲線嗎? 意思是 Roger 總是固定的維持穩定的在一個聲線, 但 Shaun 的聲線會變來變去!

SHAUN: I’d never noticed, it could be in the writing, or perhaps I’m trying to work something out, or maybe that’s how I think this person is thinking this thought,  and therefore speaking this… line. Shaun 居然說他沒有注意過, 哈哈! 其實我覺得他的利物浦腔很迷人.

DAMIAN: I was actually complimenting Russ for the scene in HOME (S1:04) between Morse and his father, Cyril, shortly before he dies saying how it was written with such beautiful understatement and so many implicit thoughts and emotions only for him to tell me it was originally quite different! Apparently he had written so much more about Cyril/Gwen and Morse/Susan Fallon but you and Colm McCarthy [Director] had some “notes”! I know both yourself and Roger provide significant input into the scripts so is this sort of debate regarding how or a scene should be shot and played typical?

主要是談第一季第四集Home 的編劇寫得很好

SHAUN: No not typical, they’re brilliantly written, but it’s our duty to create an imaginary world in our heads, so at the read through of each film I’ve made extensive notes about certain things which block that process for me, which then facilitates it being faster on the working day, that we’re not caught up with small inconsistencies.

DAMIAN: In preparing for my interviews with Russ that take quite an in depth look at every film, I’ll spend hours simply watching them, pausing the DVD to make notes and trying to research all his cunning references and nods to not only the original series but also anything from horror, noir or whatever scrap of film, television or literature history that seems to take his fancy. If you haven’t watched the original Inspector Morse episodes, do you yourself find it difficult to spot some of the more obscure references?

這段是說他在採訪前要做大量的工作反覆看 DVD, 作筆記, 了解前因後果, 深入故事, 但 Shaun 不這麼做, 他保留一些空間對這角色的想像.

SHAUN: That’s intentional. If something sticks out to me in the reading to be surplus, I’ll question it and it will quite often be a “heritage” thing, which for me is neither here nor there, unless it slows down our stories. Then you have to question if it’s necessary to the plot, and if it is deemed necessary, but it still sticks out to me, I just try to limit all of my interactions with it, because its cried out to me. I personally don’t find any enjoyment in that, but I know others do, so that’s OK.

DAMIAN: Owing to the phenomenal success of the original series, Colin Dexter began to change the way he wrote Morse in his later novels and short stories so as to incorporate John Thaw’s performance, personality and appearance. Do you think Russ has done the same thing with you and your interpretation over the last three series?

SHAUN: I’m not sure, nah, I don’t think so, I’d like to think I was endlessly surprising Damian, and that they never know what they’re going to get from me!

DAMIAN: The first Endeavour film, FIRST BUS TO WOODSTOCK, was conceived in large part to mark the 25th anniversary of the original Inspector Morse series and was never actually intended to serve as a pilot at the time. Would you still have signed on to play Morse if you’d have known Endeavour would be such a success and last at least three -hopefully more!- series?

SHAUN: No, I don’t think so. It can lead to complacency, that way of looking at work, from everyone, the actors, the execs and the channel’s point of view. People feel like they own you, and it all becomes about business, making it cheaper and more of it-whilst we’ve managed to avoid that, which ultimately adds to the quality. I don’t think you can say any of our films are “fillers”, they’re all little works of art I like to think, some more successful than others admittedly, but all began with the best of intentions.

DAMIAN: Do you think that playing Morse during such long shoots (I think series three took about 95 days to film) has prevented you from accepting other roles you would have liked to explore?

SHAUN: Yes definitely, but you just have to prioritise, like I say I love this work and we have it very good, the team we have, and it won’t last forever, so I make the most of what I have in front of me, and if another job wants me enough, they’ll make the schedule work, and if not, that’s cool too. Its win/win.

DAMIAN: Russ has told me that he knows exactly how Endeavour will end and has even written the final scene. Presumably you’ve discussed this with him but what I and many fans really want to know, since there’s obviously no show without you playing Morse, will we ever get to see that ending?

SHAUN: I hope so.

DAMIAN: Shaun, thanks for doing this. As a fan of the novels, the original TV series and now especially Endeavour, it really is an enormous privilege for me to talk to you about this character that means so very much to me and so many other people around the world. And –hopefully Russ will forgive me for stealing his words from one of our previous interviews– thank you for bringing “a certain, special kind of Oxford magic to a whole new generation, with a pitch perfect portrayal of the heart, mind, body and soul of Endeavour Morse.” Thank you Shaun.

SHAUN: Kind words sir, thank you. I hope our new offerings delight more than anything we’ve done thus far. Cheers Damian