Johnny Depp 的“翻身仗”：六年后回归，出演恐怖版《圣诞颂歌》里的 Scrooge

过去二十年，他几乎是“古怪又迷人”的代名词：最有名的那个海盗，就是他演的。

For the past twenty years, he's been almost synonymous with "strange and charming" — the most famous pirate was played by him.

可是最近这几年，他从“顶流”跌了下来。

But in recent years, he fell from the "A-list."

一场闹得全世界都在看的官司之后，大公司几乎不再找他，他好几年都没有大电影可拍。

After a court case the whole world watched, the big studios nearly stopped calling, and for several years he had no big movies to make.

很多人以为，这大概就是他职业生涯的结局了。

Many assumed this was the end of his career.

结果今年，他带着一部大制作，杀了回来——Ebenezer。

Yet this year, he's come storming back with a big production: Ebenezer.

片名你可能陌生，但它的原型，是全世界最有名的圣诞故事：狄更斯的 A Christmas Carol。

The title may be unfamiliar, but its source is the world's most famous Christmas story: Dickens' A Christmas Carol.

Depp 演的，正是那个家喻户晓的守财奴：一个有钱、刻薄、又孤独，把 Christmas 当成“废话”的老头，Scrooge。

Depp plays the household-name miser: a rich, cruel, lonely old man who treats Christmas as "nonsense," named Scrooge.

在故事里，几个鬼魂在 Christmas 夜找上门，带他重新看了一遍自己的过去、现在和未来。

In the story, a few ghosts visit him on Christmas night and walk him back through his past, present, and future.

它们逼他面对一个问题：再这样下去，等着他的，会是怎样的下场？

They force him to face a question: if he goes on like this, what kind of end awaits him?

最妙的是这次的导演人选：Ti West，一个以拍恐怖片出名的人。

The cleverest part is the choice of director: Ti West, a filmmaker known for horror.

于是这一版圣诞故事，被拍出了一种少见的气质——温情里，透着一股寒气。

So this version of the Christmas story has a rare quality: within its warmth runs a chill.

连海报上那句话，都在玩这个反差：“这个名字你知道，可这个故事，你没看过。

Even the poster's tagline plays on the contrast: "The name you know,

”

but this story, you haven't seen."

而对 Depp 本人来说，这更是六年来第一个大片主角，是一次不折不扣的“翻身仗”。

And for Depp himself, this is his first big-movie lead in six years, an all-out comeback.

一个讲“坏人能不能被原谅”的老故事，交给一个正想证明自己的争议演员——这中间的呼应，恐怕比电影本身，还耐人寻味。

An old story about whether a bad man can be forgiven, handed to a controversial actor trying to prove himself — the echo between them may be more intriguing than the film itself.