3 `) q; c8 N. G7 v3 o我看,宝碧人很“加州”。进一步说,整个色情电影业都有点“很加州”的意思。有执著的热情、反叛的心态,还有一点点自由主义者反抗压力的顽强。 ; V+ y7 m2 \2 }: K+ ?8 V1 r, V. Z4 u& X& U' ]+ A0 U
1980年代,官司一直打到高等法院,色情电影在加州才得到了合法化的地位,正式与普通意义上的嫖娼卖淫划清了界限。 $ m& h0 x9 Q( f不戴安全套的权利 6 M9 o0 @. ~3 {* t& T ; S% X: L- i `. g现在,我遇到的许多人都说,不戴安全套的权利是宪法赋予的言论自由权利的一个关键部分,正如美国的立国之父指出的那样。6 E, h% H8 e o U
; y/ [0 f( M8 Y m
一名制片人告诉我,“如果你把我的演员都装在橡胶里面,作为艺术家,我还能怎样表述自我呢”?/ `/ Y' m& V$ N7 u0 ]4 H
* d/ ~4 c$ s$ u/ W x
我很难想象,法兰克林和杰弗逊起草《第一修正案》的时候,想到过戴不戴安全套的权利。: X* k1 W1 A, h; g/ s! o( S
& ^4 O) c1 Y8 W2 t但是,我也很难想象,《星际迷航》的粉丝们排着长队去看皮克船长和“进取号”的船员们真刀真枪地“肉搏”。所以,我算老几呢? - M( h: `8 X, b1 l. e, s1 @ - p7 Z/ r5 ^7 J/ h. M Q但是,当局非常坚决。建筑工人必须戴头盔,矿工必须戴口罩,色情演员也必须有适当的保护。 5 ?, d$ M: {! T; ~( K9 s9 A2 |' c, c3 d& P
和加州的立法人对阵,色情电影业最终很有可能打败仗。除了罚款,色情电影业也面临着一些前任演员们提出的代价昂贵的法律诉讼。 Y% C/ E: ^4 y 8 { r1 D! ?8 s; }一些演员私下告诉我,他们盼着立法赶快生效。 m3 P; r& k% G4 M! W' Y% i! T, {2 i. G) S" A
制片人说,这对雇员没有任何好处,只会迫使制片公司搬到海外、或者转移到地下去拍片。观众想看的,就一定能看得到。 " y" ~ S C% i " @" [" U5 o" |/ `8 [0 v3 t宝碧也有同感。事实上,这也正是她开始脱衣服、准备开拍性爱场面之前说的告别词。 $ h' n1 ~8 @5 s9 \( V : \* T6 w9 C. p: W7 H3 H我想,我看的已经够多了。我悄悄地离开拍摄现场,重新回到淅淅沥沥的小雨中……. 9 ^! I9 f0 X9 I8 _5 s) A Y s# }* U3 v4 F( G9 t! }+ M. Y7 Y1 i
Californian porn industry's 'perfect storm' of troubles 3 D! {. p+ ~) o6 d( ]
" L' h7 E) J3 s; ~$ I9 I
California's adult movie business is under pressure - internet piracy and the economic downturn have slashed revenues, while state regulators seem set to win their long battle to make actors wear condoms.# n1 e7 O8 f. Q# S# Q! c) v
( t* ]$ W9 K/ q5 x2 n4 m# j
Light drizzle was falling as I pulled my car up outside a low-rise warehouse studio in northern Los Angeles.7 Q9 t n+ g( F1 H
3 h" T( K, l% \
I had been told just to pitch up - it would be fun, they had said, to see how we do things.' V5 E' J% f2 ?, }
4 o. Q1 [2 `1 K6 MWhat I did see at first did not quite match my expectations but then again, I was not quite sure what to expect. + {. h' K3 }+ W% k 0 m( f& L d. X8 e/ i8 OThe porn shoot was Star Trek, the Next Generation - a triple-X parody, billed as a humorous tribute to the iconic TV space saga.4 B7 \5 S' _$ L$ T5 L
2 l1 M4 J& s% J& n0 I7 X- k: _+ pPerformers in body-hugging Star Trek outfits, some with prosthetic noses to resemble aliens, wandered around looking slightly bored as a weary crew worried over lighting arrangements.% I, z# |2 w. i5 u
5 S4 E6 C( r/ H. @This morning was devoted to dialogue, I was told, although - as Sam, the film's artistically minded writer-director, explained to me with clear regret - there was not too much of that to be had. / h0 W9 ~( }- t( S0 Y% @ 2 C/ j5 W! @9 s/ n7 {Only 30 minutes of this two-hour sex film would involve plot, he sighed. 3 \$ a+ V8 U: b: E7 }. y# s! p& K 5 N: Y% V* K& hFantasy 6 u2 y. R8 Z$ J; A: p% a0 ?8 h! s" H
The demands of porn may not allow Sam to be the groundbreaking film-maker he clearly aspires to be, but at least there are films to be made. % l/ t9 @4 f& @" n/ J) s, b; K2 d7 @! s- @. B2 \
The problem, increasingly, is revenue., b# o% y! n. W1 ^! k: |
% j: u: u1 |# u3 e* z: U
Like the music industry, pornographers are struggling to persuade their audience to pay for what they watch.: {" j+ B& m7 }& J" `
8 w# Y/ x& z. xDVD sales have collapsed. Online, a great deal of porn can be accessed for free.1 `' d7 d( h# j+ X9 K/ K" w o* }5 M
0 H6 V! Y7 N1 x' [
And the economic downturn does not help. 3 w4 H# S- y; J, c- C3 ~ B , J7 C' W1 v; a; K"What with the recession and piracy, we call it the perfect storm," one leading producer observed wistfully./ P1 b' o$ {* X5 Y; K
$ t% h. V- ^! ~6 d$ Q9 l
The economic climate also means the industry is even less keen to accept California's increasingly stringent workplace regulations., b, _- x+ g+ ]! f s! y
" f7 I1 q) A+ X; j9 w
For years, the authorities have been demanding that porn performers wear condoms. 7 h! }7 H: v2 c4 Z% \* A3 Y; g* E+ m M. S9 {+ v
Health scares - most notoriously in 2004 when three actors contracted HIV - have highlighted significant levels of infection on set. . h4 H7 C4 ^6 i M" e( u9 S2 J [5 L
But the industry says wearing condoms on-screen is a turn-off. The public do not want it, it will kill the fantasy, they say. - B* h% b) V/ L5 y9 b @6 p+ c, V2 M* V; x Y
Gonorrhoea a8 g: Y1 d3 }9 f" f$ @1 s. G8 ~ " \6 {; |: E- T4 X5 P2 g4 aBack on the Star Trek set, I talked to Bobbi Starr, one of the lead performers. 4 _% B" R- c; E! B- z* m6 P- }& a; w$ K" h
A college graduate, a former national standard swimmer and professional oboist, she seems to have packed a lot into her 27 years. * F$ r0 w% i* W) J' X$ P8 ?; U5 k
She turned to porn, she said, out of a sense of sexual adventure.& f% K+ h! Q; J; e
- ]6 c7 g* y# r! ]4 x"It's just fun," she said, "and when everyone around you is having fun too, what's not to love?", ` ~* Y2 m: H* e' Q! ~
4 k) ?6 N" N+ }
Her packed schedule today involved a couple of lines, then a four-hour sex scene. Then a costume fitting on Tuesday and she was off to have her monthly health test after that. + n* v3 X- E* n+ B% ?, d0 |6 P # z) D4 J3 h, }Each day would be 15 hours long. e0 `: @+ {1 _& L1 M- V/ Z4 Y2 v1 m0 u( s0 a+ l4 C6 n
"Wow, you must be exhausted?" I suggested. 1 r% C' i+ i0 v9 D 8 h2 u0 [' h8 K- t T" x7 `, y"You get used to it," she smiled.; U6 f; K! O: q" y, m: M
( Z3 J3 `" A% s
"And what about the health risks," I asked. "Have you had many infections?" % H# o: f4 K5 D. c) o$ L" h9 I! {' W
"Well, just chlamydia a couple of times, gonorrhoea - nothing much. Anyway, we test each month so, when you're diagnosed, you just take your medication and you're good to go. No problem." 4 Z" z4 S% h. h! p. b / F4 s! G# T& B7 B+ R( ]- E0 [There was something very Californian about Bobbi, I decided. # b: E8 e1 a' L Q! P9 N' z % Y% g; f# c# j aExpensive lawsuits $ m5 ^4 |' H+ ^& S5 v0 [ - T; m; ~' O& R* kIn fact there was something very Californian about the entire business. 8 N7 F, h, v& X. ]8 Q+ i8 L, U* }% W! A
A combination of determined enthusiasm, combined with a rebel attitude, a sort of libertarian defiance towards the forces ranged against it.7 J& a* X% j5 i
, T& B, u) l5 [) |8 ~8 tIt had taken a Supreme Court battle back in the 1980s to make porn legal in California in the first place, formally distinguishing it from common-or-garden prostitution. 2 I4 P& j) S @. u/ [1 Z5 Z; H( i; r . Z$ L5 [% e0 m( |: L/ o5 a- @Now, many I met spoke of the right not to wear condoms as a key aspect of their constitutional right to free speech, as set out by the Founding Fathers./ I& G( w- h) i" d' T9 ]) X
( s, e, A. V: D; B) D
"How can I express myself as an artist," one producer said to me, "if you're going to clothe my performers in rubber?"0 X& W' T2 O* ~: |6 z( I0 y7 G
4 P5 Q0 @# R! \I struggled to picture Benjamin Franklin or Thomas Jefferson having this in mind as they penned the First Amendment. ( y8 i3 L8 n7 U7 y( @ |! V' D 4 o& a( y0 F$ PBut then I also struggled to picture hordes of Star Trek fans queuing up to see Captain Jean-Luc Picard going hard-core with the crew of the Star Trek Enterprise. So what did I know? ' q# X8 _5 C) g2 ] . @3 P' M) x% g9 w6 N) s UThe authorities though are adamant. Construction workers wear hard hats, miners wear masks - these actors have to have suitable barrier protection. 6 d5 n6 Z! a3 U, A& ?1 U1 r' n8 q4 O! Y9 S4 u. B) t
It seems likely that porn will eventually lose its battle against the California regulators, not least because - as well as state penalties - the industry could be about to face some very expensive lawsuits brought by former performers. 3 d. |0 v& Q* @ ! v( {( ^, ~- x6 u5 \8 A& h+ w) VA number of actors told me privately that regulation could not come soon enough for them. " D7 @: i/ | I3 x, T % o/ K! V: o6 h: D. x; O" @6 q% WThe producers say this will not help workers but will only force production abroad, or underground - the public always gets what the public wants.( b, s1 W8 j: e# B6 P' H$ @
- a: g, j- j. y# Y% U! M1 p: K% AThat view was echoed by Bobbi Starr - her parting words, in fact, as she began to disrobe for her epic sex scene.. m% X6 o/ L: E
0 m8 k% b( L! a
I decided I had seen enough and slipped back out into the rain.& M; p) |( J, L+ o5 w0 r: M3 ]
; ~0 ^: B; ?5 v+ T: g - H' H; e9 y8 K8 b 8 E# `5 X1 w: }! `3 A( }/ z* w: j & U* z6 X: e& U6 tCalls for greater safety increased after actors tested positive for HIV in 2004