Movie Moments 1 - 求求你，表扬我

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I'm starting this new section, transcribing memorable scenes from Chinese movies. Here's the first one from 求求你，表扬我 （Gimme Kudos). Newspaper reporter 古国歌 (played by 王志文) is interviewing country bumpkin 杨红旗 （范伟）：

古：什么叫幸福？ - What is happiness?
杨：幸福啊？ - Happiness?
古：嗯，你怎么看？ - Mmm, in your opinion.
杨：幸福……那就是……我饿了 - Happiness . . . is . . . if I'm hungry . . .
看别人手里拿个肉包子 - and I see someone holding a meat bun . . .
那他就比我幸福。 - then he is happier than me.
我冷了 - I'm cold . . .
看别人穿了一件厚棉袄 - and I see someone wearing a thick coat . . .
他就比我幸福 - he's happier than me.
我想上茅房 - I need the toilet . . .
就一个坑 - but there's only one . . .
你蹲那了 - and you're squatting there . . .
你就比我幸福 - then you're happier than me.

(some girls behind him snigger)

杨：可笑吗？ - what's so funny?
没上过茅房啊 - you've never been to the toilet?



There are many words for toilet in Chinese, but this was a new one for me when I first saw this film - 茅房 - literally means "straw room" and it's most commonly used in rural areas, which is probably why the city girls in the office were sniggering at him.

坑 means hole or pit, and if you've seen a toilet in rural China you'll know why he used this word. It's often nothing more than a trough dug into the ground, sometimes with a brick on each side for you to put your feet on while you squat!

I love Yang's simple but pessimistic definition of happiness, someone is always happier than him. I think I've mentioned 范伟 before. If you haven't seen any of his movies or TV shows, you should definitely check them out!

Tags: learn mandarin, learn chinese, chinese movies, 求求你，表扬我, 范伟, 王志文, gimme kudos