Ever since he got into the Hong Kong film industry in 1994 with He’s a Woman, She’s a Man, Hong Kong director, Peter Chan has been one of the industry’s most powerful voices. Later in 1996, another milestone Comrades: Almost a Love Story came into being. Chan’s latest film, American Dreams in China is a carefully-calculated film with an eye toward opening the mainland cinema market.

         American Dreams in China is a film purely for Chinese audiences, but how it plays there remains to be seen. It sends the right messages, but whether that’s enough to make it a hit is everyone’s guess. Mainland audiences aren’t quite that easy to “speak” to.

        The film began during the period of economic reforms in China in the 1980s. The bookish farm boy Cheng Dongqing (Huang Xiaoming), the ambitious and confident boy Meng Xiaojun (Deng Chao) and the poetic Wang Yang(Tong Dawei), were three friends at university in Beijing and preparing for American visa interviews. Wang was the first to be granted the visa but he gave it up for his western girlfriend, and Cheng was repeatedly denied. Only Meng actually got a study visa. As he was leaving, he told his friends that he wouldn’t come back.

         Several years later, Cheng and Wang built a successful school, New Dream, from the ashes of Cheng’s misfortune(his girlfriend got a visa too, and Cheng lost his university teaching job) and Wang’s ability to connect with students often through Hollywood movies. In America, Meng suffered a lot. Disappointed, he went home and joined his friends at New Dream. Later, the three friends’ relationship became worsened, but finally was improved under the weight of their common goals.

1.Which of the following films made Peter Chan a most influential director in Hong Kong?

A. American Dreams in China

B. Comrades: Almost a Love Story

C. New Dream

D. He’s a Woman, She’s a Man

2.The underlined word “granted” (in paragraph 3) probably means “_________”.

A. prepared                                  B. given                                 C. involved             D. permitted

3.When the three men made preparations for American visa interviews, how many was/were offered a visa?

A. None                                          B. One.                                  C. Three.                               D. Two

4.What led Cheng and Wang to start a business?

A. The connection with Hollywood movies. 

B. The weight of their common goals.

C. Cheng’s misfortune and Wang’s ability.

D. Meng’s disappointment and sufferings.

B
He is a lesson to every boy who ever picked up a basketball and dreamed that it would change his life.
The lights were never brighter and the crowds were never bigger for a homegrown sports hero than they were a quarter-century ago for Ray Hall. But his athletic achievements, as impressive as they are, are to my mind not what is most admirable about the man.
Known as “Sugar Ray” in his teens, Hall was rated among the country’s top 25 high school basketball players. An inner-city kid from a solid family, Hall took on the challenge of lifting Canisius College — still recovering from its failure — back to respectability, rejecting more favorable offers. His status of a savior (救世主) brought more pressure than any 18-year-old should have to handle. However, I watched him mature into the player who led Canisius back to daylight.
After college Hall played professionally in Italy and Greece for over 10 years until a car accident at 32 ended his basketball career. The news that he would never play again shocked Hall but unlike so many others he was ready for life after basketball. When I met Hall — still fit at 46 — for lunch Monday, he wore a cut-sharp gray suit, designer tie and blazing white shirt that screamed Success. “That was always the question — when the cheers end, where do you go? Who do you turn to?” he said. “It starts and ends with that person in the mirror.”
Hall got the concept of academics-first from his parents. He graduated from Canisius a semester early. “No matter how good of an athlete you are, you are just one injury away from losing it all,” he said. “But if you take care of things academically, you are prepared until you leave this earth.”
For the past 14 years, he has been in a computer sales job at Ingram Micro. He married his college sweetheart. They have three kids and a nice house in the suburbs. He figured out early what others learn too late: Athletics is part of a journey, not the destination.
Congratulations, Ray, you made it. In more ways than one.          
【小题1】Ray was regarded as a savior because ________.

Do you think the reason ________ he gave is believable?

　　A. for which　　　B. which　　　　C. why　　　　　 D. what

Yesterday was my stepmother’s birthday. I haven’t been home for a long time, so I wanted to stop by the house to see her on this special day.

    I have been struggling on a low income so I was afraid that I couldn’t afford the long trip. Gas is so expensive nowadays! Anyway, I filled my tank with gas and set off. 

    I stopped at a shopping mall and found a present. It was the perfect gift and I knew she would love it. But when I got to the cashier, my card was declined! I didn’t have enough money in my account to pay for the gift!

So I pondered the issue for a few minutes. I could put it back and get something cheaper, but I knew there was nothing else in the store she would have liked as much. So, I got to my smart-phone and transferred some money from my saving account and was able to buy the gift. It took a big part of my savings but I wanted her to have something special.

    It turned out that she loved the gift and I felt that even though I had spent almost all my money, my stepmother deserved the best. I was glad I gave her the best I could.

    Before I left my parents’ house, my dad took me to one side and, with our secret handshake, he gave me some money. I hadn’t said anything to him about my financial condition, but I guessed my dad just knew it. When I got to the car, I saw the amount he gave me was three times what I had spent on the gas and the gift!

It goes to show that doing the right thing always comes with great rewards.

1. Why was the writer unwilling to have a long trip?

A. Because gas was hardly available.

B. Because the writer was short of money.

C. Because the writer didn’t like driving.  

D. Because the road was difficult to drive on.

2.The underlined word “pondered” in Paragraph 4 probably means ________.           

A. thought about       B. tried on         C. depended on         D. got through

3.From the passage, we can infer that ________.

A. the writer loves his stepmother very much

B. the gift the writer bought was loved by his father very much

C. the writer spend all his savings buying the gift for his stepmother

D. the gift the writer bought was the most expensive one in the shop

4.Why did the writer’s father shake hands with the writer in secret?

A. Because he wanted to ask the writer for something special.

B. Because he wanted to give the writer some money.

C. Because he knew the writer had been struggling financially.

D. Because he didn’t want others to copy their handshake.

根据句意填入适当形式的词，首字母或中文已给出，请在答案卷上写出完整的单词。 
【小题1】As a student, what you said on such an occasion was not s_____________ .
【小题2】 It is i___________ to buy or sell drugs.
【小题3】I used to a__________ early in the morning.
【小题4】These pancakes made by my mother are really t__________ .
【小题5】According to the evidence, the judge c___________ that he hadn’t killed the man.
【小题6】 In his life he gave an example of______________ (勇敢) and wisdom.
【小题7】The clever boy has _____________ (吸收) all the knowledge his teacher could give him.
【小题8】His brother works in a ______________ (出版) house.
【小题9】For a___________ (某种) political reason, he had to leave his motherland 20 years ago.
【小题10】 After a long____________(争论), we decided where to go for our holiday.