September 1999, the last autumn of the twentieth century, was also the last harvest season for Chinese movies.
On the 11th, the 56th Venice International Film Festival ended. Zhang Yimou's "No One Less" won the Golden Lion Award for Best Film. Seven years ago, in the same place, his "A Lawsuit in Qiu Ju" also won this honor.
That really belonged to Zhang Yimou's era, seeking for art and bringing Chinese movies to the world.
At the end of the month, his second film of this year, "My Father and Mother", began a national publicity before its release. The story was pure and the pictures were beautiful, and countless viewers were tearful in the theater. In the second year,
will go to the Berlin Film Festival and return to the stage where "Red Sorghum" became famous 12 years ago. During the cycle of time, his strength remained undiminished, and he took home another Silver Bear Award for Best Director.
As the works move to the screen, the two female lead actors will also bid farewell to the past and move on to a new life.
A group of reporters swarmed into the home of a 14-year-old girl, Wei Minzhi, in Xiaoshan Village, Chicheng County, Hebei Province. The battle is no less than the hometown of Gaomi County when Mo Yan won the Nobel Prize years later.
From that moment on, she no longer belonged to the countryside, and there was a road leading to the distance stretched to her home.
Zhang Ziyi, a 20-year-old Chinese opera student, has a higher starting point and a faster start. He has been blessed by big directors all the way and has become the most accomplished and well-known actress in the Chinese film and television circle after the new century.
also held the "20th Anniversary Works Exhibition of Congying" a few days ago, just after her unconquering year. The opening ceremony was September 10th, Teacher's Day. She said that she would like to thank all the teachers who helped her.
Zhang Yimou sent his blessings: "Kungfu has never been worthy of the heart. Your success is obvious to all. It has also set a model for today's young people." Same luck, but not fate.
01
Zhang Yimou went through a period of depression before filming "No One Less".
In 1995, he broke up with Gong Li, the muse he had worked with for many years, and was emotionally empty; in 1997, the urban film "I have something to say", which received mixed reviews; when he went to Italy to direct the opera "Turandot", his father died... ....
The best choice to solve life problems is often to return to the original aspiration and find the truth.
used to go to the countryside to make a film. He was moved when he saw the children attending classes in a dilapidated house. He told people around him that sooner or later he would film a story about a rural elementary school.
This became a subconscious wish.
When he saw "There is a Sun in the Sky" by Xinjiang writer Shi Xiangsheng, he knew the opportunity had come. In the novel, the temporary substitute girl persistently retains every student, which is exactly what he wants as a character feeling-a tendon. From the very beginning, he decided to use non-professional actors in this film to create a real texture. The
drama group heads to a mountain village in Hebei to select people. One of the group came to Zhenningpu Township in Chicheng County. The assistant director was moved when he heard it, because Zhang Yimou's first movie "Red Sorghum" was shot in Zhenbeipu, Ningxia.
The difference between the two places may have a chance. Strangers came from the village of
, and everyone came to watch, including a pair of sisters. They are twins, their elder sister is Wei Minzhi and their younger sister is Wei Congzhi. There is also a big sister, Wei Lingzhi. The name
expresses the expectations of parents. But in the countryside, a family without boys is not much higher. The deputy director of
caught his younger sister Wei Congzhi at a glance. He thought the child was smart and asked if she could sing and dance. Wei Congzhi was a little shy, did not answer, and hid behind her sister.
Wei Minzhi took the initiative to stand up, I will. While speaking, singing and making gestures, the song "Our Motherland is a Garden" came.
asked her if she dared to act in a movie, but she said, dare.
Actually, because the family is poor, she hasn't watched movies or TV, and she doesn't know what it is. But it was the word "will" and the word "dare" that gave her an audition opportunity.
Zhang Yimou's criteria for selecting candidates is that he is not timid about the camera. During the audition, face them with various machines to see the reaction. Most people are uncomfortable, and the higher the level of education, the more afraid of the camera, the more distracting thoughts.
But there are also people who don't care.
More than 10,000 candidates were screened all the way,Only two people remained, Wei Minzhi ranked second. The girl in the first place is a bit older and plays well, while Wei Minzhi's "Red Second Group" face and generous temperament are not bad, Zhang Yimou has a hard time making a choice.
finally thought of a way to get them to come to the street and shout at the crowded place. The girl in the first row couldn't let go of her throat, her voice couldn't come out. Wei Minzhi ignored it and shouted loudly.
is set, it is her.
chose one of two twice. Wei Minzhi was not the best one, but because of his performance, he became the winner. It makes sense that character determines fate.
Zhang Yimou's generation of people making movies is really called "creation", and the most suitable talents are selected and started. Unlike now, as long as there is traffic.
Every character in "No One Can Be Less" is the original occupation in life. The village head is the village head and the boss is the boss...Even the names are their original names. When shooting
, Zhang Yimou didn't reveal the script, and didn't tell the actors about the play, to prevent them from preparing in advance, which is easy to change. Just behave as you normally are on the scene.
is like a paragraph in the "Story Meeting" back then: someone at
had his front teeth and was often laughed at. One day I was photographed by the director and went to act. He was very happy, afraid of affecting his image, so he borrowed money to extract his front teeth. As a result, the director didn't want it, and said, what I was after was your front teeth.
Jiang Wen, after watching "No One Can Be Less", commented: "The girl's face is not artificial at all. The village head is so interesting to walk. A professional actor has to prepare for two or three years to play this character, and it takes time."
Zhang Yimou The "conspiracy" is reflected here. It takes effort to find actors, but it saves effort to train actors. After
finished filming the movie, Wei Minzhi returned to the village without realizing what the movie would bring her. At that time, she regretted that the strawberries grown at home were ripe and missed.
She didn't know, and she won't have a chance to eat it in the future.
02
In the film industry, Zhang Yimou's most famous trait is not talent, but hard work. After
finished filming "No One Can Be Less", he did not stop and started the preparations for "My Father and Mother". Both works involve rural education and can be seen as a continuation.
However, this time the film style is beautiful and romantic, and there is no need to roll in the mud, so the heroine chose a professional actor, Zhang Ziyi, a student of Chinese opera.
Zhang Ziyi is a native of Beijing. His father works in the telecommunications bureau and his mother is a kindergarten teacher. When she was a child, she was thin and weak. In order to train her, her mother asked her to learn to dance. At the age of 11, she was admitted to the High School Attached to Beijing Dance Academy.
She has a relatively stiff body. After learning for many years, she feels that with her own terms, she can at best accompany others in the future, which is not a great tool.
In 1996, when she was in her third year of high school, she was spotted starring in a movie "Stars and Lights", which was about the painful story of a dancing girl who had her limbs amputated due to illness. The film was rough and inferior, but Zhang Ziyi decided to switch careers to acting because of this experience.
She applied for the Chinese Opera Acting Department. The test was to recite a poem "If I was a drop of water". She forgot the words halfway through the recitation, so she had to stand there.
originally thought that she was over, but the teacher felt that her image and temperament was the seedling of an actor, so she still accepted her.
has Mei Ting, Yuan Quan, Qin Hailu, Liu Ye in her class, and is known as the "96 star class". At the same time, the Nortel next door also came out of Zhao Wei, Chen Kun, and Huang Xiaoming.
It was a year of the gathering of stars, which laid the foundation for half of the Chinese performing arts circle.
When Zhang Ziyi was in her freshman year, Zhang Yimou wanted to shoot a shampoo commercial, select actors, and the deputy director recommended her to audition.
She was a bit nervous, remembered the wrong time, and was late that day. When the assistant director called her, she remembered and hurried over. After
knocked on the door, it was Zhang Yimou who opened the door and shook her hand. That was the first time they met.
However, this commercial was not made in the end, Zhang Yimou did not direct, and Zhang Ziyi did not act. Just left some pictures and pager calls.
Soon, Zhang Yimou was preparing to make an urban film, and he contacted Zhang Ziyi, but the project was aborted because of a bad script. Missed another opportunity.
Until 1998, "My Father and Mother" started filming and it finally became.
, like Wei Minzhi, has a gestation period before the opportunity is confirmed.
Zhang YimouAt first, Zhang Ziyi looked average, but after entering the camera, he was very photogenic, with innocent and uncontaminated things on his face, which was exactly what he wanted.
The reporters are sharp-eyed and found that Zhang Ziyi and Gong Li look a bit like each other, and they are both in the same field in the drama, saying that Zhang Yimou has found a substitute. For a time, scandals flew all over the sky.
Zhang Ziyi specifically asked Zhang Yimou about this. Lao Mouzi denied it, saying that their personalities and temperaments were completely different.
At that time, Chinese films were still in a low period, and the box office was generally not good, and "My Father and Mother" had no stars, and the biggest name was the director. In order to gain popularity, the publishing company wrote a line on the poster:
"Zhang Yimou's first love story, the love swan song at the end of the century."
In fact, he has nothing to do with him. Although he went to the countryside to jump in the team, he went with his then girlfriend Xiao Hua.
In February 2000, "My Father and Mother" participated in the Berlin International Film Festival and won the Silver Bear Award. And Gong Li happens to be the chairman of this jury.
According to the rules of the festival, the chairman will give awards. A Chinese actress handed the trophy to another Chinese director in a foreign home arena, she was thrilled to think about it.
This is also the first time that the two have framed the same frame in front of the public after they broke up, with their eyes facing each other.
Only Zhang Ziyi, who is standing next to him, is young. The
entertainment magazine likes to do things and analyzes the thoughts of Lao Mouzi in the article:
"Zhang Yimou would never appear in the image of a five-star in the face of Gong Li, who is looking for a master by her husband. This is a male self-esteem and also Male stubbornness, so Zhang Ziyi is a necessary prop."
However, from the subsequent performance, Zhang Ziyi is not defeated by Gong Li, nor is it a prop.
is really a Beijinger, bold and unrestrained. After many years, she described her relationship with Gong Li and other female stars in one sentence:
"I can pee in a pot with them."
03
"My Father and Mother" was released for a few months Later, Zhang Ziyi was invited to participate in the 2000 CCTV Spring Festival Gala and performed the opening song and dance "Welcome Spring in".
In that year, Zhao Benshan and Song Dandan hired "Hourly Workers", Ruby Lin and Cui Yongyuan danced "The One Who You Are", Piao Shu sang "Birch Forest"... CCTV's influence is flourishing, and if you can participate, it will be Known by thousands of households.
Zhang Ziyi seems to be rushing to the entertainment circle, and she has become famous quickly, but she hasn't become vulgar.
In March 2000, she cooperated with Ekin Cheng to shoot an advertisement for Skyworth color TV. The story tells that an urban youth went to the village to build a Hope Primary School, sent five color TVs, and fell in love with a rural female teacher.
Zhang Ziyi, dressed as a village girl, is still the image in the movie, and he is still in the movie.
But in the second half of the year, when Li Ang's "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" was released on a large scale, Zhang Ziyi no longer followed this rhythm. After that, she only acted in movies, not TV shows, and did not participate in boring shows.
She should not be an ordinary star, but an international superstar.
In 1999, Ang Li made "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" and came to Beijing to find an actor. Zhang Yimou recommended Zhang Ziyi to him. At the beginning, she was not the best candidate, Ang Lee is still auditioning for other actresses.
Zhang Ziyi waits outside the office every day, kicking and practicing when she is bored, kicking for two hours without stopping. After waiting for 6 months, Ang Lee gave her the role.
At the screening of "Zhang Ziyi's 20th Anniversary", Ang Li also sent his congratulations:
"You are such a talent, with a natural talent. It should be said that the talent is more cultivated... you I was only 19 or 20 years old, and what brought me to the whole world was a breath of freshness. I am deeply impressed.” In the
movie, she plays the rebellious and domineering Yujiaolong, which is the same as the previous innocent The roles are completely different, but they are well controlled. In front of old rivers and lakes like Chow Yun-fat and Michelle Yeoh, there is no wind.
She still remembers that three years ago, Zhou Run sent to Beijing to shoot an advertisement. He happened to be working nearby that day. After hearing about it, she waited outside the door and wanted a group photo. In the winter, my feet were frozen and numb, and finally it was synthesized.
But she is not alone, but a group of girls and Fa Ge. At that time, she did not expect that she could play a movie with Fa Ge in three years.
The unknown is the most magical part of life.
May 2000, "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon"Participating in the Cannes Film Festival, Zhang Ziyi's poster was posted outside the Grand Mall in Paris, France. Yi Nengjing, who was also there, felt deeply:
"Because of Ziyi, every Chinese girl with long hair has become a jade dragon in the eyes of foreigners."
Later, Yi Nengjing's husband, Qin Hao, was Zhang Ziyi's Chinese opera classmate.
In 2001, "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" won the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film. This was the first and only time that a Chinese-speaking director won the award. Zhang Ziyi's seat is 29, and February 9th is her birthday.
She said: "This is my lucky number." If there is only one movie called "My Father and Mother", Zhang Ziyi might not become a superstar. It is with "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" that many directors have seen her ability, and invitations follow.
Tsui Hark's "Biography of Shu Mountain", Wang Jiawei's "2046", Chen Kaige's "Mei Lanfang", Feng Xiaogang's "Night Banquet", Gu Changwei's "Favourite"... One after another, he cooperated with the master, and he rose up.
In 2001, "Rush Hour 2" invited Zhang Ziyi to join, starring with Jackie Chan. She became the first actor in the mainland to score in Hollywood, but she was only 22 years old.
"Southern People Weekly" described:
"Her success is like a round of red sun suddenly jumping out of the sea, stabbing people's eyes with pain."
has been invincible all the way, all the way is surrounded by controversy, donation door, splash ink Door, parting door, the door opened to her. Even if
reaches the top of fame and fortune, it is difficult to control his own destiny.
When encountering confusion and distress, he will go to Zhang Yimou for advice. Zhang Yimou told her that she didn't need to say anything, she just used her work to establish her position and use her strength to block everyone's mouths.
2013's "The Great Master" is a "gagging work", Zhang Ziyi won the Golden Image Award and the Golden Horse Award. The reporter
asked her, what are the important expectations for her life? She replied:
"I don't know if you will believe it, I have never had any big expectations of myself. I do things naturally, and I know how God pays for my diligence."
04
In the spring of 1999, "Nothing Less" was released. Later, Wei Minzhi also became a "celebrity."
faced the media who came to interview, she was not shocked, but she was easy to fall into the trap. A reporter asked her if she would like to continue to be an actor in the future. She said, thinking.
So, the report on the next day said: Wei Minzhi, who was originally a simple teacher, is now a movie star!
Some people said that Wei Minzhi screamed when he saw fish and shrimps while eating. In fact, there is a small river in front of her house, and the three sisters often go to catch fish and shrimps in the river.
is famous and advantageous, and many middle schools in Shijiazhuang have invited her to study. In the end, she chose a private elite high school. The
school let her sister who graduated from a teacher's college go to work, waived tuition fees for her and her sister, and also issued 300 bursaries a month. Even the parents got a job and moved to the city.
Because of Zhang Yimou, the life of the family has changed.
In 2002, Hebei TV made a documentary series "The Missing Person File" in which Wei Minzhi played a role, which was her second publicly screened work. Only these two can be found now. What's interesting about
is that the screenwriter is Guo Degang. At that time, he had to do other work to make money because he hadn't gotten popular by talking about cross talk. Yan Ni, one of the actors, is also still playing tricks.
People like Wei Minzhi who became famous in one fell swoop are a minority after all.
's boldness gave her many opportunities, but she would also encounter setbacks if she was too confident. When
was hitting the film, Zhang Yimou once cooled her down and said that she was not suitable to be an actor in the face of the hype in the media.
is not suitable for being an actor, so be a director. In 2004, Wei Minzhi, who was in the third year of high school, took the admissions examination of the director department of Beijing Film Academy despite the opposition of his parents and teachers.
was eliminated as a result.
The media is another ridicule: Don't think that you have acted in a movie, just because you are a genius.
is still kind from Shaanxi. After hearing about it, Xi'an International Studies University invited her to take the art test and passed the interview. After that, she scored 460 points in the cultural course test, which was 200 points higher than the art level, and was admitted to the choreography department.
is the year of enrollment, a beautiful student of Brigham Young UniversityChinese professor Chen Ergang came to Hebei to participate in the international exchange meeting of elementary and middle school education.
The research topic of the Chinese side is "Don't let a student fall behind." Professor Chen suddenly remembered the movie "No One Less" he had seen. He heard that the heroine was from Hebei and wanted to see her.
And Wei Minzhi was already in Xi'an, so he flew over. After some exchanges, he felt that the girl in front of him, just like the characters in the movie, had an idea to help her study in the United States.
Brigham Young is the third largest private university in the United States. It is affiliated to the church. It has been doing student assistance programs, looking for poor students from all over the world to study abroad.
But Wei Minzhi's English is very poor, not even simple communication. Chen Ergang assigned her a task and recommended her if she could meet the standard in English two years later.
The opportunity was right in front of him, and Wei Minzhi began to study hard again, all the way to catch up with make-up lessons. She often goes to the foreign language corner of Xi'an Jiaotong University to find someone to practice her oral English. In 2006, she passed the exam and successfully studied abroad. And as before, it’s free. After
enrolled, the school organized a special screening of "No One Less". The students were all amazed: So you are a big star.
was there, and her bold personality continued to play a role. She served as the host of the school choir and the assistant director of the touring troupe.
In 2007, the choir came to Beijing Zhongshan Concert Hall to perform. She wore a white dress on stage. She was no longer the little girl with a mouthful of accents and scumbags. When he reported his name, the audience exclaimed.
was followed by huge applause.
People’s fate is difficult to control by themselves, but they are often controlled by themselves.
In his junior year, a Chinese-American boy named Liu Jinhui expressed his love to Wei Minzhi. On New Year's Day in 2010, the two got married.
is also the same year, when Zhang Ziyi broke up with his Israeli rich boyfriend Ivy Niwo, looking for her husband to return to China.
Two girls with the same fate and different fate are not comparable. But this time, Wei Minzhi seemed to have won the game.
05
In China, many things, you think it is the starting point, often end up in the end.
Zhang Yimou in 1999 won two awards with two films. At that time, someone asked him why he chose to make such a small production film? He said:
"I've always been unsure about big productions, and I always feel that it can't arouse my real impulse. I cherish these two small productions of literary original works, and cherish the simple, simple, These things are real, subtle, and dripping in my heart."
Then, he filmed a "Happy Time" and discovered and popularized Dong Jie. The term "seeking a girl" began to become a popular vocabulary. But the film’s reputation and box office performance were mediocre, and Zhang Yimou’s myth ended.
people will always change. Some are others who take their own changes, while some are seeking to change themselves.
In 2002, Zhang Yimou changed his path and turned to big production, using a "Hero" to open the era of blockbuster domestic films. The price of
is that he is no longer recognized by the International Film Festival. The harvest is that several box office champions.
Last year, he returned to his original intentions and filmed the autobiographical "One Minute", but due to "technical reasons", it was released indefinitely.
Zhang Ziyi starred in his two blockbusters at the beginning of the century, but did not cooperate anymore. Just because the timing has changed, as she said: "I met these most suitable characters at the best time for me." The so-called fit of
is destiny. How long is
twenty years?
Zhang Ziyi has made more than 30 films from an ordinary college student, won more than 20 awards, and has the confidence to hold an exhibition of her own works.
Wei Minzhi has grown from a rural girl who can't speak Mandarin to an overseas student. Now she is the mother of two children and lives in the United States. People in
will not be like them all of a sudden, and they will suddenly become vigorous, but everyone also has something they insist on. To pursue it, there may be no return.
Remember the sentence in "The Great Master":
will never forget, there must be an echo.
(end)
