The TV series "Flowers" has finally started airing, stirring up resonance of the times at the end of this year. Although this drama is set in the Shanghai business scene under the changing times, it is about the various aspects of life and the joys and sorrows of the world. Whether the audience is reminiscing about the glory of that time or discovering their ideal selves in characters such as A Bao, it can be regarded as a masterpiece. This kind of telepathy leads to the same destination through different paths. They all feel the emotion and spirit carried by "Flowers" and sublimate it.
The author has watched some of the series through movie screenings before the series started. "Flowers" relies on the story to really attract people. It puts the story and characters into the historical genealogy and tells it. In the play, with the blessing of the times, Abao and others become rising stars in the business world. In the 1990s, Shanghai was driving the Yangtze River Basin to take a new leap. The Yellow River Road, which was only 755 meters long, was full of drama every minute. The story of "Flowers" starts here and slowly unfolds around people's fate. In just two episodes, it outlines the life trajectory of "Mr. Bao" and tells how Fa Gen and others went astray due to their own greed. The ever-changing capital market, complex human nature, subtle emotions, etc. come together in one place. "Flowers" is full of historical passion and realistic appeal, and is gripping.
"Flowers" inherits the distinctive features of the original work and oozes the beauty of literature. The play adopts a cross-winding narrative, which is smart, lively, and high in information density, and interlocks to create climaxes. It talks about the scenery and dangers of starting a business of A Bao, Ling Zi, Miss Wang, Li Li, Uncle Ye, etc., and also looks back at the origin of the current landscape. "The present" and the "past" are closely related, reflecting and mirroring each other, creating a strong sense of polyphony, which highlights the complementarity between individuals and the times. The regional characteristics and language style of "Flowers" are even more interesting. When Jin Yucheng wrote the novel, he boldly abolished the psychological description of the characters and replaced it with dialogue. This is also well reflected in the play. Wu Nong talks softly about the ruthless capital market, and the characters' ordinary dialogues hide their philosophy of life. Benevolence and wisdom meet each other, and the audience can carefully figure it out during the viewing process.
From text to image, the light and shadow of "Flowers" have the accent of Shanghai and Wong Kar-Wai's logo, thus showing a unique sense of depth of the times. The images in the play are full of hope and vitality. Many of them depict ordinary life and various scenes in the city. The hot air in a homely restaurant and the fireworks lit on the roadside on the fifth day of the Lunar New Year take the audience to slowly appreciate the fireworks of the world. At the same time, the flow of images in "Flowers" is full of fascination and thinking. The frequent blurred lights and shadows in the city and the changing neon lights at night seem to be a symbol of "flowers", but also seem to be the lonely and alienated self-pursuit of the characters.
"Flowers" takes the city of Shanghai as its starting point, but it is actually about every dream chaser who works day and night. The year 1993, when young entrepreneurs such as Abao, Lingzi, Miss Wang, and Li Li in the play worked hard, was the starting point for Shanghai to become my country's largest economic center city and a period when my country's foreign trade development was growing strongly; Abao et al. People's "left hand is engaged in foreign trade and the right hand is stock trading", which is a concrete portrayal of Shanghai's reform and progress. Every interaction they have with the market and life is full of historical details and the flavor of the times.
The profoundness of the fate of Abao and others lies in the impact and turmoil brought by the great era. "Flowers" unfolds the love, hatred, joys and sorrows between people in great depth, connects the past and the present, and brings an enjoyable and immersive drama-watching experience to the young audiences in front of the screen. From being unknown to becoming famous, every decision made by the characters in the play has extraordinary significance in the tide of the times. Although there are differences between the young people at that time and this time, they are all in a similar fierce competition environment. The characters in the play give full play to their energy in the face of opportunities, overcome their own limitations and the difficulties caused by the environment, and have extremely strong abilities. Reference value. When the audience watches "Flowers", they are also looking at themselves and getting to know themselves. Po's kindness to his friends, Lingzi's adaptability, Miss Wang's intelligence and ability, Li Li's "truth", etc. are all worthy of careful consideration and provided to young people. The possibility of transcending one's own obsessions and anxieties. In other words, what the audience sees is the concrete inspirational culture that can be tested under the legendary story.
The reason why "Flowers" attracts attention is that it accurately conveys the spirit of Shanghai. This includes the style created by the ups and downs of the times and the enterprising spirit of entrepreneurs, and the temperament created by the historical charm and group struggle mentality. "Flowers" annotates that indescribable era and pays tribute to the great era and people.
Text/Zhang Yiwu (Professor of Peking University, Director of Peking University Cultural Resources Research Center)
Source: Beijing Youth Daily
