is adapted from Jin Yucheng's literary work, Wong Kar-wai's TV series "Flowers", which took three years to shoot.
Hu Ge said that it completes the piece of the puzzle in memory.
Ma Yili remembers that one scene had 36 takes, or maybe 46.
On the day of filming, Chen Long returned home at two or three in the morning and wrote on his desk, "I am Tao Tao, and he will never leave me."
This is the imprint of "Flowers" on the actors. On the evening of December 30, the actors gathered in the East Branch of Shanghai Library to spend the "Night of Flowers" with readers. As expected, the venue was packed. Before the lecture began, they were interviewed by Shanghai media and talked about the meaning of this drama to them.
"As if I saw my father"
In Jin Yucheng's original novel "Flowers", there are more than 1,000 "silences". On September 10, 2020, Hu Ge was deeply impressed by the first day of filming. The answer he got from director Wong Kar-wai was also "no sound". The scene shot that day was Xuezhi's home, which was about to be demolished, and Abao revisited his old place. Hu Ge discovered something strange. There was no photo of Xuezhi in the empty house. "There are no Husheng and Xiaomao in the play. Xuezhi may be the only way for Po to have a relationship with the past." Out of curiosity, he sent a message to the director and asked the director if there was Xuezhi in the play? "After waiting for a long time, the director replied with two words: no sound."
Actor Hu Ge, photo by Zhang Yi
In Hu Ge's view, "Flowers" completed the puzzle piece of the 1990s that he remembered. "My parents, like Hu Sheng and Xiao Mao, experienced that era together. I am full of curiosity about their experiences, and I also learned about the people and things they experienced at that time from a few words, but there was never a complete piece of the puzzle. Many times If you ask more questions, they will be just like the novel, silent." So, when the novel "Flowers" appeared, he read it eagerly to complete the puzzle of his understanding of that era. "Maybe before I met Director Wang, many parts of my life were in the world of "Flowers"."
In Hu Ge's memory, people in the 1990s were very busy, including his father and his friends. Shouting to do business. Someone would come to the house every once in a while, "It seemed like they were talking about big business, but I didn't see my father making any money, and fortunately he didn't lose any money. Children's understanding of that era is very superficial. That In this era, everyone is very excited. The Shanghai conveyed and expressed in the images of "Flowers" are consistent with the mental state of people of that era."
Stills of "Flowers"
It is in such an atmosphere of the times, Ah Bao suddenly became Mr. Bao. "The character of Mr. Bao has the complexity and sense of tearing of the times. No matter how prosperous Mr. Bao is in his career, he will always have a Bao in his heart." Hu Ge made a joke and combed his hair. It’s Mr. Bao, and when you comb it down, it’s A Bao. There is always a tank of goldfish in the private room of Mr. Bao’s Peace Hotel. This is a foreshadowing laid by the director. "Readers and viewers who have read the book will immediately feel what the goldfish represents. I hope that in the next 22 episodes, everyone can look for the foreshadowing that the director has laid for Abao." When
finished filming and watched the playback, Wong Kar Wai has a habit of turning on the music and watching it with BGM. Hu Ge vaguely remembers it as the music from "Once Upon a Time in America". "After my mother left, I was alone with my father. When he got older, he would tell stories about the past. During the filming process, I found that I understood my father more and more. Watching the playback in front of the monitor, I seemed to see my father ."
"If the acting is not good, I will cut it for you."
On many occasions, Hu Ge used the relationship between "Sun Wukong and Zhu Bajie" to describe the relationship between Lingzi and Mr. Bao in the play. Of course, Lingzi played by Ma Yili is Sun Wukong, and Mr. Bao is Zhu Bajie. "This is a joke. Reiko has been helping A Bao during his transition to Mr. Bao. Night Tokyo is a haven from the wind. A Bao dominates the Yellow River Road. When he arrives at Night Tokyo, Reiko will educate him every time. Hold your head high. Go in with your chest held high and come out with a disgraced face," Hu Ge said.
Regarding the role of Lingzi, Ma Yili thinks she is a typical "sharp mouth, tofu heart". "Lingzi has a very shining side of Shanghai women.Among the female characters around Abao, Reiko has more maternal qualities. She is a very complex woman. Shanghainese care more about respectability, which is reflected in aspects such as distance and security. There is a sense of distance between Lingzi and Abao, as they come and go. She will cooperate with A Bao's dignity, and so will A Bao. This is partly due to the sense of order in the region. "
Actor Ma Yili, photo by Zhang Yi
When filming on Wong Kar-Wai's crew, there is no fixed script. The actors only get the script when they go to the scene to put on makeup every day. No one knows the role, layout, and direction of the characters except themselves. . “Many of the wonderful performances you see were completed at three or four o’clock in the middle of the night. " Ma Yili said.
There was a scene that almost made her feel frustrated. "The scene of Lingzi looking at A Bao took 6 takes. Director Wang suddenly said that he wanted me to play a role where "seeing him is like seeing air". From 11 o'clock to 2 o'clock in the morning, I didn't take a sip of water or sit back on the stool. I kept going up and down in high heels. I don't know how many pictures I took, but I couldn't get him satisfied. The director said he couldn't feel anything so empty in my eyes. "At that time, Ma Yili was very frustrated because there were very few moments in her career that dissatisfied the director. "Director Wang came over and patted me on the shoulder and asked me to take notes. I forgot whether it was 36 or 46. The director said, with your number, you didn’t even get into the top ten, aren’t they all living well? "After finishing work that night, Ma Yili didn't sleep well. She reviewed the whole night and found that she might be instinctively resisting the second performance method requested by the director. "The next day, I changed the performance method again and filmed it. It's enough to pass after five or six items. "
Stills of "Flowers"
Jin Yucheng also told a story. Once when he went to visit the class, the director was filming a close-up of A Bao's face. Once, twice, three times, by the time the 42nd shot was taken, it was already midnight Click. He couldn't help but interrupt and said it's okay, it can be over. As a result, Director Wong Kar-wai and Hu Ge turned around at the same time and asked, why? Later, Jin Yucheng told this story to Li Weichang, vice president of Shanghai Literature and Art Publishing House; 30 On the evening of the same day, Li Weichang told this story to the audience in the east hall of Shangtu.
Ma Yili said with a smile that on the set, Wong Kar-wai had a saying - "If you don't act well, I will cut it for you." In order not to be cut. All the actors gave their best. "It's hard to describe the three years of work in words. The only thing that everyone can experience is that when you go to the theater, you will definitely see the changes of time on our faces. Three years ago, the eyes were very confused and everything was unknown; when the filming was completed three years later, there was actually fatigue in the eyes. I think this is in line with the process of life. "
"I am Tao Tao, he will never leave me"
Chen Long appeared in front of reporters, wearing a turtleneck sweater and plaid retro clothes, a bit like Tao Tao's outfit in "Flowers"."Tao Tao is really I also have a similar dress. "After three years of filming for a movie, it was difficult for him to say goodbye to the character "Tao Tao" on the final day.
Actor Chen Long, photo by Zhang Yi
"Three years are the peak time in my filming career. After shooting the last scene, I was very disappointed. It was precisely because of the long time that I could build up such emotions with the characters and the crew. "Chen Long remembered that he was filming a scene opposite Hu Ge. The director patted his shoulder and told him that this was the last scene. After the performance, everyone started to applaud and congratulate the filming. "At that time, I felt uncomfortable, so I told myself , Taotao is leaving me. It happened that the director heard this scene, and he said don't worry, no, you are Tao Tao. "That day, it was already two or three in the morning when Chen Long got home. He wrote down this sentence on his desk - "I am Tao Tao, and he will never leave me."
Before joining the crew of "Flowers", Chen Longguang auditioned for the role I tried it 4 times, and every time I felt like a roller coaster. I didn’t know whether the director would use him or not. In his opinion, the Tao Tao in the TV series is happier than the Tao Tao in the original book, because he has his bottom line."The director made a big adaptation of this character. Neither Hu Sheng nor Xiao Mao appear in the play. The director said that when watching the original Tao Tao, one should also understand Xiao Mao's character. I think he blended these two characters. ." Chen Long said that "Flowers" is not difficult to shoot, but it is also easy to shoot. "As long as you listen to the director and you believe in him, it will be easy to shoot. It is difficult to shoot, but the film is indeed difficult. In the past three years, the director has Keep removing the parts of my performance, and what is important is that I live in the drama. This is the biggest gain from the drama "Flowers"."
Just like the fish tank in Mr. Bao's private room, there are many details hidden in Tao Ji's seafood stall. . A Bao and Tao Tao have completely different origins. How they became brothers in red pants is not discussed too much in the play. But in fact, there are photos of the two of them when they were young on the wall of the seafood stall, and there is also a group photo under the glass on the table. Including what kind of seafood was most popular on the Yellow River Road in the 1990s, the crew hired a special person to provide guidance. "These props and details may not have many close-ups, but they give the actors a particularly strong sense of involvement."
After three years of filming, the actors performed the entire "Flowers" in Shanghainese. After the TV series aired, Ma Yili heard friends around her laughing at her family’s “little pidgin”, and she had to read the subtitles when watching the Shanghainese version. “Dialect is an indispensable part of culture, and some words can only be expressed in slang. , will speak to your heart.” Chen Long feels that acting in Shanghainese is actually living life. "Speaking Shanghainese is a normal part of life."
