In recent years, there has been a boom in film and television adaptations of Yi Shu's novels, including the already aired drama series " My First Half of Life ", " Golden Years ", the movie " Xibao ", the popular " Cheng Huan Ji ", and the completed "The Story of Rose".
However, the film and television adaptation of Yi Shu's novel is not a simple matter. So far, no work has been recognized by fans of the original work. "The First Half of My Life" and "Golden Years" both scored 6.4 points on Douban, and "Xibao" scored 3.3 points. . "Cheng Huan Ji" has not yet been divided, and it can be seen from the comments section that this drama is very controversial.
"The Story of Cheng Huan" poster
The novel "The Story of Cheng Huan" was published in 1996. The work written nearly 30 years ago is still not outdated when read today. The novel tells the story of the heroine Mak Cheng-huan, who was born in the common class of Hong Kong. She was about to get married, but due to her mother's interference, the huge class gap between her and her fiance Xin Jialiang's family, and Mak's unexpected inheritance, the marriage fell through. Mai Chenghuan gradually stepped out of the "shadow" and lived an ideal independent life. The
drama series "The Story of Cheng Huan" moves the story to contemporary Shanghai, and generally continues the framework of the story, but makes many changes in the setting, plot, and character relationships.
For example, the relationship between mother and daughter in the novel is very delicate. Mrs. Mai, who places all her hopes on her daughter, certainly hopes that her daughter will marry well, but she also has many selfish motives: control over her daughter, and hidden jealousy of her daughter. This less conventional and meaningful mother-daughter relationship has been shown in many domestic literary and artistic films focusing on the mother-daughter relationship, such as "The History of Tenderness" and " Send Me to the Blue Clouds ", but in mainstream and popular movies Rarely shown in TV dramas - the positive mother in the mainstream stereotype can only be "selfless". Even if she has a terrible desire to control her daughter, it is only because the way of love is wrong, not because there is jealousy in her love. .
Mai Chenghuan (played by Yang Zi)
The TV series "Chenghuan Ji" continues the writing of traditional family ethics dramas. Liu Wanyu (played by He Saifei ) is a typical "Chinese mother" who cannot help but interfere in all aspects of her daughter Mai Chenghuan (played by Yang Zi), but her love for her daughter is selfless and pure. Mai Chenghuan is caught in a dilemma between "being under Chenghuan's knees" and "having a happy life to the fullest".
Liu Wanyu (played by He Saifei)
In the novel, Xin Jialiang's identity as the "second rich generation" has been known to the Mai Chenghuan family for a long time. In the play, it was changed to Xin Jialiang (played by Niu Junfeng) and Mai Chenghuan who have been dating for three years and have been covering up the "rich second generation" Identity; in the novel, although there is a class gap between the Mai family and the Xin family, it is not a tense situation, but more a conflict between wedding preparations and the direction of the future small family. The adaptation in the TV series fully dramatizes the class conflict and makes it short. video; another example is that Mai Chenghuan's career changed from a civil servant to a hotel clerk. The workplace line became the focus of the drama and was intertwined with Mai Chenghuan's emotional line...
Xin Jialiang (played by Niu Junfeng) in the drama is even less responsible than in the novel
These changes have inevitably been criticized by some fans of the original work. In the author's personal opinion, these changes are still within an acceptable range. After all, Yi Shu's novel is only a thin volume. If it is adapted into a drama with a huge capacity, it must be filled with various plots; in order to attract the audience, urban dramas will inevitably have to fill in various plots. Create various topics and intensify dramatic conflicts; in addition, the external factors of censorship should not expose the negative side of human nature too much, and some characters may be adjusted.
Among the adaptations of "Cheng Huan Ji", including the previous "My First Half of Life" and "Golden Years", the root of the controversy is the TV series' rewriting of the image of "Yishu Girl".
"Yishu Girl" is a condensation of female group portraits in Yishu's many works, and is the core asset of Yishu's novels.
Miss Yishu is an independent professional woman. "Financial independence, never play the hand card." They pursue career success and can live independently without relying on men for financial support.
Even though she was born a commoner, Miss Yi Shu is wise and well-educated. They are well-educated, have high cultural literacy and knowledge, speak elegantly, and have sharp thinking.In the face of complex problems in life, you can analyze calmly, respond rationally, and make quick decisions in difficult situations.
Stills from "Golden Years", Ni Ni (left) plays Zhu Suosuo, and Liu Shishi plays Jiang Nansun.
Girl Yishu has good taste and is elegant and decent. Often paired with classic white shirts, khaki pants, windbreakers and other basic items, it emphasizes comfort and nature, rejects exaggeration and excessive decoration, and is simple but not simple.
In terms of the concept of love, the Yishu girl is rational and free-spirited. She does not indulge in it, knows how to withdraw at the right time, is not trapped by broken love or failed marriage, maintains dignity, and is neither humble nor arrogant.
Yi Shu's novels were mainly written from the 1970s to the 1990s, a period when Hong Kong's economy took off rapidly and transformed from a manufacturing center to an international financial, trade and service center. As an important labor force, women have entered society to participate in production, and personal struggle has become a mainstream value. As long as they are willing to pay, everything is possible. The entire society is full of confidence, pride, and positive spirit. Girl Yishu is a vivid product of this era.
With economic independence, Hong Kong women have undergone profound changes in social roles, marriage concepts, and reproductive choices. The issues faced by Yishu Girl such as female autonomy, freedom of marriage and love, and balance between career and family are not only a reflection of the improvement of women's social status in the context of Hong Kong's economic development, but also a literary response to the social gender equality issues at that time.
The popularity of Yishu's novels in mainland China has only happened since the new century. This is also closely related to the economic development environment of the mainland. With the rapid economic development and accelerated urbanization process, mainland China has formed a large middle class group. They are well-educated and have high consumption power and aesthetic needs. The modern urban life, the struggle stories of professional women and the in-depth discussion of emotions depicted in Yi Shu's novels are in line with the psychological expectations and life experiences of this emerging reader group. Yi Shu girls have "enlightened" many highly educated women in mainland China.
However, in mainland TV dramas, there are almost no works that truly restore the image of the Yi Shu girl.
Stills of "The First Half of My Life", Ma Yili plays Luo Zijun
In the once sensational "The First Half of My Life", Luo Zijun, played by Ma Yili, was once in control, stalked by divorce, cried and made trouble Hanging herself three times; in the novel, Zijun faces her husband's cowardice, and she is decisive in killing her, "What does such a man want from him? I still have a pair of hands, and I still have years to come. If another woman gets him, it may not be happiness. , He can be so heartless and unjust as to abandon his wife of more than ten years, and there is no guarantee that he will do it again in the future." So she said to her husband, "Okay, I promise you, I will divorce you immediately." Girl Yi Shu has always been "good-looking."
Mai Chenghuan in the TV series "Cheng Huan Ji" is fortunately not "magically transformed" like Zijun. She still has some "good-looking" attitudes - independent and not dependent. For example, when Xin Jialiang said "I will raise you", Mak Chenghuan's response was: "If your palms are turned upward for one day, it is cute, coquettish, and interesting. For ten years, if your palms are turned upward for ten years, it becomes a horror story."
Mai Chenghuan is financially independent
Another example is that Mai Chenghuan was working overtime. Her mother called her and asked her to stop working so hard and marry well. Mai Chenghuan disagreed: "Mom, how can you marry someone who is capable and reliable if you are dependent on others in life? How is it possible to gain respect from others? "
When the parents of the two parties met for dinner, Xin Jialiang's sister made all sorts of sarcastic remarks to the Mai family. Mai Chenghuan slapped the table directly, "We don't have to eat this meal, and we don't have to have this wedding. End!"
When the man's family went out of their way to insult and belittle Mai Chenghuan's family, Mai Chenghuan said loudly: "You can look down on me, you can despise me, but you can't insult my family, you can't insult my mother, no matter what. No matter how much I love someone, I won't let them feel wronged in the slightest because of me." Mai Chenghuan broke up with Xin Jialiang immediately.
Mai Chenghuan defended her mother, and therefore broke up with Xin Jialiang
So, where did Mai Chenghuan in the play "deviate" from Miss Yi Shu?
is fundamentally about the concept of love and the relationship between the sexes. Yishu girls are generally "bystanders" of love, and they can withdraw at any time. There is a widely circulated famous saying in "Xibao", "I want a lot of love. If there is no love, then a lot of money." "I came to society with my bare hands. If I don't trample people to death, they will trample them to death." I don't care for myself. If heaven and earth destroy me, it's better for him to die than for me to die." There are some perfect male characters in Yi Shu's novels, and there are also idealized love, but the overall tone is a pessimistic view of men and love. Mai Chenghuan in
's novel never believes that love is everything in life. Even if he falls in love with Xin Jiadeng, he will not lose himself. She examines emotional relationships rationally and makes decisions based on realistic considerations and long-term planning. When she found that her relationship with Xin Jialiang was not suitable, she accepted the end of the relationship calmly and decisively cut her losses. "If you want to start from scratch, it is better to start from scratch." She also has no pain of lovelorn. The novel writes, "Mai Chenghuan's face was radiant, and she didn't look like she had just broken off her engagement with her fiancé. She made big moves, holding a beer glass, grinning widely, and narrowing her eyes into a straight line. "
unexpectedly received a generous inheritance, which gave him greater financial confidence. The single Mai Chenghuan began to let himself go and "indulge in sex." The leading male lead in the TV series, Yao Zhiming (played by Xu Kai), belatedly appeared after 80% of the novel progressed. His appearance happened to match Mak Chenghuan's point, so "both parties had a tacit understanding and agreed on the ideas." The shutdown is purely flesh against flesh.”
The male lead in the drama, Yao Zhiming (played by Xu Kai), does not appear until the end of the novel.
The TV drama's portrayal of Mai Chenghuan's view of love is not very "Yisu girl". Even though Mai Chenghuan will go through a gradual growth process, the long "first suppression" in the play is no longer comfortable. Mai Chenghuan in the
drama is the same as many heroines in idol dramas: she is devoted to love - once she sacrifices herself for love, and finally gets a dream love - the male protagonist is tall, handsome and loves her.
For example, when Mai Chenghuan and Xin Jialiang were in love, they were more like Xin Jialiang's "mother" or "nanny", taking care of Xin Jialiang in all aspects. Mai Chenghuan's best friend Mao Yongxin (played by Xu Lingyue) took out the bag that Mai Chenghuan carried with her and found that it contained basically what Mai Chenghuan had prepared for Xin Jialiang: Xin Jialiang's mobile phone often forgot to charge, so Mai Chenghuan always carried a power bank with him. Xin Jialiang always gets it on his body easily when he eats, so Mai Chenghuan carries a stain remover pen with him. Xin Jialiang likes to play games, so Mai Chenghuan carries a Bluetooth headset with him. Mai Chenghuan also has a small notebook to write down everything that Xin Jialiang cannot remember. ...Mao Yongxin hit the nail on the head: "Does he treat you as an assistant? I feel like you are raising a son."
Mai Chenghuan’s bag contains everything Xin Jialiang needs.
Not to mention fans of the original work can’t accept it, it’s an original script. For such a female character - even if she thinks this is a "two-way rush", it will be difficult for the audience to Think this is a mature attitude towards love.
Mai Chenghuan and Xin Jialiang had an affair, fell into a lovelorn state, lost their minds for a time, and finally cried out in front of her grandma (played by Wu Yanshu). This is completely "contrary" to her in the novel.
Mai Chenghuan fell into the sadness of broken love.
Mai Chenghuan gradually fell into love with Yao Zhiming.This relationship has nothing to do with the original work. Yao Zhiming appears early in the play. As a domineering CEO, he and Mak Chenghuan perform a somewhat cliched idol drama plot: a cold and arrogant CEO (unsurprisingly, he has a childhood relationship). (Trauma), he met a kind and upright heroine; by chance, they came into frequent contact in work and life; the kind heroine influenced the domineering president, allowing him to gradually change his sinister and cold personality, and the domineering president always followed the heroine Every time there is a dispute with the ex-boyfriend's family (it just happens to happen), he will give timely advice, guidance, and help to the heroine; you can predict the relationship between the two of them: helping each other and understanding each other. , Falling in love...
Whatever problems "Cinderella" encounters, the domineering president will always help her solve them quietly behind the scenes
Girl Yishu, watching love, independent women can play in the world; in the TV series "Mai Chenghuan", Mai Chenghuan goes around in circles From one love to another like an idol drama, Miss Yi Shu's wisdom was not allocated to Mai Chenghuan, but more to Mai Chenghuan's best friend and grandma.
Grandma (played by Wu Yanshu) is the rewrite of Yishu Girl Bar
's love line, which is also a common problem in "The First Half of My Life" and "Golden Years". The emphasis on emotional lines in TV dramas reflects the drama's "compromise" to cater to the market - although emotional dramas are routine, they are the eternal "donuts" in the market. The price is that it triggers a strong backlash from fans of the original work.
There are thousands of idol dramas, it’s up to you to watch them; contemporary urban women prefer Yi Shu because her works provide women with different options for marriage and love: women show the ability to think independently and make decisions independently in marriage and love relationships. Marriage is the only goal in life, and you will not easily fall into blind passion or overly romanticized love fantasies. Regardless of whether you are married or not, you should not ignore self-growth and realization...
Although from the perspective of contemporary feminism, the independent women written by Yi Shu They believe in the logic of neoliberalism, which is essentially "enjoying the strong" and "fearing the weak"; but no matter how you say it, in a specific historical context, the Yishu girl is a symbol of progress and has brought important "enlightenment" to many women. .
The successful film and television adaptation of Yi Shu's works should be the continuation and "improvement" of Yi Shu Girl. The TV series "Cheng Huan Ji" itself is a watchable drama, but it still wastes Yi Shu.
