Peninsula All-Media Reporter Wang Yue Intern Pang Na
"Sometimes, I think you are more complicated than this serial bombing case." "I pride myself on being the person who knows you best, but I don't understand you at all. "I don't believe what you say. Who can enter the Secret Service Department without having seven orifices in their heart?" The few lines of dialogue between Song Zhuowen and Guan Xue were full of temptations and metaphors. These details are everywhere in the spy war drama "Harbin 1944". Since its inception, the drama has relied on foreshadowing, brain-burning plots with constant reversals, dizzying wits, and dangerous situations. The spy showdown makes the audience unable to stop watching the show. While grasping the classic narrative of spy war dramas, it has achieved breakthroughs in the dimensions of story perspective, character relationships, stylized images in black and white + frame extraction, audio-visual and character fate intertextuality, and panoramic depiction of the society of the times, becoming a spy war drama of the era. Another hardcore work in the field.
One Wen and One Wu Cross the Sea
The plot is brain-burning and thrilling
"Harbin 1944" has attracted much attention from the beginning of filming to the broadcast. Since its broadcast, the popularity of the drama exceeded 8,500 24 hours after it was broadcast on the iQiyi site, becoming In 2024, the popularity of iQiyi drama has exceeded 8,500 the fastest, and the current popularity of iQiyi has exceeded 9,000, which shows its popularity. The drama is set in the Puppet Manchukuo on the eve of the victory of the Anti-Japanese War. It mainly tells the story of Communist intelligence officer Song Zhuowen ( Qin Hao ) who is mistaken for himself by the cold-blooded and suspicious chief of the Secret Service Division Guan Xue ( Yang Mi). Song Zhuowu, his twin brother, sneaked into the Special Agents Section of the Harbin Police Department by virtue of Zhuowu's relationship as Guan Xue's "savior". He went through all kinds of hardships to gain the trust of Guan Xue and Japanese senior officials, and cleared the way for the final victory of the war. .
As for the classic theme of spy dramas, they often attract the attention of the audience through the ups and downs of the plot and the exciting suspense, allowing the audience to follow the protagonist's perspective and escape from the dangerous whirlpool, thus reaping the joy A immersive theater viewing experience. "Harbin 1944" has also put a lot of effort into this aspect. Through the ingenious laying of "plot hooks" and the continuous throwing of multiple reversals, it threads the threads among many parallel story lines and foreshadowing settings of straw snakes and gray lines. , advancing the plot step by step towards the climax. In the play, although the two brothers Song Zhuowen and Song Zhuowu, played by Qin Hao, use their twin identities to cooperate overtly and covertly to complete the task, they must also calculate the precise "time difference" at the same time. "The Nest" Secret Service has no leaks in front of everyone, and uses complex interpersonal relationships to check and balance each other in the game. The extreme reversal power and the plot points that cleverly break the situation are addictive. Multiple complicated events such as the battle for pipe information, twin suspicions, and serial explosions are intertwined one by one and presented to the audience.
After joining the Secret Service Section, Song Zhuowen repeatedly stole information from Guan Xue's office and Asano Daigo's residence, and transferred evidence under the eyes of the spies. Guan Xue, the chief of the Secret Service Section, also tested Song Zhuowen many times, including the "Hongmen Banquet" with hotpot meat. He placed spies around Song Zhuowen to monitor him, and deliberately let Song Zhuowen participate in the interrogation to try to find his flaws. The tension was high. Why can Guan Xue pretend to be an underground party? What is the mystery of the identities of brothers Song Zhuowen and Song Zhuowu? What kind of secrets are there within the Secret Service? These questions were raised one by one and answered gradually. The pits in the play were dug and buried at the same time, making the audience feel relieved and nervous at the same time.
Group portraits explore the underpinnings of human nature
Accurate interpretation fills the atmosphere of a spy war
Director Zhang Li is good at representing typical characters in typical environments, and has a deeper understanding of the characters. Based on the text, he can diversify more possibilities for the characters and clarify the underlying logic. , giving actors more room to perform; screenwriter Wang Xiaoqiang is good at portraying the ultimate character relationships and creating vivid characters by following the logic of life and drama.
As a reproduction of the revolutionary history of a special period, the spy war drama itself is a heroic map drawn by unknown soldiers. As an important narrative carrier of the spy war text, the hero image has become the key to the success of the spy war drama."Harbin 1944" is also refreshing in terms of character setting, character relationships, and group portraits. Cut from the narrative perspective of twin brothers exchanging identities to mediate with the enemy, Song Zhuowen is an underground party lurking in Harbin. He has a smooth external image and seeks to survive. In fact, he is cautious and calm, with a strong sense of danger; Song Zhuowu is a patriotic activist with a special reputation for assassinations. The Japanese military officers in the background are brave and rough. The two men, one civil and the other military, have very different personalities, but they are able to exchange identities and complete tasks under the nose of the Secret Service. The meticulous Zhuo Wen is often responsible for lurking and stealing intelligence, while the extremely powerful Zhuo Wu is responsible for escorting, raping and other tasks to cover Zhuo Wen's identity. The best partners in the mission, the two brothers cooperated with each other openly and secretly, covering each other, averting dangers, and jointly performing the Bourne Supremacy's face-changing trick. The lead actor Qin Hao plays two roles in the play. Song Zhuowen and Song Zhuowu have very different personalities. In addition to precise interpretations, they also added details to the characters, such as Zhuowu's stronger Northeastern accent. The series also depicts mature and experienced revolutionaries such as Lao Qian (played by Zhang Guoqiang), Lao Duan (played by Tian Xiaojie), Dr. Shi (played by Zhao Bin), Xiao Wei, Xia Tao and other revolutionaries who are not afraid of sacrifice.
At the same time, an evenly matched villain camp was also presented. Guan Xue, the chief of the Secret Service played by Yang Mi, is a refined egotist with a cool appearance but a decisive heart, and is smart and ruthless. There are also Secret Service agents Pan Yue who cares about room for advancement, and Hu Bin who likes to use force to calm his mood. The outstanding master Lao Jin... shows the complexity and depth of human nature through the interpretation of characters. "Harbin 1944" emphasizes not the hero's bravery, but the hero's dilemma and challenges. The revolutionaries do not have the halo of protagonists, and the villains are no longer simply stupid or bad.
Whether it is the keen and meticulous Song Zhuowen or the decisive and decisive Guan Xue, they are like people walking on a tightrope. Every step is like facing an abyss, being careful and looking for their own way of survival in the complex and unpredictable situation. Let this " The "cat-and-mouse game" seems to come and go, and it also brings stronger plot tension.
style images create emotional rendering
retro aesthetics present the texture of the times
dramas are also eye-catching in terms of style images. Director Zhang Li's use of frame composition, voyeuristic perspective, and action close-ups greatly increases the tense atmosphere of a battle of wits and courage, and leads the audience to immerse themselves in watching the drama. The plot is intertwined with black and white images to present short-term flashbacks. Black and white + frame extraction are used to present distant memories, which not only supplements information, but also creates a strong emotional rendering.
The drama series presents high-quality images at the movie level. The director has extremely high requirements for the light and smoke of each scene, all props, actors' costumes, the composition of the shots, and the movement trajectories of the shots. The interiors of Song Zhuowen's house and Guan Xue's house presented in the play were renovated, constructed and staged using real houses. In addition, the crew created Harbin’s stations and streets with the same precision. The overall style of Harbin in the play is closer to the rough characteristics of Russian architectural style, striving to truly show the images of the 1944 era.
Fu Huadao in the play also strives for excellence. In terms of character clothing, Song Zhuowen mostly wears suits. The suits and leather shoes are meticulous and well-organized, reflecting elegance, literary temperament and cautious attitude. Song Zhuowu wears military uniforms. The clothes are easy to move, and the fabrics are rough and slovenly. Guan Xue's clothes are littered. There are many different bags, showing her changeable personality; Hu Bin's colorful clothes reflect his flamboyant personality.
The newspapers used as props were reproduced one-to-one by the crew on the basis of collecting a large number of old newspapers; the glass in many scenes in the play was covered with yellow rice tape, which was the way of preventing glass shocks in that era. In this way, the play has been praised as "a spy war drama with obvious stylization".
