is highly anticipated, "Flowers" debuts.
Wong Kar Wai 's first TV series, it took three years to shoot, and it also starred Hu Ge, Ma Yili, Tang Yan, Xin Zhilei and many other actors with high national popularity. Everyone wants to see what "Flowers" is. Immortal product". On the first day of broadcast,
lived up to expectations and dropped a pair of hits: the ratings of a single episode of exceeded 2.5, the popularity of on the site exceeded 2300, and it ranked first in the hot search list. Faye Wong's episode, Tang Yan's style, Ma Yili's Shanghai dialect, Hu Ge's accent has been on the hot search, just as the slogan says: "Breaking the New Year", it's really lively.
Putting aside the gorgeous packaging and noisy public opinion, Mr. Tomato settled down and watched "Flowers". In addition to marveling at how stunning Xin Zhilei was under Wong Kar-wai's lens and Ma Yili's accent in speaking Shanghainese, as for the drama itself, I still have a lot to say.
1. How many people mistook "Flowers" for a Republic of China drama
Until "Flowers" started airing, there were still many people watching this drama with the mentality of watching a Republic of China drama. There is no other reason, because the entire drama does not look like Shanghai in the 1990s from the setting to the styling.
Wong Kar-wai brought his most skillful and personal light and shadow colors into "Flowers". The neon-lit foreign market, the revolving wooden staircase exuding nobility, and various scenes full of warm colors all give people a sense of poverty. The feeling of luxury and lust.
Looking at the character style, Hu Ge is wearing a well-fitting and fashionable suit.
In the 1990s, even big bosses wore more loose-fitting suits.
Xin Zhilei’s wavy hair and flaming red lips, and Ma Yili’s ear-length short hair, also exuded a sense of sophistication. For girls at that time, the most fashionable thing was slightly fluffy woolen rolls, which had a sense of simplicity in the fashion.
In the play, the female restaurant owner is described as having to deal with the guests, chatting and drinking. This kind of culture is not popular in China even now, let alone Shanghai in the 1990s.
2. Is there a threshold for watching dramas? Wong Kar-wai's embarrassment reflects a reality.
Some viewers expressed their confusion after watching the first few episodes. In fact, the story is not profound. The first few episodes only talked about two things.
The first thing is that Abao, the most popular financial rookie in Shanghai played by Hu Ge, got into a car accident. The consequences of the car accident were not serious, but it was an introduction to a variety of characters and intertwined and complex relationships.
In the police interrogation room, life mentors, confidants, business partners, and life and death friends all appeared.
With each other's words, they gradually pieced together a rising Mr. Bao who was making waves in the Shanghai stock market.
The second thing is that Li Li , played by Xin Zhilei, opened the most luxurious restaurant on Huanghe Road in Shanghai. In order to make a name for herself, she invited all walks of life in Shanghai to support her.
And Baozong , who turned his hands into clouds and rain in Shanghai, was the first person on the guest list.
Li Li was very good at abacus and wanted to use Mr. Bao to build momentum for his restaurant. Mr. Bao, a person who dealt with money all day long, was also a good person and was not happy to support others in vain, so the two sides began to fight.
Li Li found Mr. Bao’s largest supplier Fan (played by Dong Yong) when he was doing foreign trade business. He used him as bait and tried to invite him to his restaurant to discuss business. However, Mr. Bao was very self-respecting and would rather change. A supplier is not willing to give in, and his tone is steady.
Two things, not too complicated, so why can’t the audience understand it? Because the director used a lot of flashback and flashback shooting techniques.
After Hu Ge was hit, he traced the history of his fortune through the confessions of everyone. As a line of years appeared on the screen, time immediately began to go backwards.
When Xin Zhilei opens a store, she first shoots the scene of opening the store, and then begins to describe the scene of her opening the store through the words of the owner of the small shop opposite the hotel: "I introduced her to open a store here." It is also a flashback.
Abao and Li Li were fighting each other, and while they were talking, the words "Twelve hours ago" suddenly appeared on the screen, and they began to tell the story backwards.
At the same time, the play is also full of fragmented narratives. Wong Kar-wai obviously does not like to describe one thing directly, but prefers to make insinuations and use other people's words to enhance the atmosphere.
In the play, the popularity of Po, the speculation about the 414 stock incident, and the prosperity of the old and new buildings are all described through the mouths of many people. Everyone only describes part of the incident, which is incomplete and incomplete. Coherence requires the audience to piece it together.
As we all know, TV dramas have always pursued the goal of having no threshold and making it easy for the audience to understand. The frequent flashbacks, flashbacks and fragmented narratives in "Flowers" not only easily make the audience feel tired, but also interrupt the coherence of the plot. Sex has led some viewers to say they don’t know what to say.
TV dramas are art without thresholds, so Wong Kar-wai's embarrassment reflects the reality that he seems to have "descended to the earth", but he still maintains his airs and sets the threshold for watching the drama "Flowers", which makes people say it is too mysterious and incomprehensible. , it is true that it is a bit acclimatized.
3. TV dramas now have a new type of drama - literary drama
If the main line of a story is the Anti-Japanese War, everyone will call it an Anti-Japanese War film; if it is about the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law, it is called a family film; a short story A movie about young people flirting, breaking up and getting back together is called a romance film; when a movie lacks a main line and people can't retell what it is about, people often call it an art film.
I am afraid that from now on, TV dramas will also have a new type of drama - literary drama .
If you ask Mr. Tomato: After watching the first few episodes of "Flowers", what kind of story does it want to tell?
Sorry, I really can’t answer the question.
As far as the current plot is concerned, "Flowers" is by no means a history of the growth of a small character, because the history of Abao's fortune has been told in a few confessions by everyone.
This is not a business war drama. There is a fight only when there is a conflict of interest. But at present, A Bao and Li Li are fighting purely for face, and there is no business war.
At the same time, this is not a romance movie.
Although there are many beauties around A Bao, including the charming landlady Lingzi played by Ma Yili, and the hot-tempered foreign trade worker Miss Wang played by Tang Yan, the director did not pay much attention to the relationship between A Bao and them.
"Flowers" can actually be called "Mist", because in the first few episodes, it is as mysterious as the fog and lacks a main line to promote the development of the story.
does not have a mainline movie. People can watch the light and shadow and listen to the sound effects for two hours, but the lack of a mainline TV series really makes it impossible for the audience to stick with it.
4. Xin Zhilei is stunning, Ma Yili is delicious, and You Benchang interprets the true accent
If we want to talk about the advantages of "Flowers", it is also obvious, that is, it captures the most beautiful looks of the actors.
Among them, the most stunning one is Xin Zhilei . She plays the role of the hotel proprietress, so many scenes involve dressing up and walking among the guests. Therefore, Xin Zhilei's appearance is particularly gorgeous and exquisite among the actresses.
And the director obviously favors her, giving her a "beauty perspective" that many other actresses cannot enjoy.
For example, the scene where Hu Ge stood on the second floor and looked down, and Xin Zhilei looked up and looked back if she noticed something, the beautiful face paired with the bright lights is really amazing.
There are many similar scenes in the drama, including face-shaking, side-facing killing, turning back and looking up. In short, the most atmospheric shots in the drama are all used on Xin Zhilei.
However, the attraction of some actresses is not their sexy appearance, but their aura, such as Ma Yili.
Ma Yili is much simpler in the drama. Her dress is short hair and a jacket, but speaking Shanghainese, her charm is no less charming than Xin Zhilei.
Mr. Tomato’s impression of Shanghainese dialect is weird, but Ma Yili gave me a new understanding of Shanghainese dialect.
When she faced the police, her eyes were as charming as silk, and she sounded like a coquettish woman from Shanghai.
When facing A Bao, her Shanghainese changed from coquettish to coquettish, with a bit of shrewdness and arrogance, and even more charming feeling.
What's interesting is that in "The First Half of My Life", Luo Zijun, who has not yet been divorced, also speaks Shanghainese, but at that time Ma Yili's Shanghainese sounded arrogant and artificial, which was completely different from the Shanghainese in "Flowers". language.
The same language interprets two completely different temperaments, which is also a testament to Ma Yili's good acting skills. However, as both actors in Shanghai, Hu Ge and Tang Yan are not as charming as Ma Yili when they speak Shanghainese.
Hu Ge also reached new heights of handsomeness in "Flowers", especially in the first episode where he was transformed into a custom-made suit and had a new hairstyle. After the transformation, he held up a wine glass and raised a glass to the camera with a sinister smile. , it is estimated that it will captivate a large number of female audiences.
Hu Ge will occasionally speak Shanghainese to express his charm, but the effect is far less than that of Ma Yili.
Mr. Tomato thought for a long time and felt that the problem lies in the looseness of the performance.
Ma Yili regards herself as a character in the play, and her smiles, laughter, and curses are all natural. Her Shanghai accent is not performed, but natural; while Hu Ge is a little bit "pretentious", which makes people feel He has a good accent and a cool and self-aware sense of being cool.
On the contrary, it is 90-year-old You Benchang who explains what the true accent is.
Especially in the scene where he takes Hu Ge to the tailor to have his clothes made, You Benchang played a sophisticated, tasteful and stylish Lao Ke to the core.
The most amazing scene is the scene where Hu Ge turns to toast You Benchang from the air after his image has been upgraded.
As a veteran, You Benchang's eyes were full of emotions when he saw Hu Ge's appearance, as if he saw his youthful years through Hu Ge. He was moved, sighed and reminisced. In just a few seconds, it seemed that people could see him. life.
Others may be handsome or beautiful, but Tang Yan is a bit disadvantaged because the character she plays, Ms. Wang, has a bad temper and a bit silly and sweet, so it has nothing to do with the atmosphere and tone.
not only has fluffy curly hair, but also wears a pair of glasses, suppressing Tang Yan's aura.
5. Why do filmmakers frequently fall down from the altar?
In recent years, both actors and directors in the film industry have frequently "descended" to film TV series, but the results are not ideal.
Zhang Ziyi 's "Da Qin Fu" has caused her acting reputation to be questioned; Zhou Dongyu 's "Eternal Journey" also exposed her acting shortcomings; Feng Xiaogang has filmed many TV series, such as "Northern Directions" and "Echo" They were all aired quietly; and now, with and "Flowers" airing, Wong Kar-wai is also in danger of being dragged off the altar.
Why do the movies they make are very good, but when they make TV series, the audience doesn’t buy it? Mr. Tomato thinks that the main reason is that they have not changed their mentality.
Although TV dramas and movies are both acting, there are obvious differences. Movies pay attention to texture and tone, and require high-level visual language, while TV dramas pay attention to approachability and easy to understand. If these filmmakers still act in the same way as making movies when they act in TV series, their films will naturally not be accepted by the audience.
Zhang Yi, Zhou Xun and others who are very popular in movies and TV shows will make adjustments on the big and small screens. On the big screen, they will pay more attention to micro-expression interpretation, and when acting on TV, they will make their temperament more civilian. Pay more attention to the consistency of performance.
The good cards of "Flowers" have not produced corresponding results so far. The TV series and the movie are not only different in length, but also in style. If you really want to shoot across borders, you should adapt to the new environment and not stick to the rules.
(movie Rotten Tomatoes Editorial Department: Sunview)
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