Beijing News reporter Yang Lianjie editor Tong Na proofreads Wu Xingfa.
Based on the novel of the same name in Jin Yucheng Mao Dun Literature Award, Wang Jiawei’s first drama "Flowers" focuses on Shanghai in the early 1990s, and tells the story that little people, represented by A Bao (Hugh), seize the opportunity and rise to the occasion. Ber Ber, played by Xin Zhilei in the play, is the glamorous proprietress of Zhizhenyuan Restaurant and a mysterious outsider on the Yellow River Road. Her relationship with Po is like the sea and the blue sky, seemingly far away, but mirror each other. She not only wants to upset huanghe road, but also has more ambitious goals.
In an exclusive interview with the Beijing News reporter, Xin Zhilei said that this is the first time that she completely divorced herself from the role she created, and needed to take care of the Jianghu side of Ber Ber. Director Wong Kar-wai told her that "Flowers of Flowers" is not a romantic film, nor a commercial film, but a talk about human feelings in the Jianghu, which makes her feel that "Flowers of Flowers" is more like a martial arts film. The cooperation with Wong Kar-wai made her feel painful and happy, but on the whole, she was happier. "The director shot the most beautiful side of my age, and maybe it is also the most beautiful side of my entire acting career. So some so-called torture and suffering in the process are nothing. "
▲ Starring in "Flowers" made Xin Zhilei discover more possibilities in himself.
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Behind Ber Ber is the Jianghu, and her eyes are like knives.
Xin Zhilei has been very eager to star in the works directed by Wong Kar-wai, so she specially read Jin Yucheng’s novel Flowers. However, after meeting director Wong Kar-wai, she didn’t hold out much hope. She felt that she was not very similar to Ber Ber, a model with long hair and big waves in the novel, who was a beautiful scenery everywhere. Finally, when the director told her to play Ber Ber, she was a little surprised. After playing Flowers, and later seeing the presentation of Ber Ber in the drama version, she gradually understood why the director chose to play Ber Ber himself. "Ber Ber in the novel may be softer. Li Li in the drama version of Flowers has a very domineering and Jianghu side, which is still different from the novel."
During the filming, actors can only see a small part of the script of Flowers. At first, Xin Zhilei didn’t know what the director wanted to present through the character Ber Ber, so he thought it would be nice to play a beautiful woman quietly. She searched for Ber Ber’s feelings for a long time, and took a long detour. Later, after talking to the director many times, she realized that the other party had seen her movie Embroidered Spring Knife 2. I hope that Ber Ber, who she played, can also have some chivalry and Jianghu spirit. I hope that Ber Ber’s eyes are not weak, but as sharp as knives. Director Wang Jiawei told her that "Flowers of Flowers" is actually not a romantic film, nor a commercial film. Where there are people, there are rivers and lakes. It is about the human feelings in the rivers and lakes. Xin Zhilei thinks it is more like a martial arts film.
▲ Ber Ber has sharp eyes.
Most of the cast of Flowers are Shanghai-born actors, who perform in Shanghai dialect. Xin Zhilei and her Ber Ber are the "exceptions" who speak Mandarin from beginning to end. Wang Jiawei joked with her that as the only northerner in Flowers, she had to shoulder the heavy responsibility of taking audiences outside Shanghai to see Flowers. Xin Zhilei said with a smile that she wouldn’t be under pressure, but she could understand the feeling that the director wanted. When filming, the crew members, including the director, spoke Shanghainese, and she obviously felt a sense of alienation and separation that she couldn’t blend in geographically. But the director told her that what he wanted was this feeling. He didn’t need Ber Ber to learn Shanghainese, even if Li Li could speak it. "This has something to do with Ber Ber’s character setting. She’s not here to blend in. She’s here to upset huanghe road and show people here how northerners do business."
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Ber Ber’s clothes are armor, and many times they are also strong.
In Flowers, Ber Ber, the proprietress of Zhizhen Garden, is a beautiful scenery on the Yellow River. But Xin Zhilei said that she was particularly afraid that the character described in the script was very beautiful. She had a similar problem when she played "Ruyi’s Royal Love in the Palace" before. In that play, she played Jin Yuyan, the imperial concubine of Shujia, and the script was written as "the first beauty in the harem". "I can play women with different personalities, but how can I play her gorgeous?" In Xin Zhilei’s view, Ber Ber in Flowers is far from himself in terms of tone of voice, way of walking, and smile. "In the past, people might think that I was like that in a magazine photo, or just like some characters in a play. The audience who have seen variety shows now will find that the real me is not like that, so it is actually quite difficult for me to play the role of a beautiful woman. "
▲ There are many kinds of customs in Ber Ber.
Xin Zhilei believes that among the roles he has played, the one closest to his personality is the blossoming of Haitang. Joy of Life described Haitang blossoming like a village girl, which is not good-looking, but her eyes are smart. "Haitang blossoming careless at ordinary times, is very unlike an ancient people. At first glance, I thought it was very suitable for me, and I didn’t have to play it. " She doesn’t feel like Ber Ber in Flowers, but she thinks to herself, "The director dares to use me as a beautiful woman, why can’t I?"? Since the director chose me, it must be that I have something he wants to present. " The makeup of Flowers also gave her great confidence. After finishing the makeup, she was even amazed. I didn’t expect that I could be so beautiful.
In the play, almost every episode of Ber Ber will change a different costume style, which also presents a different beauty. Xin Zhilei revealed that she tried hundreds of clothes at the beginning of the fitting, and she liked every one left in the end, but the one that Ber Ber wore in black and plain in 1992 was her favorite. Because that’s the real Ber Ber who doesn’t dress up deliberately. At other times, beautiful clothes are like Ber Ber’s armor. She needs to wear different armor to fight. "Ber Ber is a woman with a story and a secret. If it weren’t for her obsession, she wouldn’t have come to huanghe road to muddy the waters. Many times, she is not as strong as others see, but she is actually holding on. "
▲ Xin Zhilei likes Ber Ber’s clothes in 1992 best.
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Wong Kar-wai’s cooperation is painful and happy, and he knows more about femininity after playing Flowers.
Wang Jiawei is famous for his slow filming, which is a great challenge to actors. The shooting experience of "Flowers" is almost exactly the same as Xin Zhilei’s expectation. The script has been revised all the time, and the actor will be particularly uncertain if he doesn’t have a very comprehensive character image. "I don’t know if I’m playing right when I play every day, so it will be particularly painful. I really took three years to know the ending of Ber Ber. Before this, it was in the director’s mind, and none of us knew. " When the film breaks down in the middle, she will go to see an interview with the "Wong Kar-wai Victims Alliance" (an actor who played Wong Kar-wai’s play). When she sees that the film winner is also tortured and crying, she feels that this is nothing. Let’s continue filming.
However, the actors also gained a lot from filming Wong Kar-wai’s play. Ber Ber in Flowers is the first time that Xin Zhilei completely divorced himself to create a role. "I am not from a performance class, and I often go to find some similar places and resonance points with the characters. But "Flowers" is a very special attempt, and I completely abandoned some of my previous habits of acting. Including Ber Ber’s walking posture and the angle she used to act, I would never have thought of it before. I really didn’t know it until I played "Flowers". Oh, it turned out that acting like this was ok. " Looking back at the role of Ber Ber, Xin Zhilei said that although it was not very successful, she was quite satisfied with her performance.
Speaking of this collaboration with director Wong Kar-wai, Xin Zhilei described it as "painful and happy", but he was happier after all. "The director shot the most beautiful side of my age, and maybe it is also the most beautiful side of my entire acting career. So some so-called torture and suffering in the process are nothing. " Xin Zhilei’s previous roles were mostly rigid. Wang Jiawei hoped that her walking could reflect the charm of women in that era, so she specially invited a teacher to teach her to dance, so that she could practice her figure softer. After the filming of Flowers, she said with emotion when chatting with the director that she only felt like a woman before, but never felt like a woman. After the filming of Flowers, it seemed that she understood what femininity was for the first time. "I feel that I can be more feminine when I walk down the red carpet in the future."
