Beijing-style TV dramas, from the last century's "Four Generations in the Same House" and "Year", to the later "Little Woman under Zhengyangmen", "Love Full of Siheyuan", and then to the recent "Outside the Drum Tower" can be said to be in the same line.
It not only expresses the joys and sorrows, joys and sorrows, joys, sorrows and reunions between the native Beijingers, but also conveys the "old principles" of the Chinese people in their blood, such as "people are poor and their ambitions are not short" and "Scholars can kill." Not to be humiliated", "Children do not think mothers are ugly, dogs do not think poor families", "Every man is responsible for the rise and fall of the world", "Heaven is healthy, and a gentleman strives for self-improvement."
Perhaps because Beijing has hundreds of years of capital history, it has long been the center of Chinese politics and culture, and embodies various characteristics of the behavior and values of the Chinese nation, so what people see in the Beijing flavor is the "soul" of Chinese culture. , is the kind of arrogance and righteousness inherent in the Chinese people, and the kind of "model" between the Chinese people's words and deeds.
This is also an important reason why Beijing-style TV dramas have always had a strong cultural heritage and resonated widely with audiences.
The "Beyond the Drum Tower" that is currently being broadcast is also part of the Beijing-style cultural pedigree. It still uses a group of Beijingers in the hutongs to tell the "old management" of Beijingers and the "old management" of Chinese people: Honesty comes first , and is expensive.
"Beyond the Drum Tower" is another masterpiece of Beijing-style opera by Wang Zhili, the screenwriter of "Little Woman under Zhengyang Gate" and "Love Full of Siheyuan". In a sense, it can also be regarded as his "Beijing-style trilogy". The "old man" of culture.
The hits of the three dramas all show that the simpler the truth, the more it is necessary to cross thousands of rivers and mountains to obtain it.
"Beyond the Drum Tower" began with the carpenter master Yi Dachuan's examination of his apprentices, showing the character background of the four brothers and sisters, and also opened up the emotional "contest" around the master's granddaughter Yi Xiaochuan.
After that, Yin Dongyi was jealous and sent his senior brother Yu Zhongsheng to prison by mistake.
Several families, couples of lovers, young and old, were all involved in this grievance.
In the end, thanks to Zhong Sheng's efforts, the big family of Shimen forgave Yin Dongyi's past and let him return from his lost way; Zhong Sheng and Xiaochuan got married after going over mountains and mountains.
In the master's teaching of "Responsible for others first, forgive others before forgiveness", the play has completed the sublimation of the "old principle" of "harmony is precious".
Yu Zhongsheng and Yin Dongyi, as the pros and cons of "Lao Li'er", proved that "if you use your heart to be right, you can make a group move; if you use your heart to deceive, you can make up a hundred points and lose a thousand points."
"Old Li'er" is often said to be always new, which is also the cultural value of Beijing-style TV dramas such as "Beyond the Drum Tower", and the meaning of the audience's understanding.
In terms of creation, "Beyond the Drum Tower" can be said to be a skilled mass melodrama.
From the "examination" of master and apprentice at the beginning to the subsequent house collapse accident, the strong plot of "a stone stirred up a thousand waves" opened up the conflict and drama of the whole play.
The death of Yu Zhongsheng's father caused family conflicts, Xiaochuan's unintended pregnancy and the complicated relationship brought about by giving birth to Zhongsheng's child privately, the love between Zhongsheng and Xiaochuan was wrong, Yin Dongyi's yin and yin violations, and yin tricks appeared one after another. The arrogant intervention of various rich "bosses" has become the driving force for the dramatic conflict in TV dramas.
This kind of strong plot mode, although it affects the realism of some works to some extent, has fully completed the mission of "education and entertainment" in film and television art.
In terms of artistic presentation, the Beijing flavor of the play came to me.
Drum towers, hutongs, old neighborhoods, courtyards, large courtyards, especially those antiques from the Ming and Qing dynasties, and wooden wares of the Ming and Qing dynasties, not only show the taste of Beijing, but also have a cultural heritage value of "Jianbao".
The protagonist in the play is a "carpenter" master and apprentice. The Chinese woodware culture and craftsmanship, which were rarely presented in TV dramas in the past, are vividly displayed here.
The audience also saw the breadth and depth of Chinese woodware craftsmanship and the Chinese temperament in woodware culture. In the transmission of various environments and atmospheres of old Beijing, woodware culture is a new breakthrough in the Beijing-style theme of this TV series.
"Material heritage" and "intangible heritage", along with the way and concept of Chinese people's behavior, together constitute the Beijing flavor and Chinese spirit of this TV series.
"Outside the Drum Tower" has many characters, complex scenes, and a time span of many years. It reflects a rigorous and serious attitude in production, and the presentation of the environment is basically accurate.
Coupled with accurate photography, smooth editing, and complete sound design, the production quality and finish of the show are guaranteed.
Although there are differences in the richness and three-dimensionality of the different characters in the play, there is still room for improvement in the integration between each character's intrinsic motivation and the dramatic skills of the melodrama, and the breadth and depth of realism can be further expanded. , but the play is still another important harvest of Beijing-style TV dramas. It conveys the Chinese cultural spirit of "keeping the righteousness in the heart" in a popular form, and presents the beautiful Chinese craftsmanship that integrates aesthetics and practicality. Another valuable exploration and another creative sample of "telling Chinese stories well".
(Author: Yin Hong, Professor of Tsinghua University, Vice Chairman of China Film Association, Vice Chairman of China Literature and Art Critics Association)