The Watershed of the Gods: A Chinese Odyssey has become a network cultural phenomenon.
1992, "Tang Bohu Dianchouxiang" was released in the mainland, which was the first Stephen Chow film to officially enter the mainland market. The audience was originally prepared to watch Gong Li's reenactment of the classic film San Xiao, but they accidentally came into contact with the headless culture from Hongkong. Those who don't adapt leave immediately without looking, and some people like it very much. "Tong Pak Hu Dian Qiu Xiang" is at the box office, and 1993 has entered the list of Shanghai's top ten blockbusters. However, at that time, the mainland media did not appreciate Stephen Chow very much. A newspaper commented: "The film is seriously divorced from the reality of life, its content is false and absurd, its actors' performances are superficial, its characters are completely distorted, and disgusting scenes abound, lacking the proper aesthetic feeling. "
1994 A Chinese Odyssey is to be co-produced with Xi 'an Film Studio. Xiying Factory, which has been making art films, didn't like the script, but it cooperated with Stephen Chow considering its commercial appeal. At that time, Zhang Zien, the deputy director, felt that this film could not represent the artistic pursuit of Xiyingchang, but could only be regarded as "cultural rubbish".
The commercial performance of A Chinese Odyssey was not good after its release. Hong Kong audiences generally think that this film is messy and difficult to understand. In the end, the box office in Hong Kong was HK$ 25.32 million, which was lower than the average in Stephen Chow's works. Filmmakers in Taiwan Province Province also complained bitterly that they "lost a lot of money and had no confidence in the future of Stephen Chow". The lowest income is in the mainland, and the audience reacted indifferently, and many of them quit halfway. In some places, cinemas don't want copies of the second half of the film at all.
No one knows that a carnival is brewing in the bleak. According to the textual research of A Chinese Odyssey, it was the students of Beijing Film Academy who first praised it. 1996, a Chinese odyssey ended the downturn of cinema screening and sent a copy to Beijing Film Academy, which immediately won full applause. Students who are used to traditional film expressions are shocked when they first come into contact with nonsense and time travel. They began to look around for scripts, recite movie lines and study the meaning of Moonlight Box. Some people began to watch and ponder movies repeatedly through pirated VCD.
It is the science man in Tsinghua University who really plays the role of communication. Xiao Gang, a computer major in Tsinghua who enrolled from 65438 to 0996, recalled that there was a strong literary atmosphere on the BBS of Shuimu Tsinghua at that time, and there were often some film reviews about rare literary films. 1997 After the National Day, he found that someone posted some irrelevant words in Tsinghua, Shui Mu: "There was a true love in front of me, and I didn't cherish it. I regretted it when I lost it. " "Moonlight box is a treasure. If you throw it away, it will pollute the environment. " Xiao Gang didn't understand until someone told him that it was the line of Stephen Chow's film A Chinese Odyssey. Xiaogang hurried to the night market to buy cam-, and went to a classmate's house in Beijing with some classmates to watch it. After watching the movie, the students were deeply impressed by Stephen Chow. They think there are still many classic Taiwanese words in the movie, so on weekends, everyone gathers to watch cam- and write down their lines together. Several people have a clear division of labor, some are responsible for pressing the play and pause buttons, some are responsible for listening, some are responsible for shorthand, and the written lines must be transmitted to BBS. This behavior of pasting lines is even contested by rivers and lakes, and several people are doing it. At first, students competed to see who posted more lines, but later it became a dictation script, and some people recorded scenes and actions outside the lines.
Tsinghua students' obsession with the Chinese Odyssey made them "escape" to other university forums to continue posting and popularize the Chinese Odyssey. According to Xiao Gang's memory, "By the end of 1998, if a classmate in Beijing said he didn't know these lines, he would easily be regarded as a monster."
The crazy popularity from Tsinghua has finally made a Chinese Odyssey a ritual and symbol on campus. Students use screen names such as Supreme Treasure, Xia Zi and Laozi in campus forums, which leads to complicated prefixes and numbers, such as "Xia Zi with thermos in Building 3". The most popular way for college students to speak is to embed the lines of a Chinese Odyssey into every scene in their lives. Suddenly it thundered outside the classroom, and I wanted to shout, "It thundered! It is raining! Take clothes! " When you are asked for something, you will tirelessly recite: "Do you want it? If you want to talk, how do I know you want to ... "
1999 is the prosperous period of online discussion on a Chinese Odyssey. At the peak, there were forty or fifty websites about a Chinese Odyssey. In June, 2000, the graduating class of China Renmin University watched A Chinese Odyssey as the graduation ceremony. This is the so-called "collective memory" and "generation love", just like Tayu Lo's university campus in the 1980s and Jin Yong in the early 1990s.
Wearing a yellow robe: "post-modernism deconstruction"
In 2000, Zhang Lixian (editor-in-chief of the reading library) and others compiled a collection of Chinese Odyssey, which collected online novels about Chinese Odyssey (the Scholars), film reviews, cultural analysis of Stephen Chow films, and even star files of each starring role. What the editors are most proud of is that they found Shi Banyu, who provided music for Stephen Chow, and had a serious interview with People. Today, it is more like a pure and crazy fan scrapbook, and articles by Liu Chun and columnist Lian Yue, who later became famous media people, are included in it. The first edition of this book was robbed of 20 thousand copies, and bookstores all over the country were out of stock.
Zhang Lixian wrote in the preface: "Some people say that the new generation was poisoned by a Chinese odyssey, but these new people who were poisoned by a Chinese odyssey made such an answer:' … We are smarter than the previous generation, and human beings are constantly renewing themselves. We are energetic because we are new. When we are old, I hope to see a beautiful China after we finish it with our own hands ...' "
The evaluation of A Chinese Odyssey can lead to words such as "wisdom" and "beautiful China". How to evaluate Stephen Chow is an important indicator to judge the different values of two generations at the turn of the century.
After interviewing Peking University students, China Reading Newspaper 200 1 explained the popularity of A Chinese Odyssey: "Students have a certain language pattern under the influence of teachers in middle schools, and it is impossible for them to directly use the social language of adults after entering universities, so there is a process of lacking this language. They are eager to find a language to express themselves and their new life in college ... The ridiculous language of A Chinese Odyssey is hitting it off with the students at this time? Close. "
Another common interpretation is to link Stephen Chow's popularity with the Internet age: "Stephen Chow's freewheeling way of speaking and acting also coincides with the aesthetic standard of the online crowd: freedom is supreme. At the same time, the non-hierarchical society advocated in the film, such as Tang Yan's disrespect for teachers, just fits in with the living conditions of today's network. Without power discourse, everyone is a communicator and an audience. " In more online film reviews, young people pay more attention to the emotional elements in movies: the struggle of small people and their loyalty to love.
In this trend, some academic intellectuals also generously expressed their love for Stephen Chow, and more complicated interpretations followed. In June, 2000, Xia Xueluan, a sociology professor in Peking University (at the age of 56), talked with six young people under the age of 30 about Stephen Chow. He mentioned the concept of deconstruction: "the first one deconstructs the relationship between master and apprentice, the second one deconstructs the relationship between man and god, the third one deconstructs the relationship between time and space, and the fourth one deconstructs the relationship between life and death." One that has not been deconstructed is love and the other is faith. "
The viewpoint that "A Chinese Odyssey is a deconstruction of post-modernism", which was frequently mentioned later, has basically matured at this time. In an article entitled "Looking at Postmodern Culture from Stephen Chow Phenomenon", Stephen Chow's postmodern image was written from the western postmodern thoughts, like an academic paper. However, when Stephen Chow was interviewed by Yang Lan, he directly said that he didn't understand complicated theories: "I don't know a lot of things" and "they saw things that I couldn't see".
200 1, Stephen Chow boarded the lecture hall of Peking University to communicate with students. The media also followed up and reported the "Wulitou Culture". In the massive media and online discussions, the "over-interpretation" of Stephen Chow is obvious. There is a joke like this: "Stephen Chow surfed the Internet and finally knew what a Chinese odyssey meant."
Slowly fall off the "altar"
Attentive star fans will find that since shaolin soccer, the funny elements in those weeks have been exaggerated, just for fun. Speaking of kung fu, it's simple.
I don't know what to say about this kind of exaggeration. It has always been, and it has always been the westward journey of the enchanted mermaid. Just watch more gimmicks than jokes. Why is there such a big difference compared with the movie of the week before 1996? It is precisely because the screenwriter of a movie is very important that the screenwriter of Zhou's classic movies is written by others. Since "shaolin soccer" began to work alone, he has been involved in the screenwriter himself, and a sudden change in style is inevitable. Because he came out to work hard at the age of 65,438+08, his cultural literacy is very limited. If he can make his own decision, he will naturally add what he takes for granted. Maybe his ability is only suitable for being an actor, but not a screenwriter and director, so it seems difficult, on average. Even so, he has white hair in his fifties. Taking "The Demon of Journey to the West" as the third part of his The Journey to the West trilogy, and posting many net sentences, Tsui Hark directed it, which shows that he is getting more and more at a loss. It's just that he was still acting, and his personal charm supported him. Everyone accepted his films out of fanatical love for him. After Zhou pulled out, he stopped acting and became a screenwriter and director. Although a movie was released only a few years ago, more and more people will gradually wake up. I've been waiting for years for a bad movie. This is not the original Stephen Chow. People think he is old. In fact, he was not old when he was in his prime, but he was too conceited to accept other people's scripts, and he was no longer willing to be a first-line actor, but to be a boss and director above others. Slowly, he began to fall from the "altar"-as he himself said: I am just an actor. Of course, now he is not an actor, but a director.
Speaking of Stephen Chow, I think you will inevitably think of the "nonsense" style of his films. This style basically runs through Stephen Chow's early and middle films, leaving a deep impression on him. That when it comes to "nonsense", everyone will immediately think of Stephen Chow in a conditioned way. Wulitou film is not originated by Stephen Chow, but it is a film type that is really recognized by people from Stephen Chow's films. "Wulitou" is also a common means to present comedy effect in Stephen Chow's comedy films. As a common saying in Cantonese, the word "Wulitou" originated in Foshan and other places in Guangdong. Its basic meaning means that there is no reason for an event or behavior, that is, someone has no purpose, centrality and logic in speaking and doing things. Generally speaking, it is nonsense and crazy. Therefore, in Stephen Chow's movies, Stephen Chow often plays a little bit crazy or even crazy. There is a lot of anti-hero sentiment in Stephen Chow's films. I am a nobody, dispelling heroes, which easily resonates with a large number of ordinary people. Originally, a comedian is a clown, similar to a clown in a circus who somersaults, wrestles, or makes faces and deludes himself to please the audience. That's why Zhou is rich and doesn't want to be a comedian when he becomes a boss.
There is nothing wrong with Zhou's "Wulitou" comedy film, but it is the adaptation of The Journey to the West flavor. His The Journey to the West trilogy, including "Big Talk", "Demon Journey to the West" and "Demon Journey to the West", is not only a disrespect for The Journey to the West's original work, but also a great contribution to Tang Yan (Tang Yan, who has a far-reaching influence on Buddhism in China and even the world, that is, Tang Yan) in China history. You know, the prosperity of Buddhism in the Tang Dynasty is inseparable from the Buddhist scriptures brought by Master Xuanzang from India, and the Buddhist scriptures brought by the master were translated into Chinese. Later, Buddhism prevailed in China in the Tang Dynasty. During the Tang Dynasty, Buddhism later spread to Korea and Japan in the east and Mongolia and Russia in the north. It has an extremely important position in the history of world culture. Master Xuanzang is proficient in Jing Zang, Lu Zang and On Zang. It is said that the Sanzang sage has the status of a bodhisattva, and is the founder of the Buddhism Faxiang Sect and the founder of the China Buddhism Zhizong Sect. According to historical records, Master Xuanzang predicted the time before he died, called his disciples to prepare for the funeral and made a reclining Buddha. On the fifth night, the disciple asked, "Will the monk give birth to Maitreya?" Answer. Decide to live. The words have expired. Up to now, two months have passed and my body is still in a deep sleep as usual. The emperor was buried in the White Pagoda in Bailuyuan, 40 miles away. Later, because the White Pagoda was too close to Candidian, it was reburied in Fan Chuan. Everyone sighed in amazement as soon as the coffin was dug up. Because of the long-term burial, the mage is as good as ever. In history, the six ancestors were incorruptible, and Master Xuanzang was also a bodhisattva. )
Zhou's The Journey to the West Trilogy, especially the disrespect for Tang Priest, can be said to darken and demonize the holy monk. No one will feel bad about hacking his three fictional disciples, because they are all empty people, but the real holy monk in the dark reality is too much. The CCTV version of Journey to the West does not dare to be black, because people respect the original, because the original is one of China's four classical novels. Wu Cheng'en didn't dare to be dark, because he knew that Master Xuanzang was a real holy monk, and he only dared to make up three disciples as wizards to ensure the success of Tang Priest. The Journey to the West takes a yogi as a story, and tells the story that he got rid of the three demons of greed and delusion, turned greed and delusion into abstinence, defeated foreign demons, and finally got back the true scriptures. This is a story about the true heart, devoted to the heart of Buddha (Tang Priest), overcoming apes (the Monkey King and other disciples) and Italian (white) and defeating foreign demons (eighty-one monsters). Mentoring is a whole. As a master, Tang Priest is a representative of kindness and kindness. The Monkey King is a sharp weapon to kill foreign demons, but we should also stop killing them (defeating apes), otherwise what's the difference with demons? Therefore, the Monkey King can't get rid of his hoop, which also shows that he and Tang Priest are two sides of a whole. The Tang Priest's mantra is to subdue his demons (the Monkey King), just like a monk trying to pull his heart back. He has to keep chanting to get stability and not be confused by the outside world. Because the Tang Priest is the only one in history to learn from Buddhism, and the so-called three disciples of the Monkey King are all representatives of his demons, just using the form of novels to make up. Pig is lustful and greedy for money. The Monkey King is fierce and stubborn (angry). Friar Sand is cruel and fierce (stupid). Greed, delusion and three poisons are the three dragons that practitioners want to surrender. In fact, they are the demons in his heart. Only by surrendering your heart can you defeat the external demons and finally achieve positive results. Therefore, there is no black Tang Priest in Wu Cheng'en, and there is no black westward journey, because Tang Priest's westward journey is a very unique Buddhist event, which has influenced the world for thousands of years, and he dare not be black. Therefore, people who have seen Zhou The Journey to the West's trilogy say that it is Zhou's self-righteous misinterpretation that best reflects the dark nature of the original work, because The Journey to the West's original work has no dark nature at all. If you can see the darkness, it means that your heart is dark, so you will misinterpret the journey to the west.
Because of Zhou Xiyou's great influence, he was guilty of black Tang Priest, so he also got the human newspaper, and his human newspaper was hacked. He was mobilized by Xiang Huaqiang, hacked by the entertainment stars who were related to him, and turned his former partners and stars against each other. Even his girlfriend, who had been with him for more than ten years, became an enemy after leaving him, and she was white-haired in her early 50 s. Now the trilogy of Journey to the West is even darker, and the ultimate destination of this karma is hell. So when you are a star, there are some things you should pay attention to, some things you can do and some things you can't do, especially in Hong Kong, a society that believes in God and Buddhism. He is too presumptuous. Doesn't he know how to respect saints? Or has he never read the original westward journey? Can saints joke about it? Here's a post for a six-year-old child: Oppose Guanyin and Tang Priest kissing and hugging.
Literature is flat, and it becomes three-dimensional after it becomes a film and television drama. Adaptation is not random, and joking is not nonsense. The adaptation of famous works has a bottom line, and it cannot change the main plot and the basic character of these characters. The CCTV version of Journey to the West, which I participated in, was also adapted. The Tang Priest and his disciples passed by the daughter country, and the king of the daughter country fell in love with Tang Priest and expressed deep admiration for him when he visited the Zen room. The Tang Priest was shocked: Ah, it's so beautiful! Then a cold sweat broke out on his forehead, but when he closed his eyes, "Amitabha", reason prevailed over emotion. The plot that is not in these novels is called adaptation, but we have a principle: be loyal to the original and be careful to renovate. Finally, the Tang Priest left without looking back, and the king of the daughter country sent him away with tears in his eyes. Imagine a one-night stand between Tang Priest and the king of his daughter country. Don't talk about the Monkey King and Pig Bajie. I'm afraid even Friar Sand will quit. So I don't think this is a problem that can be discussed, nor is it in the flowers. We are studying and communicating how to adapt world famous works, instead of discussing whether the Monkey King can get married and have children, whether Tang Priest has romantic love, whether Pig Bajie is a pervert, and Friar Sand may have a boring affair of polygamy. If four men and four women are more loyal to love than to learn from classics, it will fundamentally violate the original intention of this literary masterpiece. Master Xuanzang, the prototype of Tang Priest, was a famous Buddhist, translator and educator in the Tang Dynasty. Xuanzang's spirit has always been respected and respected, so I hope that the adaptors will be merciful and never make fun of or even spoof the masterpieces of their ancestors, so as to prevent some film and television dramas from losing their artistic morality and personality for commercial interests or temporary so-called ratings to satisfy the fun of a few people.
I remember once going to a primary school to give a lecture, and a little classmate asked me, "How many girlfriends does the Monkey King have?" I am speechless. The Journey to the West is a world-famous fairy tale, which has been deeply loved by readers at home and abroad for more than 400 years. The Journey to the West has about 100 versions in different languages all over the world. In 2004, the Year of the Monkey was also the 500th anniversary of the birth of novelist and literary master Wu Cheng'en. In recognition of the development of China's westward journey culture and the promotion of the Monkey King spirit by four generations of our family, the Chuzhou Municipal Government of Huai 'an, Jiangsu Province built a 2,700-square-meter "the Monkey King Family Art Museum" next to Wu Cheng'en's former residence (inscribed by Mr. Qi Gong). More than 350 cultural relics on display in the museum were donated by us. In my opinion, the Monkey King is a mythical figure and an idol of the Chinese nation. Don't think that myth can be nonsense, and adaptation is not random. A good work does not cater to the so-called temporary trend, but spans time and space and is proved by time.
China's unique art of monkey play is unique and self-contained. We welcome many countries to pay attention to our literary works, but we are opposed to the romance between Tang Yan and Wukong, or Guanyin and kisses and hugs of Tang Yan.
At the end of September, the filming of the 38-episode TV series "Wu Cheng'en" will begin soon. I played two roles, Wu Cheng'en and the Monkey King, and told the world: What did Wu Cheng'en write? Why write? Why is he the only one who can write Journey to the West? Meanwhile, the film The Journey to the West will start shooting next year, which can be described as China's "Journey to the West".
Thank you for your support!
Yesterday's Beijing Morning Post published an interview with Li Peisen, director of our China TV Production Center. He said, "We need to pay attention to shooting masterpieces. First, the threshold should be high, you can't shoot whoever you want, you must have strength. If the Water Margin is made into a underworld, we can't watch it. We suggest that the state set up four classic novel review groups, just like the major historical TV series review groups now. Second, do not be too market-oriented. When CCTV filmed Four Great Classical Novels, it was not to make money, and the artistic quality of education ranked first. The company's behavior was definitely for profit. However, we should also take into account the great influence of famous works. It is wrong to lose artistic charm for money. Third, you can't joke that proper artistic processing is necessary, but the Monkey King has become glib and completely meaningless, and that is not the Monkey King. " I quite agree with Director Li's point of view. As early as the mid-1990s, I said that there were not many world famous works in China, and the state wanted to protect them through legislation. Now the leaders of the Ministry of Radio, Film and Television have begun to pay attention to this matter, and have successively filmed some TV dramas with the theme of joking and telling famous works. I think we should take this problem more seriously in the future. Let a hundred flowers blossom is not an adaptation of the essence of the original work. I hope that all netizens and friends will pay attention to this phenomenon.
In the near future, I will put more energy into Wu Cheng'en and the world. I want to thank all the audience who wrote to me. I will reply to you after I finish the play.