"Mui Yanfang": The white depiction of "I" behind the stage and the profile of the peak of Hong Kong entertainment

Author: Peng Xiaochun

Jiang Zhiqiang's biographical film "Mei Yanfang" produced by Jiang Zhiqiang and directed by Liang Lemin has recently been a hit, different from the previous film and television works of the same theme, this film is simplified and simplified, does not write the starry scenery in front of the stage, and Mei Yanfang, who is inked behind the stage, crosses the curtain and walks into her own personal space behind the stage.

Poster of the movie "Mei Yanfang"

Star-studded bystanders

The film uses a large number of video materials from that year, one of the functions is to remember, and the second role is to watch. Mei Yanfang, who took off her makeup behind the stage, is not a bystander. Both a witness and a bystander, this dual identity deepens Mei Yanfang's loneliness. And there is a character who has been accompanying Mei Yanfang from front of the stage to behind the stage, which is Eddie.

Costume designer Liu Peiji Eddie, whose prototype is the only heir not related by blood in the distribution of Mei Yanfang's estate, determines the reason why the film chose the character of Liu Peiji. In Liu Peiji's autobiography, it is also mentioned that Mei Yanfang behind the stage is in a state of loneliness. In front of the stage is "a hundred changes in the queen of heaven" Anita, a legend of a hundred responses, but behind the stage is just an ordinary person named Mei Yanfang, alone. The very personalized costume has become an important condition for Mei Yanfang to go from behind the stage to the front of the stage, and the designer of the costume, Liu Peiji, seems to be the curtain opener of the stage curtain, dressing up Mei Yanfang behind the stage and sending the queen of heaven to the front of the stage.

The first scene in which Eddie and Mei Yanfang meet seems to be an image packaging for the artist, but he asks about Mei Yanfang's emotional experience, which touches the emotional topic of the heart, making the character of Eddie belong to the back of the stage from the beginning, and has always been a supporter behind the scenes, existing to portray the heart and emotion of "me" behind the stage. He designed the costume to send Mei Yanfang to the front of the stage, but the costume itself is the interpretation of Mei Yanfang's own personality, the personality of the costume is the externalization of the "I" behind the stage, these designs are inspired by Liu Peiji's understanding of Mei Yanfang, the costume is like a medium connecting the front and back of the stage, Liu Peiji stands behind the stage, looking at Mei Yanfang's soul from the perspective of the people behind the scenes.

The film does not portray Eddie as a witness to Anita's journey from a rising star to a generation of divas, but as a listener. Through Eddie's perspective, the film presents the loss of Mui Yanfang after the breakup with Yuki, avoiding the confusion and thinking of Thailand, and the soft and sensual Mei Yanfang wearing a wedding dress. Lonely and lonely, the "I" behind the stage outside the spotlight is the main image portrayed in the film. In terms of rhythm, the plot and action are not tight, like narrative prose, not rushing to outline Mei Yanfang after the introduction.

The so-called white painting is to bring the extremely important "overnight fame" through two or three scenes. What a beautiful debut moment, but the film does not create excitement and passion, in the song of "blowing, blowing, let this wind blow", the scene is yellowed, as if opening an old photo album, with old images to take the audience to remember the past. As for the interpersonal relationship surrounded by Mei Yanfang's stars after becoming famous, it is simply blank. When she is behind the stage, the bustle in front of the stage becomes a disturbance, not because of interpersonal troubles, but because of the separation - with lovers, with relatives, with friends, can only rely on herself to survive, no one can replace it. Mei Yanfang, who cooks a meal and waits for her lover to come home, Mei Yanfang, who comforts her sister who is seriously ill, and Mei Yanfang, who is hiding in Thailand and thinking about the world, are all Mei Yanfang who has no spotlight, no shouting, and no accompaniment.

Silhouette of a generation of divas

After all, Anita is a generation of divas, her heart may be soft but not fragile, and she is even more stubborn on the road to pursuing an acting career, and Mei Gu's biography cannot be less than the portrayal of her acting career. For the career development behind the stage, the film selects several representative characters, and throughout the film is Mr. Su, the general manager of Huaxing Records, who is the guide of Mei Yanfang's debut.

"The slow singing is a sigh... "The song is about rebellion" is a short but powerful reference. Mr. Su plays the role of a master on Mei Yanfang's growth path, dragging Anita forward. In each of Mei Yanfang's relationships, Eddie patiently listened, and Mr. Su was timely and alert. As a generation of divas, Mei Yanfang's pursuit of emotions and cherishing her career often pull her, and every reminder of Mr. Su is reinforcing Mei Yanfang's helplessness as a diva. When arranging the concert, Mr. Su and Mei Yanfang sat together in the audience of the gymnasium, and Mr. Su left the stadium after saying the words of vigilance, and the huge venue, empty seats full of pictures, only Mei Yanfang was left. Behind the stage, countless empty seats trapped Mei Yanfang like shackles, and compared with the people who had placed many expectations on her, her personal emotions were as small as her proportions in the picture, too small to stretch.

Hard work, hard work, hard work... These words that everyone can use are not enough to describe Mei Yanfang behind the stage, and the film will describe the career development as "difficult". Between emotion and career, sensibility and reason, the personal space of the queen of heaven is not only lonely and lonely, but also endlessly difficult. If you want to find a way out of the difficulty, you can't help but make a choice.

When Mei Yanfang stood on the stage in a wedding dress and sang "Song of the Sunset", the viewer could already know Mei Yanfang's choices in those years. Whether it is active or passive is not important, circumstances dictate. As a diva, some things will be easier to get than others, and some things will be easier to lose. Whether it is Yuki or Aben, as the queen of heaven, Anita did not go to the end with them, but as Mei Yanfang, she still spent a time with them that is worth remembering, although the time is as short as the sunset.

On the banks of the Xiangjiang River stands a statue called "Daughter of Hong Kong", and the love and remembrance of Hong Kong people for Mui Yanfang is self-evident. In the film, Hong Kong became the background of Mui Yanfang's growth, and the golden age of the Hong Kong entertainment industry was the small background of her development.

A profile of the peak of Hong Kong entertainment

To tell the story of Mui Yanfang, it is impossible to avoid the Hong Kong entertainment industry, and Mei Gu's brilliant life is inextricably linked to the golden age of Hong Kong entertainment. The draft is a very topical way to become famous in the golden age of Hong Kong entertainment, and Mui Yanfang's contemporaries or even earlier, countless gorgeous female artists stand out in the "Miss Hong Kong". Mui Yanfang won the championship in the "First Rookie Singing Competition" and became famous, which can be described as a representative of hong Kong's entertainment industry.

The brilliance of Mui Yanfang is also the golden age of Hong Kong performing arts. In the 1980s, there were "three kings and one queen", and in the 90s, there were "four kings", and creative and performing talents in the performing arts industry continued to emerge, and the stage was lively. The popular songs in East and Southeast Asia, the martial arts genre films that have influenced Hollywood, and the many stars who still evoke the memories of mainland fans have jointly forged the peak of Hong Kong's entertainment industry. Hong Kong filmmakers have gone north, and recalling Mui Yanfang, the "daughter of Hong Kong", is not a remembrance of Hong Kong's golden age?

The complex political environment and historical background have given Hong Kong an urban environment that is difficult to clarify, especially in the Hong Kong entertainment industry. The "KTV incident" that forced Mui Yanfang to leave her hometown was caused by the complicated background of the Hong Kong entertainment industry. In addition, in the wave of immigration on the eve of Hong Kong's return to the motherland, many entertainers fled abroad. The film's interview video asks "Where will you be in 1997", and Mui Yanfang replies "Will be in Hong Kong", she undoubtedly represents a showbiz with a sense of family and country.

The film looks back on Mei Yanfang's brilliant life in a restrained way, not depicting the complicated showbiz known to the public, but starting from the perspective of Liu Peiji and Mr. Su, breaking through the glitzy fog and showing Mei Yanfang's loneliness and struggle behind the stage. Such remembrance is better than the praise of heavy ink.

(The author is a master of radio and television studies from the School of Arts, Peking University)

Source: Guangming Network - Literary And Art Review Channel