preface
When it comes to Ma Weijun, many people's first reaction is "Japanese devil". His interpretation of the image of the Japanese army is deeply rooted in the hearts of the people, and every time he appears, he makes the audience angry. This "ghost professional" recently died of illness in Japan, and many people were reluctant to leave the scene.
Ma Weijun ignited the national memory in his own way, and he used the most intense "villain" acting skills to awaken the righteousness and common hatred in the audience's heart. Perhaps many people do not know Ma Weijun as a person, but they must know the image of Japanese officers he created.
This article hopes to tell the story of Ma Weijun to show how an actor practices patriotism in his own way, and how he finds his place in the film and television industry with a heart that loves culture.
1. Each of his "Japanese devils" is hateful
In 2023, Ma Weijun died of illness in Japan at the age of 67. As soon as this news came out, many viewers were distressed. "The professional who plays Japanese devils is gone, where can I find such a person with acting skills in the future?" Netizens commented.
Ma Weijun can be said to be one of the most Japanese actors in China. In his acting career, he played the role of a Japanese officer for more than eighty percent. In 2014, starred in the anti-Japanese war romantic drama "My Name is Liu Legend". In 2015, he participated in the movie "Guild War" as Daisaku Nomura, the TV series "My Brother is Called Shunyo" as the captain of the Japanese Matsui Wing, and the movie "Snow Leopard" as Fumi Konoe...
In 2016, he starred in the ancient legendary drama "Return to the Ming Dynasty to be the King of Yang Ling", playing Ma Yicheng. In the same year, he starred in the anti-Japanese war drama "The Rescuer" co-directed by Liu Tao and Hao Wanjun, playing Fujiwara Shiro.
In 2017, he participated in the Chinese western movie "Against the Road"...
In 2021, the medical drama "Deep Breath Together" was broadcast.
In 2022, the realist drama "The World" will be broadcast. In the same year, he played Yang Kaitai in the TV series "People by the Canal You"...
In his acting career, the most impressive to the audience are:
"Yuji Yauchi" in the TV series "Band of Chinese Brothers", a cruel and bloodthirsty Japanese army officer. Ma Weijun's eyes were gloomy, and he always emitted a poisonous gas, and just sitting there was chilling.
"Sakata Noriichi" in the movie "My Name is Liu Legend" is even more treacherous and cunning, and he can't get by with the male protagonist. Ma Weijun interpreted it as a big evil man who made people itch their teeth.
"Ma Weijun's eyes and acting skills are really powerful, I get angry when I see him, he is too good at acting." Audience member Ms. Li sighed.
Even Ma Weijun once met a vegetable seller who recognized him as a "Japanese devil" and said that she would not sell him any vegetables. This further shows that the "villain" image he plays has been deeply rooted in the hearts of the people.
Second, he knows Japanese culture very well and makes the characters more three-dimensional
Why can Ma Weijun interpret the Japanese language movements so realistically? This is really related to Japan.
In the 80s of last century, Ma Weijun stayed in Japan for ten years in order to learn acting. During Japan, he also married a Japanese-Chinese wife and lived in Japan.
"Ma Weijun can be said to be a 'mixed race' of China and Japan." Director Zheng Hong commented.
The long-term immersion in living in Japan has allowed Ma Weijun to fully understand the Japanese living customs, thinking patterns and even words and deeds. This helped him greatly in later shaping the role of the Japanese army.
"He plays the arrogant tone of the Japanese, even if the real Japanese talk is not as realistic as him." Netizens praised.
In fact, Ma Weijun also thought about changing roles, and he also starred in several positive characters. But because his "devil" image is too deeply rooted in people's hearts, it will make the audience feel that the characters do not match.
III. The Dream of Literature and Art Begins as a Teenager He regards acting as his life
In order to portray a character three-dimensional and vivid, the actor must have excellent acting skills. And Ma Weijun's acting road actually began to pave the way when he was a teenager.
In 1956, Ma Weijun was born into an ordinary family. He grew up loving literature and art and had missed college, but during turbulent times, he had to abandon his studies and work in a pharmaceutical factory.
The monotony of the factory made him feel bored. In order to realize his artistic dream, Ma Weijun left the pharmaceutical factory, was admitted to the Lanzhou Repertory Theater, and officially entered the road of performance.
In the drama troupe, Ma Weijun has to train for more than 12 hours a day and has practiced basic skills in a solid manner. He also worked in the Sichuan Cultural Troupe for many years and accumulated rich stage experience.
"I heard the older generation say that Ma Weijun was particularly diligent and his acting skills improved rapidly." Young actor Li Qiang said.
In order to improve his acting skills, the 49-year-old Ma Weijun returned to Japan to study acting for ten years, which laid the foundation for his later emergence in the film and television industry. Ma Weijun regards performance as his life and always maintains a strong enthusiasm for learning.
4. Always keep a low profile and be modest and regard money as dung
Ma Weijun gives the impression of being low-key, modest and focused on work. He is not like some celebrities who like to play tricks, and he never sells artists off-camera.
"On the set, Mr. Ma likes to sit quietly alone, and then enter the role after waiting." Li Hong recalled.
Even Ma Weijun's social media shows that his last Weibo post was in 2016, which shows how low-key he lives.
For money, Ma Weijun also disdained. He never talks about remuneration when he takes on plays, and he has never cared about the remuneration of written scripts. Teacher Ma regards money as dung, which is really rare in the entertainment industry.
Director Zhang Hong has collaborated with Ma Weijun on many plays. He said that in addition to Mr. Ma's acting skills, the most rare thing is his character. "The entertainment industry needs more quality people like Teacher Ma."
5. The spirit of dedication and performing arts will always be passed on
In his later years, Ma Weijun was critically ill with throat cancer and had difficulty speaking and eating. Even so, he still worked with his illness, but he didn't want to delay the crew's progress.
The TV series "The World" released this year is the last work of Mr. Ma's life. That love and dedication to acting moved everyone.
"Mr. Ma is a role model for our industry, and his spirit will always inspire future generations." Director Du Haibin wrote.
Some experts have analyzed that the reason why Ma Weijun suffered from throat cancer is largely because he has a long-term drinking habit. This is also a wake-up call for everyone's health.
Ma Weijun stuck to his dream of acting all his life and lit the screen with the brightest part of his life. In his own way, he interpreted what it means to love and persist. This is also the most precious spiritual wealth he left to future generations.
epilogue
Ma Weijun interpreted countless images of the Japanese army with a child's heart, evoking the sense of justice and patriotism in the audience's heart. He has been a low-key artist all his life, regards acting as his life, and practices his artistic dream with the strongest belief.
Although we will no longer see the hateful Japanese devil played by Mr. Ma. But the acting spirit he left behind will inspire more latecomers to persist in love, dedication and focus on the road of acting. This is Ma Weijun's greatest contribution to this industry.