The character of Duan Zhengchun, as soon as it is mentioned, reminds people of labels such as "love saint" and "playboy". But in fact, behind this external image, there is a very complex and charismatic character.
Different versions of Duan Zhengchun have different expressions, but they all try to show the complex inner world of this character. He is merciful everywhere, and every love is warm and sincere; On the other hand, he felt guilty and blamed himself for his actions.
He longs for freedom, but he also longs for a happy family; He was very intelligent, but he often lost himself.
Duan Zhengchun is good at words, and every sweet word can touch a woman's heart. But at the same time, his heart was also tormented. He knew that he couldn't keep any woman, but he still couldn't help falling in love again and again.
After love, he has to bear the pain of his girlfriend's desperate departure.
Every relationship that Duan Zhengchun has experienced has been shown to varying degrees in the version version. Some versions highlight that this is a suave and uninhibited love saint through his outward amorous image; Some versions focus more on portraying his inner sensitivity and vulnerability.
But all versions are trying to dig into the story behind this man who is glamorous on the outside and complex on the inside.
Therefore, Duan Zhengchun is a very charismatic character. Different versions of the character have their own emphasis, but they all show his complexity. By analyzing different eras and different interpretations, we can more fully understand the charm of this classic character.
In the first adaptation of the Tianlong Ba movie in 1977, the role of Duan Zhengchun was seriously adapted, and the result was quite regrettable.
Duan Zhengchun, played by Siwei, has become a villain who fled first and shirked his responsibilities in the play. He first seduced Duan Yanqing's wife Hongmian and caused her to become pregnant.
In order to get rid of the crime afterwards, he had no moral consciousness at all, but instead instigated Hongmian to lie and say that the child was Duan Yanqing's. In the end, he also used force to beat Duan Yanqing, who came to seek justice, to death.
It can be said that this version of the movie adapted Duan Zhengchun into a selfish, despicable and shameless negative man. He did not embody the temperament of a prince in the slightest, but exposed his ugly nature.
There is a huge difference from the original character design of the suave one.
At that time, the age of thinking was not young, and it was difficult to show the chic and unrestrained spirit of the young Duan Zhengchun. Coupled with the director's deliberate rendering of a negative image, this version of Duan Zhengchun is seriously out of the play, making it the most failed adaptation of all versions.
This shows that the character of Duan Zhengchun is difficult to control. If you deviate from the original character, it is easy to be adapted into a negative image and lose its original charm. We should still be more faithful to the original work in the subsequent adaptation and reproduce this fascinating classic character.
In the 1982 TVB version of Tianlong Babu, Xie Xian's Duan Zhengchun can be described as a stroke of genius and successfully presents the charm of this complex character.
Xie Xian, as a popular student, is very suitable for the young Duan Zhengchun. His eyes were shining, his eyebrows were thick, and he appeared on horseback in an upright posture, which immediately created a sense of oppression.
Especially when playing against Qiao Feng, his height is half a head taller than Qiao Feng, which adds to the majesty.
Xie Xian perfectly interprets Duan Zhengchun's seemingly high-ranking aristocratic temperament, and he is faintly uninhibited. His every move is shining with the brilliance of wisdom and charm, and he unfolds a flirtatious scene with many beauties in the play, fully restoring the romantic and suave in the original work.
At the same time, Xie Xian did not ignore the delicate and sensitive heart of this character. Sometimes his brows are furrowed, sometimes his eyes are resentful, and then he regains his smile, revealing the inner world of a smart but confused, free but sad man.
It can be said that this is the birth of the best section Jung-chun. Xie Xian vividly interpreted this classic role, presenting the audience with a flesh-and-blood Duan Zhengchun who is both inside and outside.
It is his successful interpretation that has achieved the classic status of this version of Tianlong Babu.
In the same year of 1982, Hong Kong also launched a movie version of Dragon Babu. However, due to the limitation of the length of the film, the portrayal of the character of Duan Zhengchun in this version of the film is relatively simplistic.
Lee Yong-gi played the role. He succeeded in creating a majestic and stable royal temperament, which is consistent with the original book. However, due to space limitations, the film focuses on portraying Duan Zhengchun's positive image, such as his assistance in fighting against the infidels and rescuing the trapped Duan Yu.
In contrast, the romantic and modest emotional stories of Zhengchun in the middle of the original book are rarely involved. This version of Duan Zhengchun gives the impression of being relatively thin and does not highlight the personality traits of this complex character.
Of course, this also has to do with the limitations of the art form of film itself. In about two hours, it is difficult to show a character who is full of contradictions and is rich on the outside and inside.
Therefore, this version of Duan Zhengchun can only be said to have a certain simplification of the original work, and more of the positive value of this character is retained. But it does not present the complete image of the merry county son and rich emotions in the original book.
We also need to look for a more vivid and three-dimensional adaptation of this character in other versions.
In the 90s, the Taiwanese version of the Tianlong Babu TV series found the powerful actor Fan Rixing to play Duan Zhengchun. This is a relatively successful attempt at adaptation.
As an old drama bone, Fan Rixing has a strong role-playing ability. He combined his experience and understanding to portray Duan Zhengchun's aristocratic demeanor well.
There is majesty between the eyebrows, and many girls in the play start the drama of you and me, which has a kind of romantic charm of its own.
This version of the TV series is also relatively faithful to the original work, retaining many typical plots of Duan Zhengchun. Fan Rixing successfully interpreted his multiple personalities of intelligence, humor and childishness.
However, this version of Duan Zhengchun is a little simple in terms of clothing, and it is difficult to show the distinctive characteristics of a rich and noble son. Considering the production conditions at the time, this shortcoming is also quite understandable.
Overall, Fan Rixing's version of Duan Zhengchun is successful in terms of acting skills. There is a slight deficiency in costume styling due to production reasons, but it is already a relatively vivid and expressive adaptation.
This provides a high-quality performance reference for subsequent actors, and is a worthy part of the evolution of Duan Zhengchun's classic character image.
In 1997, TVB once again launched a new version of Tianlong Babu drama, this time with the popular student Pan Zhiwen playing the role of Duan Zhengchun.
Pan Zhiwen was nearly fifty years old at the time, but his performance of Duan Zhengchun had an unexpected youthful vitality. He smiled shyly and shyly, and when he met his ex-girlfriends again, his eyes showed a little boyish excitement and nervousness.
This youthful expression dilutes the negative impression of Duan Zhengchun's heart of the opposite sex and makes him more cute. This is also very in line with the performance style of Hong Kong drama Xiaosheng at that time, which left a deep impression on the hearts of the post-80s audience.
However, the slightly old appearance and the lack of free and easy demeanor are still a little different from the heroic Zhengchun prince in the original book. This version of Duan Zhengchun is more like a middle-aged man who is old and old, serious and nostalgic.
So this is an interesting and special attempt at Duan Zhengchun's adaptation. Pan Zhiwen not only retains the charm core of the classic character, but also adds his own new adaptation. Let the audience see another possible look of this character.
This also shows that a classic character can show a variety of personalities and multiple charms in the interpretation of different eras.
Entering the 21st century, the mainland has also launched its own Tianlong Ba TV series. In this version of the play in 2003, the role of Duan Zhengchun was played by Hong Kong veteran actor Tang Zhenzong.
Tang Zhenzong took this classic role to a new level. He is still in his prime, and the interaction with many beauties in the play is natural and vivid, which fully reflects the personality charm of the merry son.
His facial features are three-dimensional, his eyebrows are full of wisdom and emotion, and every micro-expression is accentuating that this is a well-informed and emotionally rich man. At the same time, his every move also reveals the uninhibited temperament of the royal nobles.
This version of the drama has also carefully processed Duan Zhengchun's costumes, and the horse coats and robes on different occasions match his status and status. This further highlights the dual nature of the character.
Ten years later, the mainland once again launched a new version of Tianlong Babu. This time, Duan Zhengchun is played by Liu Ximing.
But this time, Duan Zhengchun's image seems to have somewhat blurred the personality of the original character. Liu Ximing was already a little fat at that time, and with the big golden hair ornament on his head and the gorgeous robe he was wearing with gold threads, it gave people a somewhat greasy feeling.
This kind of overly gaudy appearance does not match Duan Zhengchun's introverted and humorous personality. It also can't reflect the image of a prince who has seen strong winds and waves and is independent in his heart.
On the contrary, it increases the character's pretentious and pretentious temperament.
At the same time, Liu Ximing did not show the wisdom and calmness of Duan Zhengchun. The key self-killing scenes are too protracted and do not impress the audience, which also shows the actors' lack of control over the rhythm of the plot.
So this time, Duan Zhengchun is relatively vague in terms of visual presentation and connotation portrayal, and does not highlight the unique personality of this classic character. We look forward to the subsequent adaptation returning to the original book and reshaping the original charm of this beloved character by the audience.
In 2021, the mainland will remake Tianlong Babu again, and this time Qiu Xinzhi will play the role of Duan Zhengchun. But the results are a little awkward.
Because Qiu Xinzhi was over half a hundred years old at that time, it was really difficult to match Duan Zhengchun in his youth. The suave style he wants to show is far from the former playboy character, but very abrupt and contrived.
At the same time, Qiu Xinzhi also failed to accurately grasp the inner details of this complex character. He did not show Duan Zhengchun's intelligent, humorous, sensitive and delicate personality. The performances of key scenes are relatively blunt and artificial, and they cannot bring out the emotional investment of the audience.
On the whole, this is a relatively unsuccessful attempt at Duan Zhengchun's adaptation. The overly old appearance and inadequate performance cannot reawaken the audience's good impression of this character.
On the contrary, it emphasizes that if a classic character wants to be reborn, he must have matching actor conditions and the investment he wants to make.
We look forward to the follow-up new version of Tianlong Babu to find more suitable Mesozoic actors, and use their youthful passion to once again reshape the style of this classic character.
Let Duan Zhengchun regain the brilliance of youth in the hearts of the audience.
Through the comparison of the eight versions of Duan Zhengchun above, it can be seen that the attraction of this classic character is not easy to interpret perfectly.
The most charming thing about Duan Zhengchun's character lies in his outward romantic image and inner intelligence and sensitivity. But this kind of personality can easily be flattened in an adaptation.
If only the external romantic image is emphasized, it may be contrived and pretentious; If his amorous nature is weakened too much, he will lose the unique charm of this character.
Therefore, if you want to grasp the character of Duan Zhengchun just right, the requirements for both actors and directors are very high. It not only needs to have the appearance conditions, but also needs the carving of the connotation, which needs to be continuously scrutinized and gradually improved in different versions.
So far, Xie Xian and Tang Zhenzong can be described as the best interpreters of Duan Zhengchun. We also look forward to the successful performance of this indescribable charm by powerful mainland actors in the future, so that the audience will fall in love with it again.
The character of Duan Zhengchun deserves our continuous excavation and understanding. When more difficulties are overcome by successors, a classic literary image will also be sublimated and become the common spiritual wealth of that era.