"Jigong" You Benchang: A scene set off Hu Ge as a young newcomer

A scene sets off Emperor Hu Ge as a young newcomer, this is You Benchang.

In the TV series "Flowers", the poor boy Ah Bao is ambitious, finds his grandfather's friend and uncle, and asks him for guidance. But Uncle didn't teach him immediately, but set up many obstacles for him to test his character and ability.

Viewers who have watched the play may not have expected that the philistine businessman who speaks in the play and mixes with Vanity Fair is actually played by 90-year-old You Benchang.

After all, in everyone's impression, they are used to seeing You Benchang play a monk and a master outside the world, but the public ignores that he has never been a special actor. Immortals, monks, pedantic scholars and even villains, he has them all at his fingertips.

Some viewers said that the uncle instructed Ah Bao to buy stocks, and there was a sense of déjà vu that Jigong instructed Song Dengge to enter the official career. But if you think about it carefully, you can find that Jigong has great love, but his uncle does not have such a compassionate heart.

Ah Bao emptied his family and rented a room in the Peace Hotel, which was the first test. Borrowing 6,000 yuan in one day is the second test. Buying stocks and losing half of the principal is the third test. Buying stocks again to make a big profit and not running away is the fourth test.

Po seems to have received help from his uncle, but in fact, he is stepping into his uncle's trap step by step. As long as Bao's popularity and conduct are not up to par, Uncle will not hesitate to abandon him, and Bao will have no return.

The complexity of the role of Uncle Grandma lies not in his planning, but also in the fact that he has been in Vanity Fair for many years, and his interest calculations have long been integrated into his bones, but whether it is the audience or Ah Bao, they will only be grateful to him.

Ah Bao changed his face and put on a suit, and his uncle looked at him with memories and emotions in his eyes, a shot, as if the audience had seen a person's life. is obviously a philistine businessman, but he gives people a sense of compassion, this kind of look can only be played by You Benchang.

At this moment, Uncle saw his young self from Po, and it was also at this moment that Uncle decided to seriously teach this poor boy how to do business.

can have such acting skills, which has to remind people of You Benchang's real experience.

Perhaps it was destined that You Benchang had a very early relationship with the Buddha. When he was 6 years old, You Benchang, who was born in Jiangsu, was sent by his parents to Shanghai Fazang Temple to apprentice, and since then the Buddha has a different meaning in his heart.

When he grew up, You Benchang engaged in acting career, first entered the Nanjing Art Troupe, and then entered the drama to study, but his career was very bumpy, he worked hard for 30 years, played 79 tricks, and was still unknown.

In the troupe, You Benchang never takes the initiative to fight for roles, and other actors pick the remaining roles, which is You Benchang's. This kind of indisputable character made him walk steadily on the road of acting, and also made him lose a lot of opportunities to become popular.

When he was young, he had thick eyebrows and big eyes, which was very in line with the aesthetics of that era, and if he had taken the initiative, he might have become a popular student long ago. But if You Benchang takes fame and fortune too seriously, he may lose a classic role.

In 1985, the news of the casting of the TV series "Jigong" came, and You Benchang was very excited. He has listened to countless commentaries about Jigong, admires this living Buddha who helps the poor and helps the needy, and wants to act.

But the news of Yan Shun's appearance in the newspaper made him retreat. You Benchang has an easy-going personality and is reluctant to compete with others, let alone compete with students.

It wasn't until Director Zhang Ge personally invited him that You Benchang knew that Yan Shun was acting in another version, so he eliminated the mustard and took over the role. Jigong, the most classic in the history of Chinese TV dramas, was born.

You Benchang combines historical materials and storytelling to perfectly interpret the crazy and loving Jigong. But many people don't know that in the first two episodes, the audience did not approve of Jigong played by You Benchang, and disliked him for not being crazy enough.

You Benchang thought about it for a long, long time, how to show Jigong's madness. Until one day, You Benchang, who got up at four o'clock to put on makeup, fell asleep in a daze, and the director suddenly wanted to start filming.

You Benchang didn't have time to put on his shoes, he ran out sloppily, ran and ran, he realized. Suspended footsteps, blurred eyes, isn't this the crazy Jigong? Since then, the Jigong played by You Benchang has become a classic on the screen.

After the burning of the Li Mansion, Jigong's half-crying and half-smiling demeanor on his face not only became a teaching material for the acting academy, but also brought countless audiences to tears. At that moment, You Benchang was Jigong, and he was completely integrated with the character.

Countless actors have played Jigong, but the most recognized by the audience is always You Benchang. But after he became famous, he was silent for a long time and did not appear in front of the screen, why is this?

In 1991, his wife Yang Huihua was diagnosed with cancer, and You Benchang, who was still preparing for "Jigong Travels" at this time, thought carefully about it, and decisively gave up his career and chose to return to the family to take care of his wife.

Huangtian lived up to his wishes, and four years later, his wife successfully fought cancer, and You Benchang was able to concentrate on his acting career again.

But no one expected that You Benchang, who had formed an indissoluble bond with "Jigong", finally became a monk at the age of 76, and his legal name was Dingchang. This is really unexpected and reasonable.

Now 90-year-old You Benchang has inconvenient legs and feet, and usually needs to use a wheelchair to travel, but he is still active in the entertainment industry, and has always practiced the concept of "guiding people's hearts with literature and art" and always serving the audience.

For acting, he went all out despite his physical discomfort, and set an example for his juniors, explaining how a good actor should act.

During the filming of "Flowers", he was so emotional that he couldn't play for a long time and couldn't control his tears; in "Youth Song Xing", he changed his lines "temporarily" to "temporary", and "the remaining road" to "the road ahead", which made the on-site staff amazed the shooting; despite his advanced age, he still insisted on moving and tried his best to cooperate with the shooting.

Such a simple and dedicated attitude is worth learning from today's impetuous entertainment industry Xi. We call those dedicated actors with powerful and old drama bones, but the old man You Benchang is a real artist born for the play.

When You Benchang took the stage to accept the award at the "2023 TV Drama Quality Ceremony", everyone from the stars to the practitioners stood up to express their respect. The 90-year-old actor, who has struggled all his life for acting, is cleanly dressed and stands upright on the stage regardless of his body, seeing glory as a burden.

For other stars, winning the award is a kind of recognition, but for You Benchang, the recognition of the audience and the industry makes him more demanding of himself.

As a performing artist, he uses the role of "Jigong" to educate the world, and always adheres to the artistic ethics of actors, worthy of the name of an artist.