Zhou Min's fate
In the autumn of 1931, an art school in Wuxi, Jiangsu Province, welcomed 17-year-old Zhou Min. She clenched her resume in both hands and took a deep breath as she stood outside the interview room.
The interviewer was Webb, the school's drama instructor, and his eyes lit up as soon as he saw Zhou Min - his facial features were three-dimensional, his eyes were bright, and he was completely the material of a well-trained actor.
Sure enough, her self-introduction and performance sketch were a full house. "Welcome to join us!" Webb said with a laugh.
That night, Zhou Min excitedly wrote to her mother: "Mom, I have found my destined career......
Ten years later, the war of resistance against Japan spread to Wuxi. Japanese artillery fire weaved in the night sky, illuminating Zhou Min and Webb, who were performing on the streets.
In the early morning of the founding of the People's Republic of China, the two ushered in the first dawn on the infrastructure construction site.
In 1950, Zhou Min played the role of a mother on the screen for the first time, and she was surprised to find that acting was her destiny in this life. Every time she completes a role, she is as happy as a child.
Until she quit the film and television industry in 1957, in order to accompany her son to grow up, she happily chose to let go of her dreams. As she sat in the screening room and watched her son's name rise on the screen, she burst into tears.
Zhou Min's artistic life
In 1950, Zhou Min came to the filming site of the movie "Taiping Chun". This is her first time performing in front of the screen, and she is nervous and looking forward to it. However, when the director shouted "start", she instantly entered the state and integrated into a mother's world, as if she was Zhang's mother herself.
"Over!" When the director shouted this sentence, Zhou Min was still immersed in the emotions of the characters in the play and couldn't extricate himself. The staff came over to shake hands with her and praise her for her outstanding performance, and she couldn't help but burst into tears of excitement.
In the following days, Zhou Min played the role of a mother in many movies. Whether it is the terminally ill Shen'er mother or the martial arts mother begging in the wind and rain, she can easily portray the inner ups and downs of the characters through subtle expressions.
In 1957, Zhou Min interpreted an old woman and mother who loved her son in a movie. She tugged at her sweetheart's sleeve to prevent her from leaving, and wiped her tears and begged her to stay one more day.
When the director finally shouted "pass", Zhou Min refused to leave the role with red eyes. Everyone in the crew watched silently and gave her last applause for her wonderful performance. At this moment, Zhou Min understood that her artistic life had been completed, and she needed to let go and embrace another fate.
Zhou Min's gloomy departure
In 1972, Zhou Min withdrew from life and lived a life of seclusion. She spends all her time caring for her ailing mother and her son, who is just starting out in the industry.
One of the few pieces of entertainment is a trip to the cinema once a week. She would sit alone in the last row, quietly watching movie after movie. Sometimes, the projectionist will happen to show a movie that she has participated in.
After watching it, people were enthusiastically discussing the acting skills of those big stars, but no one found her in the corner.
After a screening, a little boy who came to see a movie with his parents came running excitedly, pulled her sleeve and said, "That old lady acted so well just now, where is she now?" Zhou Min stroked his soft hair and said softly, "She has been to far, far away places, but she will come back to see you from time to time."
In 1977, Zhou Min left this world. Many of the old artists she had worked with came to the grave and reluctantly said goodbye to her old friend. One by one, they wiped away their tears and stood in a line of remembrance.
Another 30 years later, people still remember the old lady actor who once radiated maternal brilliance on the screen. As she said to the little boy, she lives forever in the picture of people's memories.
The essence of Zhou Min's art
As a leader among the older generation of film actors, Zhou Min is most memorable for her unpretentious acting skills. She is able to manage the inner world of the characters on the screen vividly in front of the audience with extremely subtle expression management.
For example, in "The Legend of Wu Xun", she plays Wu Xun's mother, a beggar old lady, we not only see a poor person who is terminally ill and begging in the wind and rain, but also can think of her own mother, and her heart aches for the helplessness of life.
This just confirms the unique charm of her acting skills - through simple expression, she brings the audience an emotional experience beyond imagination.
It can be said that every screen character portrayed by Zhou Min is like a living and bloody individual, so that the audience can't help but empathize with it while appreciating it, and have a deep emotional resonance.
This kind of "back to basics" performance method has given future generations a more three-dimensional understanding of the early style of Chinese films.
Nowadays, when we look back at those popular old movies, we can see the imprint left by the times and years. We are proud of the journey of Chinese cinema from scratch to today's rapid development; We should also remember those who were unknown and willing to give to their predecessors.
People often only remember the glamorous stars on the screen, but few people will remember that behind every action and expression they complete, they are inseparable from the thousands of small screws that the crew has worked silently.
And Zhou Min is one of the invisible pillars.
So, when you see her in the old movie frame again, remember this simple and brilliant old artist, and offer your most sincere applause.