1. Present review: Azhu's charm will always remain in the hearts of the people
Time flies, the years are like songs, but in the well-known and highly regarded "Dragon Babu", the bright-eyed, witty and intelligent Azhu, his beautiful figure is still firmly engraved in the hearts of the majority of martial arts fans.
She is incomparably beautiful, petite but full of vitality, and her lively expression makes people feel sorry for her. She has a gentle and kind personality, and at the same time a little naughty and cute, which makes people irresistible to her attraction.
She has a pure and firm love for Qiao Feng, and the two have been in love since childhood, who would have expected that this marriage would be abruptly terminated due to an unintentional accident.
Qiao Feng suffered a heavy blow, A Zhu Xiang died, and the originally happy and sweet lovers were finally separated by yin and yang, which became the eternal pain and regret in Qiao Feng's heart. When people read this, they all sighed with grief and sorrow for this young couple who were full of good expectations but had a rough fate.
It is for this reason that the character of Azhu has become an eternal classic and has been passed down from generation to generation. Since the first TV series came out in 1982, many actresses have tried to interpret this role with superb acting skills.
Audiences had mixed reviews. Some people believe that a certain actress brought Azhu's verve to life; Others think that a certain actress is too weak and ordinary, and fails to fully display Azhu's delicate, agile and elegant charm.
These controversies have been going on for decades, which is enough to prove what a noble classic image Azhu has in the hearts of martial arts fans. Let's look back at the past six generations of "Azhu" and see which actress can most perfectly restore the spirit of the original work.
2. Tracing back to the origin: A Zhu is a martial arts master
To deeply understand Azhu's position in the martial arts, we must go back to Master Jin Yong's masterpiece "Dragon Babu". Written in the 60s of the 20th century, this novel is the third part of Mr. Jin Yong's "Condor Trilogy", which has been highly praised and is known as the pinnacle of martial arts novels.
The book revolves around protagonists such as Qiao Feng and Duan Yu, depicting the various martial arts disputes they experienced when they were teenagers, and how they gradually grew up and finally climbed to the top of martial arts.
In Qiao Feng's emotional journey, Azhu is undoubtedly the earliest and most important woman in his life.
The two young heroes have known each other since childhood, and Azhu's amazing beauty, intelligence, and mischievous personality traits have deeply attracted the young Qiao Feng.
It's a pity that their beautiful marriage was not completed due to all kinds of ups and downs, but Azhu became Qiao Feng's indelible dream lover in his life, which made him regret it for life and couldn't let go.
Therefore, Azhu's position in Qiao Feng's heart is self-evident. She is not only the eternal love of martial arts master Qiao Feng, but also one of the most pitiful and unforgettable female images in "Dragon Babu" in the minds of the majority of readers.
3. The beginning of the play: The first Azhu has his own style
In 1982, the classic masterpiece "Dragon Babu" appeared on the screen and TV screen for the first time. This is undoubtedly the first time for martial arts lovers to witness Azhu's vivid and vivid image.
In the 50-episode TV drama version filmed by Hong Kong TVB, the famous and powerful actress Huang Xingxiu successfully played the role of Ah Zhu. Huang Xingxiu can be called the "classical beauty" in the film industry that year, her pure beauty, gentle and virtuous, perfectly fits the depiction of Azhu in the original book.
The actor's verve is crucial, but acting also determines whether a character can be brought to life. At this point, Huang Xingxiu's performance can be called outstanding. She delicately portrays the various psychological changes of Azhu from the beginning of love to deep love, and her eyebrows are full of youthful shyness and girlish affection.
Especially when interpreting Azhu's first feelings for Qiao Feng, Huang Xingxiu's delicate expression was as innocent as a girl. People can't help but feel pity and want to take care of it.
However, it is a pity that Huang Xingxiu's ancient costume is slightly wrong. Too thick makeup, thick eyebrows and big eyes, coupled with ill-fitting clothing, make the overall image look a little rustic and sluggish, which is different from Azhu's lively and lovely image.
On the other hand, in the movie version of "New Dragon Babu" released in the same year, Lin Zhenqi played the role of A Zhu. Lin Zhenqi has a beautiful appearance, resolute facial features, and is quite mature and charming.
Although she was older when she played Azhu, at the age of 27, she has lost Azhu's youthful energy. In addition, the role is limited, and the shaping is not deep enough to penetrate the hearts of the people, and the whole image is slightly thin.
However, her poignant eyes in the few paragraphs after Azhu's death barely showed a bit of tragic emotion.
Fourth, high-pitched and passionate: Azhu's image is deeply rooted in the hearts of the people
In 1994, a TV series "Dragon Babu" that brought together many powerful actors, including Wong Yat-wah and Lau Jinling, finally came out, and this work caused a huge sensation in Hong Kong, becoming a household name and a classic masterpiece.
Among them, the role of Azhu played by Liu Jinling can be called an unforgettable classic in the hearts of the audience and closely in line with the original work.
Although at the initial stage, most viewers were skeptical about choosing Liu Jinling to play the role of Ah Zhu. She was 30 years old at the time, and she did not impress people in appearance, which was far from the "rare beauty in the world" depicted in the original book.
However, with the broadcast of the series, her exquisite and delicate acting skills instantly won the warm recognition and praise of the audience.
In the play, Liu Jinling successfully demonstrated Ajuna's innocent and lovely nature and eccentric personality with her vivid and vivid interpretation. Sometimes she shows a shy and reserved side, and sometimes a cheerful and cheerful side, like a fearless wild girl; Sometimes it reveals a shy and touching side, full of the girl's slim and delicate state, this strong contrast makes her image more three-dimensional, vivid, and people can't put it down.
In the process of interacting with Qiao Feng, she sometimes laughed and was honest, and sometimes she was coquettish and playful, and her mouth was pouting. When Qiao Feng made a mistake that made her angry, she would look at the other party with a coquettish gaze, showing her willfulness and pride; And when Qiao Feng sincerely expressed his affection to her, she would bow her head shyly, hide her face and smile.
Every look, every subtle movement, seems to be Azhu himself who came out of the original book.
Compared with the previous versions, Liu Jinling's version of Azhu is more energetic and charming, fully reflecting the lively, lovely, and quirky charm in the original work. Liu Jinling once said in an interview: "Although Azhu is beautiful and extraordinary, she is not a lady in the traditional sense.
She is smart and clever, with a unique personality, which is completely different from those reserved and introverted boudoir women, therefore, when creating the role of Azhu, I tried my best to capture the lively and lovely girl demeanor in life, "It is precisely because of this deep understanding and perception that she can interpret the role of Azhu to the fullest and penetrate into the bone marrow, and the audience seems to see the shadow of her girlhood when watching."
There's more to this work than that. In the classic scene of "Azhu's Burial", Liu Jinling's performance reached the pinnacle. I saw that her whole body was soaked in blood, her eyes were closed, her brows were slightly furrowed, and she let out a few low moans from time to time, the whole picture was both miserable and sad, and distressing.
When Huang Rihua let out a deafening howl, tears poured out like a broken embankment, and his whole body was soaked in blood. It's hard to get out of it.
There is no doubt that this is undoubtedly the most classic "Azhu's death" scene in history. No one has ever witnessed a more heartfelt and powerful performance in their lifetime. is really singing and crying, and it can be called the pinnacle of TV dramas.
With this outstanding performance, Liu Jinling became famous overnight and became a household name. Since then, she has become a powerful actor in the Hong Kong film industry, showing her style in many dramas.
Whenever she walks on the streets of Hong Kong, she always attracts warm applause and cheers from everyone, shouting the name of "Ah Zhu". People have said that Liu Jinling seems to have been born to play the role of Azhu.
In 2003, the long-awaited Hu Jun's version of "Dragon Babu" finally came out. In this version, Liu Tao, who is only 24 years old, plays the role of Azhu. With long black and bright hair, bright eyes, and white teeth, Liu Tao's beautiful face is like a stunning beauty.
Her otherworldly virtuous kindness makes people feel a unique gentleness and softness.
It is worth mentioning that the audience's evaluation of Liu Tao's version of Azhu is polarized. Some people praise her for being beautiful and moving, like a natural daughter; However, some people criticized her for being too gentle and virtuous, but lost Azhu's lively and lovely charm.
People jokingly call it the "young woman's version" of Azhu, as if she is a pampered and willful young grandmother.
However, it is this otherworldly ladylike temperament that makes Liu Tao's version of Azhu unique and different. Compared with the playful and cute in the original book, she is more like a mature lady with elegant manners and extraordinary temperament.
seems to have transformed from a cute little girl into a virtuous and dignified lady in an instant. This contrast brings people an unprecedented unique feeling.
Therefore, despite the differences, Liu Tao's version of Azhu still won the love of the audience. What's even more interesting is that, according to rumors, Liu Tao was able to play this role when the famous and well-known writer Qiong Yao personally recommended it to the producer.
As we all know, recently, Liu Tao has brilliantly created the image of a resourceful princess in the third part of the classic drama "Huanzhu Gege" directed by Qiong Yao, which has won warm praise from the audience!