With a clear vein, solid details and delicate emotions, although "Ah Cradle" does not have a grand narrative, it reproduces the customs and customs of Yan'an in the old times, the spiritual outlook of communists, and the glorious image of a group of female communists through the depiction of the group of Yan'an childcare workers in the context of the war. This is the "red fairy tale" about love written by those who guard the red offspring with blood and life.
There are warm moments, there are heartache moments, there are the ruthlessness and cruelty of war, and there is also the beauty and goodness of human nature. I can't remember the tears and rain, the sadness of too many life and death partings in the war years, and I can't remember how many times the blood surged for the unwavering faith of the people in that era, and the love and warmth, love and loyalty between people.
Directed by Lin Ke and starring Haiqing, Zhou Ye, Li Zefeng and others, "Ah Cradle" has come to an end this week, and this 40-episode TV series based on a true story tells the story of revolutionary workers such as Ugly Zigang, Shen Yuanhui, Cao Hejing, and other revolutionary workers who fought to protect the red descendants from birth and death.
All the stories revolve around the Central Nursery, which was founded in Yan'an in 1940.
About Yan'an at that time, about the nursery school at that time, there have been many forms and different themes to present that period of history in the past, but whether it is a movie or a stage play, most of them focus on restoring the twists and turns of the staff of the nursery to escort the children to say goodbye to Yan'an and go to Beijing, but the TV series "Ah Cradle" from the beginning of the establishment of the nursery to the end of the relocation into Beijing, completely showing the ten years of the Yan'an Central Nursery.
At the foot of Pagoda Mountain and on the banks of the Yanshui River, a central nursery with only 6 holes was established, and the stubborn, rational, and vigorous Communist Party member Ugly Zigang gave up his ideal of going to the front line and became the "ugly mother" here. For the sake of the growth of these children, Ugly Zigang and her comrades-in-arms have experienced a series of tribulations and overcome one difficulty after another -- when materials are scarce, Ugly Zigang "changes his fate" everywhere; during the "Great War Whooping Cough", Ugly Zigang went everywhere to find a cure, Shen Yuanhui used his knowledge to lead his comrades to isolate and care for sick children; when "waving away Yan'an", Ugly Zigang "took the lead". The little gourd is kidnapped, she is moved by the enemy's understanding of reason, and she bravely fights the enemy to protect the safety of Yue Yue's life...
In addition, when the nursery was bombed by enemy aircraft, Tang Susu, who came to Yan'an to chase love, although he was usually a little naïve, he would stand up in a critical moment and use his body to protect his children;
When ugly Gang was rounded up by the enemy, he was still a child's child's nurseryman, bravely shooting at the enemy, leading the other party away but never opening his eyes;
When fighting to cross the Yellow River, Grandpa Luo, who regarded the children as his life, sacrificed to protect the children from injuries...
A series of warm little things, a painful parting, a plump character image, and the sweetness and bitterness, sorrow and joy in the cracks of the war, constitute the background of "Ah Cradle", which is sometimes gentle and sometimes tragic. In the constant switching of two completely different emotions, "rectification movement", "enemy aircraft bombing", "secret agent sneak attack", "Death of Liu Huabei", "renaming Los Angeles Nursery", "receiving Chinese and foreign journalists visiting groups"... These little-known historical fragments from real historical events also emerge in the stories of the struggles of the dedicated forerunners.
If it were not for the "restoration" of these scenes by "Ah Cradle", how many people would know about these past events?
Liu Huabei, the daughter of Marshal Liu Bocheng, was assassinated in the Central Nursery and was only 6 years old when he died; from Yan'an to Xibaipo to Beijing, from the first 7 children to the 96 children who later bid farewell to Yan'an, many red descendants spent their childhood in the Central Nursery, among them, there are some familiar names: Mao Zedong's daughter Li Min, Li Weihan's son Li Tieying; in 1947, the Kuomintang bombed Yan'an, and the Central Nursery Retreated with the first batch of central organs, and on the way to retreat, more than 300 people, The procession of more than 100 horse-drawn carriages was violently attacked by the enemy, and fortunately, in the end, none of these children were killed or injured and followed the People's Liberation Army into Beijing...
Not only does the structure of the story follow history, most of the characters in "Ah Cradle" are real in reality, in addition to the three elderly characters of the nursery, Chou Guizhi, Kou Ying'e, Ren Baozhen and other nurserymen and some children in the nursery are real and follow the real name.
Real people, real events, real history, in the seemingly limited space for play, the portrayal of characters in "Ah Cradle" is extremely delicate, from the character's personality, from the character's emotions -
Long Huaisheng, Ge Liujin, Fu Lianhui... Although it is a green leaf, there is no shortage of these flesh-and-blood male figures with very different personalities in the play. Just like Long Huaisheng, a Hanzi in northern Shaanxi, when he first saw him, he was thick and simple, simple-minded, but also kind-hearted, from unwilling to willing, and the "non-staff personnel" of this nursery did a lot of things for the nursery. In the intersection with the nurseryman, he also changed little by little, from an insignificant to a warrior full of enthusiasm and heroic sacrifice, and his heart underwent a qualitative change.
The female characters in the play are full of distinct personal colors, the spicy ugly Gang, and there are also moments of tenderness and sweetness for their husbands;
The introverted Shen Yuanhui will also be angry when no one obeys the command during the work;
The wayward Tang Susu, an original character fictionalized based on multiple character archetypes, has grown over the past ten years, and she understands what a mission is and the faith of her lover;
The simple peasant woman Ma Wu Aunt, occasionally domineering, occasionally cute and cute, in order to redeem her mistakes, stayed in the nursery for many years and has been giving free of charge...
Their personality is not perfect, they will be timid, jealous, will be overwhelmed, but also trouble their career, love, family, "Ah Cradle" does not look up to the hero's perspective, to deliberately highlight their greatness, but with small details, focus on excavating their inner world and growth and transformation, in order to show their human nature in the truth, goodness, beauty.
And the revolutionary friendship between them, the special feelings between them and their children that are better than their relatives, their love, affection, and the portrayal of these emotions in the play, are also serving the characters themselves, making them more humane.
Corresponding to the plot of each episode, the end of each episode of "Ah Cradle" adds clips of some of the archetypal characters being interviewed, or the nurserymen who have worked there, or the children who grew up there, they are all gray-haired, and the recollection of the experience of that year adds a sense of historical realism and heaviness to the show.
If it were not for the dictations of these witnesses, how would people know that the scenes in the play that shone with the brilliance of human nature had actually happened? Nine deaths across the Yellow River, the cradle on horseback swaying in the mountains, are flesh and blood, but their figures are so tall, fighting for faith, their lives are ordinary, but they are real heroes.
Brilliant characters and solid details determine the success or failure of a play, so their dedication and sacrifice are so touching that people can perceive: they face the pity and love of every child, face the pain and struggle in the heart after the sacrifice of their comrades-in-arms, and have not had a single wavering effort without regret.
With a clear vein, solid details and delicate emotions, although "Ah Cradle" does not have a grand narrative, it reproduces the customs and customs of Yan'an in the old times, the spiritual outlook of communists, and the glorious image of a group of female communists through the depiction of the group of Yan'an childcare workers in the context of the war.
Through the dust and smoke of history, although "Ah Cradle" will always remind people of the cruelty of war, the innocence of children and the eternal firm eyes of the "ugly gangs" will make people light the flame of hope in their hearts, which is the "red fairy tale" about love written by those who guard the red descendants with blood and life.
♦
Source/China Women's Daily (ID:fnb198410)
Author/Ling Zhong
Photo/Ah Cradle Official Blog
Editor/Chen Xiaobing
Review/Zhifei