In October 1959, the Hubei Opera and Dance Troupe performed the opera "Honghu Red Guards" as a tribute play for the tenth anniversary of the National Day, and in the 1960s, China entered the golden age of opera development, and a large number of excellent operas such as "Ashima", "Five Golden Flowers" and "Liu Sanjie" appeared successively. Since its premiere, "Honghu Red Guards" has performed more than 3,000 times, which can be called one of the treasures of Chinese national opera, and in 2018, it also debuted on overseas stages at the Sydney Opera House in Australia, showing the charm of Chinese culture to the world.
In September 1960, the film of the same name, featuring Han Ying, secretary of the Pengjiadun Party Branch in Honghu Lake, and Liu Chuang, the captain of the brigade, was launched, which was jointly produced by the Beijing Film Studio and the Wuhan Film Studio, telling the story of the revolutionary base area in western Hunan and Hubei.
The film was directed by the famous director Xie Tian, who also played the underground worker Zhang Adjutant in the film, and finally died for the revolution. You should have also seen many movies directed by him, such as "For Sixty-one Class Brothers", "Icing on the Cake", and "Sweet Career". On December 13, 2003, Xie Tian died of illness at the age of 89.
Not only was the opera very popular, but the adapted film of the same name was released and the response was fierce, and the reputation of "Honghu Red Guards" spread throughout the streets and alleys, and even set off a wave of "Honghu" boom. The 100th performance of the opera also evolved into the Zhongnanhai Huairen Hall, and the premier repeatedly praised it.
In addition, "Honghu Red Guards" not only has a strong behind-the-scenes team, but also produces excellent pictures, and many of the interludes in it are still sung to this day.
Hubei opera singer Wang Yuzhen plays the heroine Han Ying in the movie. Many interludes in films such as "Honghu Water, Waves Playing Waves" and "Watch the World's Toiling People Are Liberated" sung by her are deeply loved by everyone. In 1962, "Honghu Red Guards" also won the Best Music Award at the First Hundred Flowers Film Awards.
In the movie, a number of classic images have been created, such as Han Ying played by Wang Yuzhen, Liu Chuang played by Xia Kuibin, Xiaohong played by Li Jinmei, Peng Batian played by Chen Jinpeng, and Deputy Zhang played by Xie Tian. All impressed us.
The tenacious and brave Han Ying must have left a deep impression on everyone, this role is based on General He Long's eldest sister He Ying as the prototype. Who says women are inferior to men? He Ying was not only the first female guerrilla leader in the Red Army, but also had a strong and indomitable personality, and also provided a lot of help to his younger brother He Long. However, in 1933, in order to cover the evacuation of the red army family and wounded, He Long's eldest sister He Ying and second sister He Pengjie died heroically.
He Ying
Born in rural Hubei Province, Wang Yuzhen has been interested in vocal music since she was a child. Her art troupe was full of talents, but she was successfully elected to the role of "Han Ying" with her extraordinary efforts, and later "Honghu Red Guards" became a hot play at that time, and she also became popular because of this role. In fact, when choosing "Han Ying", the leaders made difficulties in the choice of Wang Yuzhen, who was not outstanding in appearance, and Xie Fang, the red flower of the North Film Studio, and in the end, Wang Yuzhen was successfully elected as the heroine of the film from an opera actor with her strength in opera and simple appearance. She also became popular all over the country, reached the peak of her career, and became the spokesperson of "Han Ying" in everyone's heart. Today, Wang Yuzhen is 86 years old, and after retirement, Wang Yuzhen lives with her only son in Beijing, and her life is very fulfilling in her later years.
During the filming of the film, the conditions were quite difficult and food was often insufficient. Therefore, many actors are puffy due to hunger, and Wang Yuzhen is no exception, pressing a seal on his body. In order to shoot better, the crew prepared a plate of soybeans for her every day to supplement nutrition. In a later interview, she remembered that there were 25 soybeans of the same age in the dish, and she still remembers it vividly. But unfortunately, Wang Yuzhen has not yet made a big show in the singing industry, and after the special era, the disease has entangled her, and after recovering from the illness, she was forced to leave the singing stage she loved due to the damage to her voice.
When she became more and more "fat", Xia Kuibin, who played Liu Chuang, dropped her weight from 80 kg to 59 kg, so thin that her cheekbones protruded, but in order to highlight the hero's image, the director let Xia Kuibin stuff cotton into his mouth, which could make his cheeks bulge, but Xia Kuibin made blood bubbles in his mouth.
Just as the mention of "Han Ying" will think of Wang Yuzhen, mentioning "Liu Chuang", everyone will also think of the actor Xia Kuibin. In 1949, at the age of 17, he entered the Chu Opera Troupe for exercise. In 1959, he participated in the audition of "Honghu Red Guards" in the opera troupe, and he portrayed Liu Chuang with great masculinity, but in life he was a very gentle and careful person.
His wife is Liu Shuqi, who played Han Yingniang in "Honghu Red Guards". On October 11, 2006, Xia Kuibin died of illness at the age of 74. Now his wife, Liu Shuqi, is alive and is 87 years old.
There are also many good actors in the movie, such as Li Jinmei playing Xiaohong, of which the interlude "Sing with a Saucer in Hand" is also impressive, and there are also Many actors such as Zhou Senguan, a North Film actor who plays a bearded father, Chen Jinpeng, who plays a bully Peng Batian, Xu Bin, who plays Wang San, Cheng Xueqin who plays Xiao Liu, and many other actors, but unfortunately, it is difficult for us to find information about them on the Internet now.
"Honghu Lake water ya waves, honghu shore is ah, is home..." 60 years have passed, most of the cast and crew of that year have passed away, but the precious spirit they left us will never fade, and the classic songs and scenes will always echo in front of our eyes. To this day, "Honghu Red Guards" still exudes endless charm. Here, we wish the surviving artists good health.
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