A DREAM of Red Mansions, the 2010 version, has finally been unveiled. Although it can now only be seen on some local TV channels, it's receiving lots of praise from viewers.
The remake gives us a feeling of being "young" and "idolized". Many cast members were born in the late 1980s and 90s.Will it attract a younger audience? What is young people's take on the remake of such a classic? Does the love described in the novel seem "out-of-date" to them?
The casting of the new show was barely any different from the casting for a modern TV show. When the finalists appeared together and we got a look at them, what many people thought was: They look like idols.
While the new actors are doing their best to stamp their personalities on their roles and make people forget the older version, director Li and art director Timmy Yip also have a new approach for the show. They want to make the new TV series as beautiful as possible, hence all the attention to costumes and scenery.
1.18亿元的总投资让人们不禁重新定义将经典著作拍成电视剧的意义。
With an investment of 118 million yuan, the new work is seeking to redefine what it means to put a classic on TV screens.
Qin Danxue, 19, Jinan: I watched the whole casting-it was just like watching Happy Girl. I think that was a good way to get people's attention, especially the young. Young people may be able to add a little zest to the classic-the "idol effect" might just work.
王帅（音译），20岁，来自青岛：我很怀疑如今的小演员们有没有能力恰当地诠释经典。
Wang Shuai, 20, Qingdao: I do wonder if today's actors have the knowledge to be able to deliver the lines properly.
Zhong Shan（音译）, 19, Shenyang: I don't have much of a sense of the characters of the classic work. However, the costumes in the new version make me uncomfortable. Why do they dress like performers in Chinese opera?
只是太年轻？ Just too young ?
假设这部电视剧是拍给现代人看的，那么可以想见，剧中会有些大胆的爱情场景。
Given this is a version for modern people, it's to be expected that the love scenes in the remake will be a little bolder.
Love affairs between the teenagers depicted in the story are considered as "misleading" to the young. This maybe one reason why it's often said that young people shouldn't read a book like A Dream of Red Mansions. But as the new TV series will be shown to more teenagers, they will see a lot of their "peers" being confused and even lost in love.
Also, director Li Shaohong and a team of 20 Redologists claim they tried to make sure that every detail in the 50 episodes is accurate. The emotions in A Dream of Red Mansions can be difficult to grasp at.
Wang: It's a different era now. Kids today know more about "adult stuff". "Puppy love" still may not be encouraged but people are definitely more open. The greater openness of the new version may be more appealing to the young.
Qin: I think that for a long time people were put off-not by the actual portrayal of young love in the book-but by others saying that they shouldn't read or watch it. It's one reason I'm not interested in the 1987 version. I always have the feeling that something was avoided or hidden.
Today, we're familiar with the love stories in South Korean dramas or Hollywood movies, in which young lovers have a bold attitude about love. The classic is a different matter. The way the characters express love, for example Lin Daiyu who's sensitive, and always complaining, may put many young audience members off.
But although this new production is tailored to young people, it's still the classic novel. That means we'll be seeing a lot of the fragile little Lin, and her complicated expressions of love.
Wang: I think the characters in the classic are diverse. For example, Lin is sensitive; Xue Baochai is tough. So there are different kinds of love among the characters. Lin's fidelity to love, I believe, can't much be found today.
Zhong: The social environment of the time of the novel left its mark on the way the lovers were presented. But even though the way Lin expresses her feelings may be foreign to a modern audience, it is rooted in her character and makes her who she is. If the new Lin were like some girl in a South Korean drama, there'd be no point in watching.作者: 凉茶 时间: 2010-7-11 00:16
