Gao Lu's character is unhurried and her tone is gentle and gentle, just like her career path as an actress is smooth and smooth. Many viewers have been deeply impressed by Gao Lu from Sister Lizi in "Home to the Nth Power". After that, she also played many gentle and generous roles. The poor and hateful Lin Xiaoniang in "Do You Know, She Should Be Green, Fat, Red and Slim" made more audiences recognize her acting skills. At that time, director Li Xue told her that she was chosen to play Lin Sushuang because she "wanted to find someone to watch." He is not a bad person." This time in the female-themed TV series "Her City", Gao Lu plays Daying, a character more similar to her own personality.
"Her City" stills, Gao Lu plays Li Yingnan
In terms of life stages, Gao Lu has indeed reached the age of a "middle girl" and has gotten married and had children. She has experienced more identities and has more experiences. Therefore, when she saw the script of "Her City", she was very surprised. "It's very different from other female-themed scripts I've seen. It connects all the dots and aspects of the three women to form a three-dimensional story." The last time she saw a female-themed film and television drama that she liked was "Sex and the City."
"Her City" tells the story of three middle-aged women with completely different life situations. There is Ai Ying, a rich lady who lives in the struggle of wealthy families, Ying Xiaomei, a female lawyer who still has a girlish heart, and there is also a woman who is closest to the life of ordinary people and struggles in Li Yingnan is in a mess. Compared with the other two, Li Yingnan's life most embodies the life of the so-called "middle girl" in reality. She worked hard when she was young and found love and family step by step. She got a small promotion in middle age, but she had to face work-related problems and... To make ends meet, you have to balance your living expenses and clean up the mess of your unreliable husband. Although Li Yingnan's life in the early stage resonated with the audience the most, it also made people want to complain the most. Why didn't they resist? Why not divorce?
Stills from "Her City"
When Gao Lu saw the script, she actually had the same feeling, "It's so difficult for her, and she also felt that her character could be so easily manipulated by others, and if you feel sorry for her, she is like a soft persimmon, anyone can pinch you." "But after gradually understanding Daying's life, she constructed a more complete "her". Gao Lu especially liked the design of Li Yingnan having a long psychological monologue, but in the end some of it was cut out in the final film, and she also felt it was a pity .
"Daying has her sassy part, but she comes across as more of a submissive and flattering personality. She has a relatively long inner monologue, which is kind of black humor and a little bit embarrassing. She It represents a kind of situation that women will encounter. We always say that the core of comedy actually comes from tragedy. Of course, Da Ying cannot be called a tragedy, but there is some helplessness as an adult woman, and there is something worth exploring. Maybe ten For girls who are a few years old or in their twenties, some people can understand it, some people can't understand it, but it doesn't matter. As you grow older and gain more experience, you will more or less encounter similar things happening around you. .”
A little Ah Q spirit
At first glance, Li Yingnan seems to be a somewhat weak, individual and special person. Especially in the early stages of the series, Li Yingnan constantly encountered various life problems that middle-aged women would encounter, focusing on marriage and work.
In one scene, when Li Yingnan returned home exhausted from the company, she found that her husband Xu Xin and the children were not there. Then she received a call that her drunken husband and the children had a conflict with others on the road. She didn't even have time to put on her slippers. He rushed out after changing the situation, and the scene was in chaos. The drunk Xu Xin not only failed to take good care of his son, but also went crazy with the passers-by who saved the child. Li Yingnan tried to deal with it but no one could stop him. In the end, he could only kneel down and ask the driver not to argue with his drunken husband. This scene brings Li Yingnan's sense of fatigue and tragedy to its peak, but it does inevitably appear to be exaggerated.
Stills from "Her City"
Gao Lu admitted that this scene had been discussed for a long time, whether it was necessary to kneel or not, and there were many suggestions and voices. In the end, Gao Lu believed that from a mother's perspective, she believed that Li Yingnan did not kneel down for Xu Xin, but for her children and tired herself, so this kneeling seemed reasonable.
"If the driver doesn't save the child, the child may be in danger. As a mother, I feel that I can put down any dignity for the child. In that environment, she was in a hurry, without any money or mobile phone, and she was tired at that moment It's been a day, what's the explanation? She is in a very broken state. No one will listen to too many explanations. Only your actions can let others see what you want. Kneel down and apologize. This is the most direct and biggest impact. . As a mother, face, dignity, and rationality are not important, as long as my child is safe, healthy, and safe."
There was such a moment of collapse outside, but when he returned home, Li Yingnan seemed to have changed into a different person and regained the dignity of an elite woman. She did not make a fuss, but calmly and rationally put her husband and children to sleep. Gao Lu said to This contrast is understood as habituality.
"Everything after returning home is a normal state in her life. The two have been together for maybe more than ten years, and her husband has always been like this. This is not the first time that he got drunk. It has been going on for a while. , otherwise how could Dae-young want a divorce from the first episode."
Stills from "Her City"
What also aroused discussion was Li Yingnan's endurance when a young female subordinate kicked her in the nose and humiliated her. Li Yingnan often had his teeth knocked out and his blood swallowed, and he was willing to endure it even when his position was reversed. In Gao Lu's opinion, one of the reasons why he has such endurance is because of Li Yingnan's kindness and Ah Q's spirit, especially the former, which is also close to Gao Lu's own character.
"Daying is a person who knows the world but is not worldly. When she encounters the confusion of life, she may not know which direction to go, and some words will hurt others. I understand her, Daying is indeed a kind of person. I There are also difficulties in life. I will think of a way to make everyone feel comfortable. If it is only comfortable for myself or the other party, it is not comfortable. I also hope that in everything I do, I must first consider it from the perspective of others. The audience may be more What I want to see is me slapping you and you slapping me, that kind of confrontation mode that relieves anger, but in fact it’s not that Dae-young doesn’t have confrontation, she just has too much pressure and responsibility on her shoulders.”
"Li Yingnan has a bit of Ah Q's spirit. No matter what difficulties he encounters, he is still happy in his heart, thinking that tomorrow may be better." And this is why she likes the character of Li Yingnan. "I hope I can convey some upward messages to everyone." Things, there are not so many things in life that are perfect, but even so, I have to be positive and progressive, and don’t say I can’t do it easily.”
"Li Yingnan did not catch up with a good family of origin. Her parents were somewhat patriarchal, so she had a please-pleaser personality in the early stage. This is a habit developed since childhood. However, it also shows that she is a person with a very clear sense of goal. She needs to get 20 Ten thousand shares. As long as you can get it, you can suffer any injustice."
Stills from "Her City"
Women’s charisma is important
When it comes to divorce, it is the theme that runs through this character, and it also attracts the most "complaints". From the audience's point of view, her husband Xu Xin asks Li Yingnan to borrow money to pay his salary at the beginning, gets drunk and goes crazy, and ruins the opportunity to meet investors. He used the money he saved for his son to invest and lost money, and then he got drunk while taking the child with him, causing the child to be in danger... This kind of divorce is infuriating. Speaking of this, Gao Lu said that she was actually a little surprised when she saw the audience's complaints. Maybe it was because she had played Li Yingnan. In Li Yingnan's eyes, Xu Xin was annoying, but not too bad. The other half is just going through the same unhappy stage of life as Li Yingnan.
"He is sometimes unreliable, he is out of tune, he wants to succeed, but he is also very kind."
In Gao Lu's view, the reason why Li Yingnan did not choose to divorce immediately is that Xu Xin is not a bad person. "Actually, he just trusts others too easily. He is also very anxious to make money. In essence, he is a person with good intentions. Childishness does not necessarily mean It’s a derogatory term. He is very naive and not that successful, but maybe his luck will come in the next ten years.”
Among Li Yingnan's character and values, the most important thing is whether Xu Xin has responsibility and courage. "Xu Xin is very devoted to his family. He will bully anyone who dares to bully Li Yingnan. Faced with such a man, Daying He is so kind, I will definitely not look down on him."
In addition, after walking into Li Yingnan's life, I can sympathize with her struggle and confusion even more. In addition to the life of daily necessities, love is also an important foundation in marriage. "After entering the role, I feel that my husband is very good to me. After we separated, I may have a better life, but can I find another man who loves me as much as he does? She actually doesn’t want her to get divorced because she doesn’t feel that Xu Xin doesn’t love her anymore.”
Stills from "Her City"
Wang Longzheng, who plays Gao Lu and Xu Xin, analyzed the relationship between the pair and worked hard to make some designs that reflected love. "If there was no love to support them, it would be impossible for the two of them to live for so many years. Life is actually just a place of chicken feathers and Firewood, rice, oil and salt are completely different from when we were in love, but in the chicken feathers, we can grab some small and warm things." For example, Xu Xin picked up his son and tried his best not to cause trouble to Li Yingnan, who was busy at work, with both eyes and thoughts. Revealing his patience and love for Li Yingnan, he did not show any disgust even when they quarreled.
As a woman who is about the same age as Li Yingnan in the play and also has a family, Gao Lu can understand that Li Yingnan is cautious enough to write down when considering divorce issues, how to divide the money, how to live separately, especially what to do with the children, "As a 30+ For a woman, the age issues, work issues, and child issues she faces must be considered more comprehensively, and we cannot say that we can separate if we want to separate, and stay together if we want to be together.”
Of course, after seeing the anger and complaints from the audience, especially the female audience, Gao Lu was also very happy, "As an audience, I also hope that she can separate from her husband as soon as possible and have a new beginning. Nowadays, women are more independent and have no attachments." Anyone who has caused damage should get divorced. I am very happy with this awakening of women now."
But she doesn’t think whether Li Yingnan is divorced or not is the key to evaluating a female-themed drama. “For female-themed dramas, first of all, the female protagonist must have the right views. She must be kind and positive. I think that is enough. In addition, Sa It is also very important, and the word is also very cleverly interpreted. It is the feeling of independence in the wind. Sometimes you may act alone like a man, but you may act like a woman in front of a man."
Stills from "Her City"
Your best friend is yourself
Gao Lu made a lot of detailed designs for Li Yingnan, such as some micro-expression changes on his face. In the early stage, more micro-expressions were "embarrassed, what should I do?" what can I do? When she started her own business, her words and expressions became calmer, and she felt more confident, including on the issue of divorce.
Gao Lu believes that although life did not give Li Yingnan too much "candy", it also shaped her growth. "Women grow up especially quickly after marriage. They know more about what it means to be independent. In the past, one person could eat enough for the whole family and the whole family would not be hungry. I miss my parents. Only when you have given birth can you know the greatness of your mother. Now I always buy gifts for my mother on my birthday. I never thought of it when I was young. I think I should say thank you to my mother for bringing me into this world. With that After you have a baby, all the responsibilities, both senior and junior, come into your life. You can’t tell anyone that it’s not easy for me. Who is it easy for? Who can understand your difficulty? I don’t think there is anything that can be explained or If you complain, there must be someone who is suffering more than you."
Stills from "Her City"
One of the hot topics for women right now is "girls help girls", which is about friendship and mutual help between women. "Her City" features women over 30 years old as the protagonist. It is very interesting to talk about this issue. The three women in the play are friends, but they have distinct classes and different personalities. Especially in their 30s, the gatherings between them No longer like a little girl who just complains about the bad things she encounters, more interactions include help, advice, and concealment.
Gao Lu doesn't think this shows that middle-aged women's friendship is not pure. On the contrary, it reflects the truest humanity and friendship.
"Dayinglai just doesn't want too many interests to be mixed in the friendship. She is such a face-saving person. She has a backbone, but it may be that she has been worn away by many real-life problems. I have had this happen to me. A friend of mine was a very angular person when she was young. Maybe when we met again after a long time, I felt that she was much more mellow and easy-going, and she was no longer willing to express her opinions. In fact, their friendship is Giving to each other is like carrying a sedan chair. Ai Ying knows that Daying is not having a good life, but while she helps, she also gives you enough face. Xiaomei also pays attention to it, and there is no gossip. "
This kind of mutual friendship is also recognized by Gao Lu. After reaching a certain age, friendship and mutual help between women look like.
"This is what I like. The story reflects the plight and growth of women, but the female characters are definitely not inquiring about each other, leaving a lot of blank space for the audience. This is how people are, no matter how good friends are, they are willing to take the initiative. When someone talks, I listen, and when I don’t want to take the initiative to speak, I just pretend I don’t know anything. There is a Chinese saying that roughly means, say half the words and leave the other half. When someone really wants you to help, I will definitely tell you. Of course, when you are able to help, you will definitely help. When you are not able to help, you will not help. On the contrary, I think this is the subtle charm of friendship, as an adult. The help between us is no longer me helping you, how could he be like this? If it is still useless without solving the problem after complaining, the other party will not speak. What I am thinking about now is the solution. In the past, I might have complained together. My girlfriends Growth is from complaining together to finding solutions.”
But Gao Lu also lamented that no matter how good your friends are, women should still get along with themselves first. “When there are more and more things on your shoulders, women must learn to make friends with themselves. If your best friend is yourself, you will never be alone. , except your parents, no one will support you throughout your life."
Stills from "Her City"
How to face the midlife crisis
Obviously the age of the characters in this story is meant to discuss the issue of women’s midlife crisis. Gao Lu feels that people are about to face the mid-life crisis and there is no way to escape it. “In the ten or twenty years between 30 and 50 years old, the anxiety will be very great, because you will continue the past and start the next. The adjustment between husband and wife, how to face and accept aging, and how to maintain a smooth mentality, has caused anxiety."
She joked that she was always the most anxious on her birthday. "In addition to thanking my mother, I always thought that I was one year older." But she adjusted well and usually got better by the next day. , it’s not that there is no anxiety anymore, it’s just that I have accepted to live with anxiety, “Happiness is also a day, anxiety is also a day, why not be happy? This anxiety itself is not a day or two. Because of my age, there are no good roles for me, so I will Anxious, but you must know in your heart that this is a real problem, and you must learn to accept reality. The process of growing up is to constantly learn to accept reality. Secondly, you must make yourself better." Her solution is to increase her interest in middle age. Hobbies, don’t focus on issues that cause anxiety.
Gao Lu is very good at adjusting her mentality. The mid-life crisis of an actress may include giving birth to a child. Some data show that when "Do you know, it should be green, fat, red and thin" was started, Gao Lu had just given birth to a child. Months later, she had to leave her children and her family to go to work. She recalled that she would cry in her dreams in the middle of the night on the set. "At the beginning, I missed my children very much. Now the transportation is very convenient. When I am not filming, I can go home to see my children. I gradually got used to it, and when my child was a little older, I basically took him with me until he was three years old and went to kindergarten.”
Stills of "Do you know, you should be green, fat, red and thin", Gao Lu plays Lin Xiaoniang
But when talking about this matter, she did not feel that she had been greatly wronged. "I had to go to work when my child was very young. It happened to be during the breastfeeding period that I had to go to the toilet to solve the problem. It was the most difficult emotionally. I didn’t tell anyone about it. I thought this was my own experience. I didn’t think too much about it. I just wanted my acting career to be longer, so I can’t let go of work. Actor is a profession I can't let it go because I love acting. So I've made arrangements, which doesn't mean I'm letting go. My phone is always on 24 hours a day, and I can also make video calls when I miss him. Sadness is a normal state of mind. It's okay to be sad for a while. But I would cry even if I didn’t become an actor.”
Gao Lu thinks clearly about this, "As a professional woman, you have to face it, that is, you have to bear it yourself. You have to think clearly about what you are doing now, and you must not get entangled in this kind of thing. To If you are entangled in this kind of thing, just don’t worry about it for the time being. I think all these things must be thought through before doing it.”
angel baby
Gao Lu's gentle and kind personality has never changed since she was a child. She describes herself as an "angel baby" and is an enviable good girl to outsiders. Her mother is an actress. When she was a child, Gao Lu grew up in a compound full of artistic atmosphere. She performed on stage for the first time when she was four or five years old, and also participated in some TV series. "When I was a child, people did praise me, and they said that this child is not nervous." , It’s quite inspiring, but I didn’t take it too seriously.”
Because she loved watching circus performances as a child, she once thought about becoming an animal trainer. "I like small animals. Although I may not understand the language, I like them very much when I see their cute state. There used to be many acrobatic troupes performing Of course, when I grow up, I know that animal performances are not good, and animals still need to go to nature, but when I was a child, I thought those puppies were very cute, and it was great that they could listen to me." When she grew up, she also liked painting very much. Be a painter.
But Gao Lu admitted that she was a very late bloomer. Compared with some actors who have been determined about their careers since childhood, she has never been very clear about what she wants to do in the future. "Today I like this, but tomorrow I will think that way." But she She never went through a rebellious period, so when her mother suggested that she pass the exam for drama, she did so naturally without much trouble. “It wasn’t until I went to college and came into contact with the performing arts that I truly understood the responsibilities of this profession. "
At that time, she was not too confident about working in the acting industry because she had some social fears and did not like to deal with people. "According to the teacher at the time, she was not suitable to be an actor because the performance had to be broadcast outside, and she had to watch all kinds of things and interact with others," she said. All kinds of friends, you have to observe and experience life." In the end, she found a level of self-consistency, "I haven't changed myself a lot, I don't like to talk, but at some point I will change, then go Observation, after all, it can help me. I don’t want to give up, I can get happiness from it and experience a different life.”
After experiencing many kinds of lives, actors also have their own professional worries. For example, Gao Lu often plays the wife and the same type of character. Therefore, in many years of acting career, the biggest change is the requirements for scripts. "The audience also watched For many of your roles, you definitely hope to take on better and more challenging roles. I hope that there will be changes in my performance, but I know it is really difficult. Actors are like this. On the basis of this face-to-face, It is also very difficult to make this character change and grow, and let everyone know that although Gao Lu played this character, it is different from what he played before. The personal growth of an actor is also the growth of the character. I hope this is the case. Now I also feel that delicacy is very important. Compared with before, I am more delicate, both in my heart and in my expression. When I don’t understand a character, I don’t know what kind of things will appear. Maybe it’s all a mechanical performance. .”
Although he was ignorant when he became an actor, late maturity will come. Gao Lu is now very determined about his life goals, "I don't have such a grand goal, but I want to act for the rest of my life."
