Hong Kong director Wong Kar-wai, who was born in Shanghai, has spent 10 years creating the 30-episode mainland Chinese drama series “Blooming Flowers,” which has generated remarkable popularity since its airing. Up to now, the topic’s reading volume on Weibo has exceeded 11.5 billion, and the views on Douyin have reached 19.1 billion. The cast, primarily consisting of Shanghai natives, has also attracted significant attention. Hu Ge, who was immediately confirmed as the male lead, revealed during an interview that Wong Kar-wai was incredibly meticulous in the casting process, even likening it to “investigating household registration.”
As an internationally renowned director, Wong Kar-wai has previously helmed multiple classic films such as “In the Mood for Love,” “The Grandmaster,” and “Chungking Express,” and has been honored with awards for Best Director at the Cannes Film Festival, Venice Film Festival, and Taiwan’s Golden Horse Awards. The 30-episode TV drama “Blooming Flowers,” starring Hu Ge, Tang Yan, Ma Yili, Zheng Kai, and other Shanghai natives, marks Wong Kar-wai’s directorial debut in television. The visual aesthetics and composition of each frame in the series are highly sophisticated, leaving viewers in awe.
Set against the backdrop of Shanghai’s business war in the early days of China’s “reform and opening up” in the 1990s, the series revolves around the story of male star Hu Ge’s character “A Bao” striving for wealth. Since its premiere at the end of last year, the drama has garnered immense popularity, even sparking a wave of tourism business on Huanghe Road in Shanghai.
According to the “2024 First Quarter TV Drama Report” released by Sina Weibo on May 7, the ancient costume drama “Walking With Phoenix,” starring Zhao Liying and Lin Gengxin, claimed the top spot in the popularity ranking, with “Blooming Flowers” starring Hu Ge and Tang Yan ranking second.
In terms of casting, Hu Ge was the undisputed choice for the role of “A Bao” in “Blooming Flowers.” Wong Kar-wai quickly confirmed Hu Ge for the role during the adaptation process. Hu Ge mentioned in an interview, “Before the official filming began, I had many conversations with the director. Initially, I thought maybe he wanted to observe me in a more natural and everyday state to see if I was suitable for the role of A Bao.”
Hu Ge later discovered that “the director asked very detailed questions in each conversation, like investigating household registration,” and that “he asked about my learning, life, including emotions and work, multiple times. He really broke down my life experiences and put them into this character. He said the script actually has a life of its own and continues to evolve during filming.”
Wong Kar-wai, known for his pursuit of perfection, began filming “Blooming Flowers” in 2020 after years of preparation, but the production was still ongoing by October 2022. The fact that the production team had posted birthday wishes for the lead actor Hu Ge on Weibo three times led to discussions about Hu Ge filming “Blooming Flowers” from his thirties to forties becoming a hot topic.
Wong Kar-wai, always seen wearing his signature sunglasses, has faced criticism for the extended production cycles of his works. However, Hu Ge’s fans have comforted him, saying, “A good meal is worth the wait. Slow work produces fine results. At present, he is very stable mentally, after all, ‘Sunglasses King’ is famous for his ‘procrastination.'”
“Blooming Flowers” will premiere nationwide on MyVideo starting on June 14, with five episodes released every Friday. Wong Kar-wai expressed, “I am very pleased that my first TV drama ‘Blooming Flowers’ can meet everyone soon. Being born in Shanghai, ‘Blooming Flowers’ for me is another kind of looking back, allowing me to revisit the changes in Shanghai in the 1980s and 1990s. Every city has its blooming era.”