Underplayed Gems

Winter Begonia (2020)

Winter Begonia poster
Original title
鬓边不是海棠红
Directed by
Hui Kai Dong, Wang Cheng Xin
Cast
Huang Xiao Ming, Liu Ruo Gu, Yin Zheng, Jiang Rui Lin, Charmaine Sheh, Su Bai Li, Lu Chen Yue, Liu Min
Country
People's Republic of China
Length
1 season, 49 episodes
Rated
15
Rating
8.9 of 10 from 10 voters
Elsewhere
IMDb
The 3D catalogue: film cases on wooden shelves, with the cat sitting at the counter next to its greeting.

The catalogue in 3D

The film shelves have a room of their own that you can walk around in. The cat behind the counter is the AI Catbot, and they pick real films from the same catalogue when you tell them what you feel like watching. Nothing is for sale, here or in there. Go in from here and this series is already out on the counter, with more like it waiting on the shelf next to it.

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How it feels

A shrewd businessman becomes close friends with a Peking opera genius in the years before World War II. Their bond forms against a backdrop of tradition and looming conflict.

slow-burnmelancholicvisually lushintimatenostalgicbittersweettendergrounded

What happens

Winter Begonia (Chinese: 鬓边不是海棠红; pinyin: Bìn Biān Bùshì Hǎitánghóng) is a 2020 Chinese television series starring Huang Xiaoming, Yin Zheng, and Charmaine Sheh, based on Shui Ru Tian Er's BL web novel of the same name. It aired exclusively on iQiyi and tells the story of the close relationship between a shrewd businessman and a Peking opera genius right before the World War II. While the original web novel depicted the relationship between the two main men as romantic, the adaptation changed this depiction into a "bromance". The show has been praised for its story, visuals and tasteful promotion of Chinese traditional culture, particularly Peking opera. iQiyi released a talk show named Wang Peiyu Peking Opera Show alongside the drama, which features Peking opera performer Wang Peiyu as she elaborates about operatic repertoire/traditions found in Winter Begonia and in real life. The series began airing on August 7 on Beijing TV at 19:30 CST. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

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