When watching costume dramas, we often wonder why the ones we watched in our childhood still feel like authentic period pieces, while the current ones seem more like modern dramas set in ancient settings. There are numerous reasons for this. Let's start from the beginning.
Liu Hai (刘海)
One of the most common styling elements in modern costume dramas is Liu Hai. In the early days, the most common type was probably the wispy bangs similar to those in Princess Returning Pearl. Later, all kinds of bangs became ubiquitous, including side-swept bangs and straight-across bangs. Even characters in the martial arts world often have a rebellious strand of hair hanging in front of their foreheads.
Actually, after reaching adulthood in ancient times, it was a basic courtesy for both men and women to keep their hair tidy. Even those living in the martial arts world adhered to the principle of "the body and hair are gifts from parents." Confucianism even condemned loose - haired people as barbarians. In public, men usually wore hats or scarves, and women coiled their hair or used hairpins to tie it up. Unless in extreme situations where they were unable to manage their hair, hairstyles were very important to the ancients.
In ancient records, having Liu Hai generally referred to children. Ancient children kept their fetal hair during childhood, also known as "Liu Hai Fa (留孩发)". Some say that the term "Liu Hai" gradually evolved from the homophone of "Liu Hai Fa".
There were actually accessories in ancient times that could replace Liu Hai to adorn the forehead, such as the Mo E (抹额). It was mostly used by military warriors and later gradually adopted in women's attire. As noted in Xu Han Shu - Yu Fu Zhi, Hu Guang said, "In the cold north, people used mink fur to warm their foreheads and attached it to their hats, which later became a kind of jewelry. This is the origin of the Mo E." According to the "Military Mo E" section in Zhong Hua Gu Jin Zhu, "When Emperor Qin Shi Huang inspected the seaside, the sea gods came to pay their respects, all wearing Mo E, red shirts, and wide - legged trousers as a military courtesy, and this style has remained unchanged to this day." The Mo E mainly has two functions: one is for warmth or decoration, and the other is as a lining for scarves or hats.
Modern Makeup
Secondly, the modernization of makeup in costume dramas is quite severe. Modern makeup emphasizes the three - dimensionality of various facial features, while classical makeup mainly uses eyebrows, eyes, and blush to create a facial atmosphere. Therefore, elements such as curly and exaggerated false eyelashes, heavy contouring, exaggerated卧蚕 (round under - eye shadows), and jelly - like lips combine to make the overall makeup lose its classical charm.
Hairstyles
The simplification of hairstyles has turned the originally complex and classic - looking hairstyles into uniform princess - like buns and high ponytails. Some even come with yellowish or reddish dyed or highlighted hair. The classic hair buns left by our ancestors, such as the Luo Ji (螺髻), Dao Ji (刀髻), Jiao Xin Ji (交心髻), and Ling She Ji (灵蛇髻), have disappeared.
The simplified hairstyles, combined with the aforementioned Liu Hai and modern makeup, make these dramas seem like modern shows set in ancient times.
Costumes
Many costume dramas don't necessarily require a strict historical background, so there are numerous fictional themes. In such an environment, the costumes, props, and makeup in these dramas have become rather unrestrained.
Costumes have always been a problem area in costume dramas. It's inevitable to make dramatic adaptations to traditional clothing, but there is an obvious difference between adapting traditional clothing for the screen and creating a combination of modern fashion and ancient - style clothing for TV shows. For example, some of the costumes in the movie version of Eternal Love of Dream clearly have the structure of modern fashion with forced - in classical elements.
We often joke that some costume dramas are like "wanting to look stylish in all - white outfits". Although they generally retain the cross - collared structure at the minimum requirement, overall, such simplification is extremely minimal. Elements in traditional clothing aesthetics, such as patterns, fabrics, traditional color combinations, and layering structures, are all ignored, greatly reducing the classical charm.
At the same time, clothing with high - saturation colors also gives a more modern visual impression.
Scenes
Finally, let's talk about the scenes. In Hanfu photography, we often pay attention to lighting because most classical scenes use ambient light, such as candlelight, sunlight from outside the window, moonlight, and more natural diffused light to create a classical atmosphere.
Scenes in shows like The Longest Day in Chang'an use a lot of ambient light to create natural shadows and warm tones instead of bright white light. However, most current dramas are grand and luxurious, and at night, they are brightly lit. The frontal lighting is so strong that it's hard to tell who the protagonist is.
Moreover, there are various European - style decoration elements, gaudy golden ornaments, modern - style minimalist furniture, and even props that might only appear in modern times, which instantly break the immersion.
When we discuss why modern costume dramas have a modern flavor, we don't necessarily demand that they adhere to certain strict standards. Instead, we hope that people can learn more about our ancestors' aesthetic culture, inherit and carry it forward. After all, Chinese aesthetics are the most suitable for us Chinese people, and we also hope that future costume dramas will be made better.
