Lost in 1949 (2018)

A kiss is just a kiss.

This drama is set in 1949 during the prelude to the Communist Party of China's descent upon Shanghai the most strategic city in China at the time; which the nationalist Kuomintang had vowed to defend. The loss of Shanghai paved the way for the CPC to sweep into power and the rest is history. Given this backdrop, it is no surprise that this drama is often mischaracterized as a spy thriller. And certainly while espionage is a prominent feature, it is not at all what this drama is really about. It is much more a slice of life drama that explores the social economic challenges and shifting political ideologies that affects friends, families and lovers at this great inflection point in modern Chinese history.
 
I normally heartily dislike dramas set in tumultuous times like this because one cannot realistically expect happy outcomes. So I put this off for the longest time even though I am a huge fan of Chen Kun. But to my surprise, I enjoyed this drama almost from start to finish. The drama deftly avoids being melodramatic or maudlin by telling the story as a witty and intelligent dark comedy; effectively masking the sad, somewhat cynical undertone. I laughed my head off at the comical antics of the flighty widow who tries to turn back time with her first true love, a married man who is clumsily both tempted and terrified by her. It was only much later that it struck me what an ironic and cruel trick fate played on them and their families. Beyond Chen Kun, this drama is well cast with actors with excellent comedic timing.
 
The newly widowed Huang Liwen (Wan Chen) encounters Qiao Zhicai by chance as they both return to Shanghai. Having just lost her husband, a communist agent, Liwen tries to stay connected to him or perhaps give meaning to her loss by embracing his cause. Qiao Zhicai on the other hand is a a street savvy rogue and a bit of the black sheep of his family who ably navigates through the hyperinflation and shortages during those chaotic times. Their antagonistic initial interactions and misunderstandings blossom into a touching friendship and they become increasingly entangled into each other's lives. Together they try to protect the work of Qiao Lijie, Zicai's identical younger twin and a brilliant nuclear physicist. Their activities invite the scrutiny of the brutal secret police, putting them and their families in harm's way.

Where this drama shines is in its satirical portrayal how the main characters respond to provocation, conflict and deprivation. On the one hand, the drama mockingly lays bare the shallower, superficial and baser human traits of many of the characters and then redeems them by actions that also reveals their capacity for good. This darkly humorous depiction of familial bonds, sibling rivalry, love and betrayal as well as loyalty and friendship is vivid, hilarious and wistful. The overarching plot however will not satisfy true spy buffs although there are some thrilling, suspenseful moments and twists. It amounts to little more than a bunch of rather amateur spies pitted against a bunch of equally incompetent villains and making huge sacrifices for a mission that is ultimately of dubious historical significance.

I cannot praise Chen Kun's stellar performance in this drama enough. He pulled off both twins with such different personalities so convincingly I really believed there were two of them. Some of my favorite moments were when the brothers switch places - when Zhicai pretends to be Lijie he gives you the barest glimpse of Zhicai's concealed personality and vice versa. That is incredibly difficult to pull off and I don't believe I have ever seen it done better. I ended up loving both brothers and to me, Qiao Zhicai has become an all time favorite drama character. On the other hand, I found Wan Chen's Huang Liwen somewhat lacking. To be fair, it is a complex, messy role - a widow who is struggling to find meaning in her loss and existence. But she never convinces that her zeal for her cause is grander than love or friendship or even life itself. And she needs saving all the time. She only has three expressions - woebegone, helpless and cold. For her, a kiss is just a kiss; a means to an end with little true passion. I find her feelings for and attitude towards Zhicai unfathomable and frustrating. I don't think that is what the writers intended. Although she almost redeems herself at the end, I still find her unworthy of the sacrifices and risks Zhicai took for her.

For me this is an 8.5 that would have been a 9.0 if a better actress played Liwen. Nonetheless, I very much enjoyed the story and dark humor - it is very rare to see it done so well in c-drama. I can highly recommended watching this even though as a consequence, I suffered a major relapse and started cyber stalking Chen Kun again.

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