Lurk (Chinese: 潜伏) is a 2008 Chinese television series based on Long Yi's spy novel of the same name. A Republican-era espionage drama directed by Jiang Wei and Fu Wei, starring Sun Honglei, Yao Chen, Zu Feng, Feng Enhe, Shen Aojun, Wu Gang, and others. It mainly tells the story of Yu Zecheng, an officer in the Intelligence Department of the Nationalist Military Bureau of Investigation and Statistics, who defects to the Communist underground and becomes a spy embedded within the bureau in early 1945.
It premiered on Southern Television on December 20, 2008. At the end of 2008, Lurk was broadcast on local channels in Tianjin, Shandong, Chengdu, and other regions. On April 1, 2009, Lurk was broadcast nationwide on satellite channels including Heilongjiang Satellite TV, Dragon TV (Eastern Satellite TV), Beijing Satellite TV, and Chongqing Satellite TV. On its premiere day, Beijing Satellite TV achieved a viewership rating of 8.01%.
Contents
Synopsis
The story takes place after 1946, during the Chinese civil war after the Japanese surrender.
An underground worker for the Communist Party, Yu Zecheng (Sun Honglei), is an undetected spy within the Kuomintang (KMT) secret service. He has to keep his distance from his true love, Zuo Lan, in order to conceal his real identity and enters a false marriage with Wang Cuiping (Yao Chen), a quick-tempered but straightforward guerrilla fighter from the countryside. The two collaborate closely to obtain important information from the KMT for the Communist Party. Despite often finding themselves at odds with each other, their connection gradually deepened.
With Liberation Day impending, Cuiping, threatened by exposure of her secret identity, is asked to be transported elsewhere for security reasons, leaving Yu. When Yu is also about to leave, after successfully obtaining a crucial name list, he is taken away by the KMT secret police on a secret service assignment to Taiwan, where he has to spend the rest of his life, lurking.
Cast
Sun Honglei as Yu Zecheng
Yao Chen as Wang Cuiping
Shen Aojun 沈傲君 as Zuo Lan
Zu Feng as Li Ya
Feng Enhe 冯恩鹤 as Wu Jingzhong
Wu Gang 吴刚 as Lu Qiaoshan
Fan Yulin 范雨林 as Ma Kui
Wang Xiaoyi 王小毅 as Liao Sanmin
Zhu Jie 朱杰 as Mu Wanqiu
Cao Bingkun 曹炳琨 as Xie Ruolin
Ma Junqin 马军勤 as Mrs. Wu
Liu Changwei 刘昌伟 as Manager Qiu
Lu Yu 陆羽 as Manager Luo
Shi Wenzhong 石文忠 as Li Haifeng
Sun Lan 孙岚 as Xu Baofeng
Xu Jingling 徐婧灵 as Mrs. Ma
Bian Tao 卞涛 as Lv Zongfang
Zhang Guoqing 张国庆 as Mu Liancheng
Zhou Bowen 周博文 as Long Er
Liu Yanyu 刘言语 as Secretary Hong
Cui Song 崔嵩 as Wang Zhanjing
Yao Gang 姚刚 as Dai Li
He Bo 何波 as Zhou Yafu
Ji Shi Guang 吉世光 as Sheng Xiang
Behind-the-Scenes Production
Scriptwriting
The original novel Lurk was less than 20,000 characters long. Jiang Wei spent 10 months adapting it into a 30-episode television drama script. During the creation process, Jiang Wei also put a lot of effort into making the drama stand out. He added many light-hearted and humorous elements to the tense and thrilling espionage story, aiming to give the series a unique character.
Reception
Lurk was a critical and commercial hit. Viewers praised its storyline and character development, and consider the show a departure from other spy stories seen on Chinese television and movies. The series was rated highly, and was called "a milestone in Chinese television productions".
Lurk's central theme is faith, blending elements of humor, romance, suspense, and mental battles. It focuses on portraying the struggles and sacrifices of underground agents during a special historical period.
Besides the lauded performance of the main characters, the supporting roles also received appraisal: the cunning Station Chief Wu, the brave Ma Kui, the sinister and petty Lu Qiaoshan, and the ruthless Li Ya.
Lurk Spy Museum
A museum has been established in Tianjin, where the script was based on. In Da Li Dao 57, guests are welcome to come and see Wang Tian Mu's old residence, which is now a private owned museum as well as a restaurant. Many of the objects used in the TV series can be seen there, and it is possible to have Tianjin's local historian to come and talk about the house, the area and the city. Some of the scenes in the TV series were also taken in this place.