“The Longest Day In Chang’an is an immersive and unforgettable show that, despite its frenetic storytelling, is in no hurry to reach its epic conclusion.”

“《长安十二时辰》是一部身临其境、令人难忘的电视剧，尽管它的故事情节很离奇，但并不影响达到史诗般的高度。”

Historical dramas made for television rarely reach the ambitious heights that The Longest Day In Chang’an scales throughout its epic 48-episode running time. Indeed, few dare to. Director Cao Dun has crafted a sumptuous adaptation of Ma Boyong’s sprawling novel of the same name for the small screen that has captivated audiences in China since its initial release in 2019.

在48 集的长度中，很少有历史剧可以达到《长安十二时辰》的高度，确实，很少有人。这部剧首发在2019 年，曹盾导演将马伯庸的同名小说搬上了大屏幕，该片一经问世就创造了收视奇迹。

Chang’an, the glittering beacon of the Tang Dynasty, is the location for a pulsating drama that feels distinctly modern in tone, despite its 8th-century setting. Chang’an has been brought to life with unwavering attention to detail - from each silk-woven fiber worn by its actors to the lavish sets constructed by a production team who spent more than seven months building the busy streets of the capital of Tang Dynasty-era China. The architecture in the series has been profoundly realized, with pagodas, temples, monasteries, and palaces all brought to life with unfaltering accuracy.

长安，唐朝璀璨的灯塔，是中国各朝代中最辉煌的存在，尽管《长安十二时辰》的故事背景是 8 世纪，但它的基调却非常现代，当时的长安被完整的复原在观众眼前——从服装的每一根丝织纤维，到花费七个多月建造的大唐繁华街道，宝塔、寺庙、寺院和宫殿都栩栩如生，唐朝的建筑得到了完美的展现，大唐盛世跃然于荧屏之上。

The Longest Day In Chang’an tells a thrilling story that is constructed using layer upon layer of complex narrative scaffolding. The story centers around a former police detective turned death-row convict, Zhang Xiaojing (played with menacing verve by Li Jiayan) who is granted a temporary 24-hour reprieve by the head of the ‘Peacekeeper Corps’, Li Bi, to foil a terrorist attack on the city. What at first seems like a fairly cut-and-dry case, proves to be anything but, as Zhang Xiaojing and Li Bi learn of a larger plot - one which threatens the very fabric of society and that is balanced on the precarious axis of political unrest.

《长安十二时辰》讲述了一个由层层复杂叙事构成的惊心动魄的故事。故事围绕前捕头变死囚的张小敬（雷佳音饰演），被“维和总队”负责人李必（易烊千玺饰演）特赦24 小时，条件是他要协助挫败一场对长安的恐怖袭击。乍看之下，似乎一个一个案子没有任何关联，但随着张小敬和李必的深入调查，他们发现了一个更大的秘密——一个试图打破政治平衡，威胁社会的阴谋。

Despite the series’ sweeping scale, the drama that unfolds feels intimate and, at times, even claustrophobic. No dramatic stone is left unturned, and each character is afforded significant screen time. Director Cao Dun is keen to illustrate that Chang’an, despite its majestic veneer, which has been brought to life with magisterial prowess, is a city composed of rigid class and power structures that are manacled by tradition. There is an overriding sense throughout the series that an ominous future beckons for the people of Chang’an, and change will occur either through progressive means or by annihilation.

尽管该系列制作规模宏大，但故事情节却让人感到熟悉，有时甚至感觉就在身边。剧情没有任何拖沓，每个角色都用大量的内容去诠释。曹盾导演热衷于讲故事，长安虽然有着雄伟的外表，威风凛凛，但它是一个由传统束缚，有严格阶级和权力结构的城市，有着一种压倒一切的感觉，让人感觉有一个不祥的未来在向长安人招手，这种变化要么让人进步，要么让人毁灭。

Chang’an espouses a culture of binaries, which is communicated adroitly in the show by its use of the ancient symbolic dichotomy of ‘Yin’ and ‘Yang’. Li Bi (elegantly played by Jackson Yee), is the show’s moral compass, and early on he is introduced to the concept of “Wu,” which pertains to the intersection of these two opposing polemics. Each character is bound by honor and service to a superior power. That is, except for Zhang Xiaojing. Zhang is the show’s all-action outlier, who confidently and purposefully refuses to “play by the rules.”

长安信奉一种二元文化，故事巧妙地运用了具有象征性的“阴”“阳”来传达这种文化。李必（易烊千玺饰演）是该剧的道德标杆，他很早就被引入了“无”的概念，游离在阴阳之外。每个角色都被荣誉和权力的束缚，只为上级力量服务， 只有张小敬除外。张小敬是该剧中另类的存在，他拒绝“按规则行事”。

The Longest Day In Chang’an prefaces contemporary issues within a historical context, with the all too familiar modern-day trope of political unrest bubbling away behind some genuinely spectacular action sequences. However, despite being similar in style to shows such as 24, The Longest Day In Chang’an should not be considered an all-out action affair. Tension is twisted like a knife and time feels stretched and slowed down to foreground the show’s thematic proclivities. Rarely is an action sequence included without considerable preluding, and the result is often breathtaking.

《长安十二时辰》在历史背景下对当代问题进行了映射，在一系列的故事背后，是人们再熟悉不过的现代政治动荡的比喻。然而，尽管与《24小时》美剧风格相似，但《长安十二时辰》不应被视为动作片，它的情节像刀子一样扭曲，节奏张力时快时慢，没有太多的铺垫和预告，而结果确让人叹为观止，一切创作都在为突出主题服务。

Despite its expansiveness, the show never falls short in meticulously respecting historical precedent. The Longest Day In Chang’an has as much to say about contemporary Chinese culture as it does about history, and it is a wonderfully rich and detailed history lesson at that. Chang’an has been brought to life with a deft and exquisite touch. As a viewer, we are given a sense of what it was like to live in what was the most populated, prosperous, and advanced city in the world at the time.

尽管它的主题很广，但该剧在一丝不苟地尊重历史，同时，《长安十二时辰》也用同样的笔墨展示了当代中国的精神世界，就像是一堂非常丰富和详实的历史课。长安被赋予了灵巧而精致的触感，作为观众，我们对生活在当时世界上人口最多、最繁荣、最先进的城市有了身临其境的感觉。

Tang Dynasty scholars were consulted in pre-production, with Jackson Yee’s character Li Bi in particular given almost microscopic attention to historical detail in both his dress and stately decorum. There was a rich emphasis on the culture of words and poetry during the reign of the Tang Dynasty, and this is evoked in the show with even soldiers professing to be aspiring poets and wordsmiths. The culture of Tang was one of progress, and the series makes sure it emphasizes this transitionary period in history, showing the character of Xu Bin (Zhao Wei) animatedly encouraging his master Li Bi to either adapt to progressive means of material production or bear witness to Tang’s downfall. The music in the show also draws the viewer closer to the action. The crashing of drums is the heartbeat to which the audience is both transfixed and transported through the show’s diegesis, while the camera weaves through crowds at shoulder height to give the sense that viewers are very much at the center of the action as if they too were clinging to the coattails of Zhang Xiaoling.

制片方在前期咨询了唐代学者，尤其是易烊千玺的角色李必，无论是穿着还是礼仪，都对历史细节都进行了近乎完美的还原。唐朝非常重视文字和诗歌，这在剧中也得到了体现，甚至连士兵说的话也像是饱读诗书的诗人。唐朝是中国人思想飞跃的时代，该剧着重强调这一点，从徐宾（赵魏饰）的性格就能看出，他总是在鼓励李必要么顺势而为，要么被历史淘汰。本剧中的音乐也非常写实，比如轰隆隆的鼓声形象的展示出观众在故事发展过程中被震撼和感动的心跳，而摄影机在齐肩高的人群中穿梭，观众身临其境，一直在尾随着张小敬。

The show’s heroes are youthful and progressive and their values are at odds with the aging ‘old order’. The lantern festival, which is the focus of the terrorist’s plot, is symbolic of prosperity, but it is also portentous; the lanterns are lit to vanquish evil, but they have also unwittingly ushered it closer. The true evil that is present within Chang’an is not only harbored by its malevolent infiltrators but, too, by the ruling bureaucrats who have long suppressed and neglected the country’s working classes. The series makes sure that the audience is reminded at all times that the working classes are its true protagonists. If order is to be genuinely restored then Chang’an’s ‘homemade heroes’ must bring about fundamental societal change.

该剧的主角们代表着年轻和进步，他们的价值观与“旧秩序”显得格格不入。 元宵节，成为恐怖分子实施阴谋的时间，它是繁荣的象征，但也成为不祥之兆；灯笼是为了战胜邪恶而点亮的，但它也为邪恶指引了道路。长安内部真正的邪恶不仅来自有野心的阴谋者，也来自长期压制和忽视国家工人阶级的执政官僚们。 该剧始终提醒观众，工人阶级才是本剧真正的主角，如果要恢复秩序，那么长安的“草根英雄”就必须带来根本的社会变革。

The Longest Day In Chang’an is a multi-faceted tale of intrigue with the principle of ‘legacy’ firmly situated at its center. Moral complexity abounds but, at its core, the characters in the show are fixated on how they will be remembered. The ‘Peacekeeper Corps’ is principally a place where extensive archiving is a priority for its incumbent officers. This is at odds with the tough crime-stopping exterior usually associated with these kinds of institutions. This too is an important indicator of Tang Dynasty life, where information was considered of pivotal importance. The show proposes a vital question - in a world where uncomfortable decisions must be made, how will one’s actions be remembered?

《长安十二时辰》是一部以“传承”为核心的多面阴谋故事。道德复杂性比比皆是，但从本质上讲，剧中的角色都着迷于如何才能名垂千古。“维和部队”（靖安司）是武官们想方设法都要入职的地方，因为这里与一般的执法部门不一样，这也是唐代独有的部门设定，掌握核心资源被认为是至关重要的。该剧提出了一个直击灵魂的问题——当必须做出选择时，你是要名垂千史还是要遗臭万年？

Above all, The Longest Day In Chang’an is an immersive and unforgettable show that, despite its frenetic storytelling, is in no hurry to reach its epic conclusion. The 48-episode running time may seem like a formidable undertaking, but it is worth every second.  

总之，《长安十二时辰》是一部让人身临其境、令人过目难忘的电视剧，尽管故事情节很离奇，但并不影响《长安十二时辰》成为史诗般的经典，48集的集数看似很长，但每一秒都值得回味。