In order to honor the image of Qi Tian Dai Thanh, the film crew strongly spent a large amount of money on two armors of Sun Wukong.
“Journey to the West” 1986 version is considered a classic film of Chinese cinema. Although the work was filmed at a difficult time and with a tight budget, the crew still tried to perfect every stage of production in the most thorough way. Up to now, generations of young filmmakers still have to admire the impressive makeup techniques and costumes of the “Journey to the West” crew. In particular, shaping Ton Ngo Khong is one of the parts that invests the most effort and time.
Make up Ton Ngo Khong meticulously and neatly
According to makeup experts, shaping Ton Ngo Khong in “Journey to the West” takes a lot of time and effort. First, they stuck each colored hair onto a specialized mesh fabric to create different patches of hair that covered the entire body of the character.
Luc Tieu Linh Dong’s whole body is covered with monkey fur costumes.
In addition, the production team had to use a special glue to create Sun Wukong’s face. This is an elaborate makeup stage, requiring a lot of time. Therefore, every time there is a scene in the morning, Luc Tieu Linh Dong has to get up very early to prepare for the complicated makeup process. When the make-up artist performs the facial skin layer, the actor’s eating will become difficult.
After the make-up, Luc Tieu Linh Dong’s mouth was almost glued with the mask and glue, so he could not chew flexibly but could only use a little liquid food. With his face covered with glue, the actor has to endure discomfort whenever the outdoor temperature drops low. When the weather becomes hot, the makeup layer will make the star of the Luc family feel secret because the skin that is glued to sweat will appear blistering.
The actor felt uncomfortable because the glued face area was full of glue.
The secret of Sun Wukong’s two armor sets
The character Sun Wukong was favored by the production team with two special armors used for different scenes in the film. The first is a vestment suit, also known as a “hard” armor for Luc Tieu Linh Dong to wear in segments showing authority. The armor was meticulously designed with many motifs decorated with glittering golden metal pieces, which looked very beautiful.
The “hard” armor shows the authority of Sun Wukong.
The second outfit is called “soft” armor. The bodice and the motifs on the shirt are decorated with gold glitter on the surface. This makes the armor softer and lighter to wear. Soft armor is mainly used to film the fight scene, the action of the character Ton Ngo Khong. Thanks to that, the actor’s fight scenes are done quite easily and comfortably, not as constrained as the “hard” armor.
In the scene of being burned in the Bagua furnace, Luc Tieu Linh Dong, wearing thick and heavy iron armor, stood in the acting area separated from the fire and rolled around, acting like he was being burned. It was director Duong Khiet who had to nod that this was her favorite scene in the film.
The soft armor is made of expensive materials, and the fire does not burn.
When the scene ended, after removing makeup for Luc Tieu Linh Dong, the new staff discovered that all the hair on “Hou Tu”‘s face and eyelashes had been burned because of the surrounding heat. Everyone sympathizes and admires the male artist’s love of the profession, the ability to endure and accept sacrifices.
Many viewers, when watching the movie, thought that this armor was burned down, so in the next 3 episodes, they did not see Sun Wukong wearing it anymore. However, in reality, “soft” armor is designed from rare and expensive materials. Therefore, its normal value is not small. Therefore, the crew will be careful not to let the costumes be damaged or burned as the audience mistakenly thinks.
According to Sina, after meeting Tang Tang, Wukong no longer wears armor because armor is a symbol of power, war and death. When Wukong and Tang Sang went to ask for sutras, it was an enlightenment of his character, improving the quality of mind cultivation, so Wukong only wore plain clothes. It was only when the Tang Tang sent him back to Hoa Qua Son that Ngo Khong had the opportunity to put on his armor again, returning to the majestic and dignified American Hou Vuong.