The Drive of Life

The Drive of Life 歲月風雲
The Drive of Life Official Poster
Genre	Modern Drama (Grand Production)
Written by	Au Koon-ying
Starring	Damian Lau Liao Jingsheng Michael Miu Joe Ma Charmaine Sheh Jessica Hsuan Raymond Lam Sheren Tang Feng Shaofeng Myolie Wu Ron Ng Toby Leung
Opening theme	Sui Yuet Fung Wan (歲月風雲) performed by Hacken Lee and Chou Chuan-huing
Ending theme	Troika (Russian Folk Song)
Country of origin	Hong Kong China
Original language(s)	Cantonese Mandarin
No. of episodes	60 (TVB) 58 (CCTV)
Production
Producer(s)	Tommy Leung Poon Ka Tak
Running time	45 minutes per episode
Release
Original network	TVB (Jade) CCTV (CCTV 1/CCTV 8)
Original release	16 July – 5 October 2007
External links
Website

The Drive of Life (traditional Chinese: 歲月風雲; simplified Chinese: 岁月风云; pinyin: Suìyuè Fēngyún) is a 2007 grand production drama by TVB and CCTV as a joint production. It was specially filmed to celebrate the 10th Anniversary of the handover of Hong Kong back to China from Britain during the period of 1997-2007.

The theme of the series revolves around the automobile industry in China. Told in flashback from 1994, the ups and downs and transformations that Hong Kong has been experiencing before and after the transfer of the sovereignty of Hong Kong is used as a narrative device. The series was filmed in Hong Kong, Beijing, Ningbo and Vancouver from early October 2006 until May 2007. The automobiles featured in the series are from Geely Automobile,^[1] as a fictional brand name "Hua-Zhe".^[1] This film ties with TVB drama "War and Beauty" for the record of having the most "TVB Best Actress" winners, where Charmaine Sheh, Jessica Hsuan, Myolie Wu and Sheren Tang won their respective "Best Actress" awards in 2006/2014, 1999, 2011, and 2009/2010.

Astro On Demand, Astro's video on demand service, starts with the series premiere.^[2]

Synopsis

Wah Man-hon, Wah Man-hung and Wah Man-shek were all born in Beijing. As a result of the massive political upheaval and the profound misunderstanding among them, the three brothers have fallen out and now live separately in Hong Kong, Beijing and Vancouver respectively.

Man-hon's business goes down the pan in the aftermath of the Asian Financial Crisis. The only saving grace is that members of the Wah family from around the world, including Man-hon's son Wah Chun-bong and Hung's son Wah Chun-man, can finally put their prejudice aside and become reconciled with one another. To realize the century-old dream of the family, they decide to work together to develop the local automobile industry.

After ten years of struggle, the Wahs have established its own brand of automobile – a brand the whole Chinese nation is proud of. They make a significant and ongoing contribution to China's automobile industry for they believe that only cars of our own will take us to a better future.

Cast

Theme song

The Sky is Blue (天這樣藍)

• Lyrics: Sandy Chang
• Composition and Arrangement: Joseph Koo
• Performance: Hacken Lee and Steve Chou

Viewership ratings

Awards and nominations

40th TVB Anniversary Awards (2007)

• "Best Drama"
• "Best Actor in a Leading Role" (Damian Lau) Top 5
• "Best Actor in a Leading Role" (Michael Miu)
• "Best Actor in a Leading Role" (Raymond Lam) Top 5
• "Best Actor in a Supporting Role" (Ng Wai-kwok) Top 5
• "Best Actress in a Supporting Role" (Gigi Wong) Top 5
• "Best Actress in a Supporting Role" (Toby Leung)
• "My Favourite Male Character Role" (Damian Lau)
• "My Favourite Male Character Role" (Michael Miu)
• "My Favourite Male Character Role" (Ng Wai-kwok)
• "My Favourite Male Character Role" (Joe Ma)

References

External links

• TVB.com The Drive of Life - Official Website (in Chinese)
• CCTV Official Site The Drive of Life (in Chinese)
• K for TVB.net The Drive of Life - Episodic Synopsis and Screen Captures (in English)
• Can Success be Measured with Money? A Look at the 'Drive' of Life Episode Analysis (in English)