Hong Kong's Film Industry

[Manila-X]

Didn't HK made alot of martial arts movies back in the 1980s? OK they still make them but not as strong as it used to be.

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Hong Kong actress Maggie Q learns mission impossible

KUALA LUMPUR, April 7, 2006 (AFP) - Hong Kong actress Maggie Q says working on Tom Cruise's upcoming movie "Mission Impossible III" has taught her combat skills -- including how to rescue a hostage.

"This is not a kung fu movie where I have to spend a lot of time kicking and punching. This is Mission Impossible so I was trained by hostage negotiators and military experts -- people who actually did this for a living," the 26-year-old model-turned-actress told Malaysia's Star daily.

"It was no joke. What I did in the film is real. I actually know how to rescue a hostage now. It was unbelievable and pretty surreal. That was the part that made me nervous," she added.

The Honolulu-born actress, whose full name is Maggie Quigley, said working with Hollywood heavyweight Cruise was a doddle in comparison.

"Tom was a sweetheart compared to these military guys who killed people for a living," she said, adding that she has now developed a taste for action.

"I like being a tough girl. I like whacking people," she told the paper.

In the movie directed by J.J. Abrams, Quigley is part of the crack Mission Impossible team alongside Cruise, Ving Rhames and Jonathan Rhys Meyers. Recent Oscar winner Philip Seymour Hoffman plays the villain.

Born to an American father and a Vietnamese mother, Quigley has previously had brief roles in "Rush Hour 2" and "Around the World in 80 Days" with Hong Kong action hero Jackie Chan.

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Originally Posted by WANCH

Didn't HK made alot of martial arts movies back in the 1980s? OK they still make them but not as strong as it used to be.

They still do, but the variety has increased to different genres as well. However, action movies are a significant branding for Hong Kong movies abroad (ie. Jackie Chan).

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Stars gather for Hong Kong's premier film awards

HONG KONG, April 8, 2006 (AFP) - Leading Chinese stars will gather in Hong Kong Saturday for the territory's premier film awards ceremony, where 19 gongs will be handed out to the city's best movies of the year.

Celebrities including action hero Jackie Chan, and heart-throbs Andy Lau and Tony Leung Chiu-wai are expected to walk the red carpet for the 25th Hong Kong Film Awards, to be held before an audience of 6,000 at the Hong Kong Coliseum.

Chinese actress Zhang Ziyi, Korea's Jun Ji-hyun of the hit movie "My Sassy Girl" and Taiwanese director Hou Hsiao-Hsien are also expected at the ceremony that kicks off at 7:30 pm (1130 GMT).

However, Tony Leung Ka-fai and Sammi Cheng, tipped as favourites to win the best actor and the best actress prizes, will be unable to attend, organisers said.

The star-studded ceremony will see Tsui Hark's martial arts epic "Seven Swords" do battle with Peter Chan Ho-sun's musical "Perhaps Love" for top honours.

Each garnered 11 nominations in the top categories, including best film and best director.

Johnnie To's gangster flick "Election", and Andrew Lau and Alan Mak's car racing movie "Initial D" follow close behind with 10 nods each, and are also competing for the best film and director prizes.

Taiwanese pop sensation Jay Chou picked up a nomination for best new performer for his role in "Initial D".

Chan's "The Myth" received four nominations including best film, while Derek Yee has been nominated in the best director category for "2 Young".

Tony Leung Ka-fai won two nominations in the best actor category for his roles in "Election" and Stanley Kwan's "Everlasting Regret".

Leung, who lost out to "Divergence" star Aaron Kwok for top acting honours in last November's Taiwanese Golden Horse Film Awards, comes up against him again in the same category.

Leung is also up against his "Election" co-star Simon Yam and "Wait 'Til You're Older" star Lau.

Chinese starlet Zhou Xun has been nominated in the best actress category for her role in "Perhaps Love", alongside Cheng, Sylvia Chang in "Rice Rhapsody", Karen Mok in "Wait 'Til You're Older" and "Home Sweet Home" star Karena Lam.

Chen Kaige's 40-million-dollar martial arts fantasy epic "The Promise" picked up five nominations including nods for best cinematography and art direction.

Peter Kam, who won the Silver Bear for best music for "Isabella" at this year's Berlin Film Festival, received a nomination for best original film score with co-composer Leon Ko for "Perhaps Love".

Although not as prestigious as the Golden Horse Awards, the Hong Kong Film Awards are considered among Chinese cinema's top accolades. Films must meet one of several criteria establishing a strong Hong Kong connection to be eligible.

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Kung fu epic, gangster tale compete for best movie prize at Hong Kong Film Awards
By MIN LEE
AP Entertainment Writer
7 April 2006

HONG KONG (AP) - The contenders for the best film prize at Saturday's 25th Hong Kong Film Awards include the martial arts epic "Seven Swords," the gangster movie "Election," Jackie Chan's "The Myth" and "Initial D" -- a car racing movie starring Taiwanese pop idol Jay Chou.

The annual ceremony is one of the Chinese-language film industry's most celebrated events and the audience was expected to be full of stars from across Asia.

Veteran director Tsui Hark hoped to win best film for his "Seven Swords," a story about seven martial arts fighters defending a village.

Action mega star Jackie Chan's "The Myth" is about a reincarnated ancient general who pursues his lost love from a previous life. It's competing against the Broadway-style musical "Perhaps Love" and director Johnnie To's "Election," about a power struggle within the shadowy world of Hong Kong's mobsters, or triads.

The movie "Initial D" -- based on a Japanese comic about street car racers -- attracted a lot of attention for featuring Taiwanese singer Chou in his first film role. He's nominated in the best new performer category.

Other singers hoped to be recognized for their acting talents Saturday night. They included Hong Kong diva Sammi Cheng, nominated for best actress for her breakthrough performance in "Everlasting Regret." She plays a beautiful Shanghai woman who endures a turbulent love life amid the political upheaval of modern China.

Another favorite to win best actress was mainland Chinese performer Zhou Xun, who played a movie star caught between her present and past loves in "Perhaps Love."

Hong Kong pop star Karen Mok was also nominated for her portrayal of a mother in "Wait 'Til You're Older," and Taiwan's Sylvia Chang hopes to be recognized for her role as a cook in "Rice Rhapsody."

Hong Kong heart throb Andy Lau was up for the best actor award for his performance in "Wait 'Til You're Older." He played an unhappy child who is transformed into an adult with the help of a magical potion.

His competition includes Hong Kongers Tony Leung Ka-fai and Simon Yam, who portrayed rival gangsters in "Election." Leung was also nominated for "Everlasting Regret," in which he plays a man with a crush on a lifelong friend.

The best director nominees include Tsui for "Seven Swords." He's competing against "Election" director To and Peter Chan, who directed "Perhaps Love."

Movies nominated for the best Asian film prize include China's "Ke Ke Xi Li," Japan's "Howl's Moving Castle," Taiwan's "Three Times," South Korea's "Sympathy for Lady Vengeance" and Japan's "Be With You."

On the Net:
Hong Kong Film Awards: http://www.hkfaa.com

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Winners at the 25th Hong Kong Film Awards
By The Associated Press
8 April 2006

Winners in the top categories for the 25th Hong Kong Film Awards ceremony on Saturday:

Best Film: "Election"

Best Director: Johnnie To ("Election")

Best Actor: Tony Leung ("Election")

Best Actress: Zhou Xun ("Perhaps Love").

Best Supporting Actor: Anthony Wong ("Initial D").

Best Supporting Actress: Teresa Mo ("2 Young").

Best New Performer: Jay Chou ("Initial D").

Best New Director: Kenneth Bi ("Rice Rhapsody").

Best Asian Film: "Ke Ke Xi Li" (China).

Best Cinematography: Peter Pau ("Perhaps Love").

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Gangster movie "Election" wins best film at 25th Hong Kong Film Awards
By MIN LEE
8 April 2006

HONG KONG (AP) - "Election," a dark and violent tale about gangsters, was the big winner Saturday at the Hong Kong Film Awards, taking home the prizes for best movie, director and actor.

Johnnie To got the top honors for directing, while Tony Leung won best actor for his portrayal of a hotheaded mobster angry about how the leaders of his gang have been chosen.

The best actress award went to Zhou Xun of mainland China. She played a movie star caught between her present and past loves in the Broadway-style musical "Perhaps Love."

Hong Kong's Teresa Mo was named best supporting actress for her performance in "2 Young," about a teenage couple dealing with an unexpected pregnancy.

Anthony Wong of Hong Kong was named best supporting actor for his role in "Initial D," a movie based on a Japanese comic about street car racing.

Wong won the same award last year at Taiwan's Golden Horse Awards -- the Chinese-language equivalent of the Oscars.

Taiwanese pop idol Jay Chou was named best new performer for his leading role in "Initial D."

Chou, famous for his soulful ballads, said his success for his role as a street car racer in "Initial D" won't cause him to walk away from his singing career.

"I'll still focus on music. This is what I'm best at," Chou said as he accepted his award.

He also won the best newcomer prize for the same film last year at the Golden Horse Awards.

China's "Ke Ke Xi Li" won the top Asian movie honors. The film is about volunteers protecting the Tibetan antelope from ruthless poachers in remote western China. The movie, directed by Lu Chuan, won the best film award in 2004 at the Golden Horse Awards.

Other nominees Saturday for best Asian film were Japan's "Howl's Moving Castle," Taiwan's "Three Times," South Korea's "Sympathy for Lady Vengeance" and Japan's "Be With You."

The best new director award on Saturday went to Kenneth Bi for "Rice Rhapsody" about dueling chefs.

Peter Pau won the prize for best cinematography for "Perhaps Love," a Broadway-style musical.

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Film festival could use some help in promotion
9 April 2006
South China Morning Post

Last night's film awards are a reminder that the industry has been instrumental in promoting Hong Kong's claim to be a world city. It remains one of the few film-making centres in the world with its biggest box office sales overseas.

The awards coincide with the 30th Hong Kong International Film Festival, still one of the most anticipated events for Asian filmmakers and local movie buffs.

However, these showcases do not hide the slump in the local film industry. Sadly, this is undermining the Hong Kong festival's role in promoting our best movies. Its standing in the region is under challenge, with rivals jostling to take over as Asia's premier star-studded event.

The festival organisers say it is disadvantaged because they cannot match the financial incentives other Asian centres offer filmmakers and international critics to take part in their festivals. From the $7 million grant they receive from the Hong Kong government to help put the festival on, they can spare only $700,000 for hospitality for visitors.

As we report today the organisers are looking to the Hong Kong Tourism Board for more support for the costs of inviting film-makers and overseas guests. They claim the Tourism Board devotes all its attention to Disneyland and the Hong Kong Rugby Sevens and ignores local events as a means to attract overseas visitors.

Disneyland and the Sevens, along with Ocean Park, are major drawcards in their own right for large numbers of overseas visitors who contribute significantly to the city's economy. The Tourism Board is right to ensure their appeal gets the broadest exposure.

But there is more to this than backing sure winners. Culturally, Disney and the Sevens are foreign imports with global brand names, whereas the film festival showcases a cultural export for which Hong Kong is famous. Festival executive director Peter Tsi Ka-kei's appeal for more help from the Tourism Board with overseas promotion and hospitality funding may win some sympathy. This year organisers could only afford to invite about 90 people from overseas, compared with the thousands of guests, critics and journalists invited to the festival in Pusan, South Korea.

Our film industry still has a key role to play in positioning Hong Kong as an international city with a thriving cultural industry to drive economic growth.

Film is our main cultural export to the rest of the world. Hong Kong techniques still inspire filmmakers from Hollywood to Mumbai. Our directors, actors and cinematographers are in demand overseas.

The government already supports the industry with measures to combat piracy and assistance to filmmakers.

The festival is one of the most effective ways to promote our movies. The few million extra it would cost to invite a few hundred visitors instead of less than 100 could be a good investment.

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Hong Kong actor Chen filming 'The Grudge' sequel with Sarah Michelle Gellar
11 April 2006

HONG KONG (AP) - Hong Kong actor-singer Edison Chen on Wednesday confirmed recent reports that he is making his Hollywood debut in the sequel to the horror film "The Grudge," also featuring Sarah Michelle Gellar of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" fame.

"In the fourth week of filming my first Hollywood movie," Chen wrote in a posting on his blog Wednesday. "I have returned to Tokyo. It is exciting this week. I got some crazy scenes to do in the movie. Yep, I am doing 'The Grudge' part two."

"I am thinking I got something good here," Chen said, noting "The Grudge" made US$178 million (euro147.05 million) in the U.S. and over US$200 million (euro165.22 million) worldwide.

Chen's film credits include the "Infernal Affairs" trilogy and "Initial D."

------------------

On the Net:

Edison Chen's blog:
http://blog.honeyee.com/edison/

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Jackie Chan says working with babies in new movie was frustrating
11 April 2006

HONG KONG (AP) - Jackie Chan says working with babies in his new action comedy "Rob-B-Hood" was a frustrating experience.

"I saw babies every day, how noisy they were. If one cried, then one, two, three, four, they would all cry," Chan said at a press conference for the Chinese-language movie in Beijing on Tuesday.

A transcript of the press conference was posted on the Chinese news Web site Sina.com Wednesday.

Chan, who appeared at a news conference with a baby girl who's in the movie, said baby moods were unpredictable.

"It's hardest to get a girl to smile. She just doesn't smile. She looks at the people manning the cameras like they're idiots. She would smile right after we run out of film," Chan said of the baby girl.

"Once she sees the set she cries," he said.

"Rob-B-Hood" is reportedly about gangsters who kidnap a baby.

Chan said "Rob-B-Hood" is the latest in a recent trio of films in which he tackles genres unconventional to him -- in this case a "very happy, very heartwarming" film. The other two are "New Police Story," in which Chan plays a tragic hero, and "The Myth," a mythology epic that tracks the journey of a man who seeks his lost love from a previous life.

"I've been telling myself these past few years I need to change," he said.

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Armchair film critics challenged to do better
16 April 2006
South China Morning Post

Organisers of the Hong Kong International Film Festival are daring anyone who has ever criticised a film to make their own and then let international critics be the judge.

Festival chief executive Peter Tsi Ka-kei issued the dare as he told the Sunday Morning Post a new category of submissions from young people with no film experience would be accepted in next year's lineup.

The as yet unnamed short-film category - intended to help cultivate new talent for the local film industry - is an expansion of the Fresh Wave short film competition introduced this year.

"This year we had the Fresh Wave competition for university students. But I don't think the privilege should be reserved for university film majors only. We want to open it up," he said.

"People complain about why bad films are shown. Don't just talk. Do something about it. If you think you can do better, show us. It's cheap enough to make a short digital film."

Mr Tsi said any young person could try their hand at filmmaking after paying an entry fee of a few hundred dollars. The film could be about any subject so long it is less than 30 minutes long and has English subtitles if the soundtrack is not in English.

Director Abe Kwong Man-wai said: "Most young people don't want to work hard, nor do they want to start from scratch. If they expect to become stars right away, I can say that their chances of making it are very slim. It's like winning the Mark Six - it's possible, but not likely."

The Fresh Wave short film competition this year showcased entries from eight universities and film schools for the best short film and the most creative film awards. Shortlisted entries are being screened at the film festival, which ends on Wednesday.

Wasted, entered by a group of students from the Academy of Performing Arts, won the top prize.

[Manila-X]

BTW, aren't there some triad involvement in some of HK's film industry?

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Reviving local film's Golden Age
Hong Kong Standard
Monday, April 24, 2006

Famed movie director Tsui Siu-ming seems to be getting in on the financial and creative action at just the right time.

Hong Kong filmmaking took a nose dive during and after the Asian financial crisis, but Tsui says he can turn around the decline in filmmaking and restore the glory days of its golden era in just two years.

Tsui, president of Sundream Motion Pictures, a production company launched in March 2003, plans to make in- house movie production - the crafting of a film almost exclusively from start to finish-- a hallmark of Hong Kong moviemaking.

The first thing Tsui's public relations manager, James Chick, shows off before the interview is the office of i-Cable Satellite Television, where Tsui wears his second hat as chief operating officer.

This is Tsui's attempt to develop the first Rupert Murdoch-type institution for making, marketing and distributing major motion pictures in a territory that used to be the pinnacle of the industry but has seen a total slump in the past 10 years.

The industry famous for producing about 200 films a year in the 1970s and 80s only managed about 90 a year in the late 90s due to the Asian financial crisis. Moviegoers could not afford to visit theaters. Producers refused to back risky ideas and did not financially support a movie unless it promised a big profit. So movies started to decline in quality as the industry became mired in stereotypes.

It was not until January 2004 that Hong Kong moviemakers saw the potential to lift the industry out of its morass.

When the SAR and mainland governments signed the Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement in that year, Hong Kong directors working in China earned the "domestic" trademark. They now no longer take on seven mainland talents for every three Hong Kong ones. The ratio is now 5:5. And propagandistic nationalist mainland topics are no longer the focus.

Big problem. That near-10 year gap in movie production left Hong Kong woefully lacking in gifted writers, costumers, cinematographers and willing directors.

Hong Kong's movie moguls are obsessed with finding the next Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and Seven Swords, says Tsui, who counts the latter's director Tsui Hark and star Jet Li, as close friends.

But instead of blockbusters, Tsui Siu-ming wants small and medium- sized films from young and independently minded creators. He wants to grow an idea and to do it in the same office, together.

Tsui plans to produce an expected 15 films in two years. To do that, he has joined i-Cable Satellite Television, arguing that satellite will launch the careers of future great names in Hong Kong movies at a cheaper price and to wider North American, European and mainland audiences.

Tsui sits at a table in his velvet- paneled screening room in Cable TV Tower in Tsuen Wan, flipping through PDA e-mails while Jeffrey Chick, his translator, explains what makes Tsui so special.

Back in the 1980s, when tensions between China and Taiwan were at a high, Tsui directed two films, The Holy Robe of Shaolin Temple and Mirage, despite the risk of damaging his relations with Taiwan. Because of the sensitive political climate, the Taiwanese told Tsui they "would ban him forever" from visiting the island.

"I love China, and I love movies," Tsui interjects in English, when asked why he wanted to risk losing out on a career that could span to Taiwan, a famous destination for moviemakers. He smiles, arranges his tie and nods.

He understands, Chick says, but Tsui is in the vanguard. He knows where to go to find something successful.

And six years later, buoyed by a surging domestic film industry and desperate to tap into what proved to be a growing market in China, the Taiwanese invited Tsui to speak about his role in breaking through the regulatory walls created in post-Mao China.

"It was a brave thing," Tsui says. His cherubic cheeks puff out in a smile.

He no longer resembles the guy who orchestrated the kung fu moves in several 1980s movies. Instead, wearing glasses, he looks more like a pudgy academic.

Learning from that experience, Tsui decided two years ago that Hong Kong must nurture its young talent as there was no one yet willing or able to fill the shoes of former television actors-turned movie stars such as Tony Leung, Andy Lau and Maggie Cheung, all of whom feature in internationally released movies. Lau has just signed on to act in his first film for Sundream, A Battle of Wits.

He and his peers all learned how to act in small television studios in a close community of equals who shared a vision, who communicated their ideas together and who grew in a cohesive, harmonious environment.

Only two years into CEPA, Hong Kong still draws excessively on China's film world for writers, costume designers and directors.

Tsui believes that producers and actors in the Hong Kong movie industry focus on profit and big budgets.

"Movies now are not realistic. They use gimmicks to make a story, they don't think of core elements," Tsui says.

China does a much better job in producing the young talent that makes it into great films, he says. "We need to follow their trend to get into the market."

In the 1970s, when Bruce Lee went international with kung fu, and the late 80s in movies such as Sun, Moon and Star, and Island of Greed, a 1997 film starring Leung and directed by Michael Mak, who works with Tsui, Hong Kong movies actually made it big in the world.

Tsui thinks that tradition can be revived, but that ideas have to start small and must focus on local industry players.

Working with a team of 15 creative workers, Sundream plans to pour US$400 million (HK$3.12 billion) into small and medium-sized Hong Kong films - some with international backing - in the next three years.

Fist of Love, a new movie set to begin filming on location in April, already has a US$16 million price tag.

Its executive producer, Mak, who brought to Hong Kong the Asian version of the US television hit Charlie's Angels, says people have to adjust their perceptions of what a good film is to something beyond movies such as Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.

"We cannot just stick with this kind of topic," Mak says.

But life has not been easy.

During a meeting in late March a brainstorming session on new movie ideas came up short.

"We cannot find one you need to film," Mak says. "Different companies [already] produce a certain kind of movie."

Mak, who used to work for Rupert Murdoch's son James says he heard one piece of advice that still makes sense to him.

"I always remember one sentence from James Murdoch: `Where is the money?"' Mak says.

"Because making movies is a business.

The key now is to make small movies. The smaller, the better.

Make a trailer, put it on satellite, and snap!

"The budget is so low, it's a success," Mak says.

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Hong Kong Films Featured in the San Francisco International Film Festival
Government Press Release
Monday, April 24, 2006


(From left) Andy Lau, leading actor in "All About Love"; Director of the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in San Francisco, Ms Doris Cheung; Daniel Yu, director of "All About Love"; and Executive Director of the San Francisco Film Society, Mr Graham Leggat, attending the reception in San Francisco on April 23 celebrating the screening of "All About Love" in the 49th San Francisco International Film Festival.


(From left) Director of the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in San Francisco, Ms Doris Cheung; Peter Chan, director of "Perhaps Love"; Mrs Andre Morgan; Mr Andre Morgan, producer of "Perhaps Love"; and Executive Director of the San Francisco Film Society, Mr Graham Leggat, attending the reception in San Francisco on April 20 celebrating the screening of "Perhaps Love" as the opening night film of the 49th San Francisco International Film Festival.

The award-winning Hong Kong film "Perhaps Love" launched the 49th San Francisco International Film Festival on April 20 (San Francisco time).

For the first time in the San Francisco International Film Festival's 49-year history, a Hong Kong film was selected as the opening night film. "Perhaps Love," a heartfelt love story told through a kaleidoscope of flashbacks and the plot of film-within-a-film, is directed by the highly acclaimed film director Peter Chan.

Another Hong Kong film "All About Love" is also featured in the festival. Starring Andy Lau, the melodrama is the latest work of film director Daniel Yu and will be screened on April 23 and 26.

Delighted to see Hong Kong films receiving high commendations in the San Francisco International Film Festival, Director of the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in San Francisco Ms Doris Cheung said this was not just a recognition of the outstanding work of Director Chan and Director Yu, but was also an honor for the Hong Kong film industry as a whole.

"Hong Kong has a long history of film-making. With our historical background which makes Hong Kong the meeting point for Eastern and Western culture, and our emphasis on free flow of information and talents, Hong Kong has been the place for creativity and movie production," she said.

Ms Cheung also highlighted the various benefits the Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement (CEPA) could bring for Hong Kong film-making companies and how foreign companies could leverage on Hong Kong to enjoy such benefits. "Under our partnership arrangement with Mainland China, Chinese language films produced by Hong Kong companies can enjoy a quota-free access to the China market," Ms Cheung said. She added that Hong Kong's film industry was a flagship of Hong Kong's creative industry and the Hong Kong Government was dedicated to building a favorable environment for the industry to flourish.

Celebrating the recognition of Hong Kong films in the San Francisco International Film Festival, the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in San Francisco hosted receptions before the screening of both Hong Kong films, with the participation of directors Peter Chan and Daniel Yu as well as actor Andy Lau.

The 49th San Francisco International Film Festival runs from April 20 to May 4. Bringing together some 95,000 film-makers, industry representatives, journalists and film lovers, the festival features some 200 films representing 50 countries.

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Jackie Chan says his underwear and socks off-limits to fans: report
4 May 2006

HONG KONG (AP) - Jackie Chan was happy to give his clothing and shoes to his fans as lucky draw presents, but said his underwear and socks were strictly off-limits, a newspaper reported Thursday.

Chan agreed to fans' demands to have his clothing, shoes, and mobile phone during a fan club party attended by over 300 admirers from 20 different countries on Wednesday, Hong Kong's Oriental Daily News reported.

But the action star refused demands for his underwear and socks. "You could ask for anything except these two things. So disgusting!" Chan reportedly said.

Chan also said he has been battling with an injury to his right shoulder, which he hurt when exercising, the paper said.

"Now the bone sticks out. I tried to throw myself against a wall to push it back but it doesn't really work," he was quoted as saying. "I thought I should muster up courage to have it operated on, but I am really scared of injections. I have to persuade myself first," he said.

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Wong Kar-Wai rewarded for evocative Hong Kong films

CANNES, France, May 21, 2006 (AFP) - Chinese director Wong Kar-Wai, who heads up this year's jury at the Cannes Film Festival, was Sunday handed France's top civilian award for capturing the sights and sounds of Hong Kong on film.

"Your genius has lit up screens the world over with the colours, perfumes, sounds and emotions of Hong Kong"," Culture Minister Renaud Donnedieu de Vabres told Wong as he made him a Knight of the Legion of Honour.

"You have invented a new cinema, a new way of writing in ink and light which have overturned the public emotions and lit the way for a whole new generation of filmmakers," the minister added.

The ceremony was attended by other jury members including Tim Roth, Elia Suleiman, Samuel L. Jackson and French actor Patrice Leconte.

Wong, who won the best director prize here in 1997 with "Happy Together" was clearly moved by the award, saying he was very flattered by the honour that France had bestowed on him.

"I will never forget this moment of joy and emotion," he added, also thanking the French public for their support.

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Hong Kong director plans movie set during Nanking Massacre, Hollywood producer reportedly plans another
By MIN LEE
AP Entertainment Writer
21 May 2006

HONG KONG (AP) - Hong Kong director Stanley Tong said Sunday he has secured financing for a movie set during the Nanking Massacre, the mass killing in the eastern Chinese city now known as Nanjing during Japan's World War II-era invasion.

Separately, the South China Morning Post weekly magazine reported Sunday that William J. Macdonald, co-creator and executive producer of the HBO TV series "Rome," is planning another film that addresses the massacre head-on.

The films could influence already tense Sino-Japanese relations because of their sensitive content.

Many Chinese are still upset over the Japanese atrocities and believe Japan's government hasn't sufficiently atoned for them. Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi has angered China by repeatedly visiting Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo, which honors Japan's war dead, including convicted war criminals.

Director Tong said he has found financial backers in Germany, the U.S., China and Hong Kong, as well as Japan, for the film, with a budget of at least US$35 million (euro27 million) -- big by Chinese standards.

Tong said the film, tentatively called "Diary," won't focus on the atrocities in Nanjing, although its events will take place during the same period as the killings.

"The main thrust of the story is events during that time in Nanjing, but it may not necessarily be the massacre," he told The Associated Press in a phone interview.

"It's about the memories of a lot of people," said Tong, whose credits include "Rumble in the Bronx," starring Jackie Chan, the Hollywood film "Mr. Magoo" and the U.S. TV series "Martial Law."

Meanwhile, Macdonald's movie starts in a Tokyo courtroom where a Japanese general Iwane Matsui stands trial, then flashes back to the story of a Chinese family who live in Nanjing during the killings, the Post's magazine reported.

Macdonald's film is reportedly a joint production with a Chinese company, the Jiangsu Culture Industry Group. The producer's credits include "The Saint," "Jade" and "Sliver."

Mention of the Nanking Massacre in both Tong's and Macdonald's movies will subject them to intense scrutiny.

China says up to 300,000 people were killed in Nanjing during a rampage of murder, rape and looting by Japanese troops in 1937.

Japan avoids giving death toll estimates, while conservative lawmakers and academics still try to whitewash the event.

The films are likely to be carefully examined by China's censors with an eye toward its implications on Sino-Japanese ties.

Earlier this year, the Beijing government canceled the release in China of "Memoirs of a Geisha" amid speculation that officials were worried that the sight of ethnic Chinese actresses playing Japanese geishas -- woman trained in conversation and dance -- would stir a backlash.

In a flare-up of anti-Japanese sentiment in China in April last year, demonstrators vandalized Japanese-related shops and smashed windows at Japanese diplomatic offices in Shanghai and Beijing to protest the downplaying of wartime atrocities in Japanese textbooks.

Tong said he hasn't finalized the movie's cast or when filming will begin.

A number for Macdonald wasn't immediately available.

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Love triangle draws Woo back to Hong Kong
23 May 2006
Guardian Unlimited

After a decade spent making his name in Hollywood as a master stylist of the action film, Hong Kong director John Woo plans to mark his return to Chinese-language cinema by producing a tale of a love triangle.

According to news reports in Hong Kong, the film is set to star Chang Chen, Shu Qi and Daniel Wu, and will have a budget of HK$47m (£3.2m). Taiwanese music video director Chen Yi-li will direct, and shooting will start in September. The title - which would surely cause anxiety in Hollywood, where Michael Cimino's megabudget flop of the same name remains a byword for cinematic follies - is Heaven's Gate.

John Woo patented his style of balletic violence in Hong Kong with such films as A Better Tomorrow and Once a Thief before answering the siren call of Hollywood in the early 90s, where he made Broken Arrow, Face/Off and Mission: Impossible II.

His return to Hong Kong may have been influenced by his faltering track record in the noughties, with such duds as Windtalkers, Hostage and Paycheck in recent years.

In addition to Heaven's Gate, Woo plans to direct the historical epic Battle of Red Cliff in China starting in March 2007.

[Sou-jiro]

Originally Posted by WANCH

Didn't HK made alot of martial arts movies back in the 1980s? OK they still make them but not as strong as it used to be.

it seems from early 90's onwards now HK has been making alot of Gangstar/triad related movies or series

the likes of Young & Dangerous (6 parts w/another 6 movies revolving around other characters lives..12 movies in all

divergenace(a lil bit)

color of loyalty

infernal affairs trilogy..

last HK movie i saw was spl...any movie w/Donnie Yen is good...choreography is always well done...nice tp see Sammo Hung play a bad guy...Jet-li has Played a baddie before but you'll never see Jackie Chan do it...maybe in his early days though not sure

[CFCheng]

Jackie Chan played a bad-guy in the Bruce Lee movie 'Enter the dragon' as one of the guards of the enemy. He played a very short role though, his role was also a bit humiliating.