"i will be your preacher teacher, any link you have in mind"

crazy people
Radar Online Mel Gibson's lost his marbles again. His angry angry marbles.
NatashaVC explains the ridiculousness that is Lindsay Lohan's absences from her alcohol classes
BlogStage speaking of crazy... albeit a more entertaining more benevolent kind. Lea Michele seems to think she could film Glee by day and take on the ghost of Barbra Streisand at night in Broadway's Funny Girl. This is, in a word, insane.
People Bruce Willis now has his own cologne. I love celebrities. They are so shameless. Smell like me!

linkage
My New Plaid Pants "Do it, Jake"... MNPP always makes me lol.
Self Styled Siren This is wonderful. The Siren interviews Mary Astor's daughter. A must for you classic movie fans. I'm glad that Siren opens with Meet Me in St. Louis because Astor is just wonderful in that picture (my review).
Cinematical Some enchanted evening, someone decided to remake South Pacific. With and edge. I'd love some original musicals but if we have to have remakes, so be it.
Art of the Title Sequence The Emmy nominees in this category. I do love the Nurse Jackie credits. Opening titles are one of my favorite parts of TV shows and this is why I knew I made the right decision to stop watching Weeds when I saw they had dumped the "little boxes" opening.
Flick Filosopher 8 extra minutes for Avatar rerelease. Do you care? I loved Avatar but if half of those 480 seconds don't fall under the category of explicit full braided neon sex scene with jakesully and Neytiri (hotness), I'm not forking over another $20!
Just Jared uh-oh. Colin Farrell is muscling in on Tom Cruise's Les Grossman-style makeup comedy
Writing the Wrong sequels that never were (for better and worse)

Being Boring watches lots of movies while sick. Derek Jarman this time. Do you do that too?
Towleroad A Betty White calendar? Betty White is our master now.
Asian Movie Pulse and Sina are covering a new film City Under Seige starring the beauteous Qi Shu and Aaron Kwok. Sounds like an interesting hybrid of sci-fi/horror... with circus performers. Wha?
EW If you've read my Julianne Moore interview, you know that I felt for Michael Ausellio yesterday when he spoke with Connie Britton. Now, he chats with celebrities all the time so it's no biggie for him but he's been pumping for Friday Night Lights Emmy recognition forever, so it's a sweet read after the lead acting nominations finally happened.

Housekeeping note
I've recently done a bit of sprucing up of the sidebar for your infotainment. For example, I can't believe I didn't have a "search" box before. My apologies. I know people are always asking "where's ______?" It's right below the advertisement in the sidebar.

Father Figure
Finally, hat tip to Anne Thompson, but the third Chris Nolan Batman film may start shooting next Spring. The "info" i.e. rumor is culled from this Michael Caine red carpet interview.



The interwebs will surely say claim this as breaking news but considering Michael Caine also states that he doesn't even know if his character is coming back, I'd take his 'I think they're starting next April' with a huge grainlake of salt. But I like what he says about his career

I'm a father figure now. I'm Goldmember's father. I'm Nicole Kidman's father. I'm everyone's father.

It took me a second to connect him with our Darling Nicki... that'd be from Bewitched (2005). Of all the movies to remember Michael? I mean, really. That's where you want to go?
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Hong Kong Film Awards: Bodyguards, Assassins, Bishonen

The Hong Kong Film Awards which honor film productions from, you guessed it, Hong Kong were held this week. I preface this post that way because there are other major Asian awards, most notably the Golden Horse which includes all Chinese language cinema rather than just Hong Kong productions. The Golden Horse nominations are announced in the fall I believe and we may see some of the same films honored. The big winner for HK was the action extravaganza Bodyguards and Assassins (Shi Yue Wei Chang) which took home eight prizes including Best Picture. It was nominated for 19 awards. Can you imagine?! I am a sucker for movie advertisements that introduce the cast of characters and both the posters and the trailer here label their characters. Is the movie worthy of this major a statue grab? Readers who've seen it, speak up! The film apparently has a Canadian/UK distributor but nothing here in the US.


Four of many character posters for the film. The trailer (at about the 1:30 mark) gives you the full rundown of characters



The other major prize winner was the 1960s era family film Echoes of the Rainbow (Sui Yuet San Tau) Both films were large box office successes at home.

• Picture: Bodyguards and Assassins
• Director: Teddy Chen, Bodyguards and Assassins
• Actor: Simon Yam, Echoes of the Rainbow
• <--- Actress: Kara Hui, At the End of the Rainbow
  This actress is also referred to in some reports as Wai Ying-Hung which makes things confusing. Hui plays the struggling mother of a young man accused of rape. This performance was a major comeback for the 50 year old actress, who first won the HK Film Award almost 30 years go. The performance has been a sweeper on the Asian awards circuit (this is her third major prize) so it's a pity that we don't get to see it here in the US.
  
• Supporting Actor: Nicholas Tse, Bodyguards and Assassins
  He plays "The Rickshaw Man"
• Supporting Actress. Michelle Ye, Accident
  
  
• New Director: Cheung King-wai, KJ
• New Performer: Aarif Lee, Echoes of the Rainbow
  (Pictured right, the new "it" boy I'm told. He also sings the film's winning theme song)
  
• Asian Film: Departures
  (This award honors Asian cinema produced outside of Hong Kong. Last year's Japanese Foreign Film Oscar winner took the prize)
• Screenplay: Alex Law, Echoes of the Rainbow
• Cinematography: Bodyguards and Assassins
• Editing: Overheard
• Costume Design: Bodyguards and Assassins
• Art Direction: Bodyguards and Assassins
• Action Choreography: Bodyguards and Assassins
• Visual Effects: The Storm Warriors
• Sound Effects: Red Cliff 2
• Original Song: Echoes of the Rainbow
• Original Score: Bodyguards and Assassins

Celebrity!
Awards shows, whether they take place in the Kodak Theater or all the way around the world, are often just as much about the red carpet and the celebrities walking them as whatever is being celebrating inside. I watched a bit of news coverage that I didn't understand and they were very excited about these two (pictured below). I approve.

Shu Qi and Chang Chen... sometimes referred to as Qi Shu and Zhang Chen

We don't get enough Asian films in the States but we have seen Chang Chen (Crouching Tiger, Happy Together, Red Cliff) and Qi Shu (So Close, The Transporter, New York I Love You) several times and I've even written about their onscreen partnership before. Their combined presence definitely sucks up the most coverage time from the entertainment news report I watched. I didn't realize they were a couple offscreen but if you've ever seen Hsiao-Hsien Hou's Three Times, you will most heartily approve.

It wasn't up for awards but as I was watching that same news bit online I couldn't help noticing that the young stars of Monga, Ethan Ruan and Mark Chao (who are very popular at the moment) were quite affectionate on the red carpet. Monga is another in a long long line of movies from all over the world in which young men form deep brotherly and eventually bloody bonds as they enter the gangster life. I'm not sure if there's a gay subplot but there's something going on between Ruan and Chao's characters. A bit of web searching led me to this unfortunate headline.

clockwise from top: Ruan and Chao at the HK Film Awards, on a talk
show promoting the film and onscreen in the drama Monga (2010)

Talk shows where male stars are asked to make out with each other? Nobody asked Heath and Jake to do this back in the day!

Here's the trailer to Monga which TFE reader Tony tells me I should look out for at the Golden Horse Awards this fall...



Have you seen any of these pictures? If not, what's the last Asian film you saw?

Golden Horse Awards: Maggie Cheung, Ang Lee, Leon Dai, Tsai Ming-liang

Maggie Cheung alert!
She walked the Taiwanese red carpet today in this white number to your left. She was presenting Best Picture at the Golden Horse Awards. The Golden Horse is Taiwanese in origin but it's for Chinese language films regardless of country of origin so it's very competitive now. Warlords and Lust, Caution, which both had international releases, were recent winners of Best Picture.

This year, Maggie handed the trophy to No Puedo Vivir Sin Ti which, if we ever see it in the States, might be called I Can't Live Without You or Not Without You. That's Taiwan's submission for this year's Foreign Language Film Oscar race. The film is from actor/director Leon Dai and it's about a poor man who loses his daughter once the government learns of their illegal living conditions.

No Puedo Vivir Sin Ti (2009) from Taiwan

Winners
Best Picture: No Puedo Vivir Sin Ti
Best Director: Leon Dai, No Puedo Vivir Sin Ti
This prize was presented by four previous winners: Ang Lee, Ho Hsiao Hsien, Johnny To and Stanley Kwan. Imagine receiving your prize from that illustrious quartet.
Best Actress: Bingbing Li, The Message
You may have seen her last year in The Forbidden Kingdom. The Message is an espionage thriller

Best Actor: Was a tie for the first time in Golden Horse history.
Nick Cheung in Ching Yan (aka The Beast Stalker) a police drama
Bo Huang in Dou Niu (aka Cow) as a Chinese peasant protecting his livestock in the 1940s
Supporting Actor: Xueqi Wang, Mei Lanfang which is China's Oscar submission this year, a biopic about a famous opera star which also stars Zhang Ziyi

Supporting Actress: Kara Hui, Sham Moh

Original Screenplay: No Puedo Vivir Sin Ti

Adapted Screenplay: Dou Niu

Cinematography: City of Life and Death

Tsai Ming-Liang's gives good eye candy in Visage (Face)

Art Direction: Face

Makeup and Costume Design: Face

Choreography: Ip Man ... choreography is one of those prizes, like stunts, that one has to wonder why the Oscars never thought to reward.

Visual Effects: Fengkuang de Saiche (aka Crazy Racer)
Film Editing: KJ: Music and Life
Sound Effects: KJ: Music and Life
Original Score: The Equation of Love and Death
Original Song: "For My Heart"
Documentary: KJ: Music and Life
Lifetime Achievement: Ming Ji (I'm not sure who this is or why they were rewarded since there are several Ming Jis or Ji Mings listed at IMDB)
Special Contribution: George Wang

Maggie presented Best Picture alone at the ceremony but said publicly that she most wanted to present it with Tony Leung Chiu Wai (her frequent co-star) and Carina (his wife). As Tony -- TFE reader, not the movie star ;) -- reminded me in conversation, this will undoubtedly cause a media stir since Tony & Maggie's relationship is always primo gossip fodder.

Here's a bit of the fashions on the red carpet. In order of appearance: Terri Kwan (star of Prince of Tears, another Oscar submission this year), Ting Ting Hu (Ghosted), Lynn Hung, the beauty in yellow plays Ip Man's wife and she's the real life girlfriend of Aaron Kwo, Maggie and Ang, Lunmei Kwai (in black), Shu Qi (who you'll recognize) walks with Ho Hsiao Hsien, Best Actress winner Li Bingbing is with Alec Su (in the leather pants), Yung-yung Chan star of Yang Yang, Vivian Hsu is wearing a necklace that I can't stop staring at.


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Speak up if you've seen any of these films. A few of you surely have. And can we get a petition going to pull Maggie Cheung out of retirement, please?
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Red Carpet Lineup (Festival de Cannes)

Oh yeah... it's on.


They've rolled out the rouge carpet in Cannes for the opening of the über film festival of film festivals, now in its 62nd year.

Asia Argento was a camera hog (I trust you not to be surprised) at the jury press conference in a white and black dress. Aishwarya Rai absorbed the light of every flashbulb on the croisette for the opening film, Pixar's Up. Jury member Shu Qi started the day in a simple champagne dress but switched to flowing teal for the opening ceremonies. We'll see the Three Times star next in the omnibus film New York, I Love You. Her fellow juror and NY... cast member Robin Wright Penn, recently interviewed in Gotham Magazine which went to press before Sean Penn filed for divorce, started Day One in a white pantsuit but switched to this shimmering gown later. She's starring in The Private Lives of Pippa Lee later this year. And finally... no Cannes event is complete without fashion icon, festival regular, Oscar winner and Film Experience goddess Tilda Swinton. She's currently on screens in both Julia and Limits of Control.

<--- Genius Isabelle Huppert is President of the Jury this year.

You can read some amusing speculative thoughts on Cannes opening day from Vanity Fair's blog, check out Anne Thompson's take on the promotions for the Up party, read industry types pontificate about what Cannes means or doesn't mean these days at IndieWire, and see a ton of photos of Aishwarya Rai photos at Just Jared.

Do you wish you were there?

Contest: Take Tony Leung Home

If this were a literal co-habitation sort of contest I would enter daily and/or perform illegal acts to ensure that I myself would win. Alas... 'tis but a DVD. But Tony Leung Chiu Wai was made for the silver screen so taking a DVD home is the next best thing. Right? Right.

Seoul Raiders is a comic action film starring Tony as a tough Chinese detective/thief/spy (I guess he multi-tasks) and the über gorgeous Shu Qi (Three Times, The Transporter) as a cat burglar. It just came out on DVD and I have a copy to give away to a lucky reader. It's a popcorn flick but the stars are easy on the eyes (it's their 4th film together). To enter please send an e-mail with LEUNG as the subject. It should contain the following three pieces of info.

1. Your name
2. Your shipping address (kept private)
3. And one reason why you love Tony Leung Chiu Wai (which I might quote whether or not you win)
   

It's that easy. You have until Sunday night to send that entry. The lucky winner will be announced Monday.


And, no, I have no idea what's going on in this film still either. Perhaps Richie Ren is turning green with envy over Leung's inarguable awesomeness? It happens.

Hong Kong Film Awards

Just when you thought red carpets and film trophies were in hibernation mode...

Remember this truth: There's always statues being handed out somewhere. The Hong Kong Film Awards were held this weekend past. Swiftly Writing has commentary on the various wins and losses. It seems that the superstar-studded war epic The Warlords with Best Actor winner Jet Li and House of Flying Daggers' reunited co-stars Takeshi Kaneshiro and Andy Lau won big. Really big. Lau is pictured to your left winning Best Supporting Actor (albeit for a separate film). You'll remember he played the Matt Damon role in the before-it-was-remade version of The Departed back when it was called Infernal Affairs. It's worth seeing (IA I mean -- compare and contrast, compare and contrast). You can read reviews of The Warlords at Gone Elsewhere or Love HK Film if you're interested. Apparently it's not getting a US release after all. The DVD is out.

Here's a video report of Hong Kong's big movie night. Red carpet dresses and all. You'll spot a few familiar faces.

Day of Rest

Shhhhhh Takeshi had a rough night


It's probably wrong how happy it makes me to see Takeshi Kaneshiro sleeping with a huge stuffed Hello Kitty* ...but if this is wrong I don't wanna be right.

Next week: I know I sometimes over promise but really: this feature is now my strict boss o' deadlines. (Otherwise I'll never get caught up) Anyway... next week: All That Jazz --it's half written, I swear. Watch it again quick!, Francophilia, "Actress of the Aughts" mini checkup, and the completion of the Oscar prediction overhaul.

*for the record the Kitty and the bed and everything else belongs to Shu Qi and Takeshi is about to haul his embarassed ass out of her apartment. He thinks she might be a prostitute so he gives her money (which confuses her). That's about all I get from the scene from Confessions of Pain because the DVD I managed to get me hands on doesn't have English subtitles so I'm rather at a loss.... previous related post
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Leung & Kaneshiro. At the Same Time (Gasp)

Excuse me but how is it that no one told me about this movie?


Tony Leung AND Takeshi Kaneshiro are in the same movie (for the first time since Chungking Express and they weren't really together in that movie so it's the first time ever, sort of). It's called Confessions of Pain. Please deliver this movie to me now. Or within the hour. Hurry. Qi Shu who you'll remember from Three Times is the female lead.

Hump Day Hotties: Qi Shu & Chen Chang

The upcoming fantastical time-travelling epic The Fountain is not the only movie of 2006 with a triptych love story starring two beautiful actors. Earlier this year Hou Hsiao-hsien's Three Times premiered to great acclaim. It arrived on DVD last month so I thought it was a good time to gaze at its stars. Taiwanese sex symbol Qi Shu is the female lead and this film marks her second tour of movie star duty for the acclaimed director. The first was Millenium Mambo, 2001. She and her screen lover, Chen Chang each play three roles in different time frames, though this is no futuristic epic but a meditation on Taiwan's history.

Neither star has what could be considered international name recognition. They haven't reached the remarkable levels of a Ziyi Zhang or a Tony Leung. But they have the first part of the stardom equation covered: familiar faces.

In addition to the serene presence Chen Chang lent Three Times you've seen him in pivotal second tier roles in Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon (as Ziyi Zhang's desert lover), Happy Together (as Tony Leung's post-heartbreak friend), and in a bit role in 2046.


Tony Leung or Jackie Chan fans will recognize Qi Shu as their romantic sparring partner from the comedies Love Me, Love My Money and Gorgeous respectively. Gorgeous is an apt description, yes? She was also part of the girl power martial arts flick So Close and the object of transport in the Jason Statham action flick The Transporter. A little known fact about Qi Shu: She does not sleep, nor eat, nor even exist outside the movie set. Or if she does any of those things she does them on her lunch breaks since she's found the time to make 54 (you heard me) movies in the past 10 years. And to think I bitched about Cate Blanchett's excessive filming schedule! Qi Shu recently won the Best Actress Golden Horse for her work in Three Times. Though if you ask me, Chen Chang is the MVP, believeable in all three time periods when Shu seemed too modern and inexpressive in the middle story.


I couldn't find much English language material about either actor once I got curious about them. They both spell their names in several different ways which makes it even more difficult to get acquainted with them. For instance. Chang Chen also goes by Zhang Zhen but Zhang Zhen happens to be a professor who wrote an 'amorous history of the silver screen.' Not the same person --though the amorous history discovery is pretty funny considering the amorous feelings Chen can stir in his obsessive fans and tearful Taiwanese actresses. Hee. As for Qi Shu, it's easier to find info on her. There's plenty for salivating fans at this expansive fansite.

Previous HDH Entries:
Jamie Dornan & Asia Argento burning up Versailles * James McAvoy randy king of Scotland * Naomie Harris pretty chameleon * Hot on TV from "Agent Dale Cooper" to "Faith" * Channing Tatum steppin' up and out * Hugh Jackman dancer, fighter, lover, mutant, god * Uma Thurman 18 years of hotness. * Cheyenne Jackson from Broadway to Hollywood * Season One of HDH Gyllenhaal, Gong Li, Bernal, and more...

Tags:
Chen Chang, movies, Qi Shu, film, foreignfilm, Taiwan, Three Times, cinema