In the mood for China
Wong Kar Wai's first English-language feature, My Blueberry Nights, opened last night's Cannes Film Festival.
The screening was the world premiere of the romantic drama starring Norah Jones, Jude Law, David Strathairn, Rachel Weisz and Natalie Portman. It was the first time that a film by a Chinese director has opened the prestigious festival.
Wong is part of a group of nine Chinese directors and actors involved in Cannes.
Chinese director Wong Kar Wai wins the focus of attention last night for his first English-language feature, My Blueberry Nights, which opened the Cannes Film Festival. File photo |
Wong has been Cannes regular since the 1990s, when he won the Best Director prize in 1997 for Happy Together.
His 2000 classic In the Mood for Love also won high honors when Tony Leung was given the Best Actor award in 2000.
Last year Wong headed the jury for the festival, becoming the first Chinese jury president.
Wong's long-time friend and actress Maggie Cheung, who won the Best Actress award in 2004 for her performance in Clean, will also be among the jury members.
Two Chinese movies are entered in the Un Certain Regard section, which is a Cannes Film Festival award bestowed on a movie with special cultural expression and cinematic innovation.
One is Mang Jing (Blind Shaft), a gritty and illuminating film from first-time director Li Yang, centering on China's illegal coal-mining community.
Writer-director Li, 43, who has directed several documentaries while studying in Germany, tackles the problems faced by many of Chinese as the economy develops.
Another Chinese-made film is Ye Che (Night Train) by Diao Yinan, a chilling view of crime and punishment and a gritty portrayal of a woman's search for love in contemporary China.
Meanwhile, Juliette Binoche is the leading light in Taiwanese director Hou Hsiao Hsien's The Flight of the Red Balloon, which will open the Un Certain Regard section.
Chinese director Wang Bing's He Fengming (Chronicle of a Chinese Woman), which examines the grim "re-education" camps through the eyes of a survivor, will be shown in a special screening,.
Five renowned Chinese directors - Stanley Kwan, Hark Tsui, Wong Kar-wai, Ann Hui and Stephen Chow - are also expected to announce their new film plans at the festival.
The total investment in Chinese films is estimated to exceed reach several hundred million yuan, and Stanley Kwan's Bruce Lee biopic alone is expected to exceed 100 million yuan.
Also in the spotlight is Hong Kong director Hark Tsui's modern comedy with a Chinese name - literally translated as Women Are Not Bad, while Chinese actresses like Zhou Xun, Zhao Wei and Xu Jinglei are top candidates for roles in the comedy.
Also, several big names of the Chinese film industry are seeking foreign film buyers at the festival, such as director Feng Xiaogang's latest war epic The Assembly and Hong Kong director Peter Chan's Blood Brother.
(China Daily 05/17/2007 page18)
