"Love in the City" to premiere in Beijing

(CRIENGLISH.com)
Updated: 2007-01-10 10:02

Shawn Yue(L) and Gao Yuanyuan pose for a photo after a press conference in Beijing on January 7th, 2007. [Photo: CRIENGLISH.com]

The highly anticipated "Love in the City", known in Chinese as "Nan Cai Nu Mao" or "Talented Guy and Pretty Girl", is set to premiere at Peking University Hall on January 8, 2007.

The film tells the interconnected stories of two pairs of lovers, who struggle through the twists and turns in their relationships, trying to surmount their difficulties.

Shawn Yue from Hong Kong and Gao Yuanyuan from Chinese mainland play the leading roles as the lovers in the main story, local cop Lok and kindergarten teacher Siu Yau. Loks thinks their relationship is going well until he accidentally discovers Siu Yau is both hearing and speech-impaired. This causes him to have second thoughts about their future.

Japanese actors Takuya Suzuki and Naoko Miyake play the second couple in the film.

The leading cast members joined director Jimgle Ma and producer Stanley Tong at a press conference in Beijing on Sunday.

Female star Gao Yuanyuan said she was attracted to the role because it offered her the first chance to shoot a romantic film in the real sense of the word. Her role allowed her to fully reveal her feelings to her lover, even though she could only use sign language to convey her subtle emotions.

She also said the film confirmed her belief in the power of love.

"Love can bring change and happiness to people and last forever. Never doubt it or become disappointed when you have twists and turns in your love. Everyone should maintain a belief in love and face the problems in their love lives."

Jingle Ma has directed many popular romantic movies but said he wanted to show the importance of courage in this movie.

"Courage is quite important in love. You should be brave enough to tell your beloved your feelings. The physical defect of the heroine has much stronger character and will than the normal person. She could even run the risk of her life to give birth to a baby for the sake of love."

Jingle Ma hopes the story will help to enlighten the audience and give them a better understanding of true love. He said everyone should cherish the hope for love in their hearts and be grateful when they have love.

The director always explained why he chose to shoot the film in the ancient city of Dali in southwestern Yunnan province, rather than a big city. When he traveled to Dali in the past, he was deeply impressed with the leisurely lives the locals lived. He believes Yunnan is a romantic place with fascinating scenery and untouched folk customs. As such it was the perfect place to set his film because it allows the story to be clear and pure as water, without splendid packaging. The purity of the remote town is identical with the nature of love.

"Love in the City" will hit cinemas across China on Tuesday.

"Nan Cai Nu Mao" is also the brand name for a series of youth-oriented romantic modern TV series and films, which have attracted a wide audience across Asia after the PKU Starlight Group initiated the series in 2002.