| |
 |
When East meets West
|
Song Yingwen
THE producers of The Guasha Treatment, the film that has been labelled the "first elite homegrown movie for the 2001 spring season" by the Chinese media, had a press conference to mark the film's premiere in Shenzhen yesterday afternoon at the Forum Hotel.
Six members of the cast and crew, including Zheng Xiaolong, the director and Tony Leung, the leading man, were in attendence. Jiang Wenli, the leading lady, was absent. Rumours abound that she is pregnant.
The atmosphere at the press conference was friendly, most likely due to the film's positive reception by movie-goers. Though the film was called a "Hollywood flick" by critics following its premiere in Beijing last Sunday, Zheng said he is flattered by the label. "After all, productions of Hollywood can cover 70 per cent of the world's market. That means they are popular. I don't mind admitting that the film was made with an eye towards the box office," Zheng said.
The film, of course, was the main topic of the press conference. Though most of Chinese seem to view the film simply as a tale of cultural clashes, Zheng said he wanted to convey a deeper message: "Diverse cultures are one at the core. No culture is inferior to another and human civilization is the combination of all cultures. Thus, meeting, communicating, mutual understanding and tolerance are conducive to the development of peace and harmony," Zheng said.
Tony Leung, the leading actor, was asked to compare himself with Jiang Wen, who was the first choice to play the character of Xu Datong (he turned down the part beecause he was too busy). Leung replied that he had full confidence in himself and was very pleased with his performance. "My life experience in Hong Kong, a city of cultural clashes, and my role as a father of two made me the most qualified candidate for the character," he said.
The Guasha Treatment is playing at major cinemas in Shenzhen.
|
|
|
|
