The American movie magazine, Premiere, recently
featured Zhang Ziyi in two prominent pictures in its January 2003 online and
hardcopy editions. The following is the written article by the reporters
Takeshi Oka and Greg Starr. It is unknown who the person is that's
accompanying Ziyi.
In the Works: Hero
Takeshi Oka and Greg Starr, Premiere Magazine
It's high noon on a desolate, arid plain in China's far east province
of Zhejiang, and the Man with No Name (Li) is striding toward a showdown
with the assassin Sky (Yen). The two actors are nonchalantly twirling their
weapons?Li, a black sword; Yen, a broken piece of spear?as they move
toward their places. It will be the first time these martial artists have
battled on film since their unforgettable clash in 1992's Once Upon a
Time in China II.
And it will be the first time ever that director Zhang
Yimou (Raise the Red Lantern) has made an action film?although
that's through no fault of his own. "I've been a fan of Chinese action
novels since childhood," he says, "but never had the chance to shoot
one. And just when I finished three years of work writing this script, Crouching
Tiger came out. I wanted to abandon the whole project since people
would always think I copied Ang Lee, but everyone who read the script
spurred me on to make it."
Li stars as a bodyguard to China's first emperor,
fighting off a series of assassins played by Asia's biggest stars: In
the Mood for Love heartthrob Leung (who answers "Um . . . no," when
asked if he likes action movies), Cheung (Leung's love interest in In the
Mood), Zhang Ziyi (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, Rush Hour 2),
and Yen (Blade II). Each is fighting for a different
reason?patriotism, love, personal loyalty. And who's the actual hero of
the title? "All of them," says director Zhang. "They're heroes
because of their individual spirit and determination." There's a
Rashomon aspect to the tale, too, as the same events are viewed through the
varied vantage points of the characters, and Oscar-winning wardrobe designer
Emi Wada has had to design four sets of costumes for each main character in
four different colors. "The colors of the entire set will change with each
different perspective," says director of photography Christopher Doyle (Psycho,
The Quiet American)."It's the organizing principle, and hopefully
the color will suggest a way for the audience to look at the content."
Right now, however, Li has traded his sword for a book,
and he retreats to his chair to wait for the crew's next setup. For a
movie that will have to kick some serious ass to capture attention in
today's post-Matrix world, it's hard to find anyone who wants
to discuss the action. Everyone?including the man whose very name has
become synonymous with martial arts films?prefers to focus on the more
dramatic, chivalrous aspects. "In most action movies, the story exists
only to connect the action scenes," Li says. "But this one is
different.The action exists only to support the storytelling."
For other information, please refer to the original article link for
correspondence: Premiere
On-set Report of Hero
Thanks to puubs for
supplying this text. Special thanks to Shadow
for the high quality scan.
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