2000 News [6]

12/4/2000, Tony returned to Hong Kong. He took a flight a few hours later than Maggie. To that, he explained he had to do a few interviews before leaving Taipei. Asked how did he felt about losing the award to Francis Ng, he said he was disappointed, but not defeated, "The jury decides the winner. There are many great actors in Hong Kong. Francis Ng Jun-Yu did a good job in THE MISSION. He deserves it." Tony made plan to attend the Asia-Pacific Film Festival which takes place this Friday 12/8/2000 in Vietnam.

12/2/2000, In the mood for love took home three awards from Golden Horse Award.  Maggie Cheung walked away with her fifth Golden Horse Award (4 Best Actress, 1 Supporting Actress). Congratulations to Maggie!!! Besides Maggie's Best Actress Award, ITMFL also took home Best Set Design and Best Cinematography. And, not so surprisingly Tony went home empty-handed. Best Actor is awarded to Francis Ng Jun-Yu (The Mission). 

Why did ITMFL lost out on most of the major categories? 
Golden Horse Award Jurors claim they had a hard time understanding "In The Mood For Love."  (That's nothing surprising. WKW films always attract extreme and quite opposite reactions. You either love it or hate it.)

Why did Tony lose out?
Like I said on the board, Golden Horse Award is very unconventional in giving out awards. They do a lot of 'sharing the pie'. When that happens, nothing is quite predictable. But I think the result is fair. Tony has his Cannes Award. Anything comes after that is just frosting on the cake. Golden Horse Award never favored him. In 1997, he did not even get a nomination for "Happy Together." Personally, I think it's always nice to see fresh faces winning award.  Though I have yet to see any of these movies nominated, I believe Francis Ng deserves it as much as Tony would. Congratulations to Francis Ng!

Trivial things from Golden Horse Award:

Tony and Maggie were interviewed on the Star Walk (a red carpet thingy before entering the Memorial Museum). The host asked Maggie point-blankly,"Did you fall in love with Tony filming ITMFL?" Maggie paused for a second and smiled,"Mrs. Cheng did." (Mrs. Cheng was her character in ITMFL.) And Tony? He was more cautious,"Screen love is different from real-life." So you still love Carina? he paused and cautiously said,"You can put it that way."

Andy Lau was also interviewed on the Star Walk. When asked what type of roles he would like to attempt the most, he thought for a minute and said,"a gay character." The host shouted out,"Something like Happy Together?" Andy quipped,"yeah, so I can hug Tony Leung." (HAHAHAAH.... toooo funny)

Tony and Maggie chatted on stage before presenting the best director award. Maggie asked Tony,"Which director do you want to work with?" Tony looked at the list and replied,"Ang Lee. He's got a good temper. He won't yell at me if I messed up something." Maggie ribbed him,"You need to practice three-month of sword fighting before he will let you act."(a reference to CROUCHING TIGER HIDDEN DRAGON).

After winning the best actress award, during the backstage interview, Maggie said Tony losing out the best actor award made the evening a little "imperfect." But she didn't win at Cannes when Tony did, so life is fair in a way. Universal Music planned a big party for Tony after the award, Maggie said in a friendly tease,"What is he celebrating?" But she plans to attend the party to cheer Tony up.

When Ang Lee announced the Best Actor "Francis Ng Jun-Yu," Tony was visibly upset and surprised. Even after Maggie won, he remained very quiet afteraward. Well, it's understandable. After all, he had worked hard on this film. But there is just one Best Actor Award, somebody will win it, and the others have to go home empty-handed. He will be alright after a good night of sleep. Cheer up!

The abbreviated winner list:

12/2/2000, before heading to Taipei for the Golden Horse Award, Tony appeared on stage singing for a charity cause in Hong Kong.

12/1/2000, Maggie & Tony's appearance in LV store opening attracted hundreds news reporters. While joggling for position, the photographers almost crashed the front window. After a brief photo session and ribbon cutting ceremony, Maggie & Tony left the store without speaking to the media. Tony has kept his silence eversince he returned to HK.

Possible legal dispute over the contract Tony signed with producer Wong Ji for "Healing Hearts." Wong Ji claims Tony agreed to film two "Healing Hearts" TV episodes extended from the film, but Tony's manager said he only agreed to take the extra footages from the film and turn it into the TV episodes. In another word, Tony did not promise to spend any time to shoot the TV episodes. Wong Ji has started a public campaign framing the picture that Tony has agreed to film the TV episodes. Whether Tony will give in to the manipulative iron-fisted Wong Ji and be forced to shoot the two TV episodes remains to be seen. (Just show you - fame is not all glamour and glory. People thirst for your blood, one way or another they will try to get you. Sorry for being so graphic. But it's the reality.)

11/30/2000, Maggie and Tony made appearance in a LV opening party. They had just returned to HK from China. Earlier, Tony was spotted attending Carina's theatrical show "Yan Yu Hong Chuan."

Maggie and Tony will be attending the Taiwan Gold Horse Award in 12/2/2000. Besides competiting for the best actress/actor awards, they will also be presenting the best director award. (Golden Horse Award, Time: 12/2/2000, 7:00 ~ 10:00 PM)

Links: Live broadcast of Golden Horse Award, TTimes's coverage of Golden Horse Award, and Official website of Golden Horse Award.

11/29/2000, Tony, Maggie and WKW are wrapping up their China Tour. Maddening crowds follow them wherever they go.

Wuhan: Fans in Wuhan mobbed Tony. A group of over-enthusiastic fans rounded him up and torn apart the suit he was wearing.

ShengYang: A middle-aged man went hysterical, kneeled down and begged for Maggie's autograph photo.

Shanghai: A reporter met four college students who had been shadowing Tony ever since his arrival. They spent a sleepless night in a coffee shop while waiting for Tony. After hearing their story, WKW asked Tony to meet these fans, and they shared a brief chitchat.

11/27/2000, Continuation of In the Mood for Love World Promotional Tour... During the Thanksgiving Holiday, the threesome (Tony, Maggie, and WKW) arrived in Guang-Zhou, the first stop in China for a series of film premieres. The very next day they went to Beijing. Last I read they were in Wuhan. With a handful of cities left on their schedule.

Tony Interviews: Interview (1), Interview (2) (Real Player Required. Source Sina CN)

Links: (Read with Chinese GB) Sina.com - Tony Leung & Sina.com - WKW

Links: (Translated in English) Sina.com - Tony Leung & Sina.com - WKW