Tony in Japan 2000

Reports from Tokyo by Nancy Nahoko Yada

If you all remembered, she brought us news on Tony's visit in 1998. Here it is again. Nancy's report! From October 29th to 31th, 2000. Nancy attended Hong Kong Movie Festival in TOKYO. The admission ticket of "In the mood for Love" was sold out within the first ten minutes. On Oct.30th, Nancy and a group of friends went to the special screening of ITMFL. More than thousands fans lined up outside of the theater to greet the stars. (From now on, I quote Nancy's message.)

First, the movie director Jingle Mar(as in TOKYO RAIDERS), actress Sue Chi(as in Gorgeous) and Ekin Cheung came in the same car. After that, Leslie Cheung arrived in a black Benz. He waved toward the waiting fans, and beamed. Leslie then walked toward the reporters, and posed for camera shots. We kept waiting for Tony. A nearby fan said to me, "Tony is scheduled to arrive by Air France at 14:54." I worried, "Is Tony in time for this ceremony?" No one is leaving. A black car arrived before long. We all wondered. Might the passenger be a bureaucrat of Japanese Government? Or, a government official of Hong Kong Tourist Association? Another car came. Director Wong Kar-wai got off the car. Then, Maggie Cheung also has gotten off a black car with Tony Leung! They were waiting for Wong Kar-wai. Tony wore a white jacket and a white shirt, and sweeping blue jeans while most of other actors wore the suit. We raised the shout of joy, and called Tony. "Tony! Wai-jai!" However, he went straight, and advanced toward the red carpet. We were a little disappointed.

We finally went into the theater ten minutes later. Capacity in the hall is 2500. However, the foremost row was secured for the cameraman and the journalists, and managed extensively by the guards. We sat on the fifth rows. Beginning of the ceremony, the Deputy Secretary of the Hong Kong government greeted the audiences first. We were bored by her long greeting. Finally, the guest stars were being introduced. A Japanese emcee introduced Ekin and Sue Chi as new generation's star. Leslie appeared next. He made a speech. Then the emcee asked him. "Where would you recommend as the tourist spot of Hong Kong?" Leslie answered, "The top of a mountain in the Mt. Victorian, and, the coffee shop which I manage is also a wonderful place." After Leslie left, and the emcee introduced Maggie, Tony, and Wong Kar-wai. We kept calling 'Tony'! Tony responded with a radiant smile.

Maggie Cheung was the first to speak : "I am happy to be back in Tokyo again. I have just finished the long promotion tour for this film in Europe, so I'm a bit tired. But I really like this film, so I hope you like it, too."

Tony greeted the audience in Japanese. "Konbanwa!(Good evening)," he followed it with: "This is a very special night for me, because this is my utmost favorite film. I am proud to be in this film, and I hope you all enjoy it."

My friend was putting up the welcoming banners on the second floor. Tony saw the welcoming banners and smiled.

And finally Wong Kar-wai: "To tell the truth, I brought my film to this festival 10 years ago. It was not taken so well in other countries, but very well in Japan. And for me, that is still quite encouraging, since what you are about to see is an extremely private film. I would like to give my appreciation to all the people who have supported the distribution and the exhibition of this film in Japan."

Then it's onto the photo session. The microphone stand was blocking the cameraman. WKW put away the microphone by himself. Journalists took a lot of photographs of Tony, Maggie, and Wong Kar-wai. After a while, WKW walked away from Tony & Maggie, and let the spotlight fell squarely on the two. Tony & Maggie were surprised by the move. Below the stage, there are a lot of Hong Kong and Taiwan journalists. It almost looks like Wong Kar-wai wants to put more fuel to the gossip of Tony & Maggie. The flashbulbs went on and off for minutes.

After the threesome left the stage, the film started.

Tokyo correspondent: Nancy Nahoko Yada

From Japan with Love.

Click on the thumbnail to view the larger pix

Many thanks to Nancy,  also check out her wonderful website, with lots more on Tony and HK films.