HomeActor/ActressAndy Lau
Andy Lau
류덕화
"The Host" Tops Asian Film Awards
South Korea's monster flick "The Host" has dominated Hong Kong's inaugural Asian Film Awards after winning four awards out of its five nominations. The movie, directed by Bong Joon-ho, won the Best Film, Best Cinematographer and Best Visual Effects awards while the movie's star, Song Kang-ho, beat fellow Korean idol Jung Ji-Hoon, better known as Rain, and Andy Lau for Best Actor. Chinese director Jia Zhangke grabbed the Best Director award for his movie, "Still Life", while Japan's Nakatani Miki was crowned best actress for her performance in "Memories of Matsuko" and beat Chinese stars Gong Li and Zhang Ziyi, as well as Korean star Kim Hye-soo.
Andy Lau wants Korean film roles
Andy Lau, one of Hong Kong's most popular and prolific actors with more than 130 film roles to his credit, said that he would like to act in Korean films. The "No.1 Box Office Actor" of Hong Kong, who yielded a total box office of more than $218 million in the past 20 years, came to Korea for the promotion of his latest film "A Battle of Wits" on Friday. Meeting the press at the CGV Multiplex in Yongsan, downtown Seoul, after the media premiere of the film, Lau confessed that he feels sad witnessing how the once-prosperous Hong Kong film industry is struggling. "Currently, Hong Kong films have failed to diversify the source of their stories, which I think is the main reason of the current sluggishness in growth", Lau said. "This is why I want to act in a new environment sometimes, including, of course, acting in Korean films". He spoke highly of Ahn Seong-gi, a veteran Korean actor who acts together with him in the blockbuster epic set in the late third-century China. "Ahn is not a new face in Hong Kong and China at all", he said. "But his Chinese-speaking acting is good enough to make more than 80 percent of Chinese filmgoers forget that he is a Korean actor who cannot speak Chinese". Having a huge fan base throughout Asia with the success of both his onscreen performance and his musical career, Lau is best known in the country for his roles in the "God of Gamblers" series, which was a smash hit in the late '80s through early '90s. Based on a popular 11-volume manga series from Japan originally titled "Bokko", the lavishly-produced historical drama tells the story of a Mozi tribesman called Ge Li (Lau) who comes to save the besieged peaceful land of Liang from the merciless attack from the kingdom of Zhao. "A Battle of Wits" will be released in cinemas across the nation on Jan. 11.
After 'Battle', Andy Lau Sets Sight on Korean Film
By Kim Tae-jong Staff Reporter Hong Kong movie star Andy Lau expressed his hope to star in a Korean film after working with Korean actors in a joint project between three countries: Japan, South Korea and China. "As the Hong Kong film industry has suffered from the lack of interesting stories, I often think I should make a movie with a new subject in a different environment. I'd love to star in a Korean film if I have a chance", Lau said Friday during a news conference after the preview screening of epic action film "A Battle of Wits" at Yongsan CGV theater in Seoul. "It doesn't really matter which actor or director I will work with, which I don't think is something I can decide. What matters is what kind of story it will be and the role that I will take", he said. Lau came to Seoul to promote the new blockbuster film, and the conference was also attended by Korean actors Ahn Seong-gi and Choi Si-won as well as Hong Kong director Jacob Cheung. Based on a Japanese comic book, the movie is about a battle that takes place during China's historical Warring States period in 370 B.C. In the film, Lau plays a warrior Ge Li, who takes on a mission to protect his nation from the invasion of the powerful Zhao Kingdom, and Ahn plays chief commander Xiang Yanzhong of the Zho Kingdom. Lau spoke highly of Ahn as an actor despite the fact that they could not sometimes understand each other fully because of the language difference. "I think he is brilliant actor with a lot of talent, who always does his best. Eight out of 10 audiences won't have the impression that he is a foreign actor because of his excellent Chinese", Lau said. Regarding a co-production project, Lau said actors from different countries should be able to show to the audience what they share in common. "A good co-production work is not something that allows all the actors from different countries to have the same exposure in the film but something that allows them to show what they have in common", Lau said. But he seems very careful about starring in a Hollywood film. Although many Hong Kong stars have started appearing in Hollywood movies since the late 1980s, they have not been so successful, he said. "Many Hong Kong actors have gone to Hollywood, but when I watch their films, it's not as good as their films made in Hong Kong including the ones by Jackie Chan, Jet Lee and Chow Yun-fat. It's not their fault, but it's because Hollywood focuses on the Hong Kong market rather than Hong Kong actors", Lau said. "I'm staying in Hong Kong because I hope the Hong Kong film industry will prosper and I want to contribute to it. But if I star in a Hollywood film, it should be for something better than those I make in Hong Kong", he said.
After 'Battle', Andy Lau Sets Sight on Korean Film
By Kim Tae-jong Staff Reporter Hong Kong movie star Andy Lau expressed his hope to star in a Korean film after working with Korean actors in a joint project between three countries: Japan, South Korea and China. "As the Hong Kong film industry has suffered from the lack of interesting stories, I often think I should make a movie with a new subject in a different environment. I'd love to star in a Korean film if I have a chance", Lau said Friday during a news conference after the preview screening of epic action film "A Battle of Wits" at Yongsan CGV theater in Seoul. "It doesn't really matter which actor or director I will work with, which I don't think is something I can decide. What matters is what kind of story it will be and the role that I will take", he said. Lau came to Seoul to promote the new blockbuster film, and the conference was also attended by Korean actors Ahn Seong-gi and Choi Si-won as well as Hong Kong director Jacob Cheung. Based on a Japanese comic book, the movie is about a battle that takes place during China's historical Warring States period in 370 B.C. In the film, Lau plays a warrior Ge Li, who takes on a mission to protect his nation from the invasion of the powerful Zhao Kingdom, and Ahn plays chief commander Xiang Yanzhong of the Zho Kingdom. Lau spoke highly of Ahn as an actor despite the fact that they could not sometimes understand each other fully because of the language difference. "I think he is brilliant actor with a lot of talent, who always does his best. Eight out of 10 audiences won't have the impression that he is a foreign actor because of his excellent Chinese", Lau said. Regarding a co-production project, Lau said actors from different countries should be able to show to the audience what they share in common. "A good co-production work is not something that allows all the actors from different countries to have the same exposure in the film but something that allows them to show what they have in common", Lau said. But he seems very careful about starring in a Hollywood film. Although many Hong Kong stars have started appearing in Hollywood movies since the late 1980s, they have not been so successful, he said. "Many Hong Kong actors have gone to Hollywood, but when I watch their films, it's not as good as their films made in Hong Kong including the ones by Jackie Chan, Jet Lee and Chow Yun-fat. It's not their fault, but it's because Hollywood focuses on the Hong Kong market rather than Hong Kong actors", Lau said. "I'm staying in Hong Kong because I hope the Hong Kong film industry will prosper and I want to contribute to it. But if I star in a Hollywood film, it should be for something better than those I make in Hong Kong", he said.
