Wong Kar-wai Read online

  Angel: How does the director see his actors?

  WKW: I feel Andy Lau has made a lot of gangster films in recent years; his real self is not gangster-like. Although he does have some emotional times and can be sensitive, he is a very cheerful person. I asked him to give me a “blank page,” to act in Days of Being Wild as if he had never acted before. It could be more insecure to an actor. He feels other actors’ characters have much flair, but his has none. But I hope his character balances others—some characters are ordinary, others are more dramatic. This should be the way of doing things.

  Leslie Cheung has a great performance because he is playing himself. A few things in Days of Being Wild closely resemble Leslie’s real self. Leslie is not a simple person [note: WKW used the word basic]; he plays rebellious characters the best.

  Carina Lau’s character is very intuitive [note: WKW used the word physical]. She gets what she want; she is very direct. Her personality stands out a lot. Carina is a solid and calm actress, very resilient. In the beginning, her character in the original script has schizophrenia, but after the screenplay was revised many times, her character is the most direct in the film. She plays a character who feels everything is alright after a good night of sleep. The best quality of Carina is she is very natural. She does not have much acting experience, but it turned out to be a good thing. She does not act in a stereotypical way [note: WKW used the word stereotype]. This is the most precious quality of an actor.

  Jacky Cheung plays a one hundred percent enthusiastic character. He has the warmth of northern Chinese, but this kind of person gets hurt the most easily. Actors will no longer be challenging after working too much with me because they will always play themselves. If Jacky played the villain in Swordsman, he may need to act more. But I don’t like seeing actors acting; it is meaningless to me. I like reality.

  Maggie Cheung’s character in Days of Being Wild is an ordinary girl, like Andy Lau’s character, which is very difficult to play. Maggie is very special because she is not suitable for doing ordinary acting. Her own body movement is very complicated; she is able to show complex emotions without any dialogue. Because of this quality, she does not perform well if she is told how to act in a scene.

  Angel: How do the actors see their performances?

  Leslie Cheung: In January 1989, associate producer Joseph Chan Wing-kwong introduced Wong Kar-wai to me to talk about the film. At the beginning I was supposed to be play a minor role, but we became more familiar with each other. Then I became the main male character. I am an arrogant person because I see myself as a professional. I see others as amateurs. If others are not in the same league as I am, I will ignore them. But after getting to know Wong Kar-wai, I realized he has many visions. I believe he is the most promising director in Hong Kong.

  Working with an actor of my talent, many directors will accommodate me. They will accept whatever I do, but Wong won’t. His requirements are very strict. When an expression crossed my face, he would suggest that I try another way to act, to try to think outside the box. I feel his working attitude creates sparks within me; it creates certain chemistry [note: LC used the word chemicals]. Wong is the director who asks me to NG the most. The record is forty-seven takes.

  I have a special feeling for the 1960s. I only remember the bell bottoms of the ’70s, but there were many major events in the ’60s: Marilyn Monroe’s death, John Kennedy’s assassination. In addition, my own family was the most intact in the ’60s; therefore, I have a special feeling for that era. William Chang was very successful at re-creating the ’60s. When I was filming in Seymour Terrace in mid-level Central, I felt like I was at home; therefore, I was more into the role.

  Andy Lau: I tried to forget all my past acting to be in Days of Being Wild. We can say I gave a piece of blank paper to Wong Kar-wai. I gave him a chance to write me a letter about Andy Lau. In As Tears Go By, I acted to perform my own perception of Andy Lau; therefore, in As Tears Go By, many dialogues, movements, and the character’s thoughts are Andy Lau in first person. But it is not the same for Days of Being Wild. This time Wong Kar-wai wants me to act like Andy Lau from his point of view: how he would present this character in this situation. The Andy Lau in Days of Being Wild is the Andy Lau from Wong Kar-wai’s perspective.

  This time I play a passive character. The camera rarely shows my eyes and face in contrast to other characters. They stand in the front of the camera while I stand in the back. After seeing Days of Being Wild, you would doubt whether this character exists or not. Wong Kar-wai has this arrangement because he thinks I have always caught the attention of the viewers, but he wanted to have a change. I was not accustomed to it in the beginning. Even though I was standing in the back, I am a key man in the film. The entire film hopes to present my character the best. If not for this character, this film would not become a film. This character continues into the sequel.4 The director wants the audience to remember the relationship between Maggie Cheung’s and my characters.

  Carina Lau: At the beginning I was scared of Wong Kar-wai. This fear came from Tony Leung Chiu-wai. Tony Leung has worked with Wong Kar-wai, and Tony told me one day he had twenty-six NGs. He blamed himself for not knowing how to act. This instilled a fear in me—a feeling that this director is demanding. In addition, the performers in Days of Being Wild are all award-winning actors and actresses. Working with them make me feel a lot of pressure.

  For every scene, every expression, and every movement, Wong Kar-wai would tell me a lot of information that makes me give a convincing performance: I am this woman; this is my background; this is what my mother is like. These details may not appear in the film, but this kind of information makes the actors dive into the acting. He suggested I watch Betty Blue since my character is similar to Betty. I also went on a diet to lose weight because I play a dancehall girl. Wong Kar-wai loaned me many movies with belly-dancing for preparation.

  My acting is unlike Wong Kar-wai’s style. He wants actors to be the most ordinary, the most natural, making him feel they are not acting. But I have been in television for many years, and I like acting…. After working with Wong Kar-wai, I feel my acting skills have improved a lot.

  NOTES

  1. In Cantonese the pronunciation of “nonhumane” is the same as “flying people.” The Cantonese title of Days of Being Wild is pronounced as Ah Fei Jing Juen. “Fei” in the Chinese title is the character for “fly.” The term “Ah Fei” was popular in 1960s and ’70s. It refers to rebellious youth or young gangsters who do not conform to social norms or abide by laws. The Chinese title of Days of Being Wild can be translated as “The story of a rebellious youth.”

  2. NG is used in the Hong Kong television and film industries to signal stop and retake. It means “No Good.”

  3. The Chinese titles for both Days of Being Wild and Rebel Without a Cause are identical.

  4. The sequel was not made.

  All about Days of Being Wild: A Dialogue with Wong Kar-wai

  Jimmy Ngai / 1990

  From City Entertainment (Hong Kong). No. 305 (pp. 38–40). Interview conducted in Cantonese in 1990. Translated by Silver Wai-ming Lee from Chinese. Reprinted by permission of the publisher.

  Jimmy Ngai: We are all interested in the ins and outs of the project.

  Wong Kar-wai: It is a bother if I have to talk about the project from the beginning to the end. It could take two to three hours.

  JN: Let’s try to begin with the story.

  WKW: It was simple. The starting point was that I had to make a set of films—each having two installments. Conventional films focus on causal events. An experienced audience is able to predict the development of the story. A sophisticated audience can even go faster than the storyteller—they are used to this kind of storytelling. My thought was this: since people are aware of the structure of storytelling, I should make changes in the structure so that they cannot speculate what the next event will be. I think surprise is very important. After deciding on the length, I needed enough chara
cters to support the film: A set of two films does not mean making a longer film but condensing three films into two. The structure is thus larger. It is either a large cross-section or the key element is time. You know, a two-part film is actually one film. It just lets me use more time to change the audience’s habit of understanding storytelling.

  JN: But eventually, the finalized work will be divided into two parts and shown separately.

  WKW: It is just the theatrical release. I have many choices afterwards: I can re-edit it into a new version. It could be three or four hours long on VHS. VHS actually dominates the film market now. The VHS version of Days of Being Wild that will be released in the future is what I want to do the most.

  JN: You mean we have to watch Days of Being Wild on VHS?

  WKW: I think some theaters are still willing to show it.

  JN: I heard that at the beginning you wanted to construct a story on a larger scale of time and space.

  WKW: Originally the background was to be segmented into three parts: a fishing village, urban Kowloon, and the Philippines with the corresponding periods of the 1930s, 1960, and 1966. But at the end I gave up the parts that take place in the fishing village.

  JN: And 1960 and ’66?

  WKW: I came to Hong Kong from Shanghai in 1963. In my memory, Hong Kong was … memorable, as if even the sun was brighter. Also the radio was in the air …

  JN: It was probably the infrastructure of the city.

  WKW: Indeed, but everything becomes better in memory. At that time everything was slow. Of course, I absolutely could not precisely represent the ’60s; I only tried to portray the pictures in my subjective memory.

  JN: Now we know about the time. What about the characters?

  WKW: What is interesting is that originally in the ’60s, the “lovers” suffer repercussions after many years: romance is a dreadful illness that inflicts long-lasting damage. In contemporary society everything is so fast that we don’t have time to remember anyone. But after experiencing many changes, I realize that the things happening in the film can still happen in our daily life today. It only makes you feel distant because it was set in the ’60s.

  JN: Then the film is about lovers and their affairs?

  WKW: Romance is the kind of relationship that most easily engages people. But what motivates the tangled affairs? For someone? For oneself? For a demand? Or in search of a suitable partner? It is fine if we do not analyze, but once we analyze, the hidden purposes can be discovered.

  JN: This sounds dramatic.

  WKW: The story is dramatic, but the details/techniques are not dramatic at all. It is most important to grasp the audience’s curiosity so that they keep watching.

  JN: The audience’s curiosity … I am full of curiosity about the crazily big cast.

  WKW: Those four men and two women?

  JN: I would appreciate further details.

  WKW: I started casting at the end of last year. I wanted those performers at the very beginning, so I met with them and tried to negotiate and schedule with them one by one. It started smoothly. It felt like everyone wanted to get it done.

  JN: What is it? I suppose you didn’t even have the outline of the story?

  WKW: When talking about Days of Being Wild, everyone had his/her own imagination.

  JN: With only your name and the title Days of Being Wild? Awesome!

  WKW: It went smoothly after the actors and actresses were committed. I developed the story gradually based on their personalities and images. I kept revising once the shooting started.

  JN: Till now?

  WKW: Yes. I don’t think a scriptwriter/director knows how the performers should act in the beginning. Every performer has his/her unique personalities. Getting along with each other and then developing the character based on his/her personality is the best way.

  JN: How about the investors? Were they shocked after knowing the cast?

  WKW: Not really. There is no free lunch. The bigger cast you use, the more money you can get by selling distribution rights overseas. It’s just business.

  JN: How long had you prepared before shooting?

  WKW: Around three months. My original concept was much more complicated than the present one, but timing did not allow it to happen, nor did the budget. Our preparation was passive. As the actors and actresses had scheduled with us, we had to work against time. We had to start as scheduled; after the booked period, the actors were not available anymore. It is also exhausting to write and direct all by yourself.

  JN: You don’t need to be both the scriptwriter and director, right?

  WKW: No scriptwriter would like to be stuck with a director for such a long time. They have to make a living!

  JN: This is from your experience?

  WKW: Correct.

  JN: I am interested in the investors again. What about them?

  WKW: They are very supportive. Of course, it is after all a business. They have pressures. Like the screening schedule, there aren’t many peak seasons in a year. So we wanted to screen Days of Being Wild at Christmas. It would be better if I had more time. On the other hand, I have been working with them for a few years, and we have a mutual understanding. The drawback of this understanding is that I know their hardship all too well. I would compromise rather than be too persistent. Besides, there is too much noise from the public which has also affected filming.

  JN: Such as?

  WKW: For my filmmaking habit, I am used to doing adjustments after the filming starts. I need to have a look first, think about it, and then decide the next step. But there would be noise from the public: “Oh? Shooting has stopped? There must be problems!” This naturally caused panic when the investors heard that. Actually it is just like taking a short break for a few days. Nothing unusual.

  JN: Speaking of noise, let’s talk about the pressure from As Tears Go By on Days of Being Wild.

  WKW: Actually I was also under great pressure for the first film. It is about my expectations for myself. This time the biggest pressure came from the noise that started before filming; but I do not think it was because of As Tears Go By. Rather, it was about the cast of Days of Being Wild—it is undoubtedly a big cast. People cannot help whispering to each other. Once the buzz started, it snowballed until people saw the film as a big thing. The result was that I not only felt the pressure, but the crew felt it too. I don’t like that feeling.

  JN: But you expected that the public would be alerted by the big cast, hadn’t you?

  WKW: When it happened, the pressure was much greater than I expected.

  JN: You just mentioned the entire crew felt the pressure …

  WKW: Like the actors and actresses. They all wanted to perform well; or what’s more, wanted to do better than others. Other crew members had no choice but to do it perfectly.

  JN: But shouldn’t it be perfect every time?

  WKW: I prefer leaving some space. But I couldn’t do it this time. I hope to have some space in the future.

  JN: To be honest, what’s your expectation for Days of Being, Wild? Perhaps you might say you don’t have one—that it’s just another exercise.

  WKW: I won’t say something like “another exercise.” This is too easy for the future. Only I would know what I can get from Days of Being Wild—for example, a better understanding of myself. On the contrary, the public’s reaction can never be controlled and is thus unimportant. I would be lying if I told you the good reception of As Tears Go By had no effect on me. At least, I feel people start to take you seriously. I do not feel I have changed. It is like I used to regard thirty as an old age before I reached it. I have passed thirty, but I feel no change.

  JN: You are only aware of the world in films?

  WKW: When I watched films at a younger age, the attraction was that I could immediately immerse myself in that world. I was happy about that. Speaking of being a master or the critics’ comments, I really don’t think they are important. If I make a film and the audience likes it, it will be fine—it is be
st when I can share with others what I have experienced.

  The This and That of Wong Kar-wai

  Yeung Wai-lan and Lau Chi-kwan / 1994

  From City Entertainment (Hong Kong). No. 402 (pp. 40–46). Interview conducted in Cantonese in 1994. Reprinted by permission of the publisher. Translated by Micky Lee from Chinese.

  Reactions to Wong Kar-wai’s films are very extreme: some give high praise to the films, others heavily criticize them. When Days of Being Wild was released, half of the reviews were positive, the other half were negative. When Chungking Express was released, the cultural critics had a heated debate about it. No one would miss a chance to talk about the film. Wong Kar-wai has been much talked about, but he does not initiate talk about his feelings and opinions. Therefore, this interview focuses on the upcoming Ashes of Time, as well as this—his films—and that—his favorite directors.

  At the end we discover Wong Kar-wai works in the industry not because he loves films, but only because he likes to search for and enjoy other worlds made possible in films. To him, he can abandon films.

  Yeung and Lau: Ashes of Time is based on two characters, Eastern Heretic and Western Venom, in Louis Cha [Jin Yong]’s work, but we heard that the story has no connection to his fiction.

  Wong Kar-wai: Not unconnected … At the beginning, Ashes of Time is about another story. I like the names Eastern Heretic and Western Venom, and they are envisioned as two women. When we sought copyrights, we discovered there is no difference between the rights to the names and the story The Legend of Eagle-Shooting Heroes,1 so we felt why don’t we make The Legend? I like reading wuxia novels,2 so I wanted to make The Legend. The most interesting characters are Eastern Heretic and Western Venom. People think Eastern Heretic is very cool because he is not tied down and is very cynical. But I have a different opinion about him; I think he is selfish. As for Western Venom, I like him because he is very tragic.