Thursday, February 9, 2012

SCMP: Action films dominate at awards [Roast Pork Sliced From A Rusty Cleaver] (飲水思源)

Lo Wei
Feb 09, 2012

Three action movies dominate the nominations for this year's Hong Kong Film Awards.

Flying Swords of Dragon Gate and Let The Bullets Fly have 13 award nominations each, while Wu Xia has 12, the organiser said yesterday. There are 19 award categories with five nominees in each.

Sean Lau Ching-wan received two nominations for best actor - for his roles as a triad member in Life Without Principle and a hotshot stockbroker in Overheard 2.

The former role won him the best actor prize last year at the Hong Kong Film Critics Society Awards.

"I'm quite surprised," Lau said about his nomination yesterday. "I chose both of those roles and I like them both."

Asked if he was worried that having two nominations for the same award could dilute his votes, he said, "I didn't really think about that. I'm already very happy about getting two nominations."

His fellow best actor nominees are Jiang Wen and Ge You, both for Let The Bullets Fly, and Andy Lau Tak-wah in A Simple Life, for which he won a Golden Horse award in November.

Lau said he did not know how stiff the competition was because he had not had time to watch the other films.

The best actress category is being contested by Shu Qi, Tang Wei, Deanie Ip Tak-han, Gao Yuanyuan, and Zhou Xun.

Nicholas Tse Ting-fung, who read out part of the nominations list at the press conference yesterday, said he was shocked when he saw his own name in the best supporting actor nominees list for his role in Shaolin.

"I had already forgotten about this movie. It was about two years ago that it was filmed," he said.

Flying Swords of Dragon Gate was a remake of the 1966 movie Dragon Gate Inn and 1992's New Dragon Gate Inn. Starring Jet Li Lianjie, Zhou Xun and Chen Kun, it is a story of a pregnant palace maid seeking refuge at a desert inn with the help of a mysterious saviour.

A Hong Kong-mainland joint production, Let The Bullets Fly is set in a remote provincial mainland town in the 1920s, where a bandit chief poses as its new mayor and faces challenges. The 31st Hong Kong Film Awards presentation ceremony will be held at the Hong Kong Cultural Centre on April 15, and be broadcast live by TVB (SEHK: 0511), NowTV and RTHK.

The event, which will reap cost savings thanks to having many volunteers, has received funding of HK$5,668,400 from the government's Film Development Fund.

THE MAIN NOMINATIONS

Best Film

A Simple Life

Life Without Principle

Flying Swords Of Dragon Gate

Overheard 2

Let The Bullets Fly

Best Actor

Andy Lau Tak-wah, A Simple Life

Lau Ching-wan, Life Without Principle

Lau Ching-wan, Overheard 2

Jiang Wen, Let The Bullets Fly

Ge You, Let The Bullets Fly

Best Actress

Shu Qi, A Beautiful Life

Tang Wei, Wu Xia

Deanie Ip, A Simple Life

Gao Yuanyuan, Don't Go Breaking My Heart

Zhou Xun, Flying Swords Of Dragon Gate

Best Director

Ann Hui On-wah, A Simple Life

Johnnie To Kei-fung, Life Without Principle

Tsui Hark, Flying Swords Of Dragon Gate

Alan Mak Shiu-fai and Felix Chong Man-keung, Overheard 2

Jiang Wen, Let The Bullets Fly

Best Screenplay

Susan Chan Suk-yin, A Simple Life

Wai Ka-fai, Yau Nai-hoi, Ryker Chan, Jevons Au, Don't Go Breaking My Heart

Milkyway Creative Team, Au Kin-yee, Wong King-fai, Life Without Principle

Alan Mak Shiu-fai and Felix Chong Man-keung, Overheard 2

Zhu Sujin, Shu Ping, Jiang Wen, Guo Junli, Wei Xiao, Li Bukong, Let The Bullets Fly

(SCMP)

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