[2010.08.20] LI BINGBING ALMOST LOSES HER LIFE TO GHOST CITY

courtesy of singtao.com

courtesy of takungpao.com

The only Chinese film to compete in this year's Venice Film Festival, DETECTIVE DEE AND THE MYSTERY OF THE PHANTOM FLAME (DIK YUN KIT ji TUNG TIN DAI GOK) has already been scheduled for a September 30 release in Hong Kong. One of the locations was a ghost city, the most mysterious set in the entire film.

The team found a man made cavern in Jiyun, Lishui and poured in 2,000 tons of water to create a waterway effect. Li Bingbing during the shoot felt sudden lung compression and almost lost her life. Bingbing said, "The film had so many action sequences that I physically could not handle them all. In addition in an airtight environment like the ghost city, I was suffering even more. At the time I went to the hospital, but to keep from hindering the production I only rested one night and returned to work!" Bingbing even had to use her weapon, a leather whip, to break a wooden door. In the story she had to bust through the door so she had to use a lot of strength. Before the shoot, Bingbing has already tried it many times. However the broken wood hit her face, sending everyone into a panic.

Having made many action scenes, Andy Lau Tak Wa had an easy time with fight scenes in a poor environment. When he shot a highly difficult midair kick to fend off enemies, he only needed one take. However because the waterway's depth could not be estimated, it was very dangerous. Many workers were hurt from falling into the water after slipping. To reduce the danger, when everyone entered or exited they required a raft or a worker to carry them. Wa Jai decided to walk on the waterway himself and joked that he felt like a video game character, jumping back and forth to avoid obstacles.