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| Sumling Li, Tang Lai Ying, Hazel Lam, Renci Yeung and Mandy Tam promote hard for their new film. courtesy of on.cc |
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| Sammi Cheng and Dayo Wong work together again after 12 years but are still full of chemistry |
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| Dayo Wong urges the audience to watch his half naked scene like watching "uncle on the beach" |
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| Sammi Cheng finds the scene in which Dayo Wong puts his head on her lap, suddenly thinking that her co-star is pretty handsome |
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| Director Jack Ng admits that NIGHT KING has to remove certain foul language scenes due to film censors |
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| Sumling Li has no "idol baggage" and does not resist playing sexy characters |
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| Renci Yeung impersonates elder Elaine Jin's smoking mannerisms |
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| Sumling Li, Tang Lai Ying, Hazel Lam, Renci Yeung and Mandy Tam express that before making NIGHT KING, they are arranged to interact with escorts at the night club. courtesy of mingpao.com |
Among this year's Lunar New Year films is the Dayo Wong Tze Wah and Sammi Cheng Sau Man starred NIGHT KING (YEH WONG), which brought out the love and honor between the two. Tze Wah changed from his usual style and received praise from Gardner Tse Kwan Ho as the best performance of his film career. Tze Wah did push-ups like mad to pump up his muscles, and made fun of himself as "uncle"; Sammi joked that this performance as the night spot CEO could be regarded as a wish fulfilled; the two of them set off sparks everywhere in the film, and honor was more important than love.
The two have already co-starred as husband and wife in TEMPORARY FAMILY (SUT LUEN GUP YEUNG), but they only had a scene together and had no chance to interact. Wong Tze Wah joked that Cheng Sau Man at the time was only watching him act. Cheng Sau Man revealed, "At the time I tried to get him to chat in the dressing room and asked him if he has read the book CRIME AND PUNISHMENT. He only went through the motions and drove me away." This time in NIGHT KING they really worked together for the first time. Tze Wah bluntly said that their chemistry felt like old friends. "Like we are very close and have known each other for a very long time. Everyone seem to have rehearse for a very long time for the performance, but we actually didn't at all. Earlier when I performed with (Carina) Lau Ka Ling on the stage, everyday I would grab her to rehearse every scene. Yet with Cheng Sau Man I didn't rehearse at all. As soon as we were in position we performed. I don't know why we have such great chemistry. After the performance I didn't feel uneasy at all, as comfortable as I just used baby powder." Sammi also said that they were immersed in the role as soon as the filming started, "The most important thing is to believe in my role. From the first scene when Tze Wah put his head on my lap, what I saw was no longer Wong Tze Wah but 'Brother Foon' (the character in the film). The chemistry flowed naturally. Perhaps it's because I believed in Wong Tze Wah's performance very much. The term 'believe' can make a lot happen."
Director Ng Wai Lun said that at the beginning of filming, he was worried because the lack of time to rehearse and Tze Wah and Sammi have not officially cooperated. Yet was relieved two or three days after filming started. He said that the most impressive thing was filming the scene between Sammi and Liw Chi Yu at the shoe store. At the time he and Sammi have not become familiar yet, but he discovered that her performance was precise and on the dot; he also deliberately designed the delicate scene of Tze Wah putting his head on Sammi's lap and lighting a cigarette. In order to get close to the background of the film, it had no shortage of smoking and foul language dialogue. Although Sammi has quit smoking for many years, she smoked again for the character. She did not regain her addiction after filming, her asthma was not triggered either. "I was a smoker many years ago, but I was able to handle it. Actually I was the most afraid of smoking again and found the taste for it again, luckily I didn't. I only felt that my throat and skin were very dry. After the shoot I didn't pick up smoking again."
Cheng Sau Man revealed that aside from smoking, she also had to use a lot of foul language in the film but it was also fine. Wong Tze Wah said, "Actually our decision to use foul language in NIGHT KING also went through a well thought out process. We thought that the audience would feel it would be a taboo, because now girls use sharper foul language than the guys. This is the culture now. If in bringing back the nightclub of yesteryears we used proper language, how would we connect with the world? Of course due to the film rating standards, we made adjustments."
Director Ng also revealed that the film censors have requested to delete some of the foul language, but only a small amount so that the film could be released with a category IIB rating. "The authorities understood that the night club world would require foul language. This film's foul language wasn't forced. They only wanted us to cut it down a little. I thought it was no problem, already much better than I have imagined. Now it is rated category IIB."
In the eighties and nineties of the last century, large nightclubs were at their peak. Tze Wah recalled that he has gone to nightclubs with his father and his friends, and he has also been for filming. He found that the elders were mostly chatting by themselves. Sammi laughed and said that she has performed in a nightclub more than 20 years ago, and she was also curious at that time. She laughed and said that the producer initially asked her to play a dance escort, but in the end she became older and older to play the nightclub CEO. She lamented that she has passed the stage of playing a dance escort. "My goal in life is to play an escort, but after a few more calls the role turned into a mamasan. I thought escort turned mamasan was good too. However it got older and older. Now I play the CEO, I finally realize that after waiting day and night I have already passed the stage of playing an escort. In he film I could only play the night club CEO who was once mamasan."
Tze Wah in the film had a kiss scene with Fish Liew Chi Yu. He joked, "Everyone know that she is the Best Actress. With her leadership, I was able to get into character. Sometimes I would reminisce about it." Tze Wah and Sammi played a divorced couple in the film, but they had a bed scene that Tze Wah even gave a rare half-naked performance in. Tze Wah commented, "In that scene I got out of bed, so I wouldn't wear a lot of clothes. I was also forced, so don't expect too much; just think of it as going to the beach to see an uncle swimming." For this reason Tze Wah specifically quit eating ice cream. He said with a smile, "Uncle knows that someone is taking pictures. I just play a night spot manager, when I get home I take off my clothes and take a shower." Tze Wah smiled bitterly that Sammi "treated" by bringing an ice cream machine to the set, and this scene was arranged to be filmed at the end. Thus he could only look at it everyday and walk away. Sammi laughed after hearing this and praised Tze Wah's figure, "He is on top in the uncle world. He didn't dare to watch the playback after filming that scene. I of course rushed to watch it immediately." Tze Wah joked that at the moment when he took off his shirt, "I felt like Jing Ke assassinating the King of Qin, stuck between a rock and a hard place. I could only started doing push ups that afternoon."
They both had emotional scenes to perform in the film. Sammi even had a crying scene. She laughed and said that in the past she would listen to songs to help herself immerse in the role, but this time she changed to eating ice cream to "get into character". Director Ng revealed that one of the nightclub patron Gardner Tse Kwan Ho also praised that the film would be Wong Tze Wah's best performance in his film career after watching it. Sammi agreed that she had the feeling of not seeing "Wong Tze Wah" during the collaboration; in front of her was "Brother Foon" in the film. Tze Wah said that he did not deliberately change his acting style, just followed the characters and plot to interpret, and regarded "Brother Foon" as a down-to-earth Wai Siu Bo. Director Ng said that Sammi and Tze Wah made room for discussions during filming. The movie not only brought out an adult relationship story through the background of a nightclub, but also told more about the importance of honor than love.
COLLAR member Sumling Li, Renci Yeung Sze Wing, Mandy Tam Man Huen, Hazel Lam Hei Tung and Tang Lai Ying played the EJ Night Club escorts in NIGHT KING. The five admitted that they had a little stage fright in the presence of elders Wong Tze Wah and Cheng Sau Man. Renci Yeung Sze Wing became in charge of the "sexiness" in the film and admitted that she made sacrifices for art. "My character is named, 'pot pot', excelling in communicating with patrons. In the film the cigarette never left my hand and wine never left my lips. The shoot was rough so I had to practice, but I don't smoke normally." Has she asked her boyfriend Owen Cheung Chun Long for acting advice? She did not answer directly, only saying that men nowadays are much more open-minded about the limits for actors and she has asked her co-stars Ho Kai Wah (Ah Dee) and Alan Yeung Wai Lun for their opinion. She also impersonated elder Elaine Jin (Kam Yin Ling)'s smoking mannerisms. She and Ho Kai Wah have worked together many times and have established chemistry long ago; but when filming the kiss scene, they had to take into account the camera position and felt very uncomfortable on their necks. "It had to have the feeling of resisting but still wanting. Our heads had to adjust to the cameras and were very hard on our necks. It was like dancing. (Was Ah Dee a good kiss?) In a word 'professional', for me 'respect for the profession'." Unfortunately the kiss scene was eventually deleted, and she laughed and said that she hoped that it would see the light of day again at the request of the public and asked for support to bring back the kiss scene in a sequel. "See how we bring great fortune and great 'tongue'." She also said that she did not set an upper limit on the scale of sexy performances, and the bottom line could be adjusted depending on the needs of the role and script. As for going to the carnival with Cheung Chun Long before, she said that she would announce any good news she would have.
Started as a model, Mandy Tam Man Huen wore high heels for a long time and had leg cramps. She said with a smile, "After filming, I had cramps at least 20 times when I went to bed. The actors didn't fight for screen time, only fight for seats to rest in." Tam Man Huen claimed to be a mild mannered homebody in real life, she would like to stay home and play with her dog the most. She has never enjoyed going to bars and parties, so she was very different from the "drinking game queen" she portrayed. In reality she has avoided gambling. She said that she loves money and would hold it firmly. The 22-year-old "Cosplay Queen" Hazel Lam Hei Tung deliberately learned to be pampered before filming. She revealed that in order to get into the character's tender design, she came up with a good idea. She spoke to everyone like she would to her eight year old little brother at home. 39-year- old COLLAR member Sumling Li is open-minded in the face of age labels and did not have any "idol baggage" because of her identity as a girl group idol. "I feel taking this type of roles don't matter, as long as the character has meaning in its existence it is fine. Because it isn't me, I would only get into the role professionally. Instead my COLLAR group mates would have 'idol baggage', every one say that she wouldn't be able to play a sexy and seductive character. They would be very scared, maybe they are more the athletic type." Tang Lai Ying was responsible for the comedy in the film, "With Yeung Wai Lun on the set though, I didn't dare to admit to be the funniest." She took the opportunity this time to "enrich herself" and often asked elder Cheng Sau Man for advice. She hoped to have the chance to work with her again.
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