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| Fish Liew says the opportunity for a lead role in a film is few, she feels that this time her distance from the Best Actress award is the closest |
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| Fish Liew in SOMEONE LIKE ME plays a cerebral palsy patient. With two awards already, she has been seen as the Best Actress favorite. However she admires Zhang Ziyi's acting |
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| Vincent Kok feels that this year's Best Actor award would be between GOLDEN BOY's Louis Cheung and THE SHADOW'S EDGE's Tony Leung Ka Fai. courtesy of mingpao.com |
The 44th Hong Kong Film Awards would take place tonight (the 19th) at the Cultural Center in Tsim Sha Tsui. The Best Actress battle has caught the most attention. First time Hong Kong Film Awards Best Actress nominee Fish Liew Chi Yu took the lead by winning the Hong Kong Film Critic Society Award and the 2026 Hong Kong Film Directors' Guild Best Actress award. She has become the favorite. Faced with strong competition from SHE'S GOT NO NAME's Zhang Ziyi, DUMPLING QUEEN's Ma Li, PEG O' MY HEART (SHOOK MUNG)'s Fala Chen and MY FIRST OF MAY (MO MING JI)'s Natalie Hsu (Hui Yan Yi), Liew Chi Yu joked earlier, "Favorites could be upset." In addition, director Vincent Kok Tak Chiu earlier on a radio program analyzed this year's battle for Best Actress and felt that Liew Chi Yu and Zhang Ziyi would have the greatest chance.
Liew Chi Yu in 2022 with ANITA (MUI YIM FONG) won the Hong Kong Film Awards Best Supporting Actress. This year with the role of cerebral palsy patient "Ah Mui" in SOMEONE LIKE ME (JEUNG NGOR JEH YEUNG DIK OI CHING), she has become the Best Actress favorite. "I definitely want to win, because this time may be my own time to be this close to this award." She explain, "Not too many movies are willing to put me in the lead, especially actors of our generation; we rarely carry a movie from the beginning to the end. I am already very grateful for having a movie to make, and I even get a nomination. I am so happy that I would fantasize about whether I could have a chance to win?" What did she feel about her role that would grab the most points? Liew Chi Yu seriously said, "Playing someone with cerebral palsy isn't a imitation contest, you don't win just from pretending well. Every scene had to have balance, pure and sincere interpretation, and the spirit of seeking out love bravely." No matter what the result would be, she felt that the most important would be dressing up to attend the event and take more photos to leave beautiful memories.
Looking back at her 17 year show business journey, Liew Chi Yu said that she has been toiling silently. Early on she worked as a special contract actor for 4 years in Malaysia, at age 22 she came to Hong Kong and waited for 3 full years to be able to land her second film contract. "At the time I was turning 25 soon, I questioned whether I should continue to stay? Yet each time I wanted to give up, I would have a new opportunity to keep me alive. I didn't choose Hong Kong, Hong Kong chose me. If one day the market would eliminate, I would naturally know. In the future without any movie to make I would go to school. Now I no longer want to waste time, I plan to develop my interests like painting and tailoring, as well as a second hand clothes upcycling business."
Speaking of her 4 opponents, Liew Chi Yu appreciated Zhang Ziyi's acting skills. "Zhang Ziyi is a natural film actor. When I was nominated for the first time for Best New Actor (DOOMSDAY PARTY), that year I personally witnessed her Best Actress victory (THE GRANDMASTERS). Her speech ignited my raging fire for film." She also praised Ma Li's touching performance in DUMPLING QUEEN, bringing out the Hong Kong spirit of working hard and taking chances. "As an outsider who came to develop in Hong Kong, I can really relate to the feeling." As for Fala Chen, she excitedly said, "Her play SKYLIGHT with (Dayo) Wong Tze Wah opened my eyes. Later when she went to Hollywood she slowly started with auditions. I really like hard working actors. In PEG O' MY HEART she reached another extreme condition." Liew Chi Yu said that she and Hui Yan Yi were friends despite their ages. Even those she was 14 years younger than she was, she was just as mature in handling life and acting. She was very happy to be nominated in the category with her.
Vincent Kok Tak Chiu recently analyzed the situation of this year's Hong Kong Film Awards with Jan Lamb Hoi Fung and Ken Yuen Tsz Kin on the Commercial Radio program ON A CLEAR DAY, saying that this year's competition for the best actor is the focus. Louis Koo Tin Lok is nominated for BEHIND THE SHADOWS (SI GA JING TAM) and BACK TO THE PAST (CHUM CHUN GEI), which would split the votes and put him at a disadvantage; as for SOMEONE LIKE ME (JEUNG NGOR JEH YEUNG DIK OI CHING) Carlos Chan Ka Lok, Kok Tak Chiu said, "Let the young folks wait for now." He said that seeing Louis Cheung Kai Chung's great contributions in GOLDEN BOY (GUM TUNG), coupled with his connections, distinguishing between choosing a role or a person was very difficult. "He works for 'Grandpa' (Secretary General of the Performing Artists Guild and director of the Hong Kong Film Awards Association), leading the young and middle aged generation to become a force. If he would win he would definitely get applause from the entire venue." Kok Tak Chiu even admired THE SHADOW'S EDGE (BO FUNG JUI YING)'s Tony Leung Ka Fai, saying that his acting was good without a doubt. This time he took quite a risk in changing his genre, and even fought fiercely against Jackie Chan. He said that this year the battle between Cheung Kai Chung and Leung Ka Fai has been very entertaining.
In terms of Best Actress, Kok Tak Chiu pointed out that Zhang Ziyi's performance in SHE'S GOT NO NAME was unconventional, but not many Hong Kong audiences have seen it; he believes that Fish Liew Chi Yu of SOMEONE LIKE ME has a high chance of winning the award traditionally, and voters should consider who will help promote the industry.


















