The Fifth Shanghai Film Festival came to an end here Sunday, leaving a certain disappointment among the audience, when all the foreign prize winners failed to show.
However, the spectators were partially compensated by the unexpected presence of Sophie Marceau and her husband, Andrzej
Zulavski, who joined some Chinese stars to hand over the awards.
American movies won three of the six awards. "Antitrust" pocketed the Best Film Award and the Best Director Award, while " The Legend of Bagger Vance" won the Best Technique Award.
Zhu Yongde, chairman of the international appraising board and chairperson of the closing ceremony, praised "Antitrust" for its
excellence in movie making and for its theme against monetarism and hi-tech monopoly. Peter Howitt, who directed the movie, is from Britain and a winner of several international awards.
Two women stars shared the Best Actress Award. Peng Yu played the part of Liu Niang in the Chinese film "The Full Moon", and
Stanilawa Celinska, from Poland, starred in "Money Is Not Everything".
The Best Actor Award went to a Frenchmen, Daniel Auteuil, who played the hero in the French movie, "The Closet".
"Bo Ba Bu", a Ukrainian film without any dialogue, won the Best Music Award as the composer achieved perfect harmony in combining the traditional and modern styles of Central Asia and West Asia.
The Special Award, of the appraising board, was not handed out.
The Shanghai gala used to be an biannual event, but it will be held once a year from now on, according to the organizer.
(Xinhua 06/18/2001)
