Chinese director Zhang Yibai's latest romance, The Longest
Night in Shanghai, premiered in the capital city at the
Beijing Student Film Festival on Sunday night.
?
Japanese heart-throb Masahiro Motoki stars as a stylist plagued by
doubts about his emotional life and his future. His world changes
when he meets an equally troubled taxi driver, played by Chinese
actress Zhao Wei, one dazzlingly beautiful night in Shanghai.
The characters in the film bypass their language barrier and
forge a tender kind of love as they search for their own
identities. As well as dealing with the complications of modern
love, the film makes full use of the hilarity generated by the
language barriers between the main two characters.
Unlike traditional romances, The Longest Night in
Shanghai depicts the relationship that develops between two
strangers from a third person perspective.
A number of English songs are included in the soundtrack.
?
The movie is one of the few purely commercial films Zhao Wei has
appeared in, but she says she has never been too particular about
preserving her "artistic" reputation. The audience applauded her
performance.
"I think that is Zhao Wei's best performance. She is an
attractive woman in the movie," Director Zhang Yibai concluded
during the press conference after the movie.
Zhang also said he looks forward to more international
cooperation in the film industry, especially with other Asian
countries.
?
"The movie is a good example of a model Asian movie. China, Japan
and Korea can form good cooperation on movies in the future."
Zhang Yibai's movie Spring Subway won Most Popular Film
of the 9th Beijing University Students' Film Festival in 2002.
As he faced the warm applause of the audience, Zhang Yibai spoke
warmly of the Beijing Student Film Festival.
"The Beijing Student Film Festival is encouraging me and
providing me with confidence. The students' passion inspires me to
keep shooting."
"It is a great movie. It combines romance and a little sadness,"
one student from Beijing Normal University said.
The 14th Beijing Student Film Festival will show 35 Chinese
movies over the course of its competition.
The New Asian Film unit will feature many films from Japan,
South Korea and India. Forums on film academies will also be held
during the festival.
Chinese director Zhang
Yibai's latest romance, The Longest Night in Shanghai, had
its capital city premier at the Beijing Student Film Festival on
Sunday night.
Chinese actress Zhao Wei
played a Shanghai lady taxi driver in The Longest Night in
Shanghai.
Japanese heartthrob
Masahiro Motoki played the Japanese cosmetologist, who broke
through the language barrier and succeed in communicating at the
end.
Hundreds of students were
waiting to see? The Longest Night in Shanghai at the
Beijing Student Film Festival on Sunday night.
(CRI.cn April 16, 2007)
