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Chinese movie ``Kekexili'' a front-runner at Taipei's film festival
2004-12-02
TAIPEI, Taiwan - ``Hoh Xil: Mountain Patrol,'' a film about volunteers trying to save the Tibetan antelope from poachers, may become the first entry from China to win the best picture prize Saturday in Taiwan's 41st annual Golden Horse Awards - the premier event for the Chinese-language movie industry.The movie - shot in western China's rugged Qinghai-Tibet Plateau - could also bag the best director award for Lu Chuan. It's also nominated for best leading actor, cinematography and screenplay. ``It's a good movie and it stands out among all the other nominated films by exploring the rare theme of conservation,'' said Taiwanese film critic Liang Liang. Saturday's ceremony will be in the central city of Taichung. Although the event honors films from Taiwan, China and Hong Kong, few movies from the mainland have entered the competition in recent years. This is mostly due to the five-decade rivalry between Taiwan and China, which split amid civil war in 1949. Until 1996, Taiwan's staunchly anti-communist government banned Chinese films from the competition. The ban was lifted as Taiwan's government began encouraging cultural exchanges with China to help ease tensions. Taiwanese officials were also worried that if they continued to bar Chinese films from the festival, Hong Kong film producers might boycott the event. The former British colony returned to Chinese rule in 1997. China's government has also helped keep mainland movies out of the ceremony by withholding permission to compete in the event. Hong Kong movies and actors dominated the Golden Horse awards last year, and they could win big again this year. One frontrunner for the best movie award is Hong Kong's ``2046'' by acclaimed director Wong Kar-wai. The film features Hong Kong mega star Tony Leung, who plays a science fiction writer trying to overcome his memories of the past. Most of it takes place in Hong Kong in the 1960s, with only a few fantasy scenes set in the year 2046. It's been nominated for eight awards, including best film, best actor for Tony Leung and best actress for Zhang Ziyi - one of China's most popular young stars. ``The film is ... a strong front-runner for the best movie award because of its super overall achievement, including actors' performance, aesthetics and cinematography,'' critic Tang Tsai-yang wrote in the United Evening News, one of Taiwan's biggest dailies. Liang said a likely best actor winner will be Hong Kong's Andy Lau, who starred in the police-gangster thriller ``Infernal Affairs III.'' ``Andy Lau is the soul of the new film, and he plays well the gangster who sinks and fails to pull himself out of the inferno,'' Liang said. Though Taiwan hosts the award ceremony, its own movie industry has been in a rut in recent years. However, Taiwanese star Yang Kuei-mei is tipped to collect this year's best actress award for her role as a divorcee trying to heal her own trauma in the Taiwanese movie ``The Moon Also Rises.'' Yang was the leading actress in several acclaimed Taiwanese films, including ``Eat, Drink, Man, Woman'' and ``Vive L'Amour.'' One of her rivals this year will be Sylvia Chang, for her role as a struggling single mother in Hong Kong movie ``Rice Rhapsody.'' ``The Moon Also Rises'' was also nominated for the best film award. Two other contenders are Hong Kong police thriller ``One Night in Mongkok,'' and another Hong Kong police movie ``Breaking News.'' AP
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