"In real life, I could never be like the girl I played in the film," said Shu Qi (
"If I were Vicky, I would have squashed the guy and left long ago. And I would never have come back to the relationship," said the willful Shu.
PHOTO: AFP
Vicky's boyfriend Hao-hao (
As one of the most prolific and most expensive actresses in Hong Kong and Taiwan, Shu said she would jump at the chance to work again with Hou, regardless of the payment and the time needed for shooting. "This is the most challenging experience I've ever had and I've learnt a great deal from him," said the 25-year-old.
Wearing a slim, gray-colored Chinese dress, Shu charmed onlookers at Manray Beach in Cannes.
"At first it was hard for me to play this role because I don't identify with Vicky and her suffering in a relationship and the environment of drugs and hostess bars," Shu said.
To prepare for the role, Shu did extensive field work in dingy hostess bars with Hou and the film's crew. "Hou was very good at making me get used to the role." After a month of hanging out in bars and clubs, "I felt like Vicky had entered my body," she said.
"I cried for two hours before shooting one of the scenes. And I began to hate Tuan even off the set. I almost threw things at him in one scene because I was so furious," she said.
This is Shu's second trip to Cannes, the first being for Vivian Chang's (
The depressing numbers continue to pile up, like casualty lists after a lost battle. This week, after the government announced the 19th straight month of population decline, the Ministry of the Interior said that Taiwan is expected to lose 6.67 million workers in two waves of retirement over the next 15 years. According to the Ministry of Labor (MOL), Taiwan has a workforce of 11.6 million (as of July). The over-15 population was 20.244 million last year. EARLY RETIREMENT Early retirement is going to make these waves a tsunami. According to the Directorate General of Budget Accounting and Statistics (DGBAS), the
Last week the story of the giant illegal crater dug in Kaohsiung’s Meinong District (美濃) emerged into the public consciousness. The site was used for sand and gravel extraction, and then filled with construction waste. Locals referred to it sardonically as the “Meinong Grand Canyon,” according to media reports, because it was 2 hectares in length and 10 meters deep. The land involved included both state-owned and local farm land. Local media said that the site had generated NT$300 million in profits, against fines of a few million and the loss of some excavators. OFFICIAL CORRUPTION? The site had been seized
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