POP STOP

At the Venice International Film Festival awards ceremony last Saturday, Ang Lee (李安) walked away with the Golden Lion for his film Brokeback Mountain. And Zhong A-cheng (鍾阿城), the only Chinese jury member at the festival, thinks of himself as the behind-the-scenes helper that propelled the director onto the world stage.

The novelist said that during the judging panel's intense meetings, some members thought Lee's film wasn't impressive enough and wanted to let Good Night, and Good Luck by George Clooney win the top award. "But I convinced them that Brokeback Mountain was almost perfect, in every aspect. And eventually I turned the judges' opinions around and saved the film," Zhong is quoted as saying in the Apple Daily (蘋果日報).

Perhaps we should have known film festival awards are less focused on artistic achievements, and are rather based on ethnic considerations and the art of persuasion commonly exerted by salespersons. Our mistake.

Mando-pop star Little S (小S) tied the knot with her `"Mr. Perfect" in Taitung last Friday. Local media went crazy about the

marriage, following the newly weds wherever they went, from the airport, to the ceremony, to a private family gathering. Most entertainment pages were taken over by photos of the star's

smiling face, with commentaries saying she is the luckiest woman on earth because the mom-to-be married a man who could provide financial security and a connection to a family which is far more valuable than her career.

So, gays, feminists and radical socialists beware! Traditional family values are making a comeback, and the ideas of marriage and having babies are still deeply rooted in society's collective consciousness. And yes, brave comrades, there is still a long way to go.

Ken Chu (朱孝天) of boy band F4 and Taiwanese sex kitten Kelly Lin (林熙蕾) have emerged as the latest hot couple in showbiz. According to the Liberty Times (自由時報), the couple has been secretly dating for a while, but the affair was downplayed by friends. "Lin has so many

admirers. This long-distance romance will definitely be the shortest-lived relationship ever," one mutual friend is quoted as saying in the daily.

Chu doesn't seem to mind the ill-intended prediction. Judging from snap shots of him attending a wedding last weekend, the young guy seems to have let himself go with a dodgy mustache and an outfit that should have caught the attention of the fashion police.

Disney World in Hong Kong had a grand opening this week, and a troupe of super stars were invited to show up. Local media paid especially close attention to the interaction between two Chinese divas, Gong Li (鞏俐) and Zhang Ziyi (章子怡), and tried to figure out if the two women had buried the hatchet. Rumors are swirling that the two had a hard time working together on the film Memoirs of a Geisha. Observers have suggested that their disagreement is less about work and more about their past love affairs with Chinese director Zhang Yi-mou (張藝謀).