Ang Lee(李安), Taiwan's pride and joy, expressed great disappointment with the local media after his long awaited espionage thriller, Lust, Caution (色戒), premiered at Cannes last week. The Oscar-winning director was miffed that the front-page reports of major print media focused only on the full-frontal nudity of Tony Leung (梁朝偉) and his provocative sex scene with Chinese actress Tang Wei (湯唯).
Admitting he almost had a nervous breakdown shooting the film's steamy sections, Lee said it was his duty to guide the actors through "hell," and this helped him make it through the testing scenes. He applauded both Leung and Tang for their exceptional performances.
To Fanny of the voluptuous girl outfit F4, however, the nudity in Lust, Caution doesn't seem that big of a deal. Against her agent's advice, the singer who "always talks craps" (in the words of her agent) walked up the red carpet at Cannes to see Lee Kang-sheng's (李康生) Just in Love (幫幫我,愛神).
Photo: Taipei Times
When asked what she thought of the sex scenes in Ang Lee's work, Fanny said Just in Love had just as much to offer because "Lee Kang-sheng also has his three points exposed," Chinese-language media reported.
Local singer-turned-high society dame Zhang Qing-fang (張清芳) returned to Taiwan from Hong Kong to celebrate her 41st birthday and threw a party for her 100-day-old son. With a husband whose assets are reportedly worth over NT$1 billion, Zhang's party was grand and attended by entrepreneur celebrities Terry Gou (郭台銘), Taishin Financial chairman Thomas Wu (吳東亮) and Acer Group founder Stan Shih (施振榮).
However, the husband, father and investment banker Sung Hsueh-jen (宋學仁) is a man repulsed by the limelight. Spotted by local media leaving the party last weekend, the 54-year-old banker ran back to the hotel at a lightening speed while reportedly shouting "Help! Guard, guard! Catch them!"
Photo: Taipei Times
Pop stop has to hand it to Sung since one has to be a resourceful businessman like him to come up with an innovative way to ditch the paparazzi in a split second.
On a more somber note, Hong Kong's megastar-turned-housewife Cherie Cheung (鍾楚紅) lost the love of her life when her husband of 16 years, the advertising genius Mike Chu (朱家鼎), died of cancer last week. The former sex goddess married Chu at the height of her career in 1991 and shocked the Chinese-speaking world by giving up the glitz and glamour of stardom for family life. Since her marriage she shunned the spotlight.
It is sad that death has parted the devoted couple, but fans of the 47-year-old star may see their beloved diva return to the big screen. According to Chinese-language media, Hong Kong director Tsui Hark (徐克) already has a project lined up for Cheung and megastar Chow Yun-fat (周潤發) has also called up his Hollywood friends to pave the way for the international comeback of his old friend.
All they wait for is a "yes" from the grief-stricken widow whose dream was said to be a carefree life with her beloved husband at their holiday resort, which is under construction in Bali, Indonesia.
There is no politician today more colorful than Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislator Hsu Chiao-hsin (徐巧芯). The recall vote against her on July 26 will test the limits of her unique style, making it one of the most fascinating to watch. Taiwan has a long history of larger-than-life, controversial and theatrical politicians. As far back as 1988, lawmaker Chu Kao-cheng (朱高正) was the first to brawl and — legend has it — was the first to use the most foul Taiwanese Hokkien curse on the floor of the legislature. Current Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmaker Wang Shih-chien (王世堅) has become famous
Xu Pengcheng looks over his shoulder and, after confirming the coast is clear, helps his crew of urban adventurers climb through the broken window of an abandoned building. Long popular in the West, urban exploration, or “urbex” for short, sees city-dwelling thrill-seekers explore dilapidated, closed-off buildings and areas — often skirting the law in the process. And it is growing in popularity in China, where a years-long property sector crisis has left many cities dotted with empty buildings. Xu, a 29-year-old tech worker from the eastern city of Qingdao, has amassed hundreds of thousands of followers for his photos of rundown schools and
At times, it almost seems that former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) is out to sabotage the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT). As if on cue, with the recall campaigns against KMT lawmakers in full swing, Ma thought it would be a good time to lead a delegation of students to China and attend the 17th Straits Forum (海峽論壇) and meet with Wang Huning (王滬寧), the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Politburo member entrusted by Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) to be his second in command on Taiwan policy and to run the United Front Work Department (UFWD) in charge of subverting enemies,
Summer is in full swing and with the Penghu Fireworks Festival underway, it is peak tourist season in Penghu right now. For anyone planning a trip this summer, you won’t want to miss out on Penghu’s ocean scenery and excellent swimming. However, with literally hundreds of kilometers of coastline and beaches seemingly at every turn, it can be overwhelming to plan your trip. Here, then, is your guide to the beaches of Penghu. This guide covers beaches with road access from Magong (馬公). They have been sorted into three types: those with nice scenery but limited or no swimming, those where
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