DANIEL'S DARK AWAKENING by
Matthew Scott |
Actor Daniel Wu is demanding respect with his risky new independent film that explores homosexuality, paedophilia and the forces of evil, writes Mathew Scott IT WAS, HE says, time to stand up and be counted. Actor Daniel Wu Yin-cho had read the script, met with the director, and signed on the dotted line. But when a lack of finances meant the whole project was in jeopardy, he knew his time had come. " It was something I really wanted to be involved in," he says. "The government [the Arts Development Council] had given some money to the project but that wasn't enough to get the film made the way we wanted. So I said, 'Why don't I come on board as producer?'" The project, Wu's first in the duel role as actor/producer, is Night Corridor, director Julian Lee's independent adaptation of his novel of the same name. It is a twisted little tale, full of haunting images. "A dark, non-typical Hong Kong story, with a more European feel to it than most in Hong Kong," is Wu's take on things - and it is now playing as part of Broad- way Cinematheque's Independent Film Month, before going on general release at Cinematheque and Cine-Art House on August 21. In the film, Wu, 29, plays a London-based artist drawn back to Hong Kong after the death of his brother. Once he returns his life slowly unravels, as his repressed homosexuality bubbles to the surface and the investigation of his brother's death leads him into contact with forces of evil. " We went to a few film companies and they wanted to play around with the story, to add explosions and chase scenes, to basically make it something that it wasn't," the San Francisco-born Wu explains. "But that wasn't what we wanted to shoot. They wanted to turn it into something commercial and that's what we were trying to avoid. I wanted to do a different kind of film." For Hong Kong audiences and Wu's legions of fans, used to seeing him in mainstream fare such as the mega-successful Love Undercover (2002), Night Corridor certainly is "different". Director Lee took his inspiration from the creepy painting Nightmare (1781) by Swiss-born artist Fuseli and thus the film (like Wu's central character) charts a course somewhere between clarity and confusion. Being an independent effort made with a limited budget, the film at times suffers from the restraints inherit to this kind of production. And that is something to which Wu readily admits. " I think we shot it in 12 days but obviously if we had more time things would have changed," Wu says. "But just to get it done made us all really happy. You know that going in to something like that, you are not going to be able to do everything they way you might like." The end result still boasts some impressive efforts. Wu is strong in the title role, while solid support is given by veterans Ku Feng, and Wai Ying-hung. And young cinematographer Charlie Lam - who impressed with his work on the short Tai-Tai, which screened at Cannes last year - manages to create a haunting, atmospheric mood with limited resources and sets. Wu has been using his very "public" face to court as much publicity as possible. That has included a stream of press and television interviews. He remains relaxed about the whole process when we meet in the film's publicity unit offices in Wan Chai, as he does during the film's official premiere last Friday night. "I've done more than 20 films now," says Wu. "And what comes with that is that you recognise where things can be done better. And I'm in a position now where I can do something about that. I think it's a responsibility; if you have the power to change things, then go for it. It shouldn't be a selfish industry, we should be helping each other." Wu arrived in Hong Kong to witness the handover in 1997 after graduating with a degree in architecture from the University of Oregon. Once his money ran out, his sister Gloria suggested he try his hand at modelling. His work on the catwalk was spotted by director Yonfan who cast him in Bishonen (1998) and his fate was sealed. " I'd studied film in college but just sort of fell into it over here," Wu says. "You learn as you go here and because a lot of the films are not that challenging, that's not a hard thing to do." He says he is at the stage of his career in which he can afford to take more chances and film producing will help him do just that. "There's plenty of guys out there who can do that commercial pop star act," he says. "But I came from a completely different background to that so I think, why limit myself when there is so much more out there?" For Hong Kong audiences, Night Corridor might be about as non-commercial as you can get - it touches on homo-erotica, as well paedophilia, and comes with a Category III restriction. Wu is under no illusions about the audience the film might attract, or of its place in the whole scheme of things here. " In the end it all comes down to money," he says. "Obviously, a movie that can attract everyone from a four-year-old to an 80-year-old is going to get more support than one that can only attract those who are 18-plus. But at the same time you can't only target one group of people with every film. " Everyone knows what happens in Hong Kong. If a romantic comedy is a hit, you get romantic comedies for a whole year and I think that's a terrible way to do it because you then kill the genre. You're not keeping the wheels moving, you're just spinning in place. It seems like you're satisfying the people but at the same time, you are not going anywhere. " I'm not saying this is some ground-breaking movie," adds Wu. "It's just something different. And I think we need that variety to keep things alive." |