Interview with Andy Lau ｜ Every script is a challenge

Andy Lau performs a different "killer"

When we interviewed Rao Xiaozhi, the director of "The Crowd", we asked him what the opportunity was to invite Andy Lau to play the killer Zhouquan. Rao said that when the character of Zhouquan became clearer and clearer in the book, he felt that it should be Andy Lau, and he did not need any foreshadowing. "He just stands there." The simple and straightforward answer, after thinking about it, felt extremely reasonable and appropriate. From Andy to Brother Hua, the growth is only age, hard work, self-discipline, seriousness, diligence, and consistency. Andy Lau did a lot for "The Crowd", connecting with various theaters by phone to request more film arrangements, opening a Douyin account to live stream with director Rao Xiaozhi… Due to work reasons, he could not accept face-to-face interviews in the mainland, and the Lau team returned to the video interview material extremely efficiently. Andy Lau answered all the questions in our interview outline, without avoiding or perfunctory. The team carefully used dual cameras to shoot this interview. Andy Lau occasionally looked at the camera, his eyes clear and bright, his words sincere, his state stretched, and his style of talking and laughing remained the same. After more than 40 years of filming, even though he is now an honorary person, he said that no matter what the script is, it is a challenge for me, and every movie is equally difficult.

Q

A

ICONSPRO: Can you introduce the movie "The Crowd" to everyone?

Andy Lau:The movie "Crowd" is actually about two different people who exchange their lives. I was a killer in the movie, and because of an accident, I exchanged lives with Xiao Yang, and I became an extra actor, which is a very wonderful movie.

ICONSPRO: Have you seen the previous works of Director Rao Xiaozhi? What are your thoughts on this collaboration?

Andy Lau:This time, in fact, this script has been coming down, and I have heard that this work is brewing in the market. I have never known that the director Rao did it. I have seen "Hello Crazy" and "No Name". I really appreciate that he has a different world in the movie, and I really want to enter his world to see it. Then this time it was very good, he found me to act in this play, and I was very happy. I quickly agreed to perform like this.

ICONSPRO: What motivated you to take on this film? What was the most appealing part of the script?

Andy Lau:I took this movie entirely because of his talent. Of course, I like Wan Qian, Xiao Yang, Xiao Lei, and many other actors, but if you want me to give a reason, it’s because of the director’s talent.

ICONSPRO: Zhou Quan is a killer who has lost his memory and switched identities with others. What do you think is the most challenging aspect of this role?

Andy Lau:I think no matter what the script is, it is a challenge for me, because we don’t care if I played Leiluo 25 years ago, and I play it again today, in fact, I can present a different role, so I’m not saying whether the script is difficult or not, but I think I can present a certain kind of Andy Lau under the director’s world. This is my biggest difficulty, but I think every movie has the same difficulty.

ICONSPRO: The biggest feature of a remake is that the audience will lose curiosity about the local version because they have seen the original. Would you consider adding some special designs to attract the audience?

Andy Lau:Each of us has been a parent, and there are many people in this world. He has also acted. He has also been a father, and he has also been a father. Then I watched the original Japanese ones, and I also watched the Korean ones. Their world, their family, are presented differently in different fields or in different countries. I think the director put a lot of local jokes this time, and it is the kind of taste that we are very Chinese. I think this is completely. I don’t know why the director will present this world. I think it is different from anything except the plot. There is no way to say which part of it we have borrowed from. It is either Japanese or Korean. Now a completely new world is presented in front of all the audiences.

ICONSPRO: Xiao Yang said in an interview that Andy Lau can give people a sense of security. What do you think of this evaluation? Where does the sense of security between actors and actresses come from?

Andy Lau:First of all, I think Xiao Yang, thank you for your evaluation of me, security, I think this is your trust, found in me, in fact, as long as you believe in people, no matter who the other party is, as long as you believe, the world will be safe. So you will choose some people you believe in, work together or live together. This kind of security is not given to him by me, but if you believe in me, I have it. If you don’t believe in me, I don’t have it.

ICONSPRO: It’s the first time to work with Vance, but how can you break the ice quickly if you want to shoot an emotional scene?

Andy Lau:I have been acting for 40 years, and every play will have a heroine, and then every play will have a relationship. Every time I do it, I have found many ways to tell myself what is good about her and what moves me before filming, so no matter which movie it is, when the heroine appears, I will naturally communicate with him or fall in love. It is completely natural, but there is no way, just love with your heart.

ICONSPRO: Collaborating with the mainland creative team again, do you think your Mandarin has improved again?

Andy Lau:First of all, I think everyone really misunderstood a little bit. In the past, from "Ambush on All Sides", many of my movies were made with my voice, and I performed them in Mandarin, so I don’t know why everyone thought this time, wow, that’s weird, why? In fact, three or four years ago, I played "The Bomb Locker", and the people who were released thought that my Mandarin was not so worth using my voice, so I replaced my voice and found someone else to do it. That may be due to those distribution habits, such as "Lost Orphan" is also my voice. (In "The Bomb Locker") I played with Ni Ni and I spoke Mandarin, so this will not affect my performance. There may be some pronunciations in the middle that are mine, especially one of Andy Lau’s Mandarin, but I basically use my voice in many movies, and I rarely match it. "The Great Wall" is mine in English and Mandarin, and Mandarin is mine.

ICONSPRO: Xiao Yang said that she was slapped 33 times in the face and 11 times in the face. Do you have any pressure to shoot similar scenes?

Andy Lau:Of course there will be. Before I filmed this scene, I already told the director that because of his scene, I can’t have a single word wrong in all the dialogue, because he was talking about the dialogue written in the whole book, so I can’t be wrong, not a single word wrong. The reason why there are so many (slaps) in the middle is because I may not be used to it. For example, I have used "character". I have been talking about "character" for more than 50 years, and now I suddenly changed "character", so I am not used to it. In fact, I am quite stressed. This is the scene I feel the most guilty about in the whole scene. Really Xiao Yang, I really shouldn’t have been beaten so much, but my command of Mandarin is not so flexible, so I’m sorry.

ICONSPRO: You have won the best actor in the heavyweight film festival many times. In the field of film, are there any awards you want to work hard to win?

Andy Lau:I am a very casual actor. From the very first day, everyone may think that Andy Lau needs any awards or whatever. In fact, I am the most indifferent. Whether I play well or not, I understand it myself. With it, I won’t feel how good I am, and without it, I won’t feel that I am not good at acting, so I feel that I am responsible in the world. Maybe if I want to participate in those awards in different parts of the world, or some film festivals, I just hope to bring Chinese films to the world and let the world know. In addition to some art films and action films, we can also have some commercial blockbusters in the market, and we can also make everyone feel that in addition to business, it contains the most traditional Chinese wisdom. I hope to bring our Chinese films to every corner of the world, not really. I want to win awards in different parts of the world.

ICONSPRO: And finally, a word for the Amway audience coming into the theater to watch "The Crowd."

Andy Lau:First of all, let me tell you that "The Crowd" is a very good movie, and it is a movie with its own character and image. I hope you go in and feel that as long as you work hard, no one can beat you. This is the most important point of our play. Hope you enjoy "The Crowd".

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