Old Monster Tsui

Late at night. Sporting a goatee and striking features that gave him the look of an eccentric wanderer straight out of the martial world, Tsui Hark was reading the script for Orphan. His ancestral home was Shanwei, Guangdong, but he had been born in Vietnam. After living through turbulent times, he had drifted from place to place before arriving in Hong Kong to make films. Like Ann Hui, he was a figure of the Hong Kong New Wave—his style sharp and daring, willing to film anything, fiercely avant-garde, yet hardly profitable. Three consecutive flops—The Butterfly Murders, We're Going to Eat You, and Dangerous Encounters of the First Kind—had left him so broke that no one was willing to invest in him. Introduced to Cinema City by John Woo, he compromised with commercial demands and directed All the Wrong Clues (...for the Right Solution), yet he could not suppress his restless, itching creative drive. When it came to innovative spirit among the Hong Kong crowd, Tsui Hark stood alone. Even if his later films in future years would lose their magic, his commitment to bringing something new to every single picture was truly commendable. "Now this is a brilliant development!" Tsui Hark suddenly slapped his thigh, having just reached the scene where the young girl seduces the male lead. To some, such a plot point was scandalous, a complete violation of morals. He didn't care in the slightest. In fact, if he had his way, he would have had the girl seduce the female lead too. "Master, time for sweet soup!" Shi Nansheng brought over two bowls of sweet dessert soup. While she appeared avant-garde and open-minded, she was actually quite traditional when it came to relationships, taking care of Tsui Hark hand and foot. Her habitual nickname for him, "Master," had a teasing ring to it, yet it also reflected where each stood in their dynamic. Handing him a bowl, she asked, "How is the script?" "Fantastic. You rarely see this genre in Hong Kong, and the material is very bold." "Isn't it a horror film?" "No, no. It should be called a thriller, with a touch of mystery. Suits my taste perfectly. Especially the character setups—an American couple, an adopted Japanese daughter, a local social worker, a British nun... The political undertones are even bolder than the subject matter itself..." Seeing him talk on and on, Shi Nansheng smiled. "Then it's all good, isn't it? Just go make the movie with a smile on your face and treat it as earning some extra cash." "No, I am not happy!" Tsui Hark shook his head. "Do you have any idea what Mai Jia and Huang Baiming told me? They said I had to direct this movie, or the company was finished! That mainland guy squeezed our company so hard, and what, am I supposed to thank him? I was backed into a corner!" "Then why do you keep saying the script is good?" "Liking the script doesn't stop me from being unhappy!" Tsui Hark shook his large head and continued flipping through the pages, musing to himself: The little girl is key. I wonder if they can find a suitable actress. And where will they get the American couple? Location scouting is going to be crucial too... *** Clear Water Bay Studio. Early in the morning, sporting a hat and sunglasses, Tsui Hark rode in a low-profile Skoda car as it drove inside. He went up to the main building, where Chen Qi was already waiting. "Director Tsui, a pleasure to meet you for the first time!" "Mr. Chen!" Tsui Hark's manner was lukewarm—he was disgruntled, after all—but he was quite intrigued by Chen Qi. Back when he watched Tai Chi, he had felt a distinct sense of kindred spirit. Chen Qi cut straight to the chase and immediately briefed him on the pre-production status of Orphan. "We've scouted a few promising child actors. Since it's their summer vacation, they'll undergo a one-week training camp, half a day of classes each day. Their parents will drop them off shortly and pick them up at noon... Oh, and we'll provide lunch." "How are you handling the Americans?" "We'll cast them from Hollywood!" Tsui Hark raised an eyebrow. "You folks are certainly willing to spend this time." "Hollywood has tiers too. The top dogs feast on the best cuts, while the bottom rungs constantly hustle to get by. There are plenty of skilled actors without fame. Orphan doesn't rely on star power; solid acting is all we need. Of course, getting someone who's both cheap and has a bit of a name would be ideal." After chatting for a while, Tsui Hark gained a general grasp of things and realized the pre-production was already quite thorough, lacking only the cast. A twinge of displeasure brushed through his mind—how could they do all this legwork behind the director's back? Then another thought struck him: whatever, he was just a hired gun on a temporary gig anyway. If the final product turned out poorly, that would be on them. Before long, parents began dropping off their children. Not many, only five little girls in total, among whom were Yuan Jieying, Zhu Yin, and Qiu Shuzhen... An absurdly high talent ratio. "Please take good care of her!" "Mom, I'm definitely going to get picked!" "Yin-yin, give it your best!" Once the parents left, class began immediately. Though small, the studio was well-equipped, boasting a cafeteria, makeup rooms, and rehearsal rooms. Chen Qi led the five girls into a rehearsal space, while Tsui Hark watched from the side in silence. The half-day schedule was divided into four periods. First came some basics—camera angles, blocking, lighting, and the like—which were straightforward. Starting from the second period, Chen Qi dialed up the intensity right away, aiming to lay down their foundations as quickly as possible. "Remember this schedule: the first period every day covers basic knowledge, and the remaining three are technique classes. A movement coach, a dialogue coach, and I will be teaching you. My role is mainly to teach you how to imitate..." "Teacher!" Qiu Shuzhen suddenly raised her hand and asked cautiously, "Excuse me, aren't you going to give us scripts? We don't even know what we're acting in yet." "You don't need to know. Just do as I tell you. You only have seven days, and success depends on your own effort. Make sure to practice hard when you go home, and don't cry if you get cut." "All right, let's begin!" A sofa sat in the room. Chen Qi sat down and said, "I'm going to demonstrate a few actions and lines. All you need to do is copy me... Suppose someone is sitting right next to me, and I'm talking to them." He paused, then tilted his head against the back of the sofa as if someone were sitting opposite him, and said tenderly, "I love you, John!" "You're a good father!" "You're a handsome man!" Just three short lines. Chen Qi stood up and asked, "Understand?" "Understood!" "Understood!" "All right then. Yin-yin, you give it a try..." Chen Qi scratched his head. Hm? Yin-yin? Felt like an old acquaintance! Zhu Yin nervously stepped forward at once, sitting stiffly on the sofa. Seeing Chen Qi nod to her, she began to imitate him. Watching just now had seemed easy enough, but when she actually tried, she stumbled and couldn't even deliver the lines smoothly. "Too nervous. Yuan Jieying, your turn!" Yuan Jieying had a fiery temper. She plopped down with a thud and rattled off the three lines like firecrackers. Chen Qi shook his head. "Are you picking a fight with someone? Look at my expression—did you miss it? Gentler." "Ah Zhen, your turn!" Qiu Shuzhen gave it a shot, with even worse results: she burst into giggles right in the middle. The remaining two filler candidates weren't any better, creating an unmitigated disaster. Chen Qi sighed, sat back down on the sofa, and said, "I'll demonstrate a few more times. Pay attention to every single detail. First, look at my posture. My legs are too long to pull up, but as kids, you can draw your legs up completely onto the sofa, knees bent together, like this..." "Aiya, not like that!" Watching coldly from the side, Tsui Hark could no longer hold back. This was the scene where the girl seduces the male lead. Walking over, he said, "That doesn't look appealing. You have to cross your legs. You'll be wearing slippers, dangling one from your toes and swaying it back and forth..." "That's too scandalous! It needs to be more subtle!" Chen Qi argued. "How is that scandalous? Look, just like this..." Tsui Hark sat down as well, facing Chen Qi. One curled his legs up on the sofa with exaggerated grace, while the other crossed his legs, slipping off a leather shoe to dangle it from his toes, swaying it back and forth. Both wore deeply affectionate expressions, gazing tenderly into each other's eyes. "Hahahaha!" "You two are so hilarious!" Yuan Jieying burst out laughing, grinning like a tomboy. Zhu Yin pressed her lips together in a giggle. She didn't understand what it meant, but she thought it looked tremendously fun. Qiu Shuzhen flashed her little rabbit teeth as well, her eyes blinking in amusement. Tsui Hark loved nothing more than personally demonstrating for actors, but he hadn't expected to encounter another drama queen—one even more theatrical than himself. After bickering back and forth for a good while, they finally settled on a pose and let the girls resume practicing. Qiu Shuzhen tried hard to imitate it, then asked, "Teacher, is this what's in the movie? What are we actually doing?" "Uh..." As Tsui Hark was wondering how to explain, Chen Qi didn't even bat an eye and lied smoothly, "This is a movie about family warmth. You're expressing your love for your father." "Oh!" The little girls nodded in unison. So that was it! Tsui Hark looked at him in astonished disbelief, his mind spinning. Was this really a filmmaker from the mainland? To be frank, he had harbored prejudices against the mainland too, but Chen Qi completely defied expectations. In certain aspects, the man's professionalism was more American than the Americans. Take coaching child actors, for instance—it was an established Hollywood consensus that you never needed to explain the actual scenario to children or delve deeply into the scene; you just had them mimic you directly. Tsui Hark had arrived nursing a grudge, feeling forced into a corner and indignant at having to direct under a pseudonym. Yet he genuinely loved the script, which left him thoroughly conflicted. Now, however, that resentment was imperceptibly beginning to dissipate.