For most Westerners, the name Jacob Cheung Chi-leung probably doesn’t ring a bell. John Woo, Tsui Hark or even Wong Kar-wai may be familiar to cinema-goers, but the accomplishments of this actor-at-heart turned filmmaker are no less praiseworthy.

Indeed, the 47-year-old Hong Kong-born filmmaker has some impressive credits, ranging from 1990’s This Thing Called Love, a delightful comedy about love and marriage, to 1992’s Cageman, a serious study of his native city’s ‘cage-house’ tenants, to 1999’s The Kid, a moving exploration of child/adult relationships. As is evident from even a list as short as this, Cheung emphasizes characterization and strong story telling over action, SFX and other visual excesses. Perhaps because he began his career in front of the camera. More than two decades ago he took acting classes along with such luminaries as Andy Lau and Tony Leung Chiu-wai, followed by years of mediocre roles in mediocre films. Tired of waiting for the perfect part, which, of course, never came, until Lai Shi, China’s Last Eunuch (1986). Since then, he’s tackled nearly every topics as a scriptwriter/producer/director and in almost every genre, from romance to ghost stories.

His latest directorial effort, A Battle of Wits (ABOW), is adapted from a famous Japanese manga Mak Gong/Bokko. It concerns a ‘mohist’, an adept of the Mozi philosophy. Mozi (aka Micius or Mo-Tzu who lived in 5th-4th century BC), argued strongly against Confucianism and founded a school of thought that emphasized universal love, self-reflection and authenticity. In ABOW, the mohist, Ge Li, battles to spare a small country invasion by a powerful kingdom. With a plot like this, ABOW would seem to fit the typical martial art’s or wuxia pian genre, replete with super-powered knight errants. Indeed, it is set in the Zhan dynasty (475 B.C.-221 B.C.), a hero-laden period according to Chinese folklore.

But ABOW is anything but a typical Chinese action film, rather Cheung has produced an ambitious historical work where there is little room for blind heroics. More impressive still, he has cleverly introduced a subtext that echoes events in today’s newspaper headlines. Ge Li’s attempt to bring peace becomes an excuse for war, while his commitment to duty adversely affects the very people he cares for most.

Slated for release on the Chinese mainland this December, the USD 16 million Pan-Asian A Battle of Wits boasts an international cast and crew (the Chinese mainland, Hong Kong, South Korea, Japan and Taiwan) and features many of the big names -- Andy Lau, Fang Bingbing, Nicholas Wu Chi-lung or Ahn Sung-ki.

In our interview with Cheung, he discusses his inspiration, his unwillingness to compromise and the role of world affairs in his current film.

that’s: ABOW is quite complex. How would you summarize the story?
Jacob Cheung: The movie’s about two big powerful countries fighting each other. One country, Zhao, sends 100,000 soldiers to attack another country [called] Yan. On their way, they pass a small country named Liang inhabited by only 4,000 peasants and which can be defeated very easily. The main objective of Zhao isn’t to defeat this small and weak country though it’s [a territory] very easy to conquer. The Liang’s people are thus trapped in a helpless situation and they turn to Ge Li, played by Andy Lau, for protection. As long as Ge Li can defend Liang for one month the country will be safe from [further] attacks. That’s how the story starts.

that’s: Is this the film you had in mind when you bought the rights to Hideki Mori’s and Sentaro Kubota’s Japanese comic book Mak Gong six years ago?
JC: Actually, I’ve been working on this film for eleven years. [But] the first time I read the comic book was in 1990 [after a recommendation from Hong Kong actor/filmmaker Eric Tsang] when I was waiting for my three sons to join me in Canada. I quickly became fond of it; it’s very touching and fascinating. [From the beginning], I wanted to add modern elements to the movie adaptation, including an anti-war theme, as well as my thoughts and reflections on heroism, and the destruction that occurs during war time. I believed it had to be a very big production and, at that time, I was just not good enough to make the film. Later, after discussing the project with colleagues, I became more confident and more impatient. This sort of movie requires a lot of stamina, and it took me a decade to prepare myself.

that’s: How would you describe the film’s view of heroism? JC: From the very beginning of the film, Mohist Ge Li appears keen on helping Liang’s people defend themselves against invasion. He seems an obvious hero to them. He convinces them he’s there to help and urges them to resist the invasion. But is he really helpful? Ge Li is not really a hero; he brings the idea of war to the peasants assuming it’s good for them, but in fact it is not. War is never a good means to solve problems. From this perspective, there are never any heroes in wartime. that’s: Can you explain how the film parallels events in today’s world. JC: The film’s subtext is about a big and powerful country using a far-fetched excuse to attack a small and weak country. It parallels the situation between the USA and Iraq. Here, the weak and small country Liang, turns to a Mohist for help, but his help only brings violence and war. If you try and solve problems with violence, the result is death and civil unrest. The real way to solve problems is through non-violent means.

that’s: ABOW involves film companies, cast and crew from five different countries. Was it a challenge working with such a diverse group?
JC: It was more than just a challenge; it was difficult and exhausting. The main issue was [of course] communication. For instance, the cameraman [Zensho Sakamoto] is from Japan, and in Japan they work under a different system. I had to do research not only on how Japanese cameramen work, but also on the personality of Zensho Sakamoto so I could make him understand my exact requirements. If the cameraman is from Hong Kong, you just need to give him the camera position and angle and then he does it without questions. For Japanese cameramen, you need to explain a lot, so it requires much longer to complete every single take.

that’s: Is it true that Andy Lau accepted the role of Ge Li immediately after reading the script?
JC: Lau was very confident in [the project] and knew exactly my style, so he agreed as soon as he read the script. But he did have four [tongue-in-cheek] questions. His first question was ‘How about my hairdo?’ (Laughs). Lau pays a lot of attention to his appearance. I just told him I won’t let him wear wigs or hats, we’ll just use a very short haircut. He was happy and agreed to do [the film]. (Laughs) Then he asked me if he needed to be dubbed in Mandarin, and I told him he’d have to try to say his lines in Putonghua. Lau asked if he could participate on the production side. I asked him ‘why?’ I asked him if he trusted me and if he had another agenda. He said he hadn’t, that he just wanted to be helpful. He said that because the film had such a lot of investors, from four countries, that he was afraid I would give up half way. Such a complicated situations required strong producers, he said, which is why he offered his services. His last question was: How long would it take to shoot [his part]?

that’s: It’s been reported that Fang Bingbing was exceptionally dedicated to her role.
JC: Originally, there wasn’t any female role; the story only concerned men. But during the period the film is set, in the Zhan dynasty, women and men were equal. In war time, for example, they would fight shoulder to shoulder. In ABOW, Fang was very dedicated to her role as a solider and horse groom. There’s one scene where Fang is trapped in an underwater jail; we shot it in mid-November 2005 in Hubei province when it was very cold. We couldn’t add any warm water because the steam would have damaged the camera. So she had to stay in the freezing water, though she was wearing a diving suit. In order to encourage the cast, I also went in the water with a diving suit and it was indeed freezing. But Fang never complained, she did her best to meet my requirements.

that’s: You’re known for refusing to make compromises.
JC: I am not really a director who compromises a lot or else it would not have taken me eleven years to make ABOW. [I believe] to compromise is the wrong way to go. Before starting the movie, I had already communicated my intentions to the various investors, so all compromises were made in the early stage; after that, I did the whole movie my way. In fact, I only made two compromises. First, I agreed to reduce the final cut from three hours to between two and two hours and ten minutes. Second, as the investors weren’t too keen on computer generated special effects, we tried our best to reduce the number. In this movie, there are 400 shots containing CG SFX.

that’s: Do you think the film will be a hit in the West?
JC: I don’t know how to answer your question. Though the topic of this movie -- war -- is universal, each game has its own rules. If you want a movie to be accepted by Western audiences, the rules say it has to be in the English language. ABOW is set in ancient times with Chinese actors; I don’t expect too much from Western audiences. If I wanted the film to work all over the world, I would have had to change the whole crew and cast, and make it in English. The film focuses on Oriental people, so whether it will work or not [In the West] we’ll have to let the viewers decide for themselves.

that’s: Ang Lee’s Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon is a typical Chinese film and a global success.
JC: I wouldn’t compare myself to director Ang Lee.

Special thanks to Margaret Yau and Cherry Xue.

This feature article also appears in French, in France bimonthly magazine Mad Asia

(c) that's Shanghai Magazine
Chief editor: Steven Crane
Photo courtesy Mick Ryan www.mickryan.com.
September 2006 issue



(c) that's PRD Magazine
Chief editor: Phil Boyle
December 2006 issue