Admiring Gong Li

Marla · Posted: Sat Aug 26, 2006 10:16 am Post subject:

Quite often, an actor who is not the top billed one in a film actually makes the biggest impression. Some critics, as well as Mann, apparently, feel Li is the bright spot in this particular film.

I watched the video clip; here's what Mann says about Li at the end:

"I enjoyed working with Gong Li tremendously. You know, as I said before, I think she is… Her training and the way she is represents so many things that are exciting about Beijing. It's not scientific, this is not scientific thinking. But in a way it represents many things about Beijing that are also impressive. But Gong Li is an astounding actress and a great artist, and I'd like very much to do something with her again."

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cocoa · Joined: 05 Aug 2006 Posts: 4044

Thank you both for interpreting. Ridiculous how they asked if Z was in his next picture. LOL. It seems like he really liked LI's performance. I wonder if it was his favorite one in the film.

cocoa · Joined: 05 Aug 2006 Posts: 4044

From TIME magazine

Marla · Posted: Fri Sep 01, 2006 1:14 pm Post subject:

cocoa · Joined: 05 Aug 2006 Posts: 4044

http://e.sinchew-i.com/content.phtml?sec=29&artid=200609050003

One On One With Gong Li

What did you know of Michael Mann before you met with him for this film, Miami Vice?

I think more than 10 years or so ago I first saw some of his work in film festivals and also he is very famous in China so I had seen a lot of his work. At the time we had a chance to work together but it didn't work out and when he came to look for me for this film we got together and looked at the script.

Were you aware of the TV series Miami Vice?

I saw it back then. It was very famous and popular in Asia but I didn't understand it that much. It seemed to be a story about two men and at the time it maybe seemed a bit far away from our everyday lives. Nowadays of course it might seem a little more close to us because of the way things have developed since then. Nowadays for example in TV shows from Hong Kong and China you can see similar stories. So it probably feels a little closer to us now.

Did you have any doubts about doing Miami Vice?

No I didn't have to think about it at all. It was a very easy thing for me because he is a very great director and I was very willing to work with him. In addition of course I knew that he knew all about me. He knew about my English and what kind of characters I can play and my acting ability and so on. So I trusted him quite a lot. I knew that he wouldn't just waste me for 10 minutes in some small part. So as soon as I heard about it I said ok, I'll do it.

Michael Mann says that to speak English with a Cuban accent you had to do facial muscle exercises to get your tongue round the words?

It's true there was a process of training involved and I had a teacher to help me with the pronunciation, especially from the very beginning when we started with very basic things like how to curl your tongue to roll 'Rs'. That is something that is very foreign to us from Asia. So I had to practice that every day and look at myself in the mirror and practice doing that rolling 'Rs' sound.

Of course at the beginning I said that I couldn't do it because it was so difficult but Michael Mann said he knew I could do it and even if I said I couldn't do it, I still had to do it. So he said to go and practice for a while and after some time passed he asked me to look him in the face to do it for him so he could check out how it sounded. And I had to go back and do it again.

After a while it became quite easy. I looked at myself in the mirror and I could do it immediately. So I realised from working with Michael Mann that whatever you put your mind to you can do. There is nothing that is really impossible. As long as you imagine it you can do it. It might take some work, some practice but you can do it.

After your performances in Miami Vice and Memoirs Of A Geisha it seems you are more willing to do Hollywood movies. Do you think you will eventually be more comfortable using English?

I am sure that things will get easier for me as thing's progress. But as long as they don't have me do another foreign accent--like an Indian accent. This time I practiced for a while and got the hang of this Cuban accent and then as soon as I finished filming Miami Vice I went to work on Young Hannibal and in that I also had a voice teacher to work with.

He said as soon as I got there that my English had a bit of a Cuban accent and they needed a British accent for this film. So I had to go through the whole process of learning that accent. So as long as next time they don't ask me to do an even more difficult accent I'm sure it'll be ok.

You must be proud that your work has earned you great acclaim in the West where you are seen as one of the great film actresses?

Yes I am very, very happy about that. If you say that I am a good actress then that's great for me. I just love my work.

Of what are you most proud in your performance in Miami Vice?

Well there may be some things that I am not so satisfied with. There are some small things like maybe the way I did the lines of dialogue. But overall what I am most satisfied with is that I really threw myself wholeheartedly into this part. If you asked me to do it again at this point I probably wouldn't be much better because it has been such a short time since I finished the film. But maybe in the future if I looked back on it again I maybe would say I would do better with the dialogue. But overall I am proud of the way that I threw myself into it.

( Republished with permission from FACES. To check out more reviews and event updates, visit www.faces.com.my )
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Marla · Posted: Tue Sep 05, 2006 6:53 am Post subject:

Here's the link to the entire article; Li is the cover girl on "Faces" magazine:

http://www.faces.com.my/spotlight/spotlight.asp?id=1960

The article includes a nice profile of Li.

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cocoa · Joined: 05 Aug 2006 Posts: 4044

Marla, has she ever been on a American mag cover?
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Marla · Posted: Tue Sep 05, 2006 11:26 am Post subject:

Yes, she has. Of course, I'm hoping for more covers!

http://www.admiringgongli.com/picz/magcvrtime1.jpg

http://www.admiringgongli.com/picz/newsweek1.jpg

http://www.admiringgongli.com/picz/towncountry97cvr.jpg

cocoa · Joined: 05 Aug 2006 Posts: 4044

Ohhhhh, Thank You Very Happy

Hoping for many more.
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Marla · Posted: Tue Sep 05, 2006 3:36 pm Post subject:

I have several great new publicity pics for you:

doowop · Posted: Tue Sep 05, 2006 8:25 pm Post subject:

OOOHH... so drop dead gorgeous pics... thanks Marla once again Wink

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Gong Li: "People keep pushing me to be the center of attention. I would prefer to be on the sidelines, because that's where you see more."

cocoa · Joined: 05 Aug 2006 Posts: 4044

What's he doing , playing with her hair? LOL
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Margo · Joined: 25 Jun 2006 Posts: 313

awesomeee picciess!!!
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The Queen is BACK!

apple · Joined: 09 Sep 2006 Posts: 35 Location: Philippines

Hi! I'm just new here. Thanks Marla for sharing many info. about Gong Li. I loved the articles and the gorgeous pics... makes me appreciate Li more! I first saw her in MOAG, and I was moved by her performance... She really stood out. And now, after watching Miami Vice, I couldn't help but be enthralled by her acting abilities. She really is an amazing actress. I hope I could see more of her previous films, and also I couldn't wait for her upcoming ones, too! I am now a certified Gong Li-fan... Very Happy

cocoa · Joined: 05 Aug 2006 Posts: 4044

A new clip on You tube of interviewers asking about GL at THE MV premiere. Mann said is she is a 10 plus and CN looked annoyed when asked .I could not see the whole thing. Plus another red carpet interview. Maybe someone can give a better recap

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=42sxhIr5b48
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