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Press conference for Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon in Shanghai
Two truths emerged from yesterday's Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon press conference --
Chow Yun-Fat's love of food and fear of his wife, Jasmine
By KELVIN TONG
-from Straits Times
Flanked by a trio of burly bodyguards, Hong Kong star Chow Yun-Fat exits the Shangri La Hotel ballroom through a
side door.
Laughter trails in his wake. He has just turned what promised to be a buttoned-down publicity event for his latest
gongfu film, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, into a comedy routine. Dispensing quips and good cheer, the 45-year-
old had stolen the show. Director Lee Ang as well as actresses Michelle Yeoh and Zhang Zi Yi were present at the
press conference, but only as foils to his zany jokes.
Pausing beside his waiting Mercedes in the hotel foyer, Chow turns and asks his retinue of assistants and publicists in
Cantonese: "So, where to for lunch?'' The thought of food is never far from Chow's mind.
During yesterday's press conference, when asked whether he prefers working in Hong Kong or Hollywood, he replied:
"Hong Kong, Singapore, Thailand, Hollywood -- it's all the same. To me, it's what's in the lunch-box I'm wondering
about.''
The night before, it was bak kut teh and durians at Balestier Road before a nightcap of coconut juice at the Newton
hawker centre. Today, the tall, tanned and devilishly-suave actor is having journalists for lunch. Witness his cheeky jibe
at auteur-director Lee during the media event. "He's a really troublesome guy. On the first day of the Crouching Tiger,
Hidden Dragon shoot, he made me go through 28 takes. Hey, I'm a world-class actor. This Lee Ang gives me no face at
all. I went home and wept that night.'' The usually-serious Lee laughed and threw the actor, who plays a retired
swordsman in his poetic martial-arts film, a playful look of outrage. Fellow stars Michelle Yeoh and Zhang Zi Yi howled.
The press corp lapped it all up. Handling the event with what can only be described as surgical zaniness, Chow drew
the reticent newcomer Zhang deftly into a menage a trois: Zhang: "Big sister Michelle was so kind to me. She gave me
fighting and acting lessons before the shoot began.'' Chow: "But she didn't teach me anything.'' Yeoh: "Oh, what I had to
teach was too difficult for you.'' Chow: "I'm so stupid.'' Yeoh's revealing sequin top notwithstanding, Chow, who was
garbed in a plain white polo-shirt, brown trousers and suede Nikes, was clearly the star of the show. He was also
getting ravenous. Lunch, according to his alert assistant Helen, is at the Four Seasons Hotel. But first, a change of
clothes in his suite at Shangri La (Chow's hotel of choice every time he comes to town). "Eat with me,'' the actor makes
a grab at his shy director, who mumbles his acquiescence. Chow gets into his own getaway ride and is whisked to his
room (located in Shangri La's adjoining tower of suites).
"I DON'T think Yun-Fat did his best in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. There are a few scenes in which he could
have done better.''
Meet Jasmine Tan, Chow's harshest critic, staunchest supporter, script green-lighter and Singaporean wife of 12 years.
No encounter with the actor is complete without her. While her husband was cracking jokes onstage during the press
conference, the 41-year-old was in the wings co-ordinating his schedule for the rest of the day. And while Chow
changes for lunch, she sits. Dressed in a chic pink top and brown skirt, the vivacious Mrs Chow offers up some sound
advice on how to handle a spouse who also happens to be Asia's biggest superstar. "I'm an outright person. If I have
something to say, I'll say it,'' she says. "Yun Fat is very good with journalists, making them laugh. But at home, he is a
reserved person. When I criticise him, I have to be very careful because, like all creative types, he is a very sensitive
person. So, I have to pick the right moment and phrase it correctly.'' She continues: "If that does not work, I'll try to get
through to him via his agent or his manager, Terence Chang. It can be painful sometimes. But at the end of the day, I
have to remember that I am also his wife. It also helps that we respect each other a lot.'' No wonder Chow, during the
earlier press conference, had referred to her as "no dragon but a hidden tigress''. He had said: "When my wife and my
Mum say no, I cannot say yes.'' Guarding her husband's interests zealously, Mrs Chow vets his screenplays and goes
over contracts with a fine-tooth comb as part of her wifely duties. "We work as a team,'' she says. "He handles the shoot.
I do the work before production starts.'' She also moonlights as the actor's model for his latest passion -- photography.
Known for taking director John Woo to task for firing off exploding devices too near her husband during the shoot of A
Better Tomorrow, she is also fearless when it comes to describing the type of people she has to fend off daily. "Liars,
sycophants and manipulators -- people want all kinds of things from Yun Fat. We try to be nice but sometimes, you just
have to put your foot down,'' she says. "It's a tough industry and you have to be tough if you want to survive.'' Chow, in the
next room, is almost ready. Helen, the omnipresent aide, signals. Mrs Chow, flashing a warm smile as dazzling as the
huge diamond on her finger, takes her leave: "Time for lunch.''
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