Young again
HK actress Charlie Young trains four hours a day to master dance for Hollywood debut
By Chang May Choon
THE new Hollywood film Bangkok Dangerous was shot amid a military coup in the capital city of Thailand in 2006. However, by the time violence exploded on the streets, lead actress Charlie Young had already completed her scenes and was back home in Hong Kong. So all she had were merely fond memories of filming there before the coup. 'Fun' was the word she kept repeating in a phone interview with The New Paper on Wednesday. After all, she got to visit temples, go sightseeing and even feed elephants, together with her Hollywood co-star Nicolas Cage.
In the movie, she plays a mute Thai pharmacist who falls for an American assassin played by Cage. Charlie, 34, described him as a gentleman who took good care of the people around him. 'His eyes were mesmerising. I had to keep looking into his eyes because I couldn't talk to him, we could only interact with our eyes,' she said. 'People think he's a cool guy, but he's easy to get along with and he's quite a fun person too. He works hard but also spends time with his family.'
To prepare for her role, Charlie arrived in Bangkok a month before filming started, to immerse herself in Thai culture and learn both sign language and traditional dance. One scene required her to do the Thai dance to 'impress' Cage. To master the steps, Charlie practised four hours a day - double the time that her local teachers had requested of her. 'I thought it should be simple since the dance doesn't move so fast, but I realised that the slower you move, the more energy you've got to exert to hold your hands in the same pose.' After one take, she said the director played it back and told her that she looked like she was enjoying herself. 'Everything went smoothly and it was so much fun,' she added.
Charlie also fell in love with Thai herbs and spices, and learnt how to enjoy tongue-tingling dishes such as tom yam soup. Her only complaint? 'I never got to see the sunlight during filming,' she said with a laugh. 'Most of my scenes were done at night, because that's when the assassin finishes his work and has time for me.'
Bangkok Dangerous, which is directed by Oxide and Danny Pang of The Eye fame, marks Charlie's Hollywood debut. It opens here on 11 Sep, with sneaks this weekend.
But it was not the chance to break into the US that drew her to the film. Charlie said she was thrilled by the role itself, as she has never played a mute or a Thai woman. She also wanted to work with both the Pang brothers and Cage. 'My thinking is very simple - as long as there's a good script and a good role, I would want to do it. Everything else, like screen time and it being a Hollywood project, is a bonus.' Charlie has maintained this unambitious outlook since making her showbiz comeback in 2004.
She made her debut as a pop singer in 1993, after graduating from school. In 1997, she quit at the peak of her popularity to start an image consultancy firm in Kuala Lumpur with her Singaporean businessman ex-boyfriend Khoo Shao Tze. But the business failed and the couple parted ways. In 2004, Charlie returned to the silver screen in Jackie Chan's action film New Police Story.
No regrets
When asked, Charlie said she left because she wanted to see the world outside of showbiz. 'If I kept thinking about doing something and not do it, I would regret it.'
She had no qualms talking about how her business failed due to her inexperience and the economic downturn, but felt there was no point crying over spilt milk. 'I don't want to keep saying how tough it was, because the problems I faced were not so serious and there's no need for self-pity. It was a setback, I also gained experience from it.'
As for how the Hong Kong media still keeps asking her about her ex-beau Mr Khoo, Charlie maintained that they are still 'very good friends'. 'I learnt a lot from him. We had good times together, but we also went through a lot of hardship together.' Charlie said she felt bad for him because he was not a celebrity but had to cope with the same intensive media scrutiny that she faced. 'I would ask him if I should clarify things (when he was misrepresented in reports) but he said there was no need to explain, let's just focus on our work.'
In future, Charlie hopes to do more charity work. Recently, she started an education fund, together with her showbiz pals Gigi Leung, Valen Hsu and Angelica Lee. 'We call it the Little Yellow Flower Foundation,' Charlie said with a laugh. 'The four of us are very good friends and we share the same aspiration - to help impoverished children get at least some education.'
http://newpaper.asia1.com.sg/show/story/0,...,175728,00.html?
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