FROM THE ARCHIVES...

"BETWEEN THE ORIENT AND THE WEST"

Oh La! magazine

May 19-25, 2004 issue

By Bertrand Tessier

[Webmaster's Note: I translated this article from the French text.]

Cannes remains a place that has a part of her heart. She was introduced [to the world] and recognized here. She has also been a jury member. This time, she has come as an ambassador for L'Oreal, for which she is a muse in Asia, and for the screening of "2046", the latest film by Wong Kar Wai, the filmmaker of "In The Mood For Love".

After a roundtable interview with ten Chinese journalists, she joins us, smiling, as light as a silk scarf, in black jeans and red velour hooded sweat shirt. She has a combination of Oriental and Western traits, yet she doesn't speak anything [in interviews] but Mandarin, the national Chinese language. She responds at length to each question, but the translator condenses her replies. Without doubt, it's difficult to convey all the sophistication of the Oriental soul.

Question: Did you dream, when you were a child, about the Cannes festival?

Answer: When I was little, even going to Hong Kong would have been unimaginable. So, I didn't think for a moment about being able to come here. But, now, the world has changed. It's like a village. Cannes isn't much far away from Beijing. For an artist, it's a dream place. Many careers begin here, it's an unquestionable turning point to meet people in film who are actors or directors.

Q: It's also the festivity of beauty, pretty dresses, glamour.

A: Here, it's a courtesy when facing the public to be well made-up and well dressed. When I am not working, I wear little make-up, only eyeliner. I love to be natural, in jeans and sneakers.

Q: In China, have jeans replaced the worker's uniform?

A: It's even on the threshold of reaching the top summer fashion. [laughs]

Q: Is it true that Chinese women have become fashion victims?

A: Fashion has become an essential element of their every day lives. Chinese women are experiencing changes of the biggest magnitude in their lives. Previously, she had five or six children, like my mother did. It was a responsibility they took on. Today, the Chinese woman is not authorized to have more than one child, except in the countryside. If the first born is a girl, the woman can have another child. There is always a need for a labor force.

Q: How do you imagine a Chinese woman will look in 2046, getting back to the title of your film?

A: I don't know. Perhaps there will be a full revival of the traditional Chinese outfit! [laughs]

Q: For you, what are the standards of beauty?

A: Certain women appear pretty by having a lovely figure, but that's a hollow beauty, and you realize that they don't maintain interest. Beauty is a collection of things. What counts the most is character and one's outlook on life. Of course, there is also physical beauty, but that is very short-lived.

Q: In Asia, you are the image of the seductress. How are you viewed there by men?

A: I am too modest to respond to this question. I am certain that they would know better than I do!

Q: You are engaged in several humanitarian missions, and are most notably Ambassador charged by the United Nations to talk about fighting against hunger in the world. Do you desire to involve yourself additionally in Chinese political life?

A: No. I am not a politician, that doesn't interest me at all.

Q: If you are offered film work in America or Europe, would you give in to becoming a Western "siren" [enchantress]?

A: To live outside China in order to work? That question hasn't been put in those terms yet. For me, the essential thing is to collaborate with a director who understands actors well. Previously, I dreamed of filming with Wong Kar Wai, and I have just done so and was charmed by the experience. Now, I would love to make a film with Almodovar because, in my eyes, he knows how to film women marvelously and has a more familiar understanding of women than they do themselves.

Q: You are approaching forty years of age, but, at the moment, you haven't had a child. Do you picture becoming a mother one day?

A: In order to have a child, it's necessary to prepare oneself. A child needs someone to be devoted to it full-time. That is to say that one has to give it all the importance that it deserves. At the moment, I am not ready.