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By Todd Gilchrist
Director, producer, writer, and international star Stephen Chow talks about his latest action-comedy Shaolin Soccer , which hits American theaters this summer. Based on the strength of Shaolin Soccer alone, writer-director-star Stephen Chow should already be an international martial-arts legend, on par with Jackie Chan and Jet Li. Unfortunately, distribution of the film outside China (where it was first released) was mangled by the folks at Miramax, and he currently maintains status as one of the genre's cult celebrities. But with the release of Kung Fu Hustle , his latest project, all of that is destined to change. In the film, Chow writes, directs and stars as Sing, a street urchin who discovers that he possesses the powers of a martial-arts master. Chow recently discussed the development of his new film, which he made to pay homage to his own hero, Bruce Lee, and revealed that many of the film's unconventional pleasures are in fact the result of a serendipitous series of happy accidents. Q: Stephen Chow, how did you come up with the idea to introduce dance scenes (among so many other eccentric elements) in your follow-up to Shaolin Soccer ? Chow: It was an accident to have the dancing sequence in Kung Fu Hustle . To make a kung-fu film is like a dream come true, because I'm a big fan of kung-fu movies and I'm learning kung fu for a long time. That's why [I picked this]; because I like this, that's why I made it. It's so simple. Q: How was the dancing sequence an "accident"? Chow: Because the actor who played the boss of the Axe gang is a dancer. When I thought about how to present how tough the Axe gang was, I took a long time to try to figure out how to make it tougher, and different from normal gangs. I saw that he danced, and I thought, "Why not? Let's dance." I know it sounds ridiculous to have dancing scenes to represent the toughness, but for me it makes sense, because I just tried to go another way around, like not directly describe how cruel they are, but the dancing sequence. But at the same time we intercut some [gang] incidents that they have made. And it's funny. Q: How much pressure did you face after Shaolin Soccer to follow it up with something equally successful? Chow: The idea, like I mentioned before, was that sooner or later I would make a kung-fu film. But the idea for me, the script, I start with characters. First of all I would think about the characters, and when I had the characters then I fit it into the story. Q: Are you concerned at all that the movie's themes might not translate to international audiences? Chow: It's not easy to [be] accept[ed] by Western people, is that what you mean in Kung Fu Hustle ? I think kung fu as a subject matter is quite well known by the whole world, so I never think about that as a problem. Q: How did you determine what references to other films—Asian and American—you wanted to include in Kung Fu Hustle ? Chow: It was all accidental—like the chasing sequence was not originally in the script, like the Road Runner, [where] the legs spin like a wheel. During the shooting, the idea came up. And also the sequence [that references] The Shining , the idea, in that sequence it was another accident that I was trying to build up a horrifying atmosphere in that situation, and The Shining is one of my favorite horror movies, and the idea came up during shooting also. Q: What other films are you influenced by? Were there any references that were not an accident? Chow: All of these things were not in the script originally. It was my idea. Because sometimes there would still be a discussion about the lines when we were shooting. At the last minute we were still discussing how to say it because of the effect. Q: How difficult is it to choreograph fight scenes using CGI? Chow: It's very difficult. Actually, I have some experience with Shaolin Soccer , because a lot of CGI was involved in Shaolin Soccer as well. But this time for me it was more difficult, because I had more of a free hand to go with kung fu. But what kind of kung fu am I going to do in Kung Fu Hustle ? In Shaolin Soccer , we have a frame because we talk about soccer; it already limits the whole design, like you have to fit in with the soccer games, so it's easy for me to create something, like they play with the hand, the head, the eye and the head, and the goal gripper with the grabbing technique, and the legs, of course. There were very powerful legs, powerful kicking. It was all there. But in Kung Fu Hustle , you have no limits, so that's why it takes a long time to think about which style I'm going to have in this project, and after that, because it is a rather crazy idea in this movie, that's why the CGI. I was kind of nervous, because I didn't know how it could happen without CGI involved, because there were some crazy things, like they killed people with their musical instrument, they strum and the score becomes a weapon. Q: Were all of these crazy ideas yours, or were they the writers'? Chow: Actually, the ideas were not by me. I took these ideas from old Chinese martial-arts novels. Q: Are there any people in your life who resemble the characters in the movie? Chow: Sometimes you have some reference for your characters. For example, like the Landlady in the movie, I have some similar image in my mind at the beginning, and then I look for someone who can match, who can fit into the role. Someone fat with all of these curls, and with a cigarette in her mouth, I can't remember when and how this image came up in my mind, but I just have this image. Maybe it's just from a magazine or television or whatever, but I'm definitely sure it's different from the rest—not a very traditional Chinese image. But like one of the kung-fu masters, the tailor, the hung style kung-fu master who acts like a gay guy, this image that I just create because his own personality instructed me to follow in this role, because he gave out vibes that he had some feminine side, and I wanted to make use of his feminine side or feminine traits—the real actor. So it depends on the different characters, or different actors or actresses; sometimes you find the specialty from their own character, but sometimes you already have some image that you're just trying to find someone to fit in there. Q: Do you like to re-use the same people, or do you want to enlist more different performers for each film? Chow: Why do I use the same actors in different movies? One of the things I really stress in casting is I need to find someone who is suitable for the role in the movie. That's always the main reason. Like I used the same actor from Shaolin Soccer , the goalkeeper, to play the role of the boss of the gang, because I think he just fit the role perfectly. Q: How difficult is it to balance the film's moments of whimsy with its intense action? Chow: Thanks for realizing that. It's very difficult [laughs]. It takes a lot of good judgment and a lot of takes, a lot of digestion, and filtering the idea. Q: Why is your role in Kung Fu Hustle smaller than it was in Shaolin Soccer ? Chow: It depends on different stories and different structures. In Kung Fu Hustle , I think it's more like—a lot of different characters, and so comparatively I am in this one less than the other movie, not as much as I was in any of my other movies. Q: Will you have the same size role in a sequel to Kung Fu Hustle ? Chow: I don't know yet. I hope not. Yes, but it's just an idea. Q: Would that be your next movie? Chow: Yeah, but at the moment it's just an idea. Q: Talk about your collaboration with Yuen Wo Ping. Chow: I think he is probably one of the best action directors in the world. The reason I say that is because he knows all kinds of stunts and martial arts, especially Chinese martial arts. He's so familiar with all of these traditional Chinese martial-arts cultures, but at the same time he is the man who is with an open mind. That means he can accept so many different opinions; no matter how crazy it is, there is no problem. And practically, the idea was from me, and then I just talked to him and figured out how to make it happen, how to make it into the picture. Q: The trend in Hong Kong has been to cast known musicians or idols. How do you explain the fact that you outperform all of those with a cast of relative unknowns? Chow: Once again, the meaning of casting for me is trying to find someone who is suitable to play the role, who can fit in the role in the movie. So just find someone—the star, the singer. Like the Landlady: I don't think I could find anyone like that from the Hong Kong singing industry [laughs]. Q: While you're in L.A. are you entertaining any offers to work in Hollywood? Chow: No. I don't have any chance to—of course, I don't mind, I'm more than happy to have that chance. Q: Do you have any specific feelings about being overlooked at awards ceremonies for your work, as you have in the past? Chow: Of course, I would like to get every award that I am nominated for. However, getting six awards in the Hong Kong film awards is a pretty good response already, so we are pretty happy about that. Sometimes earning awards doesn't matter as much as earning revenue or profit, or having a good response from the audience. No matter how many awards you win, if you can't earn any profit from your movie, if the audience doesn't like it, then it doesn't matter how many awards you get. Q: Are there any modern martial artists you admire? Chow: I like the one who played the role of the Beast in Kung Fu Hustle . He is another martial artist in Hong Kong, but of course not in the same position as Bruce Lee in my mind, but he is one of my favorites in the '70s. Actually, he was an imitator at that time of Bruce Lee's image, like when there a lot of Bruces, Bruce Le, Bruce Lau, Bruce Li came into the business. But he is quite different; he has a real ability of combat. I mean, he is a real martial artist, and I think his style is karate, his form is karate, and yeah. Q: Are you reluctant to have international audiences embrace your style, or do you like it? Chow: As a filmmaker, this is always our goal, to be able to let a film go out wider and broader, because it's so simple for us. I can't rely on the local market, because it's too small, so since Shaolin Soccer it's always my ambition to go international, because that's the only way to do the business for me. But how to make it international and accepted by different kinds of audiences is very complicated. I'll tell you, I always intend to do something that can be accepted by different kinds of audiences. Q: How has your experience been with Sony Pictures Classics, as opposed to Miramax on Shaolin Soccer ? Chow: I think I have a very good relationship with Sony Pictures Classics at the moment, and I think that the way I work with Sony and Miramax is totally different, because for Miramax, they just bought my dmovie and distributed it in the States. That's all. But with Sony, we worked together since the beginning, with the idea until the completion of the movie. So it's very different. Q: How did that support affect the production of Kung Fu Hustle ? Chow: Better backup and bigger support by Sony. If you have a bigger budget, then you can—it's quite important to have a big studio to support you, because you have more hands to fulfill your imagination, and you can hire more professional talent to work with you, and the quality of the movie could be able to be improved. But also, with Sony Pictures, not only in the production point of view, in the creative point of view, I had a great help by them, because they are good. Q: Have they offered you money to make a sequel, since Kung Fu Hustle has already been so successful? Chow: No, you tell me [laughs]. I'll have to investigate that. Q: Rumor has it that there are three writers accompanying you on this trip to write the sequel. Chow: Yeah, that's the plan. If I can come with the writer, we might have a chance to talk about the script when I'm free. But I have a tight schedule, so we may not have a chance except on the airplane. Q: Can you explain the overall theme of the movie? Chow: I beat him up [laughs]. I win, that's it.
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