Thursday, March 29, 2018 19 LIFE CHINA DAILY HONG KONG EDITION

AGE NO BAR Liam Neeson speaks of his China connection during a recent visit for his latest film, The Commuter. Xu Fan reports.

ollywood star Liam before (touring Shanghai). The In The Commuter, which also makes my job easier.” Neeson’s popularity story is very cool. My agent casts Vera Farmiga, Patrick Wil­ But to most fans who are isn’t falling with age. found that Luc Besson was son and Jonathan Banks, an familiar with Neeson, he has the It is the opposite. there. I think, ‘Great! I would insurance salesman, played by talent to skillfully interpret HAfter the English­language get the chance to ask him: Can Neeson, suffers a midlife finan­ diverse roles. French action thriller Taken you think of me to be a part of cial crisis after getting fired. He actually shot to fame became a sleeper hit in 2008, he this movie?’” he recalls, with a When he, the protagonist, who is through Steven Spielberg’s saw his fame grow at the age of smile. also a former policeman, rides a Oscar­winning film, Schindler’s 56. The movie, starring him as a As a prestigious French film­ train, during a daily commute List (1993), and gained more former CIA operative who seeks maker, Besson is known for his that he has taken over the past stardom from the historical to rescue his kidnapped daugh­ independent works as well as 10 years, a mysterious woman biopic, Michael Collins (1996). ter, reshaped his career, bringing internationally popular hits offers him a $100,000 job to find Neeson has also starred in Neeson a dozen similar roles in such as the Transporter series a passenger, which traps him in Hollywood blockbusters like films such as Non­Stop and The and Lucy. That year in Shang­ an extremely dangerous situa­ Star Wars: Episode I — The Commuter. hai, he presided over the jury of tion. Phantom Menace (1999) and During a recent visit to Beijing the festival’s Golden Goblet “My character is an average Batman Begins (2005). to promote The Commuter, Award. Neeson recommended guy who gets himself into a situ­ The star, who will turn 66 which will be released in Chinese himself, saying he had been ation that the audience would years old in June, says, “To be mainland theaters on Friday, part of action­packed movies identify with,” says Neeson, honest, I’m not a huge fan of all Neeson said it was China that such as Excalibur (1981) and adding that the story is com­ these superhero movies. I changed his professional life. Kingdom of Heaven (2005), in plex. admire the expertise.” Neeson, now 65, went to the both of which he fought with “He is certainly not a superhe­ But for art­house films, the annual Shanghai International swords. ro. He has been sacked in his real problem is to get the money Film Festival in 2006 to sup­ Taken, which cost around job. No money is coming. He to make them, he adds. port his late wife Natasha Rich­ $25 million to make, earned has got mortgages and his son is Neeson says he is a supporter ardson’s film The White more than $145 million world­ going to college, which will cost of film festivals. He says they Countess, which is an epic wide, generating two sequels a lot.” demonstrate the diversity of cin­ romance set in 1930s Shanghai. and lifting Neeson to the ranks The movie also marks Nees­ ematic art and attract audiences The 135­minute feature also of the highest­paid stars in Hol­ on’s fourth collaboration with to theaters. starring Neeson’s friend, Brit­ lywood. Liam Neeson holds a Chinese scroll with characters that read “God of Spanish director Jaume Collet­ When his assistant reminds ish actor Ralph Fiennes, is a “If I hadn’t been for Shanghai, Rescue”, which hails his heroic role in the upcoming film, The Commuter, Serra, who worked with Neeson him to leave at the end of the coproduction of China and the I might not have got the film,” at a promotional event in Beijing. PHOTOS PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY in the feature films Unknown interview, he still lingers and United Kingdom, and was says the star while holding a (2011), Non­Stop (2014) and Run asks about the opening dates of selected as the festival’s open­ green mug. All Night (2015). the two forthcoming interna­ ing film. Returning to China’s big If I hadn’t been for Shanghai, I Speaking about his longtime tional festivals in Beijing and Richardson passed away after screen, Neeson will again step friendship with Collet­Serra, Shanghai. suffering serious injuries in a ski into a familiar zone to play an might not have got the film.” Neeson says: “We are like danc­ accident in 2009. unlikely hero to face off with the ing partners. Each time, the Contact the writer at “I had read the script of Taken villains. Liam Neeson, Hollywood star chemistry gets stronger. He [email protected] Comedy great’s Documentary continues to comeback film set shine at the box office By XU FAN for April release The recently released docu­ mentary feature Amazing Chi­ By XU FAN unlikely duo’s adventure in na has earned more than 400 Thailand was the highest­ million yuan ($63.9 million) Xu Zheng has been missing grossing Chinese film that as of March 26. from the big screen for nearly year, followed by the more The 90­minute film, jointly three years. successful sequel Lost in produced by China Central Now the actor­director, Hong Kong in 2015. The hits Television and China Film Co who has reshaped Chinese paved the way for Xu’s rise to Ltd, records the country’s comedy films with Lost in the top ranks in China’s mov­ social and economic achieve­ Thailand and Lost in Hong ie industry. ments over the past five years. Kong, is set to return to cine­ Film director Ren Pengyu­ The movie will be translated The documentary Amazing China, which records the country’s mas on April 28, when the an says he felt like he had into 35 dialects and 17 ethnic social and economic achievements, also features such icons as the suspense thriller A or B will “won a lottery” when Xu Xu Zheng (left) and actor Wang Yanhui promote the forthcoming languages, a first for Chinese Great Wall. PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY be released. agreed to lead the cast for A or movie A or B. PROVIDED TO CHINA DAILY cinema, according to China Other than acting in the B. Ren had directed a few low­ Film Co, also one of the distrib­ movie in Beijing, says he was Amazing China opened on film, Xu is its executive pro­ profile films earlier. utors. impressed by the sequences of March 2, and overtook Twenty ducer. The thriller will aim to “The script hooked me. I lenging to perform but fulfill­ The movie has so far attract­ the country’s fight against Two — a 2017 documentary make the most of the holiday read until the last page with­ ing. “I didn’t think about the ed more than 13 million movie­ desertification in northern about women forced into sexu­ box­office around May 1. out stopping,” says Xu, during box office. I just want to do goers and obtained 9.6 points China. al slavery by the Japanese dur­ The film centers on a top a promotional event in Bei­ the best I can do,” he adds. out of 10 on Maoyan, an online He says the movie is good in ing World War II — to top the player in the stock market, jing this week. He believes the movie will The script hooked researcher and ratings tracker. the sense that it presents every all­time box­office charts of who is drawn into a crisis aft­ Xu, who will turn 46 in provide more diversity in the Besides, internet posts dis­ aspect of China’s progress, documentary films in China in er discovering a huge amount April, says the story reminds domestic movie industry, me. I read until cussing the documentary on including infrastructure, envi­ just nine days. of unidentified gold valued at him of Taiwan director Leste which has quickly expanded the Twitter­like Sina Weibo, a ronmental protection and the The box­office total for the 2 billion yuan ($318.6 mil­ Chan’s suspense thriller The in annual box­office totals but the last page barometer of popularity, have country’s efforts to develop the first quarter had soared to 19.7 lion) or so. Great Hypnotist, a 2014 hit doesn’t have many genres. been read over 950 million countryside. billion yuan ($3.13 billion) by Xu shot to fame from the packed with many psycholog­ The film’s cast includes without stopping.” times, generating more than “It gives a comprehensive Tuesday, up nearly 37 percent 2000 hit television series ical sequences. In the film, Xu Wang Likun, known for her Xu Zheng, actor/director 4.15 million reviews. view of the rapid improve­ year­on­year, according to Sunny Piggy, and has shifted played an arrogant and suspi­ 2014 romance Somewhere The movie has also attract­ ment of Chinese lives,” says Maoyan. The momentum his career focus to directing cious hypnotist, and the role Only We Know, and veteran ed appreciation from expats in Martin, who works for a Bei­ exemplifies the fast expansion since his first feature film Lost had won him acclaim from a actors Wang Yanhui, Duan China. jing­based nongovernmental of China’s movie market, which in Thailand became popular number of critics and fans. Bowen, Yu Hewei and Hong Daniel Martin, a French­ environmental­protection has recently produced more in 2013. The movie about an He says such roles are chal­ Kong star Simon Yam. man who recently watched the organization. quality mainstream films.