WHERE IN THE WORLD IS ANDY LAU? PUTTING THE POPULAR BACK INTO STUDIES OF HONG KONG POPULAR ENTERTAINMENT Joyleen Johanna Christensen BEc, BA (Hons 1), GDPTT, GDipArts A thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements of the degree of PhD (Film, Media & Cultural Studies) June 2013 University of Newcastle, Australia STATEMENT OF ORIGINALITY The thesis contains no material which has been accepted for the award of any other degree or diploma in any university or other tertiary institution and, to the best of my knowledge and belief, contains no material previously published or written by another person, except where due reference has been made in the text. I give consent to the final version of my thesis being made available worldwide when deposited in the University’s Digital Repository**, subject to the provisions of the Copyright Act 1968. **Unless an Embargo has been approved for a determined period. 2 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I wish to begin by thanking Dr Hamish Ford and Associate Professor David Boyd for their time, patience, and sage advice. I have little doubt that I would still be struggling with this research if you both had not agreed to come on board as my supervisors when you did and I will be forever indebted to your significant contributions to this work. In addition to his input into this thesis, I will be eternally grateful to Associate Professor Boyd for introducing me to Film Studies and providing me with the opportunity to embark on a career that I love. I would also like to acknowledge what an exceptional source of inspiration and support Dr Ford has been since he took over the primary supervision of this thesis in 2010. It would not be overstating the matter to say that his tireless dedication to the thesis – regularly going beyond all reasonable expectations – is the key factor that I would credit with allowing me to complete this work. I would also like to take this opportunity to acknowledge the academic and professional staff of the English Language & Foundation Studies Centre and the School of Humanities & Social Science at the University of Newcastle, who have provided me with invaluable support over the years. In particular, I would like to recognise the critical input on various stages of this work by Associate Professor Shane Homan, Professor Patrick Fuery, Dr William van der Heide, Dr Helen Macallan, and Associate Professor Therese Davis. I am grateful to each and every one of you for your time and encouragement. I also wish to give special mention to Dr Beatrice Trefalt for introducing me to Asian Studies and inspiring me to pursue 3 postgraduate study in this area - I feel truly privileged to have been blessed with such a wonderful mentor! To my friends and fellow doctoral candidates, I wish to express my thanks for the inspiration they provided through their tenacious dedication to their research and their always-appreciated words of academic and emotional support. I also wish to give a very big thank you to the various students I have had the privilege of sharing a classroom with – both as a fellow student and, later, as a Lecturer. Special mention must also be made of the staff and students in the Theatre and Performance Studies program at the University of New South Wales – the things that I learnt from you all will stay with me forever. I have been very fortunate to be given numerous opportunities to present research from this dissertation at various conferences and symposia. I would like to thank my fellow presenters at the Future of Chinese Cinema Conference (UNSW, 2006), New- Mac Symposium (Macquarie University, 2007), Asia Pacific Week (ANU, 2010), New-Mac Symposium (University of Newcastle, 2012), Asian Studies Association Biennial Conference (UWS, 2012), Inaugural Celebrity Studies Conference (Deakin University, 2012), Hollywood & the World Conference (Sydney, 2013), Another World of Popular Entertainments Conference (Newcastle, 2013), the Ourimbah Research Series, and various Postgraduate Symposia for their frequently inspiring discussions and invaluable feedback on various stages of my work. 4 My most heartfelt gratitude I reserve for my family – the lifetime of support and encouragement that I have received from you is the real reason that I am able to do what I love. Big hugs and kisses to my father, Kel, my brother, Kane, sister-in-law, Amanda, and darling nephew, Lars, for all their love and understanding. Finally, a very special “thank you” to my mother and best friend, Marti. I am so grateful that you introduced me to Hong Kong cinema, and I know it is a cliché, but I honestly couldn’t have done this without you. 5 ABSTRACT English-language scholarship on Hong Kong popular culture has traditionally been dominated by discussions about films and filmmakers who have been successful in Western markets. In this thesis, I argue that this practice is problematic for a number of reasons, not the least of which is the promulgation of a core group of individuals and works – typically from action or art-house cinema – who do not adequately represent the culture as it is understood by locals. By engaging in a comprehensive analysis of Andy Lau, a key figure of the Hong Kong entertainment industry who has been routinely overlooked in Western literature, I will demonstrate how conventional approaches to the region’s popular culture need to be more flexible and better contextualised in order to address the challenges presented by globalization and the increasingly dynamic nature of regional cultural flows. My ultimate ambition for this work is that it may shed new light on topical debates surrounding contemporary popular entertainment – specifically in terms of its role as an assumed site for the contestation of ‘national’ identity – whilst firmly establishing Andy Lau as a legitimate subject for further critical attention. The thesis initially provides star- and industry-based readings of Hong Kong popular culture through positioning the local entertainment industry within discourses surrounding culture industries, audience reception, and debates over cultural identity. Subsequent chapters will consider these issues in the context of cultural globalization, Pan-Asian cinematic collaborations, and the disintegration of national borders, which will more readily situate this examination of regional cultural flows in its proper context. Whilst each of these approaches will be applied concurrently throughout this thesis, emphasis will be given to the interdependent nature of the complex relationship between industry, star, and fan by deliberately ordering the chapters so that a distinct pattern emerges in the movement from a mid-level local industry analysis to a more focused scrutiny of the dynamics of Andy Lau’s wider iconic status in Sinophone cultures. 6 TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................................................................... 9 ISLAND OF FIRE: THE SPECTACLE OF HANDOVER-ERA HONG KONG .............................. 26 ‘UNFORGETTABLE’: CELEBRATING A VETERAN SUPERSTAR .............................................. 29 A BATTLE OF WITS: THESIS OVERVIEW ........................................................................................ 34 FOUNDATIONS: MECHANICS OF THE HONG KONG ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY....... 45 FULL THROTTLE: CONCURRENT CROSS-SECTOR CAREERS ................................................. 46 TRAGIC HERO: LAU BECOMES A CULTURAL ICON ..................................................................... 51 MADE IN HONG KONG: ‘HOLLYWOOD OF THE EAST’? ............................................................. 56 A HOME TOO FAR: THE HONG KONG-HOLLYWOOD EXODUS .............................................. 64 HOME AT HONG KONG: CULTURAL IDENTITY IN NATIONAL CINEMA ............................. 72 FIREWORKS: CULTURAL INSTABILITY AND THE CHARISMATIC CELEBRITY ............... 81 RUNNING OUT OF TIME: ANXIETY AND POLITICAL APATHY ............................................... 82 YESTERDAY ONCE MORE: THE INSISTENCE OF NOSTALGIA ................................................ 95 THE LONGEST SUMMER: THE HANDOVER ON SCREEN .......................................................... 98 COME FLY THE DRAGON: LAU REDISCOVERS CHINA ............................................................. 103 THE DRAGON FAMILY: ANDY LAU’S ‘NEW’ PATRIOTISM ..................................................... 107 PRINCE CHARMING: THE STAR IN NATIONALIST DISCOURSE........................................... 119 SUPERSTAR: THE PRODUCTION AND CONSUMPTION OF CELEBRITY ......................... 122 STARS AND ROSES: BITTERSWEET CELEBRITY ....................................................................... 123 RICH AND FAMOUS: FOUNDATIONS OF LAU’S POPULAR APPEAL ................................... 129 LUCKY STARS GO PLACES: ACHIEVING LOCAL FAME ............................................................. 132 HONG KONG GODFATHER: ANDY LAU AS INDUSTRY SAVIOUR ......................................... 135 WAIT TIL YOU’RE OLDER: LAU’S SLOW RACE TO THE TOP ................................................. 139 THE CRAZY COMPANIES: ANDY LAU AS COMMODITY ........................................................... 143 7 LOOK FOR A STAR: SITES OF CELEBRITY/FAN INTERACTION .......................................... 150 THANKS FOR YOUR LOVE: APPRECIATING FAN ADORATION ............................................ 156 WHAT A HERO!: SHAPING LAU’S PUBLIC PERSONA ................................................................ 168 NEWS