Why did you agree to “Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Fire”?
Sammo Hung: Tsui Hark forced me. At first I wanted to direct my own film, but Tsui called me, hoping that I would work on “Detective Dee” as a director. I turned him down, but he called me again, insisting that I take on the project, so I had to join their team.
Did you agree because of your friendship or because of the script?
Sammo Hung: The script was one of the reasons. But I agreed mainly because I really admire Tsui Hark, he is my idol. When I work with him, I can learn a lot. I adore him immensely, it’s a pleasure to work with him, that’s why I agreed.
How did you divide the work?
Sammo Hung: In truth, Tsui Hark developed most of the film. He came up with the costume and set design. After he finished, he consulted with me. If I was happy, that was great, but if I had any suggestions for improvement, he made minor adjustments. With Tsui Hark, I often discussed action, fighting with weapons, and we exchanged ideas with him.
Was there a separate choreography for each character?
Sammo Hung: Depending on the personality of the character, as well as the personality traits of the actors. Deng Chao wields a huge axe, which means he has his own fighting style. Andy Lau sometimes fights hand-to-hand and sometimes uses a baton. These are already two different types of combat. Li Bingbing carries a sword, the fight depends on how the sword is used. Differences between characters' personalities must be taken into account when creating choreography. Some fights are “explosive”, some are restrained and calm. They are all different.
Whose game was better?
Sammo Hung: All three were good because each character is unique. Li Bingbing is cunning, sneaky and causes a lot of trouble, Deng Chao is brave and aggressive, Andy Lau develops self-control while playing a character who is wise and experienced. Essentially, we designed combat around these three personality types. Experienced Andy Lau is charming and reserved both when conducting investigations and when dealing with enemies. Young Deng Chao's movements are more rapid and dramatic, more straightforward, and Li Bing Bing has two personalities.
What do you think about each of them?
Sammo Hung: Andy Lau's acting has always been good, and he always takes his work very seriously. This was my first time working with Dan Chao. He has a thirst for learning, but he gives up too easily when faced with difficulties. Li Bingbing really likes to do fight scenes, but in her past works, she had little chance to do fight scenes. She tries very hard and puts all her heart and soul into her work. Trying her best, she even agrees to sacrifice her own safety. We were extremely surprised by this.
At first, I had some doubts about Li Bingbing, I didn't know what she could handle and whether she would be willing to do the fights herself. Therefore, I had two options: either she agrees, or the understudy will do it for her. The result was unexpected; the celebrity wanted to do everything herself, without fear of pain or fatigue. So she gave me extra freedom to create the choreography, and she fought pretty well.
What do you remember most about the set?
Sammo Hung: It was really hard to film the scenes in the ghost town. Five steps on land - one step into the water, this is very tiring. Plus constant bites from mosquitoes, lice and midges.
Every film has its difficult parts, but they will not be a problem as long as we enjoy the process itself, the process of filming, working. This gives us a feeling of satisfaction. No matter what work you do, you always have to pay for it. Don't think that sitting in the office and enjoying the air conditioning will not make you tired. And this has to be done. But we want to receive satisfaction from the process itself, not from what we can feel while sitting at home. Even if you spend money, you cannot achieve such a home. Not to mention, you get paid for your work. This is very exciting, especially if you have so many people at your disposal.
Which episode impressed you the most?
Sammo Hung: In a ghost town. The scenery there is very unusual. They filmed in a deep cave filled with water. Many stunts had to be due to water. In some places it was shallow, in others it was deep, sometimes someone just accidentally fell, then someone else. A lot of mobile phones and other things were drowned. They filmed many nights in a row, stayed late, many got sick, but only one “iron” man remained in service. It was Sammo Hung. He fell ill only when all the scenes in this cave were filmed. Not getting sick during that filming is already worthy of praise.
Which scene do you like best?
Sammo Hung: Basically all the scenes are pretty good. It's very satisfying to shoot for many days, to shoot a lot of sequences and scenes with your own vision. After watching them I smiled to myself, all the hard work had paid off. I hope, of course, that the audience will feel the same as I do. My fee remained the same for a long time. The time has come, I received a “promotion”. The fees of other “stars” have increased, everyone except me. We'll have to raise it if the film pays off at the box office.
Were there any dangerous moments during filming?
Sammo Hung: In one episode, the cameraman was suspended high above the ground, during filming the wire broke, he flew down, but before hitting the ground he fell on a tree, this softened the fall. He immediately began filming, but was limping. An x-ray showed he had three broken bones. But he was still eager to get to work, I tried to dissuade him, but he did not give in to persuasion. He said that he liked working with me, and if we finished filming, he would no longer resist and would rest for a few days.
In the ghost town, we filmed one episode for 16 hours. Why? Why not 16 minutes? We wanted to surprise the audience visually. We wanted the audience to enjoy and experience every visual effect.
How was it working with Tsui Hark?
Sammo Hung: I tried my best to understand the director better, because it is his film. I had to understand what the director was trying to achieve so that my work would blend seamlessly into the overall picture. If we did everything separately, we would end up with two different looks at the same film. When collaborating with the director, I tried my best. If I had any ideas, I shared them with the director, he could either reject them or accept them. If the director thought the idea was good, I developed it, and what the director didn’t approve of, I didn’t use. This is not my film, but a film by Tsui Hark. In order for the picture to remain complete throughout, we had to work this way.
Describe the movie in one sentence.
Sammo Hung: You will regret it if you don't watch “Detective Dee and the Mystery of Phantom Fire”, you should watch it. Best wishes.
Source: wu-jing
Translation: EvilDollaR
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Tags: Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame, Sammo Hung, Tsui Hark
Tags: Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame, Sammo Hung, Tsui Hark
Although if you look at a photo of Sammo at the age of 9-10 years old, he’s a “thin guy.” :)
I wonder why Hungg himself is so fat, he is good at martial arts, works hard, why is he still so plump?
He is actually thin and only weighs 55 kg. This is all lens distortion, the fish-eye effect. ;)
But seriously, Hungg has never been slim, he has such a physiology. Steven Seagal or Laurence Fishburne are a completely different matter.
Thank you.