The third and final part of Sammo Hong's conversation with a journalist dedicated to his receipt of the Hong Kong Film Award for Excellence. The first one is heresecond - here.
In a way Sammo Hung as much a great artist as he is a terrible businessman. As both a director and producer, he has long joked, albeit with some truth, that all of his highest-grossing films were inevitably destined for production companies owned by others.
For example. In 1987, halfway through filming the comedy horror film “Creepy-sinister“, which Hong produced and directed for his own studio Bojon Films, he received an invitation from Leonarda Ho of Golden Harvest to present the film for the Chinese New Year release, just a few months away.
In a move that made no sense to anyone but Hong, he put his own production on hold and accepted Ho's offer. The resulting film “Dragons forever” was completed in three months, and became a major blockbuster during the 1988 Chinese New Year period.
Meanwhile, Hong estimates he lost about HK$8 million on “Eerie” due to contracts expiring in the intervening months.
“I always lose money when I'm the boss, so that's no longer the case for me. I can't say if I'm an artist, but I have a lot of ideas. I don't really think about money too much. As long as I come up with a good, new, interesting and exciting idea, I will try my best to bring it to life.”
Sammo Hung
It should not have come as a surprise that the topic of food became the only recurring theme in our conversation.
Early on, when I ask Hoon to go back to his earliest memories as a child actor, he replies:
“Memories included: “Were we full after eating?”, “Did we have anything to eat?” This is what we thought about as children. We trained together and ate together.”
Without prompting, he talks about how he and an older student were working on a film, and during a food break, they went to a restaurant where they charged HK$1,20 for a dish of rice.
“I ate nine bowls of rice, and my sihing [elder brother] ate eight.”
Hong says proudly, noting that the plates back then were significantly larger than the ones we use today:
“The restaurant owner eventually kicked us out and told us to never come back.”
- The topic is not exhausted here. What was he doing? “Shopping for groceries and preparing dinners”.
- What's his favorite thing on set? “The moment of the call: “It’s time to eat!” I find food especially delicious on set.”.
- Will he train the next generation of action actors? “Not if they end up selling char siu bao [name of dish] to make a living.”.
- Does he play sports? “Yes, with my upper and lower lips when I eat!”
I have a lot to say [about the state of Hong Kong cinema], but I just don't have the courage to say it.
Sammo Hung
Despite all the talk, Hong is both healthier and weaker in life than before. At times there is a wistful tone that suggests things may be slowly winding down - both for his career and for the filmmaking environment that made it possible in the first place. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Hong's much-touted stunt team is no longer active after decades of work.
Although fans will soon be able to see him again on the big screen in the director's mega-budget action film Chin Pou-Soi "Siege of Kowloon“, Hong says he has no more upcoming film projects to work on. He is “unemployed”.
The irony is not lost on Sammo: just as his thriving career once coincided with the Golden Age of Hong Kong cinema, the recognition of his lifetime achievements at the Hong Kong Film Awards comes against a backdrop of enormous uncertainty about the future of the industry, and the very real prospect that Hong Kong films martial arts may disappear. Hoon says he “pessimistic, very pessimistic” assesses the situation.
I have a lot to say, but I just don't have the courage.
Sammo Hung
Whatever the state of Hong Kong cinema, Hong has lived long enough to be able to look back with equanimity. And although he admits that he uses a cane for short walks and a wheelchair for longer walks, he can only watch as the Caesar salad and minestrone soup brought to him by room service have already gone cold for an hour.
At first glance, this may seem like an odd choice in his diet, given his well-known calorie cravings. However, he simply shrugs and says:
“I don’t want to stay here too long... Another 30 or 40 years will be enough.”
By Edmund Li (South China Morning Post)
A sad ending, albeit with a joke...