[2010.03.10] LEON LAI FORGETS HIS ANNIVERSARY?

The 34th Annual Hong Kong International Film Festival yesterday held a press conference to announce that films FIRE OF CONSCIENCE (FOR LUNG) and LOVE IN A PUFF (CHI MING YU CHUN GIU) will on March 23 and 24 will hold world premiere at the film festival. The films' directors and actors attended the event. They included Leon Lai Ming, Richie Jen (Yam Yin Chai), Miriam Yeung Chin Wa and Shawn Yue Man Lok. Yesterday was Lai Ming and Gaile Lok's wedding anniversary, but Leon went to work just the same. At night he even attended the FIRE OF CONSCIENCE music video premiere but expressed that after work he will celebrate with his wife.

At the press conference, both Lai Ming and Yeung Chin Wa appeared. Earlier they were rumored to be at odds and that Chin Wa will join East Asia's Capital Artists after her contract with Amusic ends. Although they were both present, because they represented two different films they did not have many chances for exchange. They only shared the stage during the group photo but they were very far apart.

The event showed footage from both films. Lai Ming had many dangerous stunts. He said that director Dante Lam Chiu Yin was very explosive and had violent tendency, but he knew how to control it. Later, Lai Ming felt that action films have to have violence to be able to move people. He felt that the director was very creative, violence too could be right and wrong, which was what this film wanted to tell everyone. When asked whether he turned down any stunt because it was too hard, Lai Ming said, "This film is pretty realistic, does jumping from the sixth floor highly difficult? Actually it was only high and not difficult, I jumped and it was done. I only had to do it without getting hurt, and figure out how to overcome my fear." Would he like to become an action actor? He said that the boss would decide that, not the person doing it. Was this film was tough? He said, "Nothing is easy."

Yam Yin Chai said that this time he did not have it as tough as Lai Ming, but he also had a lot of action in their final duel. In one scene he had to keep on running like a marathon. Before the shoot he did not dare to eat anything as he was afraid that he would have to run until he puked. However he got blisters on his feet from all the running. As for Lai Ming's claim that the director had violent tendency, Siu Chai said, "I called him a merciless director, the explosions were very close. He said they bought insurance but he never saw the policy."