ARTICLE2

Kung fu takes Wing

By Gordon Yong

Though in want of empirical evidence, there exists a widespread belief that the Chinese media circus possesses some kind of an idiots' guide to the making of gossip cakes. A recent product of this gossip fun factory has it that up-and-rising Chinese martial arts actor from China, Zhao Wen Zhuo, is no longer the boyfriend of evergreen former Queen of Pop, Anita Mui.

At the moment, the events which transpired between the two stars, leading to their break-up are like stardust caught in a cosmic black hole. Against all odds, a minor fuss was cooked up and one just wonders whether Wing (as his publicist calls Zhao) is suffering from a case of Broken Wing. "I don't want to elaborate, I thought my manager has briefed you on that," Wing answered in a tone that sounded almost like a hack.

Actually, Wing came down to KL recently to promote his latest blockbuster actioner -- Mahjong Dragon, and this he did with the competency not unlike a veteran Hong Kong superstar. "Mahjong Dragon is my most memorable acting role so far. After featuring in many period action movies, I feel that the contemporary story-line here suited me very well because I am a young and modern Chinese man. I play just that as Quick Hands in Mahjong Dragon.

"I also enjoyed working with Josephine Siao again. I still remember my first feature role in Fong Sai Yuk; I was terribly nervous and Josephine helped me out so much. I was told not to consciously think that I was acting during filming and I soon rectified that error. In Mahjong Dragon, I returned Josephine's kindness and patience by teaching her some deft kung fu moves."

Incidentally, Wing's compatriots in Oriental kung fu, Jet Li and Jackie Chan, were featured in The Face magazine recently and are generally credited with having global box office drawing power. Wing may not be in that league yet, but there's no doubt that he is a great martial arts actor. Born in Harbin, northern China, 24-year-old Wing had had a bitter-sweet affair with fighting. I was brought up in a rough neighbourhood and my parents were critically poor. To give you an idea, my parents had to save for two years in order to buy a TV. Anyway, I was petrified by my first experience of a fist-fight with some local boys. I hit one kid so badly that he was bleeding from a gash on the forehead. When I was nine, my parents decided to send me to a wushu institute and I joined half- heartedly. After five years of training in the diferrent art forms of wushu, I became a very disciplined person".

Wing continued to train with various wushu masters and took part in numerous martial arts competitions. Later on, Wing enrolled in the University of Beijing for a course in physical education. At about the same time, maverick Hong Kong producer-director, Tsui Hark was in China to scout for a talent to play Jet Li's nemesis in Fong Sai Yuk. As fate would have it, Tsui Hark found Wing.

Fong Sai Yuk was a smash hit and Jet Li's popularity escalated to new heights. As for Wing, he became more like a chagrin to fans of Jet Li for fighting "so well" and for demonstrating serious capabilities of defeating their idol at times. Tsui Hark had another major movie in the pipeline -- Once upon a Time in China IV. When Jet Li refused to reprise his role as Wong Fei Hung due to an apparent fall-out with Hark, Wing became Hark's natural candidate to step into the shoes of Jet Li.

It is fair to say that Wing gave a good account of himself as Wong Fei Hung. In the fighting department, Wing's mastery in wushu adds veracity to the phrase "float like a butterfly, sting like a bee". However, the movie didn't do as well as its predecessors in the box office and the general consensus is that viewers hungered for the return of Jet Li. Once upon a Time in China V followed and the same response was elicited.

Wing, who is extremely indebted to Hark for the opportunity to play Wong Fei Hung, did express that Jet Li was better suited for the role. "It was quite difficult for me to play Wong Fei Hung because of my age. I am so much younger than the other characters, like Auntie 13 and Dr So. In a way, the story-line had become a bit exaggerated and I was quite uncomfortable with that."

Wing's next major role was in Blade, an extravagantly violent flick by Tsui Hark. I saw the movie and I can attest that Wing was bloody excellent in it. Built like a national gymnast with the skills of a sifu to boot, Wing was dazzling as the film's one-armed hero who had to fight a band of assassins from hell. Then came Mahjong Dragon, which was a departure from Wing's past efforts as it was set in contemporary times.

According to Wing, he favours this new direction because of the opportunity to act his natural self and to be in tune with his modern outlook of life. Come April, Wing will be heading off to Australia to begin filming a new movie, which is as yet untitled. No doubt, it's going to be another actioner and Wing has begun a rigorous training programme to keep his body and agility in check.

Action movies involve loads of stuntmaking and Wing seems to have followed the footsteps of Jackie Chan by performing most of his own stunts. As for nasty filming injuries, Wing had one gory tale to tell: "It was during the shooting of Once upon a Time in China V. We had been awake for more than 30 hours and for one particular stunt scene, I was required to swerve my head to the left to avoid being hit by a gun, a real metal gun. I was already very tired and in the actual take, I mistakenly swerved to the right and the gun caught my right socket.

I was scared stiff after the mishap. Before the incident, I always wondered why the filming crew offered prayers at the set's altar. Now, I never miss a prayer session. But I will continue to do my own stunts if I know that I can do it better than the stuntman."

Finally, on being tagged as the new Jet Li, Wing imparted his thoughts, "Jet Li is very much my senior and when he did Shaolin Temple, he was already an accomplished martial artiste. At that time, I was only an apprentice and, yes, I idolised him then."