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Cinemania |
This Bond film is so much better than GoldenEye.
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I think so, too. Pierce has really developed and matured. You
can see the confidence; he's now having fun with the role.
GoldenEye must have been hard for him because it was the
first, and there's just so much to step into.
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Cinemania |
He's heavier now, too!
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Don't you think he looks better like that? I kept saying that to
him, "You look so much better with a little bit of meat on, like a
man." When he's slimmer or skinny, he looks just too pretty. It
hasn't got that ooomph. Now he has so much more character.
When he's chiseled, it's too much. That was the charm with
Sean Connery: He was very good-looking, but at the same time
very masculine.
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Cinemania |
How were you approached for the role?
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The first time I heard about it was
when I met a United Artists producer
and he said I would be perfect for a
Bond film. My initial response was
"Bond? James Bond? Do I get to play
Bond?" He has all the fun. All the great
things to do. Plus the stereotypical
Bond girl normally is such a
one-dimensional pretty face. I needed
more. After the roles I've played in
Asian films, it would have been, not a
step down, but no challenge. Then he called my agent in
October from London and said he'd been brainstorming for the
next Bond film and they wanted a woman of the '90s for Bond's
ally strong, independent and sexy and my name was the first to
come up. I was like, yes! So I was very fortunate. It was still a
long process. I met with Barbara Broccoli, Roger Spottiswoode
and the casting director, and we got the green light in January
'96.
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Cinemania |
Did you have to screen-test?
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Yes, but not for the action scenes. I don't think the concern was
the action. They knew of my past work. What they needed was
to see the chemistry between Pierce and myself. They were
very sweet and said, "You've got the role, but we need to see
you together on film." That was an awful experience. But Pierce
was such a doll. Barbara was sweet, too. She organized a
dinner for the night before, so it wasn't such a shock. All
through the screen test, he was holding my hand, telling me,
"Don't worry, I'm here for you. We'll get through this." The
relationship, on and off film, really grew and we became good
friends. We had such a good time. I think that comes across in
the film. You can see we really like each other.
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Cinemania |
Have you seen all the Bond films? Which were your favorites?
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There were like 17, 18, and I don't really remember. My father
and brother loved Bond. We used to fight over who was going to
be Bond when we were kids. I never thought I would be in a
Bond film one day.
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Cinemania |
Did you have a favorite Bond woman?
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Well, Carole Bouquet was on a revenge mission. But I think
generally when they had very tough Bond women, they were
the villains, the adversaries. Like Grace Jones, Famke Janssen.
It's good now to have a strong woman role, but as the good
person. It's more of a reflection of today.
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Cinemania |
Tell me how you got involved in film acting.
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I had graduated from London's Royal Academy of Dance with
a degree in Creative Arts. When I returned home, my mother
had entered me in the Miss Malaysia contest and I won,
becoming Miss Malaysia in '83. This gave me an opportunity to
learn about my own country. Since I was 15, I had been in
England and I literally knew nothing about my background, my
country. So when I had to be ambassador for Malaysia, I had to
learn what my country was about. Near the end of my reign,
someone had seen a photo of me and asked if I would come to
Hong Kong and do a commercial with Jackie Chan. So I said,
"Why not!" It was a great opportunity. When I did the
commercial, they offered me a film contract, and I knew
opportunities like that don't come every day. I was only 21, and
I thought, "Okay, I'm gonna try it for a year." Obviously I've
liked it, because I've stayed for 13 years.
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Cinemania |
What was your first film?
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It was an action comedy, Owls vs. Dumbo. I played a social
worker who tried to guide misfits and was abused and
victimized. The director is a big action director and actor in
Hong Kong. I thought, "My god, this is amazing, this whole
action/martial-arts thing." I thought I could do it because it was
just about movement. Also, I was tired of sitting around being
abused by everyone else. I wanted to kick some butt!
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Cinemania |
When did you decide to try martial arts?
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I was working with a fairly new company in Hong Kong, and
they were open to new ideas and new paths. They asked me if
there was something I'd like to do in particular. English is my
first language, and my Cantonese is not that good. Comedy
would have been too difficult because of that, so I said,
"Action!" I was 22, 23. Then I embarked on this whole training
regime. At first the stunt coordinators were curious about the
beauty queen who wanted to learn what the men were doing.
They thought they would show me the hard things and I would
run away and cry. There is full contact when we're fighting. So
you have to take the punches as well as give the punches.
That's why it looks so realistic, because it is. I thought it was the
movie; it must be fake, but it's not. So I was in training for 10 to
12 hours a day, but with my dance training and being athletic as
a child as well, I survived. I was very flexible, so they could do a
lot more with my legs. Eventually I developed my own style,
that is, a mix of dance and martial arts.
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Cinemania |
Sounds like very hard work.
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It was. I spent hours in the gym with these guys who devoted
their time to me. So when we started the action sequences, the
audiences could see I was taking the blows, giving it back, as
well, and they had never seen that before. It was a conscious
choice. We knew if we were going to do this, we had to go all
the way. No half measures. No close-up, pose and a
double-wide shot. It would have looked silly. Still, when I
worked with new stunt people, they would take a look at me
and go easy. But my stunt coordinator would tell me I would
have to punch [my opponent] very hard to show him I was
serious.
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Cinemania |
Did the men ever have trouble punching you?
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Oh, yeah. They would hesitate. And you can see the punch sort
of wobbling. It would look terrible. If you are anticipating the
punch that is coming to you, you don't dodge it.
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Cinemania |
Any injuries?
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Knock wood, nothing serious. I've ruptured an artery,
dislocated my shoulder, cracked ribs, torn ligaments. Nothing
permanently damaged or broken bones. I watch my old movies
now and wonder how I'm still sitting here.
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Cinemania |
Tell me about working with Jackie Chan.
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I'd been married for two, three years, and when I was getting
my divorce, Stanley Tong, director of Supercop, approached
me; we had worked when he was a stuntman in my previous
films. I had promised him I would work with him when he got a
big movie going. Golden Harvest was supporting him in this
movie with Jackie and he thought, "The two biggest action
heroes together what could be better?" But all the women in
Jackie's films were always the victims. Jackie thought women
should not fight but be in the background. Except for Michelle
now, he does add that in. But I trusted Stanley. He's a great
director as well as stunt coordinator who plans stunts that will
look good. Nothing is worse than doing a risky stunt and having
it not look great in the film. You get the pain and the audience
doesn't show. I worked with Stanley; I wasn't going to be in the
film as decoration.
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Cinemania |
It's such a breakthrough for young girls to see a strong female
role model.
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That's the reaction I've been getting from women. Sigourney
Weaver, Linda Hamilton they've done very strong positive
women roles. It's not about being strong, and big and tough,
being muscular: It's a combination; you have the talent but you
are using your brains, as well.
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Cinemania |
Have you ever had a situation in your personal life where you
had to use your martial-arts training?
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No. [laughs] I really do not like violence in that way; no one
wins. It's how you diffuse the situation; it takes more courage to
walk away.
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Cinemania |
But if you were in a parking lot and someone threatened you,
there is no way someone would walk away.
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No. [laughs] That would not happen.
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Cinemania |
Is there a name for your style?
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No, it's a Michelle thing. I didn't have to learn one particular
style, Karate, Win Chun. When you are doing an action
sequence, there is not one style. Also, the traditional styles look
too dated, when you start doing all that monkey claw. It could
be funny, but it would not work in a street situation. I learned all
the basics moves, the stance, the kick. And then you improvise
on film.
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Cinemania |
What do the martial-arts purists think of you?
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I did a film about Wing Chun, the martial arts that Bruce Lee
developed into his own style. Then, I did get someone who
teaches that style so that I would do all the intricate details to
make the film authentic. But in Bond or Supercop, there is no
particular style. It's just you and your enemy, and you do
whatever it takes.
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Cinemania |
The Hong Kong guys are already here in Hollywood. You are
the first woman, but you are also one of the guys.
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It's true. I've always been one of the guys. Jackie [Chan] just
called and asked me to meet up for dinner tonight. We all have a
very good rapport. John [Woo] is like my godfather, and
Terence Chang, his producer, is also my manager. This is one of
the reasons why I'm here. When you are in Asia, you are happy
with your work and your surroundings, and Hollywood sounds
so far away. Coming here would have been like starting from
scratch. But two years ago, Terence called me up and said,
"John and I are here and we're starting Hard Target. I think you
should consider coming out." If it wasn't for him being here,
then I would have not made that initial move myself. Having
them here means I have friends in L.A., so it's not so tough. It's
like a home away from home.
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Cinemania |
What's next for you?
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The scripts coming in have varied not just action films. I don't
think I'll ever turn my back on action films; I've worked too
hard to be where I am. But dramatic roles are good. They give
the body a rest. And I enjoy lighthearted comedies, romantic
comedies. Ang Lee is one of my favorites. He's adorable. I
would really like to work with him. I hope we'll get a chance.
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Cinemania |
What's your workout like?
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When I'm on the road so much, it's not possible to get to a gym.
I incorporate it into my daily routine. I wake up stretching in
bed, and then when I'm brushing my teeth, I do my squats. And
after I put my lotion on, I do my pushups, and when I'm reading,
I do sit-ups and do stretching when I watch TV, but I do
cardiovascular in the gym. I do free weights, but I'm not a
machine person.
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Cinemania |
How about your diet?
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I'm not a vegetarian. I love food, and I love to drink. It's all part
of life. I don't like to limit myself and stick to a strict diet. You
have to look after your body, but not deprive your body. If I
want chocolate, I'll eat it. I just don't overdo it. If you deprive
yourself, you'll go overboard. Fortunately, I'm a big vegetable
eater. I don't eat beef because of religious reasons, but when I
was in Eastern Europe, I wanted to try their food, which is
venison and rabbit. It was a great experience.
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Cinemania |
So you are single now?
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Single, very single. When I finished the film, I was with my
girlfriends, and we were sitting around talking and I said, "I
don't want to be in a long-distance relationship." My girlfriend
said, "Michelle, with your career and lifestyle, it's always going
to be a long-distance relationship!"
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