Teen takes on veterans for Golden Horse glory

TAIPEI: Veteran movie stars will take on a 14-year-old newcomer Saturday at Taiwan´s Golden Horse awards, dubbed the Chinese “Oscars”, with the teenager tipped to steal the show. Big names including Oscar-winning director Ang Lee and Hollywood star Jessica Chastain walked down the red carpet to cheering fans ahead of the ceremony in Taipei´s Sen Yat-sen Memorial Hall.
Taiwanese teenager Vicky Chen is up against some of the industry´s biggest names for the best actress gong, including acclaimed director-actress Sylvia Chang (“Love Education”) and mega-star Shu Qi (“The Village of No Return”), both also from Taiwan. Chen plays a hotel maid struggling with her conscience after witnessing a sexual assault, fearing she will lose her job if she reports it, in Chinese director Vivian Qu´s drama “Angels Wear White”.
She is also nominated for best supporting actress in Taiwanese director Yang Ya-che´s popular thriller “The Bold, the Corrupt, and the Beautiful” — a frontrunner for best film with seven nominations. Chen stars alongside Hong Kong veteran Kara Wai, nominated for best actress for her role in the movie, which tells the story of a wealthy family entangled in deadly political and business intrigues. Two former Golden Horse best actress winners — Hong Kong´s Deanie Ip and Taiwanese Chen Shiang-chyi — are also eyeing the best supporting actress statuette. Critics predict a tight race for best film between “The Bold, the Corrupt, and the Beautiful,” “Love Education”, and Taiwanese director Huang Hsin-yao´s “The Great Buddha+” which leads the race with 10 nominations.
Huang´s film, shot mostly in black-and-white, tells the story of a security guard at a factory which makes Buddha statues who accidentally discovers his employer´s crime. The movie has struck a chord with Taiwanese audiences as it focuses on the struggles of ordinary people against the backdrop of a widening wealth gap. Drama “Love Education”, about a teacher juggling family problems and forced retirement, earned Sylvia Chang a nod for best director and pits her against Yang Ya-che, Vivian Qu and Hong Kong director Ann Hui (“Our Time will Come”).
Taiwanese-Japanese heartthrob Takeshi Kaneshiro is nominated for best actor for portraying an over-the-top bar landlord in the romantic comedy “See You Tomorrow”, which has seven nominations. His main challengers are former Golden Horse best actor Huang Bo (“The Conformist”) and director-actor Tian Zhuang-zhuang (“Love Education”), both from China.