Tale Of A Desperate Empress

Gong Li has been called China’s Greta Garbo, and the similarities are obvious. Like the legendary Swedish actress, she has an almost otherworldly beauty and a remarkable acting range; her movie credits to date continue to explore new ground. Also like Garbo, Gong is an intensely private woman who struggles to balance her desire for privacy with the publicity that her profession and art entail.

Gong rose to prominence at the age of 22 in films like "Red Sorghum" and "Raise the Red Lantern," both directed by Zhang Yimou ("Hero," "House of Flying Daggers"). The duo had a great run of films as they were romantically linked between the years of 1987 to 1995, but after their personal relationship ended, so did their film collaborations, ending on a high point with the excellent "Shanghai Triad." After that, Gong worked with a few other directors, including a recent foray into Hollywood ("Memoirs of a Geisha," "Miami Vice").

After more than ten years, the duo has reunited for Buena Vista International’s "Curse of the Golden Flower," Zhang’s third historic martial arts epic with Gong Li playing Empress Phoenix, who is having trouble trusting her husband the emperor (Chow Yun Fat) when she learns that he’s secretly been putting poison in her medicine. The volatile balance of power between the emperor and the empress and his three sons leads to betrayal, deceit and passion, pitting father against sons. This new epic promises to be Zhang’s most colorful and biggest film to date, fusing high drama and romantic intrigue with the best of contemporary martial arts.

Gong Li discusses "Curse of the Golden Flower" and her reunion with Zhang in the following interview:

Question: How was it working with Zhang again after so many years? Just like old times or was it a little difficult to get back into the rhythm of your previous collaboration?

Gong Li: It was actually easier than before. I didn’t have any misgivings in my mind. I didn’t have any strange hurdles to get over, and of course, we had this very strong common goal, which was to make a really good film. We were able to work together very professionally, and really, it was a wonderful experience.

Q: Since last working with you, Zhang has switched over to the martial arts genre. Have you kept up with his movies when they come out in China?

Gong Li: Yeah, I’ve seen all of his films. As far as these recent films, you can think of it as kind of a new, experimental stage for him where he can film one of his dreams, because he, like most Chinese boys and men, they love these martial arts films. Everybody reads these martial arts novels, so everybody has these fantasies or dreams of being a great hero, of being able to fly through the air or being invincible against all kinds of weapons and so on. So really, it’s the fulfillment of a fantasy.

Q: Is "Curse of the Golden Flower" based on real people or events in Chinese history?

Gong Li: Actually, the story itself is based on a famous Chinese stage play which was written by a writer named Cao Yu back in 1933. It’s a very, very famous modern drama, which is read and widely performed even to this day, so it’s very famous among Chinese people–everybody knows the story. Of course, the writer Cao Yu is long deceased, but his daughter formally gave Zhang Yimou the rights to make an adaptation in this form.

Q: So you were familiar with this play and your character beforehand?

Gong Li: Yes, it is very famous. Back when I was in college, I was in the play when I was a student. I played one of the characters named Siphong, a different character, not the character that is the Empress in this version.

Q: In your last few movies, you’ve been playing sort of the baddie, while in the early days, you were always the ‘good girl.’ Have you enjoyed switching gears like that?

Gong Li: I don’t think it’s so easy to characterize my characters as either good or bad, the villain or the good one. A character like this one is very complicated and actually, by the end of the film, you can really sympathize with her, because you’ve learned and understood why she is the way she is, why she’s doing the things she’s doing. You realize that it’s really because she’s trying to get things she wants, and you can really understand that. So it’s a really complicated character and that’s what I really liked about her, it really gives me a challenge to perform something. I don’t have much interest in performing those one dimensional characters, those who are just laughing, just a pretty face or whatever.

Q: Now that you’ve done a few American films, do you feel more comfortable doing them?

Gong Li: No, it’s not a big difference overall. I’m not too worried as long as I know that the director is a good director with a good script and that I can trust he will do a good job with that. I do hope that before I agree to do a film, I’ll have a chance to really communicate with the director and get to know him and really see what he’s going to be doing.

Q: How do you feel about all the Oscar talk and awards buzz which come around every time you do a movie? Are you aware that it’s all going on or do you just not pay attention to it?

Gong Li: It’s good in a sense that people are very interested in Oscars and they like to pay attention to those things, but you know, really what’s important for me is if people know who I am, if they like my films, they think, "Oh, she’s a pretty good actress and did a pretty good job." If people like that, then that’s my real Oscar. I don’t really need the real Oscar itself. It’s good enough that people like my films.

Curse of the Golden Flower opens in theaters on February 7.