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by Sue Kwok and BBC, June 1 2006
Star Online - China Entertainment
Takeshi Kaneshiro, top Taiwanese movie star, is one hot man in demand. As one of Asian cinema's fastest rising superstars, even Hollywood wants him. The talented half Chinese-half Japanese actor has been offered many roles in the past but has turned down a good number of them. And it's not about arrogance either, it's about self respect.
"Looking at the roles I was given, I didn't want to be typecast. As a Chinese mafia, kung fu master...I wasn't interested. I'll try any kind of movie, not just because of its budget. A big budget doesn't mean it'll be a good movie. So if the story's got substance or the character's interesting enough to make you want to collaborate on it, then I would take the opportunity with gratitude. But I don't think Asians get offered very substantial roles in Hollywood. I'm not really aiming at moving into that area." A greater concern, though, is the threat of losing his artistic freedom. "I've done movies where action and war scenes were required before but I believe they went much deeper than people fighting. They had artisitic value or simply meant something to me personally...some had historical value and that's important. But to be honest, I don't like action films as much as most other types. Normally there isn't enough room for real substance. Sometimes making a film that you think is light and fun is great too. I've had my share of those before." But as always, his challenge is to test the boundaries of his craft, making each role fresh and unexpected. "A melody can be made with only a few notes, right? In acting, it's the same," says Kaneshiro. "There are only a limited number of characters and a limited number of ways to play them."
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His latest role was in the Peter Chan film "Perhaps Love", a musical, which Takeshi said was "an amazingly colorful and vibrant film" which he is "so proud to be part of". It was also the first Chinese musical film in 30 years. Kaneshiro was also a previous coverface for TIME Asia magazine. It was said that when Johnny To signed on to direct the wistfully romantic "Turn Left Turn Right", the Hong Kong filmmaker knew exactly whom he wanted to play the male lead. In the illustrated novel by Jimmy Liao, from which the new movie is adapted, the protagonist is so estranged from society that he's depicted floating above the city, like a melancholy blimp. When you want someone who practically oozes that kind of ethereal alienation, whom are you going to call? Answer: Takeshi Kaneshiro. Thanks to his protean good looks and versatile acting skills, he has become the Asian film industry's Johnny Depp—a quirky, unpredictable leading man capable of seducing audiences no matter how dark or oddball the role. And not surprisingly, Depp is one of his favorite actors. Kaneshiro is "mysterious," says To. "He doesn't belong to Hong Kong, Taiwan or anywhere." Indeed, in his eclectic 10-year career, Kaneshiro has made films in four countries, training his chameleon-like talents on a remarkable array of characters. In Hong Kong director Wong Kar-wai's "Fallen Angels", he played a mute who rode the carcass of a pig like a cowboy. He was a bowling-addicted stockbroker in the tv series "Golden Bowl". "I don't let myself follow in anyone else's footsteps," says Kaneshiro. "Let other people do what has been done before. All I want is to do something special." Regarded as one of his more 'normal' films, "House of the Flying Daggers" was nominated for the best foreign-language film Oscar, and brought him to the attention of Hollywood. The offers came flooding in from American film studios yet still no sign of a future blockbuster.
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But avid fans are still hoping and there has even been rumors that he is in talks with an upcoming Hollywood film. Kaneshiro can speak English fairly well for someone who was born and bred in Taiwan, despite his denials. "I'm not very fluent at all," he tells us. "I have mind blocks every now and then trying to think of a word to fill in my sentences". Kaneshiro is quite modest of his lingual capabilities, especially considering that he speaks Mandarin, Cantonese, Taiwanese Hokkien (another Chinese dialect) and Japanese fluently!
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Then there's the subject of his intimate relationships; something all female fans want to hear about. Whenever he appears in public, he is always mobbed by his fans. But in reality, Takeshi Kaneshiro is an introverted character, who prefers to stay out of the public eye. And he does for the most part. There are rarely any rumors about him because of how he keeps such a low profile. This man stays at home for most of his spare time. Or travels. When you hear about him, it's likely to be at a premiere, making a new film or magazine photoshoot. But keeping a low profile has its cost too when you're a megastar like Kaneshiro, rumors plagued him that he was 'gay' because of the absence of any news regarding him and girlfriends. What does he think of this? "No comment...there were even rumors about a supposed marriage" he says, breaking into a smile. With mysterious good looks and dreamy eyes, it comes as a shock for many that Kaneshiro, voted number 1 most beautiful man in countless magazines, is anything but a playboy.
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On another note, Maggie Q, hot and rising HK movie star/model from Mission Impossible 3 had come first in a number of HK polls as the sexiest starlet. She's every male's dream and once stated that Takeshi is her ideal man during an exclusive premiere in the UK. But is she his? He laughs nervously. We continue to probe him. "I don't know...I don't know her personally...I never thought about her." But what does he think about her as a potential girlfriend? "Well I've only known of her recently because of that new Tom Cruise movie that we hear about so often..so there's not much I can say...she's probably not my type." Does he know that she's a model we ask. "Models aren't my thing," he laughs, "I prefer a woman that isn't part of the limelight too. It's very hypocritical for me to say this because of my own career, but I have a preference for people that aren't in this business. They don't have this hunger for fame or popularity and I love that. Modest girls, family girls, someone reserved and doesn't sell their body for the media. I don't like party girls either. Sometimes a woman that is too Westernised isn't good for me too...I don't understand them and they won't understand me. I'm kind of traditional in that way and I like traditional women." But he can't deny Q's beauty, can he? "Well beauty is in the eye of the beholder as they say right? I think my opinion is probably different to most men".
Well Q or not, Hollywood or not, Takeshi Kaneshiro is one man that can go nowhere but higher. But still...we're crossing our fingers.
Maggie Q
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Credits: Soompi
This post has been edited by ttenovy: 17 June 2006 - 10:43 AM
MultiQuote
as well as skilled actor, Maggie Q looks so bad in that pic..never liked her..
All the best man..
ONly the last paragraph. I don't really like Maggie Q. She looks really bad in that picture too...huge lips...Anywayzz sounds like a cool dude.
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