From Dispatch 4 (4) , 9 May, 2005
The Hong Kong Movie, “Everlasting Regret”
“THEY SHOOT HORSES DON’T THEY?”
I have just come from 28 straight hours (if you count the in- transit time) on a filming shoot. Twenty-eight hours with no sleep working in a Chinese movie. The movie by Director, Guan Jin Peng is set again in Shanghai in the 1930’s – I am really getting to know and like this period. If you saw the movie, “They Shoot Horses Don’t They?” you can picture the mood.
Here’s how it all began. I was just coming down from our great Speakeasy Party when I get a call to see if I would be interested in doing the Tango in movie being filmed in town. “You are a Tango dancer aren’t you?” “No,” I say along with my standard line, “I am familiar with it and if I hear the music and see what you want, I could probably fake it.” The guy at the other end wasn’t pleased and I am sure that he wished that he had some other options, but with this short notice (they were to begin in two days) and their need for ‘lao wei’ instead of Chinese dancers, he begrudgingly invited me to join them. “But you will have to attend some Tango classes and we wont pay you for that,” he said. I agreed and was immediately flushed with visions of me being Richard Gere in China (did you see “Shall We Dance?”)
That night I go where I was directed — a ballroom on the second floor of a three-star Chinese Hotel. When I get there the place is full and a live band is setting up. (not a white face in the crowd, several of the other foreign want-a-be Tangoers were also suppose to be there.) The music started playing, there was no teacher or lesson being taught. The music was nice, something other than a Tango started to play — people started to dance. So I went for it, I asked the first free lady I saw. Two and a half hours later, I had danced with every one present – there were no lessons, at least the formal kind – actually it was just the kind of lesson I go for– good dancers doing all sorts of things – I just mimicked what I liked and made a number of non-verbal friends.
Somewhere, half way through the evening I identified “the instructor” and introduced myself as the foreigner who was asked to come to learn the Tango. “You are doing just fine,” he replied in broken English – “Just keep it up.” Later I was introduced to who would be my dance partner in the movie. It turns out that many of those there that evening were also to be dancing extras in this movie and once they (the instructor and one of the directors there) realized that I was going to be alright, dispensed with the unnecessary instruction and let the evening freely flow with dance. They had obviously been watching me and paired me up with this delightful Chinese girl with whom I was having a great time dancing (with her and her mother).
Discovering this dance venue with live music is truly a bonus regardless of what happens in the movie – I will go back for sure.
Back to the Movie: Initially, I was told that I should be prepared to work all night 5pm to 5am, two or maybe three nights. When the first night arrived, I was called with the news that they were behind in their schedule and we wouldn’t begin until the next night, if then.
Next day — same thing — cancelled. Now I know that they are getting in a crunch – the May National holiday is rapidly approaching and they can’t postpone it forever – it also turns out that I have a flight ticket to Sanya in three days, so I am beginning to worry. The next day they call with the plan – I am to show up at 4 o’clock the next day and we will work non–stop until it is finished – it could run for 24 hours, they say. I immediately start worrying if the younger folk involved will be up to it.
When I arrive at wardrobe, Jimbo and Ivo (the two other foreign dancers) are already there. They are fitted in tuxes. I was disappointed because three days earlier I had been fitted in a dapper double-breasted three-piece suit – it looked good but I love the tux look. Needn’t worry, they had a change of mind. They thought that we would look better in tuxes too. At least they didn’t turn around and put me in another clown outfit (recall my last “El Doctore” role). The only downside was that they sewed the bow tie and starched collar so it couldn’t be undone. After 28 hours my neck was raw from rubbing against the board-hard collar. But you know, I don’t really care what they do. The way I look at it, these are experiences that I can afford to have and can’t afford not to have.
Then the waiting begins. While we are waiting for all the other dancers and extras to finish getting made up, we start trying to anticipate what they may want of us as far as the Tango goes. Ivo, from Holland is a ballroom dance teacher here. He knows a lot about various forms of Tango and starts giving Jimbo and I the basic steps and some moves. After all are attired and made-up they gather us up into buses and move us to waiting area number two. We end up staying there maybe 4-5 hours. There we continued to practice the Tango routine we conjured up – for hours and hours and hours –with no music – it was driving me crazy until we were mercifully rescued and taken to waiting area number three – the back stage area of a magnificent set for a beautiful art deco nightclub.
It really wasn’t a set, it was actually a fully equipped nightclub reproduced in a filming studio — No false fronts, no shallow shells, no fake props – real crystal, silverware, lamps, even real roses on each table. Jimbo and I lusted after the real bandstands with “Moonlight Swing Orchestra” and a silhouette of a dancing couple on them – they would be perfect for our next party. Well it was another 2-3 hours before we made it on to the filming set. Finally we would find out just what they wanted of us. I should know by now that if nobody has taken the time to train or tell us that it can’t be much.
There were many more dancers than space for them on the dance floor – so the first consideration was who gets into each scene. My beautiful partner was keen on getting us on as much as possible – you might say she is quite a ham. (And she looked so cute with her flowing Tango dress and high-top red converse All-Stars which she wore to rest her feet when not on camera.) Luckily after our showing on the first dance scene shot, the director took a liking to us and we made most of the other dance scenes over the next 10-12 hours. Whether our faces ever make it on the screen or not, believe me, doing and redoing a scene 10 to 20 times beats waiting in the wings.
As for the Tango – the reason we were reportedly there– it was hours into the filming before we even did a Tango and when we did there was so little room and so many people that any elaborate move or pose was impossible – just moving around and bobbing to the rhythm. Early on I got a glimpse of a monitor and saw what they were filming of the dancers and it was basically waist up and head shots so my partner and I focused on bobbing and head swaying – a new thing for me as I usually favor foot work. It was the facial impressions, head tilts and eye contact that the director liked I think. Besides we were a good couple – it was easy for us to emote. As I mentioned, this partner of mine is a beautiful lady and so is her mother, an old dancing pro herself.
Did I mention that her mother was also one of the dancing extras? We kept asking for her opinion of how we were doing. One incident is worth recounting. As I mentioned there really wasn’t any room to do any sweeping Tango moves. And, of course, all routines were designed to accommodate the camera angle and the best exposure of the stars. One very special scene had the lead actor and actress out on the dance floor doing a sultry Tango (they had room, of course – they were given the center of the dance floor) the rest of us were suppose to be rotating around them on the floor’s periphery. As each dancing couple circulated they had to momentarily pass in front of the camera blocking the main event in the center. Our direction was logical– as soon as we approached the camera, “get past it as fast as you can.” After botching it the first couple of times (it wasn’t easy getting all the couples in a steady flow –some never got it), we came up with something that worked for us. First, we just passed those who had stalled then my partner and I timed it so we arrived at that location at the quick, quick part (of the slow, slow, quick, quick basic Tango step). We turned sideways, extended our front arms and quick, quick skipped across in front of the camera – very quickly – I was proud of us and it was what the Director wanted. But when we asked Mama, how it was, she wasn’t pleased. “It is too fast, it isn’t the Tango (or semblance in Chinese)– you look like two rats racing across the street,” she said. It goes to show, don’t mess with the presentation of a beloved daughter. Anyway I hope to make it up to both of them sometime at the Hotel ballroom where I will do my best to make her daughter look good again.
There are a lot of handsome people in this movie, even most of the men are good looking defying the odds of my sex-linked attractiveness gene theory. Some of the faces are familiar from TV I guess but I don’t know there names yet. (Later addendum: lead actor—Hu Jun, other well known actor helping with direction- Jackie Leung (Liang Jia Hui) One of the lead ladies I did recognize, a pop singer from Hong Kong, “Sammi,” Zeng Siu Wen. I ended up having a lot of fun with her especially at the wrap party when they broke out the Champagne 28 hours later.
From: Dispatch from China 4 (7)
“EVERLASTING REGRET”
I had another surprise awaiting me on my return to Shanghai. The last movie that I worked on (see Dis. 4 (4)) was now in the theaters. This was one filmed in May. The first one filmed last November, the Merchant/Ivory Hollywood flick, “The White Countess,” (see Dis. 3(6) and 3(7)) still hasn’t been released).
These Hong Kong filmmakers evidently pushed to get their film finished by summer to enter film festivals in which I have heard they captured several awards (best actress, and best cinemagraphy).
The movie, English title, “Everlasting Regret,” is in Cantonese with Mandarin sub-titles. I immediately searched for the DVD, I really didn’t have the desire to sit through a two hour movie in Chinese in hopes of catching the milliseconds of exposure we dancers might have received.
I did find and DVD and I have just watched it. Our 26-hour marathon shoot for the movie is represented by a barely 3-minute segment. Most of that is nothing but talking heads. There is no view or even sense of the fantastic night club scenery, I wrote about. Nice shots of the leads talking but no sense of ambience. There were only two identifiable dancers present for maybe two seconds and they are also only head shots in background of the leads.
The big debate, between me and Jimbo, is whose ‘left ear’ is on the head of the other dancer flashing by for two milliseconds? Next time I am going to wear ear rings in my ears so there is no doubt.
No fame and glory in this one — just a damn good time doing it.