Director Lou Ye’s ‘Blind Massage’ wins maximum awards at the Chinese ‘Oscars’.
Chinese director Lou Ye’s drama Blind Massage won the most merits at the 51st Golden Horse Film Awards held in Taiwan on November 22, 2014. The awards, also touted as the Chinese ‘Oscars’ saw the movie sweep six gongs out of seven nominations for best feature film, best adapted screenplay, best cinematography, among others.
Blind Massage starred blind amateur actors who portrayed the lives of visually impaired masseurs in massage parlors in Nanjing. Zhang Lei, who is a visually impaired masseuse in real life, won best new performer, while the film also bagged awards for best editing and best sound effects.
Lou has so far been best known for his politically charged love story Summer Palace, which was screened at the Cannes Film Festival without government approval in 2006, earning him a five-year ban on film-making in China.
Veteran Chinese actor and director Chen Jianbin set a record at the Golden Horse Film Awards by winning both best new director and best lead actor for his directorial debut A Fool, a film about a Chinese farmer who takes in a homeless man. He also won best supporting actor award for his role in Doze Niu’s Taiwanese military drama Paradise in Service.
The best director award went to Ann Hui, her third Golden Horse Golden Era, which based on the life of early 20th century Chinese female writer Xiao Hong. Taiwan’s Chen Shiang-chyi bagged the best leading actress award for her role as a lonely middle-aged woman struggling with family and work problems in Exit.
About 40 films were nominated for the 51st edition of the Golden Horse Film Awards. Tian Feng was felicitated with the lifetime achievement award. Feng is a former Taiwanese actor, who has appeared in hundreds of films in Taiwan and Hong Kong, including Fist of Fury (1972) with Bruce Lee and Little Tiger of Canton (1971) with Jackie Chan.
Photo Credits: nation.com
