SCREENING

Screen Icons: Shu Qi

Notice:

Please note that the installation is unavailable on 12 Jan due to a booking for private event.

Screen Icons celebrates the transcendent, leading lady performances in Asian cinema. The first in the series: Taiwanese arthouse and box-office star Shu Qi.

With a career spanning almost three decades, Shu Qi has been recognised as one of the most versatile and best-known actresses of her generation. Inhabiting roles that cross national and ethnic identities, and move between historical to contemporary, Shu Qi’s ability to command the screen has made her one of the acclaimed performers to emerge in Chinese cinema.

After a stint as a Category III actress in Hong Kong, Shu Qi successfully transitioned to mainstream cinema with an award-winning role in Viva Erotica 色情男女 in 1996. In 2001, she cemented her place in the arthouse cinematic world with Millennium Mambo 千禧曼波, the first of three collaborations with Taiwanese auteur Hou Hsiao-hsien. Her widely praised natural and instinctive performance earned her international recognition and critical acclaim.

Shu Qi remains one of three Chinese actresses (the previous two were Gong Li and Maggie Cheung) to complete the trifecta of being a jury member for the three major European film festivals – Berlinale in 2008, Cannes in 2009, and Venice in 2023.

This programme examines the turning points in Shu Qi’s career that showcases her diversity in roles and genre. From the romantic comedy Gorgeous 玻璃樽 (1999) where she shares the screen with Jackie Chan and Tony Leung as a young, comparatively unknown actress, to her wildly successful collaborations with Hou Hsiao-hsien in Millennium Mambo 千禧曼波 (2001) and Three Times 最好的时光 (2005), proving to be more than a muse, and finally, as the action star lead in glossy spy flick So Close 夕陽天使 (2002), starring alongside Karen Mok and Zhao Wei.

This programme is in conjunction with the exhibition, Goddess: Brave. Bold. Beautiful.

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Gorgeous (1999), Vincent Kok

Original title: 玻璃樽

120 minutes | PG | Mandarin and Cantonese with English subtitles

Showtimes
27 Apr (Sat), 2pm

A rom-com with the classic action stylings of Jackie Chan, Gorgeous follows Ah Bu (Shu Qi) from a small fishing town in Taiwan who finds a romantic message in a bottle. She travels to Hong Kong to find its owner, who happens to be a gay fashion stylist named Albert (Tony Leung). In a twist of fate, she meets and falls in love with the dashing movie star Chi Wu (Jackie Chan).

A role that represented a clear shift in her star image and marketability, Shu Qi was Jackie Chan’s first choice to star in the film. Gorgeous was a box-office success and included a host of cameos by popular Hong Kong stars (Stephen Chow, Stephen Fung, Richie Jen, Sam Lee, Sandra Ng, and Daniel Wu).
Awards and Nominations

Golden Horse Awards | Best Action Choreography Nomination

Hong Kong Film Awards | Best Action Choreography Nomination

Millennium Mambo (2001), Hou Hsiao-hsien

Original Title: 千禧曼波

119min | M18 (Coarse Language and Some Drug Use) | Mandarin with English subtitles

Showtimes
20 Apr (Sat), 4.30pm
21 Apr (Sun), 2pm
27 Apr (Sat), 4.30pm
28 Apr (Sun), 2pm
5 May (Sun), 4.30pm
11 May (Sat), 4.30pm
19 May (Sun), 4.30pm
26 May (Sun), 4.30pm

Millennium Mambo follows the life of Vicky, a young woman caught in the flux of love, freedom, and disillusionment. Set in Taipei at the turn of the millennium, the film paints a poignant portrait of a generation searching for meaning amidst the chaos of modern life.

Seamlessly portraying the frenetic and fragile life of Vicky, Shu Qi imbues the character with vulnerability and emotional depth. A breakout role that catapulted her to international recognition, Shu Qi’s magnetic screen presence ushered in a new era of minimalist acting and melancholic gazes in Chinese cinema.
Awards and Nominations

Cannes Film Festival | Technical Grand Prize

Golden Horse Awards | Best Cinematography, Best Original Score, Best Sound Effects, Best Actress (Shu Qi) Nomination

Chicago International Film Festival | Silver Hugo

Ghent International Film Festival | Best Director

So Close (2002), Corey Yuen

Original Title: 夕陽天使

110 minutes | PG | Mandarin and Cantonese with English subtitles

Showtimes
20 Apr (Sat), 11.30am
28 Apr (Sun), 11.30am

The Asian Charlie’s Angels, So Close is a sleek action thriller that stars Shu Qi and Zhao Wei as Lynn and Sue, sisters who work together as skilled assassins and espionage specialists. Hot on their heels is detective Hong (Karen Mok) who ends up forming an unlikely alliance with them against a bigger threat.

Venturing into mainstream box-office hits, Shu Qi brings a graceful, feminine style to the martial arts scenes in So Close, cementing her versatility as an actor across genres.
Awards and Nominations

Hong Kong Film Award | Best Action Choreography Nomination

Three Times (2005), Hou Hsiao-hsien

Original Title: 最好的时光

130 minutes | NC16 (Some Mature Content) | Mandarin with English subtitles

Showtimes
14 Apr, Sun, 4.30pm
20 Apr, Sat, 2pm
21 Apr, Sun, 4.30pm

Starring Shu Qi and Chang Chen, Three Times traverses three distinct periods in Taiwan’s history, each with its own love story. With exquisite cinematography and subtle performances, the film explores the timeless nature of love and longing across generations.

Playing three distinct roles – as an innocent pool hostess in 1966, a courtesan in 1911, and an alluring musician in 2005 – Shu Qi delivers a delicate and understated performance as each character.
Awards and Nominations

Cannes Film Festival | Palme d'Or Nomination

Golden Horse Awards | Best Taiwanese Film, Best Actress (Shu Qi), Best Taiwanese Filmmaker, Best Picture Nomination, Best Original Screenplay Nomination

Yerevan International Film Festival | Golden Apricot – Best Film