-- Detective Dee --
Apart from Andy Lau who has long been attached to this production, Carina Lau, Li Bing Bing, Tony Leung Kar Fai, Lau Ching Wan are also joining Detective Dee directed by Tsui Hark.
Andy Lau plays the eponymous magistrate Di Ren Jie who's tasked by Empress Wu Zetian to look into a series of enigmatic deaths of court officials in this period suspense mystery set in Tang dynasty.
Carina Lau would play Empress Wu Zetian, and she has to take up lessons on horse-riding and court etiquette in preparation for the role, "The director requests that I learn court etiquette, but I'm not sure where I can learn those things. I'm looking for a relevant teacher, to better understand the way of life of the ancient people. It's pretty interesting."
Li Bing Bing would be play Shangguang Wan-er, Wu Zetian's maid and right-hand 'man' who is proficient in martial arts.
While Tsui Hark hopes to name the film's Chinese title 《通天帝国》 Kingdom to Heaven, it is getting nowhere with Mainland censors. Tsui Hark indicates that he is especially curious about themes of detective and Tang dynasty, and hopes that by putting the two together, would create a special story for the audience.
The film's producer Shi Nan Sun denies rumours of the creative genius Tsui Hark being at the end of his tether, "I've worked with many different directors, but Tsui Hark is one director you've to spend extensive time on pre-production, for he often demands novelty. Most directors just do what they are good at, accustomed to, so they always have relevant resources at their fingertips. But Tsui Hark is an exception to the rule. If you watch his films ten years down the road, you'd realise that many of his films are classics. Even this story of Detective Dee, it may sound like a historical subject, but it actually contains many novel ideas. Di Ren Jie is a super sleuth of Tang Dynasty, have you watched a movie on an ancient super sleuth?" Oriental Daily
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