Edison Chen, HK crossover star?

Momo Chang
October 12, 2006

A piece by Jeff Chang (author of Can't Stop Won't Stop: A History of the Hip Hop Generation) on HK/Vancouver/in transit star Edison Chen, who's making his Hollywood debut this Friday with The Grudge II. You might know Chen from the HK police saga Infernal Affairs by director Andrew Lau.

Speaking of, I haven't seen The Departed, but it's based on Infernal Affairs. Not sure how I feel I would feel about The Departed since I've watched the first two parts of Infernal Affairs, but I hear it's a good film. I hope people who check out The Departed get a chance to watch the original too - it's pretty awesome (though violent) and has an all-star cast (hullo, Tony Leung, Andy Lau, Eric Tsang, Anthony Wong, Sammi Chen...).

Anyway, I'd be curious about what folks think of Infernal Affairs, Edison Chen and The Departed.

Contributor: 

Momo Chang

Senior Contributing Editor

Momo Chang is the Content Manager at the Center for Asian American Media, and freelances for magazines, online publications, and weeklies. Her writings focus on Asian American communities, communities of color, and youth culture. She is a former staff writer at the Oakland Tribune. Her stories range from uncovering working conditions in nail salons, to stories about “invisible minorities” like Tongan youth and Iu Mien farmers. She has freelances The New York Times, WIRED, and East Bay Express, among other publications.

Comments

Comments

ali wrote on Sat, 02/16/2008 - 2:23am
edison, you are sick
Selina wrote on Sat, 02/16/2008 - 3:47am
now he's really in the hot soup and famous he is MORE
haruyaka rinako wrote on Thu, 01/25/2007 - 9:07pm
guys edison's damn cool. his movies are all great especially Infernal Affairs. he's handsome too. i'd be curious bout you folks impression on edison!!!!
t-oh no!!! wrote on Thu, 10/12/2006 - 6:16pm
you know i'm on some infernal affairs ish!!!
Anonymous wrote on Fri, 10/13/2006 - 6:19am
I think one Grudge was enough
rick wrote on Wed, 03/12/2008 - 9:43am
Being a Chinese-American living in the U.S. and hearing about this Sexy Photo Gate was big news. The US have Paris Hilton, Britney Spears, Robert Downey Jr., Rob Lowe, etc. etc. The Japanese have anime porn by the billions. It seems like the Western influenced countries are sex-obsessed. Who would think that the Chinese would do such a thing? Outrageous!Beautiful Asian women have it made in the U.S., being lust after by white men who think they are superior to Asian men. So in this respect, with their humble exterior, they can win any Asian woman’s heart. Asian men in the U.S., however, are stereotyped as suppressive husbands, controlling chauvinists who treat their own women like slaves. Asian men in the U.S., no matter how talented and good looking they are, have it hard (unless they are in computers or finance). They are no match for white men, or any men for that matter. And now Edison Chen comes around! Making Asian men look like they are not sexually-handicapped after all! Asian men are actually wanted by beautiful Asian women! I cannot believe it! Damn you, Edison! How can you go down on Asian women like a sex slave? How can you show tons of photos of naked beautiful women sucking on your limp dick? Aren’t you afraid white men will laugh? I guess size doesn’t matter anymore! It’s what you do to the woman that counts! Damn you, Edison!If the Chinese people will not forgive these people in the scandal, then I guess we will never move forward. For crying out loud, the U.S. forgave Bill Clinton, the president of the United States! Sure it all leaves a bad taste. Clinton will forever be scorned, Paris Hilton may never get a real actress job. But they are not publicly condemned or killed off. It is just old news, old gossips. Can the Chinese people do the same?I am not saying that this scandal was innocent. It was sleazy. But if their lives are forever destroyed without a second chance, then the world will think that the Chinese will never be free-spirited people. Of course, we should have a moral code. They have apologized and felt ashamed. We have to forgive them and move on. Who knows? Maybe they were influenced by Ang Lee’s Lust, Caution.Give them all very serious acting roles in very serious movies and let them redeem themselves.