DOG BITE DOG - VoiceTube: Learn English through videos!

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Um. how I became involved with Dog Bite Dog...
...is actually a funny story.
Because. um. at that moment in time I hadn't filmed a Hong Kong movie...
...since Initial D. which was about a year and a half. two years.
Um. I just came off filming my first “Japanese“ movie.
Um. and I didn't really wanna do any bubble-gum. cotton-candy movie...
...which is what 90 percent of the movies in Hong Kong. to me. are.
Uh. Soi. which is the director. Is kind of known...
...for being kind of edgy. kind of crazy for Hong Kong.
If you put him in a different market he's not too crazy.
But. uh. my experience with this guy is that I filmed a movie with him before...
...called the Wishing Tree or something.
Final Romance. actually. it was called.
And he was playing a cop and he beat the crap out of me.
And he really beat the crap out of me.
So when I saw him for the first time I was like. “This guy...“
You know? And when he gave me the script. actually. he was like:
“Okay, I want you to play the cop, and the cop is like this. like this. like this.“
And I was. “Okay. let me read the script and I'll get back to you.“
And I read the script and I was like:
“If you don't let me be the killer I'm not gonna film this movie.“
And why I did that was because it's totally crazy and totally different...
...than anything that I've ever done.
And everyone says that I can only do a certain type of role...
...then here is something that you've never seen me do before.
And it's totally outside of the picture of what people think Edison Chen is.
So I decided to take it on as a huge challenge...
...and as kind of a gamble to gauge where moviegoers...
...locally on Hong Kong cinema are. and in a more international spectrum...
...what people are thinking about Hong Kong cinema.
When I first read the script. I had picked it up and I was like:
“Okay. cop. cop." you know. “A troubled cop. okay.“
I've done this in a certain way in other movies.
Boring. for me. The script wasn't boring. but the role for me was boring.
Whereas this other character is running around hungry. dirty...
...bleeding. killing. not speaking. “mass murderer“ type of ordeal.
And it really kind of just got something in me.
I was like. “This is interesting. This is gonna be fun.“
You know? Like. “I can beat the crap out of people...
...and be wild and crazy and not get in trouble for it.“
[CHUCKLES]
For someone in my position to do a film like this is a breakthrough.
I think that people here are so image-conscious...
...about even what they do in a movie...
...that a lot of these type of films don't get to get made.
And. um. I wanted this movie to get made. and for people to really see it...
...and people to really feel it and enjoy it.
So many reasons why I did this movie.
It was about time for me to take. like. a left turn...
...instead of making rights all the time.
[GUNSHOT]
I actually saw this movie as being a disaster in Hong Kong...
...but a hit everywhere else. especially in Japan...
...when I first started filming the movie.
So like I said. I had just come off my first Japanese movie...
...and I was thinking I wanted to do something...
...that would make them happy as well.
So. I mean. all of these are reasons why I did the movie.
And lastly. it's because it would have been a huge challenge for me.
I mean. I'm totally not that character. Nothing near it.
I mean. I'm a bit crazy. yes. but in that way. no. you know.
And it would really be a gauger for me to see where I am at in my acting.
And I think it gave me a pretty good look.
To prepare for Dog Bite Dog, one of the things that I did...
...in the initial steps was study myself in the mirror.
Why I did this is because I cannot look anything like myself...
...and I had to speak without speaking.
So I had to take some certain strong expressions or things that I do--
Like. say. if I'm always touching my nose...
...like I usually do in my regular life. I cannot do that...
...because that kind of makes me seem like I'm more calm...
...and I'm just. like. more easygoing. you know?
I just have to be straight and. you know. like. solid and...
There's certain things I took away...
...and there's certain things I accentuated about myself.
And that was the first thing that I did to prepare for this character...
...because without saying--
It's easy to say. “I hate you.“ And then...
Getting that off. instead of just looking at someone and telling them:
“I hate you." You know. like. with just a look and the way I stood.
And I really had to study the way I move and the way I am...
...in order to make that a success-- To make Edison successful in this role.
[MAN SHOUTS IN CANTONESE]
[WOMAN WHIMPERS]
[GUNSHOT]
[MAN SCREAMS]
I watched a lot of movies where there were characters like this.
Where I would start studying what I thought was original...
...and what I thought came across as real, where I--
And then looked at stuff where I looked and I said:
“That's too much,“ you know.
That's too much to a point where that's acting. Do you understand what“?
There's no way that would ever happen. or something like that.
Or that's too little. It's too light. you know?
Like. I had to find the happy medium for me.
And. um. in order to stay inside this role. basically I--
It was perfect, because...
...what had happened was we had went to Thailand to film most of it.
And a lot of it that was shot in Hong Kong. I spent a lot of time alone.
I spent a lot of time alone. away from people...
...so I could stay kind of angry. and I don't have to speak much...
...and if I did say something it would be worthwhile saying.
Do you understand what I mean?
So I kind of stayed within my character...
...but at the same time. was still Edison when I was off the set.
But when I went into the set I just let it all out.
I have a lot of times where I wish I could be like that.
Like my character in the movie.
But I can't. And this was a good way for me to release all that...
...and just let it all go without getting in trouble.
And Pang. which is my character in the movie. goes--
Has a drastic-- For me. a drastic character change.
Whereas I come into Hong Kong. nothing to lose. hungry.
Kill. kill. kill. Come in my face. I kill and I kill.
I go home. I eat. Good.
Um...
Whereas I run into this girl and this girl is kind of. like...
In the beginning. when I bump into this girl, it's like:
“I wanna kill you. but I need the phone.
So tell me where the phone is first. and then I'll kill you.“
But then. while I'm talking on the phone I see a picture. a family portrait...
...of the father and the daughter and the mother.
And the father was just raping his daughter.
And they live in this garbage dump.
And I kind of-- That's the point where I start having a bit of humanity.
Because I relate to this girl...
...because I have no parents and I lived in a garbage dump...
...and I have to eat garbage for dinner and...
You know. there's no way-- Nowhere-to-go type of feeling.
And that's why I decided in the beginning:
“Okay. this girl will be useful as a type of shield.“
You know. a human shield.
Whereas it goes to the end. where she actually does things for me.
And she kind of protects me. when no one else has ever in my life.
So it's kind of like:
“What is this? What is this feeling that I have for this person?“
Because...
...I feel something good towards her. but I don't really know what it is.
Whereas she saved me from Sam in the movie.
It's about hope.
And that. you know. even in the darkest, darkest corners...
...you can still have hope.
Um. and in the end of the day. even if. like. my character dies...
...and the-- My wife dies as well. we still have hope. which is our child.
And I think that a lot of people miss that about the movie.
They go walk out and they're like:
“Oh. that movie was crazy. It's so bloody and gory.“
But they don't really try to get into the deepness of the movie...
...and what the message really is of the movie.
And I think that it's great.
And I think that people should actually kind of look for that in a movie.
So many things happened on this movie set. that it was crazy.
Like. we were sitting in a garbage dump. We were actually on a garbage dump.
Like. I went to The Grudge 2 film...
...four weeks after I finished Dog Bite Dog...
...and by the 13th hour of filming on a nice set with catering and everything...
...people were like. “Tsk. this is the worst I've ever had to go through.
This is so bad.“
And I'm like. “Yo. look at these pictures. Look at this picture.
I'm standing at a garbage dump...
...that's five stories high and three footballs wide.
Okay. there's worms and cockroaches crawling on my feet. okay?
Are you--? Do you feel better?“ Like. “Yes. I do now.“
Like-- Ha. ha! Like. there's fully one day that me and Sam were sitting there...
...and because it was winding down-- The shoot was winding down.
--We decided to have dinner together.
And I cracked a joke at him and he was laughing.
He's like. “Ah-ha-ha-ha!“
A cockroach flew into his mouth.
At that point I was like:
“Wow. we're-- We are in the dumps.“ You know. like. dumps.
Like. people left--
Like. the older people left the set that day. and they had. like. their--
They couldn't feel the tips of their fingers because of all the--
It was so hot and all the pollution...
...and all the badness was. like. steaming up...
...and it was going into people. you know?
And. um. I mean. that's a story in itself. Ha. ha!
[BOTH GRUNTING]
[BOTH GROWLING]
EDISON: This movie's action scenes...
...are so different than most Hong Kong movies...
...because it's not graceful. It's not beautiful. it's not kung fu.
It's. “I'm coming to kill you.“
And when you do that. you don't plan. like:
“I'm gonna give him a chop to the head and then a sweep. and then--"
Ha. you know? Like. stuff like that. It doesn't happen. Doesn't happen.
And what happened in this movie...
...was that we really didn't have a stunt coordinator until the last scene.
What had happened was. I would tell the director:
“Okay. what do you need in the camera lens?
You need it-- You need us to move here and then here and then here?
Okay. just leave it to me. I'm gonna do it for you.“
And then. I would go and I'd do it. And I'd punch him. I'd kick him.
The director really wouldn't know...
...because I told him I can't really do it if you want me to 90--
[GRUNTING]
--And then choke him. Like. I'd just--
“Just let me go. It'll be crazy. Trust me. you'll like it.“
And, urn, the first time he was like, “No, no, I can't do that.“
I was like. “Look. just give me one chance.“
And then I did it and he was like. “Whoa. that's crazy. Good.“
[CHUCKLING] I was like. “woo-hoo.“
And I think that that-- That it was the right approach...
...because if we had done something like what most Hong Kong action movies do...
...it would have been a joke.
And it wouldn't have been this crazy killer from Cambodia...
...and a rugged cop off the streets.
It would have been. like. a Police Story Part 4 or 5 or something.
I don't even know what number they're at right now.
[BOTH GRUNTING]
EDISON: Every scene was kind of hard...
...because. like I said. I really didn't know what I was gonna do. I just had to do it.
I mean. they obviously had a few guidelines.
Like. when there was a car coming at me. they're like:
“Okay. you need to break the window.“ And I was like:
“Okay. can I break it with this hand?
Because I have some handcuffs on my hand.
I can just hold it and break the glass and it would seem real.“
They're like. “Yeah. that's a great idea.“ You know. stuff like that.
The hardest scene for me to film...
...the one that I got hurt the most was in the end scene.
Because we had about 10 hours to shoot that whole ending scene.
And about four hours into it. I tripped on film equipment...
...because we were in such a hurry. they forgot to take some away.
And I tripped on it and I fell on those rocks.
And those rocks aren't even and they're uneven.
Like. type of temple-- Like. really old-school style.
And I hurt my spine.
It was on the bottom of my spine. you know.
And I couldn't move. I was numb. I was numb. like. my feet were numb.
And. um...
But the director's sitting there. like. scratching his head. like:
“We're all-- We have flights tomorrow all to catch?“
And. um. we just-- I just had to fight through it.
I mean I-- It was painful.
It was painful. but it was. at the same time. very great...
...because it translated into what was happening into that scene.
Because it was painful. That scene was painful.
Not only in a physical way. an emotional way as well.
So. um. I'd say that was one of the hardest scenes.
And there was another scene where. we're in the--
We're in the Dai Pai Dong...
...where we're-- Like. the Chinese-café type of--
You know. the street-café thing.
And Sam just clocked me with that chopstick holder like no other.
Like...
Because I didn't tell him I was gonna do something...
...and I spat in his face and he was like...
When the director yelled “cut." he was. like...
...looking at me like he wanted to really kill me.
And in the next shot the director was like:
“Okay. you have to get back at him.“ I'm like:
[WHIMPERS THEN CHUCKLES]
Then he just came at me with this chopsticks holder...
...and, barn, on my head and I was like, “whoa.“
I was kind of. you know. dazed.
But it was good because it looks real...
...and it came out right and that's all that matters.
Like. someone told me before. “Pain is temporary and film is forever.“
I had pleaded and pleaded and pleaded with the director...
...that if we filmed the Cambodia section...
...to keep that as an extra. director's cut or something like that.
Because I felt that it lost the ruggedness and the rawness...
...of the first say-- If the--
If before we went to Cambodia was 90 minutes...
...the first 90 minutes was so--
[GRUNTS]
--That when you add that next 15. 20 minutes in there...
...it seems like the whole movie just loosens up and starts to float a little.
And for me. I wanted my character to just stay raw and stay really crazy.
And just like:
“What happens?“ You know?
Like, “What's going on with this guy now?“ You know?
But. um. the director told me that if we had had it like that...
...then the meaning of the movie would not come through.
And that's when he sold me on--
“Okay. okay. then I'll do the best I can when I'm in Thailand.“
Because I was thinking about just doing it really horribly...
...and hoping that he'd cut it.
Um. but. I mean. I think that a lot of people watch movies nowadays...
...on the level of visual excitement.
Um...
Whereas they don't look into the heart and soul of the production...
...and the story itself.
And I think that if you watch the movie--
If you've already seen the movie. and you're like:
“Aw. what is the last 15. 20 minutes?“ Like I did when I first watched it.
If you think about the reasoning...
...and you try to look at the layers of what-- With the storytelling.
I think that. it's quite interesting. the last 15. 20 minutes.
Especially. it's kind of. like. the redemption for both characters...
...and for the girl as well.
And I think that if you look at it in that way...
...it makes sense for the story to be more rounded in that sense.
When I got this script I--
A lot of people were like. “Don't do it. Don't do it.“
Because it's not gonna translate into a box-office hit.
And. “We don't wanna see you in movies like this.“
And. “Your fan base just wants to see you in a suit and hugging some girl.“
And-- But for me. this was the next step of my acting career...
...which I had told you. that-- ls my most important part of mine. I think.
And. um. l. myself. think that...
...I had to take two things in hand.
There's. like. “Okay. will this really damage my career?
Or will the box office be so bad...
...that no one will ever want me to do a film again?“
But everyone's box office is kind of bad in Hong Kong right now.
Um...
Very rarely do movies have a “successful“ box office now.
So what-- I think it's a time of change in Hong Kong cinema...
...for me especially. um...
...where new ideas and new directors...
...and new. more cutting-edge things are being tried out.
And until someone really takes that first step...
...no one's gonna really be able to make it start rolling.
And I was hoping that with this movie...
...it could kind of create a little snowball effect...
...where more people...
...especially if this movie translates into success overseas...
...we'll be. “Okay. those are the movies we should be filming.“
Or, “It's okay to film left-field movies.“ You know what I mean?
And. um. was I afraid that it would damage my image?
No. because I knew that going into it. what-- How I was planning to film it...
...and what movie critiques would say about my performance...
...and that's basically who I'm trying to please.
I mean. in the end of the day. some weird movies make a lot of money.
But it all comes down to the performance...
...because I don't market the film. I don't edit the film...
...I don't add the soundtrack to the film. I only do my acting chunk of it.
And. um. I think a lot of people. especially film people, were like:
“Okay. that was the best performance of your career.“
And. um. if I look back and I say:
“Oh. if I didn't do that movie where would I be?“
I don't know. because right after I did that movie...
...I got my first Hollywood movie.
The first time I saw this movie again was at the premiere.
And. um. it was actually a screening premiere...
...the day before the premiere.
And. um...
People were. like...
It was divided.
People were like. “No. You know. this is too crazy.
This should be not even rated III. It should just not be shown.“
[CHUCKLING] You know? And some people were like:
“This is a very refreshing. uh. break from Hong Kong cinema--
Regular Hong Kong cinema and I really. really liked it...
...and I think that. yes. It needed to be that bloody and gory...
...for the messages to come out.“
And. um. to be honest. I didn't really give a care what they were saying.
Um...
I myself, after watching the movie. was like. “Tsk. this-- This is great.“
And. uh. that's all that really matter to me.
Unless I'm a producer on the film. heh. I'm not gonna see the movie.
I'll have-- I have too many questions. I have too much of an opinion.
I'm too strong opinionated to be able to see a movie...
...and to be able to affect the cutting.
I mean. I could go into a screening...
...where it's only me and the director and I'd be:
“Yo. you better cut this part. you better add this part in.
You better cut this scene and then add different music. and da-da. da-da.“
And it would make me a menace in the film industry.
And people would be like:
“Never do a film with him because he'll change your whole film.“
So I understand that I'm kind of crazy in that way...
...and I'm very. very opinionated and. um...
Yeah. I think that watching it as a finished product...
...is a much better look for me because then I just take it as it is.
And I-- Even if I'm upset with it or if I'm happy with. it's done.
Um. like I said. if I was producer. then there'd be a whole different story.
But as an actor, I stay in my acting role.
I think Dog Bite Dog is a very exciting movie.
Minute by minute. um. It keeps you on the edge of your seat...
...trying to think about what just happened or what's gonna happen after.
And it'll keep you kind of puzzled at:
“Okay. where is this guy coming from? What is his motives?“
Or, “What's gonna happen?“
And this story kind of unrolls at a nice pace...
...for the viewer to keep very. very happy. for me especially.
I think that walking away from this movie will give you a...
Especially for Hong Kong cinemagoers. will give you a totally refreshing look...
...at what people are doing in the Asian side of cinema.
A lot of people are doing horror movies or pop love movies...
...but we went and did something totally different from that.
And. um. I think. for cult-cinema movie lovers...
...that this is a perfect movie for them. because. um...
It's so fresh for Hong Kong cinema.
For regular moviegoers. I think that this something...
...that you haven't seen in a long time and that you need to see soon...
...because. um. everyone's seen enough of the sequels and this and that.
And you should see something original and this is very original...
...and it's from Hong Kong. with a huge. huge. rich movie history.