Wong Kar Wai's "Grandmaster" sweeps Hong Kong Film Awards

PanARMENIAN.Net - The Grandmaster swept the Hong Kong Film Awards with 12 wins, including best film, best director for Wong Kar Wai, best actress for Zhang Ziyi and best supporting actor for Zhang Jin, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

It was Wong's third best director win at the Hong Kong Film Awards, after his Days of Being Wild (1990) and Chungking Express (1994). "I remember it was 1994 when I was last here. It was a short walk from the podium to the stage, but it took me 20 years to come back to this spot," said Wong when he accepted the award.

Best actress winner Zhang took home her ninth award, including the Asian Film Awards, the Golden Horse Awards, and the Hong Kong Film Critics Society Awards, for the role of Gong Er, the heiress of a Northern Chinese martial arts dynasty. Zhang spoke of the hardships she experienced in her personal life and as Gong Er, "I shed a lot of tears," she said. "I'm worked up not because I feel wronged, but because I feel grateful."

The Grandmaster also won best cinematography, best film editing, best sound design, best original film score, best action choreography, best costume and makeup design and best art direction.

Nick Cheung was named best actor for his work in MMA drama Unbeatable. This was the second Hong Kong Film Award best actor nod for Cheung, after his win for Beast Stalker (2008). He sang the first verses of "The Sound of Silence" when he was onstage to accept the award, as it was the soundtrack during a montage sequence of him training in the film.

Best supporting actress went to Kara Wai for first time director Juno Mak's Rigor Mortis. Best new director went to Adam Wong for The Way We Dance, which also featured the work of best new performer Babyjohn Choi, and the best original film song.

The Lifetime Achievement Award went to Cheung Yam-yim, who, with Jet Li's first starring movie The Shaolin Temple (1982), was the first director to make a Hong Kong-Chinese co-production.