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The Unexpected Stories behind the Stars of "The Wild Goose Lake" 《南方車站的聚會》

Written by Jenni Li
Translated by Jennifer J. Lau

Photo Credit: Chanel Archives

The two main characters of “The Wild Goose Lake” are not only stunningly handsome and beautiful, but both also hold life-changing moments and histories close to their hearts. Read on to find out more about Shanghai-born Hu Ge (Hugh Hu) and Taipei-native Gwei Lun-Mei.

胡歌 Ge Hu:

尋找生命的意義

Meaning of Life

Hugh searched for the meaning of life very early on. After debuting at the age of 14 as a TV host, he gained fame playing the role of Li Xiaoyao in "The Legend of the Sword and the Chivalrous Man" in 2005. But one year later, he suffered immensely from the car accident and underwent major facial reconstruction. He even experienced blindness at one point. During the treatment, Hugh was sadden to learn that one of the assistants also involved in the accident succumbed to their injuries and died. At that time, because of his eye treatments he could not cry naturally — he could only bow his head and let the tears fall to the floor. After a year of treatment, he chose to return to the stage.

Since then, he has been labelled as an inspiration although the actor does not seek such praise. Over a decade later when asked about the accident, he remains calm about his appearance or surviving the ordeal. As an actor, appearances are of course important. At one point, Hugh Hu used his hair to cover the scars on his forehead and turned to make sure only the left (uninjured) side of his face was always showing. But now, he has a new resolve and a new outlook towards the camera lens. He has also contemplated about life:

Photo Credit: Pascal Le Segretain

胡歌出道很早,14歲就在開始在電視台做小主持人。 2005年在《仙劍奇俠傳》中飾演的「李逍遙」一舉成名,卻在一年後不幸遭受車禍,嚴重毀容,一度快要失明。治療期間,胡歌得知同行的助手因傷勢過重而離世的消息感到悲痛不已,但因為眼睛有傷不能流淚,只能低頭讓眼淚垂直落下。經過一年的治療和修復,胡歌選擇勇敢復出,此後也很自然地被他人貼上「勵志」的光環和標籤,但胡歌並不在意這些讚美。

十多年後,當他再次談到當年的意外,胡歌都能非常坦然 — 無論是關於容貌,還是有幸活下來的意義。作為演員,容貌的重要性是不言而喻的,因為極度在意,胡歌曾經用劉海去遮擋額頭的傷疤,或者用沒有受過傷的左臉出鏡,但現在的胡歌已經看開,可以完全沒有負擔地面對鏡頭。關於生命,胡歌也有自己的思考:「我能夠留下來,應該是有一些事情要去做,或許有一些特殊的使命要去完成……很多人以為這12年我過的很好,因為我的事業有了很明顯的上升,然後也掙了更多的錢,也獲得了更多的名,可是我自己覺得,這應該不是我活下來的意義。」

今年,胡歌主演的刁亦男執導電影《南方車站的聚會》入圍戛納國際電影節主競賽單元。關於自己第一次帶作品走戛納紅毯,胡歌也很有幽默感,直言不諱地表示因為自己有點緊張,所以踏上紅毯之前喝了些導演帶的酒來壯膽。

This year, Hu Ge’s starring Yan Yinan’s film “The Party at Southern Station” was selected as the main competition unit of the Cannes International Film Festival. As for the first time I brought my work to the red carpet of Cannes, Hu Ge also had a good sense of humor. She said bluntly that she was a little nervous, so she drank some wine from the director before she set foot on the red carpet.

Photo Credit: Chanel Archives

桂綸鎂 Lun-Mei Gwei:

不只是文藝

Since her debut during high school, the agile image of Gwei Lun-Mei has become familiar to many. In 2007, you may remember her as the female student protagonist of Taiwanese mega-star Jay Chou’s self-directed fantasy movie “Secret.” This movie resonated with many audiences worldwide because it created nostalgia for young and innocent love.

自從高中時代出道,桂綸鎂靈動和文藝的形象就被人們所熟悉。 2007年,在周杰倫自導自演的校園奇幻片《不能說的秘密》中,桂綸鎂飾演了神秘的校園女主角,而被更多的觀眾所熟知,這部電影也成為許多人們心目中的青春回憶。

CHANEL Journey

Gwei’s unique temperament was appreciated by the Parisien creative designer and legend, Karl Lagerfeld. Thus in 2016, she became an official brand ambassador for CHANEL. She was the second brand ambassador for the haute couture house of Chinese heritage — the first being actress Zhou Xun. This year, Karl Lagerfeld passed away and Gwei revealed how honoured she was to have met him after being invited to Paris by Lagerfeld with VOGUE Taiwan. She wanted to personally thank him and waited long after the show was over to do so. She used some broken French to express her thanks and obtained their first photo with him. Thereafter, her relationship with the brand grew more and more each year, bringing her to places she had never been before.

她獨特的氣質深得老佛爺賞識,在2016年,桂綸鎂正式成為香奈兒品牌大使,也是繼周迅後香奈兒有史以來的第二位華人品牌大使。今年初老佛爺離世後,面對媒體,桂綸鎂表露了自己對老佛爺長久以來的景仰。早年,桂綸鎂應邀隨VOGUE台灣來巴黎參加香奈兒的時裝秀。大秀結束後,桂綸鎂在一旁等了很久,只是因為想要見一面老佛爺並親口感謝他的邀請。終於見到面,桂綸鎂既興奮又緊張,用磕磕絆絆的法語表達了感謝,並拍下了二人第一張合影。從那時起,桂綸鎂與香奈兒的關係越來越親密,也因為香奈兒,桂綸鎂在日後有機會來到世界各個地方看秀,留下美好回憶。

When she met him again she wanted to reintroduce herself and recalls how Karl Lagerfeld surprised her by telling her that he knew everything about her. As an Asian actress, she felt even more honoured to be remembered. On the red carpet of this year's Cannes Film Festival, Gwei Lun-mei continued her partnership with CHANEL, dressed in a haute couture piece. The mint dress was simple yet complex; more than 600 hours were required to complete it.

當他們又一次見面,桂綸鎂想要向老佛爺正式介紹一下自己,卻驚訝的聽見老佛爺对自己说:「我知道關於你所有的一切」,這令桂綸鎂感到極為榮幸與感動。在今年的戛納電影節上,桂綸鎂身著香奈兒高級訂製出席紅毯,薄荷色禮服簡約而不簡單,製作耗時600餘個小時,是2017春夏高級訂製系列的作品,與桂綸鎂的氣質相得益彰。

Photo Credit: Chanel Archives

We hope you enjoyed these unexpected stories about Hugh Hu and Gwei Lun-Mei.

Check out our review of The Wild Goose Lake here.

Stay tuned for more!

Did you see this movie at TIFF or VIFF? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!