Life On The Fast Lane

This Article Is Taken From "The Star Newspaper" And www.jay-chou.net

Initial D, the fast-paced racing movie based on the anime series and computer game has finally made it to the big screen, but while this movie may focus more on the racing action, it is the charisma of its young stars that gives it much of its appeal. What many fans will probably look out for is Taiwanese singing sensation Jay Chou who is making his feature debut playing the lead character of gifted racer Takumi Fujiwara."I love this film and racing even though I do not normally watch it, if I had the right car I would love to race," says Chou, who owns a Toyota AE 86, the same model he drives in the movie.A big fan of movies, especially of the kung fu genre, Chou's exprience in making Initial D has whetted his appetite for more, and is at the moment considering another movie role about a pianist.However, his dream role is something far less serious.

"I love movies based on cartoons and comic books and I have always wanted to play the boy (Nobi Nobita) in the cartoon "Xiao Ding Dang" (Doraemon), and if they make it into a movie, I would definitely be interested," he says enthusiastically.He has also received some accolades from Intial D co-star Anthony Wong, who said recently that Chou has potential to win some awards. "I am happy in his conviction in me and I will continue to work hard on other films apart from my music because I love watching movies," he says. Malaysian readers of The Star's Youth 2 have consistently ranked Chou as the coolest Asian celebrity, and accolade he is grateful for. In giving advice to his fans, he stresses the importance of filial piety."While you should be focused and hard working, an even more important thing is to be filial, as I feel being filial to your parents is more important than anything else," he says.

The movie also stars Edison Chen and Shawn Yue as racing duo Ryousuke Takahashi and Takeshi Nakazato respectively. It is their first appearence together since the Infernal Affairs trilogy.For Chen, the shoot was particularly difficult as he dislikes driving fast cars after witnessing someone becoming crippled in a car accident when he was 12 years old. "When I was sitting in those cars, it was something new to me. You go into a turn and you are like this (he demonstrates by swerving sideways), and I did not expect that but I had to sit in it to get the feel of how the car moves," he said, adding that he would not do it again.Having acted in movies like Infernal Affairs trilogy, Jiang Hu, and the Twin Effect, Chen, 24, has come a long way from being the new kid on the block returning from Canada to Hong Kong."It was hard for me at the beginning as I had no friends, I was continually being ridiculed in the papers. It was tough speaking in Cantonese again and it took me about two years to get into the groove, but now I am in that groove and I hope it continues and I can learn more," he says.

While he is grateful to friends like Eason Chan and MirianYeung who helped him settle in Hong Kong, Anthony Wong and Andrew Lau for teaching him how to act, he is particularly grateful to his fans. "I did not feel like myself when I was acting in the early movies or on stage singing, and there was a point when I felt like quitting, and without my fans and their support I would probably have quit," he says.While he has been quite successful, he remains humble. "I eat, sleep, go to the bathroom and do everything a normal person does, except what I do is entertain you, and I hope nobody looks up to me and thinks I am better than them, because I am not," he says.He also hopes all young people will stop following trends and instead embrace their individuality."In my albums I include messages that tell people not to care about what others say and to be yourself. No one is better than you in this world," he says.

Unlike Chen, Yue, however likes racing cars."I learnt how to race cars before I shot the film, and I also went to Japan to learn how to drift, so I mastered most of the skills," says the 23-year-old.Yue has been fortunate to work with some of the biggest names in the industry like Anthony Wong."I have always wanted to work with these people and it was difficult meeting them for the first time but after a while I found Anthony Wong to be very giving and he took care of us."Wong in particular taught us a lot about acting and the film industry, and how to perform and look at characters and prepare for films," says Yue.Things could have been different for the athletic Yue. When he was younger, he had the option of playing basketball professionally, having represented Hong Kong at international level when he was 18."I had to choose between acting and basketball, but I realised it was harder to make it as a basketball player in Hong Kong and there was a better future in acting. Furthermore, the career lifespan of a sportsman is shorter than of an actor," he reasons.Since then, he has not looked back and will be launching his first album in the next two months. "As a singer, I want to do more charity work and take part in events that promote a healthy lifestyle, and I hope fans will be influenced in a positive way to adopt a healthy lifestyle and do positive things," he says.