SINGAPORE: They have worked on seven films together now, and spent countless hours in each other's company on the set.
Their latest collaboration, "The Grandmaster", took over four years to shoot.
But Hong Kong actor Tony Leung still doesn't quite understand his relationship with Hong Kong director Wong Kar Wai, who has worked with him on hits like "'In the Mood for Love" and "Chungking Express".
"It's very strange. Our relationship is weird," said Leung, when he met the Singapore media at a publicity event held at the ArtScience Museum recently.
"Actually, we don't speak much … we just have the chemistry and energy on the set. I can't say I understand him, I am trying to understand him," mused the actor, who plays martial arts legend Ip Man in the film.
"But we have fun every time and I enjoy [it] a lot, that's why we still make movies together!"
Leung explained that there has always been a little trial and error when he worked with Wong.
"You don't know how he wants you to act, and he doesn't tell you what he wants, so I just act it out and see if he likes it.
"If he doesn't say anything, then it means this works," said Leung, flashing a boyish grin.
Cuts and bruised egos?
He may not understand Wong, but Leung expressed that he "trusts" him completely, and did not fall out with Wong over the fact that Wong had cut a number of his scenes from the final version of "The Grandmaster", as some tabloids have claimed.
"I've been working with Kar Wai for 20 years. We are very good friends … this trust is built up over time," said Leung.
"How many of my scenes were cut, I haven't counted. But I don't feel it's a pity or anything special that my scenes were not used," Leung added.
"Because as an actor, it's enough that I have acted in the scene. Whether the director uses it or not, it is his production. He decides what will be the final product and how to tell the story.
"If he used everything, it would be a four to five hour film," he continued.
"You have to have a lot of trust in him. No matter what he does."
"So I don't feel it's a pity, though the audience may feel that way because they won't have a chance to see the stuff that has been cut."
Standing out
Although audiences will probably have to wait for the DVD or Blu-Ray release of "The Grandmaster" to catch a glimpse of some of the deleted scenes, the cinema version of the film has quite a bit to keep their attention, from philosophical soliloquys, to carefully orchestrated fight scenes.
But will it be enough to make "The Grandmaster", which opens in Singapore on Thursday, stand out from the rash of Ip Man films that have surfaced in recent years?
When asked how "The Grandmaster" stacks up against the popular "Ip Man" trilogy, which starred Hong Kong actor Donnie Yen, Leung said it is "unfair" to compare them.
"They are like works from two different painters. You can't compare them because their techniques are different and their focus is different," said Leung diplomatically.
"So it's unfair to everyone to compare them. Each has its own unique points."
-CNA/ha
Tony Leung tells all about "weird" relationship with Wong Kar Wai
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Tony Leung tells all about "weird" relationship with Wong Kar Wai
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Tony Leung tells all about "weird" relationship with Wong Kar Wai
