Jay Chou catches ‘Viral Agent’

“[It] is so far the movie where I made my biggest breakthrough in terms of personal image,” said Chou on Jan. 18, referring to Jon, his character in the film, who is often trapped in dangerous situations, fighting barehanded with a bullet in his head that cannot be taken out.

Seeking to reunite with his father and his elder brother Wan Yang, played by Nicholas Tse (謝霆鋒) of Hong Kong, Jon finds himself moving away from his principles as a special agent to the realities of his life.

Fight Back from Adversity

Dante Lam is known for shoot-em-up action movies such as his award-winning “Beast Stalker” (證人) in 2008. Lam tends to tell sad and dark stories in his movies, and he seldom gives happy endings. “I feel that joy is easy to forget, and people never forget what gives them pain,” he said.

For him, the movie’s Chinese title “Ni Zhan” is more than just a movie title.

“I had wanted to use this title to name one of my movies for a long time, because I seem to keep encountering adversities in my life. And the only way to overcome them is to fight, no matter if you win or lose in the end,” he explained.

Lam first picked Chou as one of the leading actors, and then thought of Tse, not only because the latter is his good friend, but also because of the good working experiences he had with him.

“Chou and Tse are both die-hards for their careers. I thought putting them together could bring out sparks in the movie,” he said.

However, both Chou and Lam have concerns over whether Taiwanese audiences will be able to see Chou without his superstar halo.

“When I showed up wearing armor in ‘Curse of the Golden Flower’ (滿城盡帶黃金甲), the audiences laughed. The character was supposed to utter righteousness. People still see me as who I am in real life,” said Chou.

“My identity is a limitation. Even if I put my musician image away in acting, the audiences still see me that way,” he added.

Lam, who had experience altering Tse’s acting style, gave his opinion regarding Chou’s concerns. “When Tse cried in the last scene of ‘Beast Stalker,’ Hong Kong audiences laughed as well. But the first step is like that, and it is always the most difficult. When an actor passes this step, he or she can only be better,” Lam concluded. ■

‘The Viral Factor’ (逆戰) ► Directed by Dante Lam / With Jay Chou, Nicholas Tse, Liu Kai Chi and Bai Bing / Action / Hong Kong / 2012 / 120 min. / Cantonese with Chinese and English subtitles / ★★★☆☆ / Now Showing

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