My Name is Fame

Year:2006
Director:Lawrence Lau Kwok-Cheung
Cast:Lau Ching-Wan, Huo Siyan, Candy Yu On-On, Lai Yiu-Cheung, Ekin Cheng Yee-Kin, Tony Leung Ka-Fai, Fiona Sit Hoi-Kei, Fruit Chan Gor, Derek Tsang Kwok-Cheung, Niki Chow Lai-Kei, Guk Fung, Elena Kong Mei-Yi, Samson Chiu Leung-Chun, Stephen Tung Wai, Henry Fong Ping, Gordon Chan Car-Seung, Ann Hui On-Wah, Jo Koo, Lau Dan, Calvin Choi Yat-Chi, Edmond So Chi-Wai, Remus Choi Yat-Kit, Jamie Luk Kin-Ming, Vincent Tsui
Description:
Lau
Ching-Wan lampoons himself in director Lawrence Lau's
entertaining comedy-drama My Name is Fame.
The actor takes on a delightfully juicy role that
simultaneously skewers and reveres his career, which
is notable for being highly-regarded and virtually
unrewarded . In My Name is Fame, Lau plays
Poon Ka-Fai, a supporting actor/bit player type who
possesses an intense appreciation and devotion to
the craft of acting. Poon is so focused on quality
that he regularly dispenses fiery, sometimes abusive
advice to crew members and other actors in the middle
of shoots - a habit that rightfully pisses off his
colleagues. After years of berating his peers and
bitching about the crappy state of the entertainment
industry, Poon is experiencing a serious career slide.
He's fallen off the casting wagon, and is even recalled
in the past tense by more than a few industry players.
Enter Faye Ng , neophyte actress and Poon Ka-Fai groupie,
who attaches herself to the aging actor despite his
none-too-subtle instructions to buzz off. Ka-Fai seems
to have no interest in Faye's fannish attitudes, but
after seeing her attempt to act, Ka-Fai takes her
under his wing. He teaches her acting craft and technique,
and soon discovers that she may just have a knack
for the biz. She quickly ascends from bit player to
stuntwoman to in-demand flavor of the month. Meanwhile,
Ka-Fai finds himself becoming enamored of his younger
protégé, though the emotion is subtle
at first. When Faye gets a shot at a bigtime Hong
Kong film that requires her to disrobe, Ka-Fai puts
his emotions out there. Will Faye and Ka-Fai find
everlasting love with one another? Or will she rise
to unprecedented success, leaving him a bitter shell
of a man? And haven't we seen this movie before?
We probably have, because
the story of an aging entertainer who takes a female
protégé/lover under his wing is tried-and-true
cinema stuff. The most famous variation is undoubtedly
the 1937 US film A Star is Born and its numerous
remakes, though My Name is Fame doesn't approach
the intense emotions of those films. As Faye's star
rises, one would expect Ka-Fai's to continue descending,
to the point that his bitter downward spiral becomes
a tragic crash. That's not what happens here; My
Name is Fame goes the uplifting route, with Ka-Fai
choosing to reapply himself instead of becoming a
self-absorbed mess. He sobers up from his mild drinking
habit and starts offering constructive instead of
abrasive criticism. It's more of a 120-degree turn
than a complete 180, but the character's change is
felt. The fact that it's Lau Ching-Wan playing the
role only makes it better.
A closer comparison to My
Name is Fame than A Star is Born is probably
the 1999 Stephen Chow film King of Comedy.
In that film, Stephen Chow's character Wan Tin-Sau
managed to find purpose through a fervent, even obsessive
dedication to acting. In Chow's film, acting brought
Wan Tin-Sau respect, love, and even relative success - after a series of parodies and wacky screwball
jokes, of course. My Name is Fame goes a similar,
though completely non-wacky route, drilling home the
point that if we try hard on our chosen path, then
we'll most definitely succeed one day. It's a nice
lesson, and one that really carries weight in the
film. After all, it's drilled home in multiple loaded
conversations, including one between Poon Ka-Fai and
Leung Ka-Fai , who reminds
Ka-Fai that dedication will pay off.
A veteran of more than one career slide, Tony Leung
Ka-Fai - who incidentally is the most recent recipient
of a Best Actor Hong Kong Film Award - should know
the value of dedication.
The audience should
know too, because that lesson could qualify as a key
point in Hackneyed Screenwriting 101. Using a disarmingly
effervescent young thing as the catalyst for Ka-Fai's
transformation qualifies as even more hackneyed writing,
but My Name is Fame manages to sidestep most
of the obvious clichés. The screenwriters don't delve too far
into bitter emotion; Ka-Fai may be on the downside
of his career, but his bitterness only manifests itself
as a chronic crankiness and not an exaggerated spiral
of self-destruction. The filmmakers don't play up
the older guy-younger girl thing either. The romance
between Faye and Ka-Fai seems to develop more in the
background than the foreground, and manifests itself
in a refreshingly natural way. Instead of being concerned
with the romance, the filmmakers spend all their time
talking about the movies. The Hong Kong film industry
is given a gentle needling, with references to the
Cookies, Lau Ching-Wan's former jobs , and all
manner of HK Cinema luminaries. Ekin Cheng, Fiona
Sit, Niki Chow, and others make token appearances
as themselves. The likely audience response is probably
to marvel at all the unnecessary namedropping.
But the namedropping
pays off. Director Lawrence Lau
gives the film industry generous focus, spending plenty
of screentime time on the joys of moviemaking. Much
time in My Name is Fame is spent merely watching
actors, directors ,
crew members, and even stunt coordinators collaborating.
Frequent moviemaking montages show up, and they prove
to be fascinating and affectionate of their subject
matter. Lau Ching-Wan is perfect for this movie; he's
a solid leading man who's got charisma and talent
to spare - but somehow he always loses out to peaking
prettyboys or edgier actors who chew up the scenery.
In some ways, Lau Ching-Wan plays himself in My
Name is Fame, and he does so with considerable
self-effacing charm. He also creates a fine rapport
with the lovely and expressive Huo Siyan, who impresses
as the starstruck Faye. The abundance of cameos by
familiar Hong Kong faces helps too. It may be a little
unnecessary, but it's always fun to spot the stars.
If any complaint could
be directed at My Name is Fame it's that the
film is perhaps a little too warm and fuzzy. Show
business is filled with ugliness and ugly people , but My Name is Fame
seems to be a story with only one direction: up. The
characters work harder, they achieve greater success,
and the ugliness and ugly people in the biz barely
make an appearance. The story of Poon Ka-Fai and Faye
Ng may seem like it should be going the Star is
Born route, but the filmmakers go easy on the
audience, sending us in a direction that, if it isn't
really "feel good", is at least "feel
better". The truly bad stuff in the industry
gets only minor acknowledgment, while the good stuff - recognition, respect, sane human beings - seems
to be everywhere.
The script's lack of disclosure
feels slightly disingenuous, but the overall film
is never anything less than enjoyable. My Name
is Fame succeeds handily as a valentine to the
movie business, and finds much to celebrate in the
local industry's rushed productions, ensemble casts,
and blue-collar work ethic. Acting and filmmaking
are presented here as hard work that will pay off
if one remembers to stay dedicated and respectful
of others. Screw pessimism - at the end of this rainbow
there's a pot of gold, or at least a stack of good
reviews and possibly a Hong Kong Film Award waiting
for whoever gives it their all. A lesson this earnest
may be too nice for righteous truth-seeking audiences,
but in these dark Hong Kong Cinema days, positive
thinking can only help. Good movies would help, too.
Thankfully, My Name is Fame qualifies.