Not exactly a wealth of material here.
The first is a short interview with Dick Wei himself. This was a lucky find for me, it was tacked on to the end of a tape of the film 'Dragon in Beijing'. The film itself is a made-for-Taiwanese-television cops 'n'triads movie from around 1995. The tape I have is a Malaysian one and the film has been dubbed into Cantonese with Chinese subtitles. However, the television station concerned had sent one of their reporters to interview the actors - and these interviews had been left on the tape in the original Mandarin.
The first interview was with Wu Ma and subsequent ones were with the young television stars who played the various police officers. What made me so excited was the tiny interview with one Di Wei. Sadly the sound quality was almost as poor as my Mandarin and so I watched the short clip over and over to see what I could glean from the odd word and the body language.
First of all I noticed that Di Wei was well spoken and his Taiwanese intonation made a fair bit of what he has to say fairly intelligible, even with my limited vocabulary. The second thing was his body language. He grinned rather nervously, kept his sunglasses on and played with his gun (he was in costume and on set) all through the short interview - in fact he gave the impression of being mildly embarrassed by the attention and - well - shy! Unfortunately I could not make out the interviewer at all, she was soft spoken and very fast - without the questions I couldn't piece together enough for the answers to make sense. There were no subs on this bit and so no help there. Fortunately a kind friend (then my Chinese teacher), who is Taiwanese, translated the 30 or 40 second clip for me - thank you, Michelle!
Interviewer: 'You often play a villain but you don't look like a bad person, so why do you play a baddie so often?'
Di Wei: 'Acting is my work and my occupation. In the real world good people are not necessarily all good and bad people are not necessarily all bad. Wouldn't you say?'
Interviewer: 'I didn't think Di Wei would be so humorous!' (?philosophical.)
And that was it. The young woman was obviously in awe of him, and he seemed uncomfortable being interviewed so it isn't surprising it's not a particularly meaningful clip? Except it is. Because, apart from the odd outtake at the end of a movie, it's the only footage I've seen of Di Wei as Di Wei.
Interview from Impact/Screen Power circa 2000
The second is an extract of an interview with Michelle Yeoh (MY). The interviewer is Mike Leeder (ML)and the interview appeared initially in 'Screen Power' Vol 2 issue 6 and Vol. 3 issue 1. Later a slightly revamped version appeared in 'Impact' nos 107 and 108. I quote from 'Screen Power' vol 2 issue 6 as this gives a fuller discussion about Dick Wei.
MY has already stated that she trusted Dick Wei and that he was one of the people to whom she turned for advice about fight scenes.
ML: You had Dick Wei and Lam Ching-ying teaching you?'
MY: Yeah, Lam Ching-ying, Dick Wei, Ah Dan, Yuen Wah. So when we worked I spent like six to eight hours a day training and I also cut my hair - that was the saddest part of my life (laughing) you know, because I have always had long hair (laughing). I was working out in the gym with Dick Wei and Ah Dan, for literally the whole week only Sunday was rest. We'd go running and then they would teach me the form and boxing.
The interview then turned to her Wing chun training with Lam Ching-ying and then back to:-
ML: Then you had Dick Wei training you?
MY: Oh that was real tough!
ML: I can imagine. I sparred with Dick Wei once in a gym.
MY: He says "I'm not going to hit you!" He always says that. "Don't worry I'm not going to hit you!" But if you whack him once - you're dead! (laughing).
ML: He said to me, "I'm not going to look bad!" I said, "What?" He just went, BANG - and I was on the floor. He was like, "I'm sorry, but I don't want to look bad!" (laughing). With Dick Wei, though, he has that reputation.
MY: Oh, I know!
ML: So many people refuse to fight him. Like Cynthia Rothrock, she refuses to fight with him.
MY: Yeah, every time she saw him, you can see the look on her face, it's like, "Aaaagggghhh!"
ML: She got hit by him badly, though, I mean she broke her jaw and her internal ear got damaged.
MY: You know that's the main problem when you're fighting in the movies, you know, being nervous about actually getting hit. So when you are fighting you can't really have that fear. It's like, "I know I might get hit" - but you have to take the chance. The more nervous you are, the better the chance you have of getting hurt. Of course, accidents happen!
And so the interview moved on to other things, other people. Track it down and read it, it's interesting stuff but with no more than a few further brief mentions of Dick Wei.
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HK Legends - Project A Platinum DVD
Oh my, oh my! Those wonderful, wonderful people at Hong Kong Legends have only gone and interviewed Dick Wei in his home in Taiwan. They did it earlier this year (2002) and brought it out on their 'Special Platinum Edition'. Two-disc, DVD release of Jackie Chan's 'Project A'. This is a U.K.release and, therefore, PAL and Region 2. There are all sorts of goodies on it, including interviews with Mars, Yuen Biao and Lee Hoi-san. Very well worth getting, even, if like me, you already have at least 3 different formats of 'Project A'. Go out and buy it at once!
Of course, I realise that not everyone can access Region 2/PAL and so I will describe some of what we are shown of his house and transcribe the content of the interview (subtitles).
The Pirates Den: At Home with Dick Wei
Opening shot: A yard at the back of a three storey house. In the left hand foreground is a large, white motorcycle - we only see part of it but it is an old-fashioned looking bike, possibly a Harley, with lots of chrome on show. The other side of the yard is lined with plants in pots and garden sculptures - typically Chinese. Dick Wei appears leading a large dog, there is a lot of barking in the background and, sure enough, he walks past the camera and turns through a gate to what appears to be a swimming pool area (though a later sequence shows us that the pool is now full of carp.) Beside the gate we see several sets of barbell weights set on the ground. On the far side of the pool there is a row of large cages which each house other large dogs. The whole area is full of statues and plants.
At points during the interview we are treated to further glimpses of the house. We see him feeding (and stroking) the carp,for example.There are also a few shots of the front of the house. It has a fine grey-stone facade with arched and round windows. There is a yellow mini moke parked round the side of the building and a yard big enough to allow Dick Wei and Jude Poyer to trade a few kicks and punches. What can I say? The man's still got it!
The interview itself takes place inside the house. DW is seated in front of a wooden shelf or cabinet and we can see several traditional Chinese carvings and ornaments behind him - including what might be a statue of Lao Tzu - and photographs from his films.
Dick Wei initially appeared wearing a baseball cap. A black t-shirt with some sort of, possibly manga inspired, picture on it and a pair of black jeans. He is looking trim and fit. The hairline has continued to recede but his hair is pulled back into a tiny ponytail and he is sporting a thin moustache. During the interview he appears relaxed and confident. His voice is soft - a pleasant tenor - and he is speaking in Cantonese. Punctuating everything with hand gestures, he is otherwise sitting quite still - no fidgeting.
The interview lasts about 10 minutes (though it has obviously been edited down from a longer piece of film) and is intercut with shots of him sparring with Jude Poyer, photographs from his film career and clips from his films. The interviewer is off camera and you do not hear the questions. However, judging from his answers and from the other interviews on the disc, I think he has been asked such things as, 'How did you get into films?'; ' What do you think of...' - Jackie Chan; Sammo Hung; Jet Li.... and 'How do you feel about your work?'
What follows is a transcript of the subtitles of the interview... but I cannot reiterate enough -go and buy the disc if you possibly can.
Dick Wei:
" I usually do contemporary films. In the first year and a half, I was in a period drama using a pole. But after that, for more than a decade, I was using my fists and feet. So hand-to-hand is easier for me.
"I was young back then and I had opened a martial arts studio in Taipei. Chang Cheh borrowed my studio to film.Then he told production that I could act... what do you think? In the end...I could try... I could consider it... He asked me to do a screen test. He then showed the clip to Sir Run Run Shaw, the boss of Shaw Studios. Eventually, he told me he wanted to invite me to work over there..to sign up for a long term contract. He wanted to make me a star.
"At first I thought the contract was too long, and I didn't want to go... So Director Chang Cheh said to me... 'If I'm taking you to Hong Kong, then that means I have the confidence to make you a star.'
"He's backed so many actors in the past. About the terms of the contract... he told me not to worry... to ignore it. So after listening to that, I followed Chang Cheh to Hong Kong.
"When I first started to act, it was really difficult for me. At first, I thought that with a few kicks, a few punches, I was acting. It wasn't so. One needs to know how to act... For example... How to hold a sword and swerve and chop.. The fight choreographer had to hold both my hands to do it. I had to learn slowly.
"To me, because I was young and had drive - working under Director Hung, Sammo Hung... almost all his films were... very realistic. He required that every punch hit flesh. Very realistic... There was one film.... we were filming in Studio A, Jackie was filming in Studio B.... when Jackie was passing our studio and saw me resting by the door... he stuck his head in to see what we were filming. He said something to me that left a deep impression, that I still remember... 'Dick Wei, you guys are still fighting like this?' I said, 'Yes, every film is like this.' Then he said, 'Ah... you guys do that then. I'm not filming like that anymore.' So that's why I still remember these words. It's because Director Sammo Hung requires each punch to make contact... It's very, very realistic. While with Jackie, he requires technical expertise, his own brand of agility... and... the design of the shot. That's how he was different from Sammo Hung.
"First of all I'll talk about 'Eastern Condors'. The whole film was filmed in the Philippines. That film was with Yuen Biao and Joyce Godenzi. When we shot the ending it was rather tough on all of us. Because it was shot, and situated in an inconvenient spot. And... At that time Director Hung's requirements were... tough... He had high expectations. We had to fight up a storm.
"Eastern Condors was a good movie.
"Since the movie,'Prodigal Son,' there were ten years of movies having the same fight scenes. The shots in the movies all looked the same.
"And in 'Heart of Dragon', aka 'First Mission', Director Hung specially tailored a role for me so that I didn't have to talk. An asassin who doesn't need to have dialogue. He's against Jackie, against Jckie Chan, chasing after him to fight using a method whereby I just kept attacking him. Fighting until Jackie said, 'Can't you stop attacking me?' Then I said, 'No! This is my duty!'
"When he designs an action shot, the scenery... his own actions... he will spend a lot of time designing them. And his team work very well in tandem. Each punch, each kick... The fighters in his team... really work well in unison with him... really adjust their moves to his.... so you feel that each of his punches and kicks are really something.
"That fight scene led to both of us being in a lot of pain. Hitting bricks, walls... We had to endure quite a lot of difficulties.
"Because I was cast into a mould by all the Hong Kong directors and film companies, whenever they thought of an opponent to good, every bad guy, every opponent to good... that was Dick Wei. But I was very persistent in my own requirements. Even though I was a bad guy, I wanted to do a bad guy with a lot of character. I didn't enact any rapes... I didn't do those X-rated films.
"I was a little bit tired of acting in action films. The reason I wanted to leave Hong Kong was... I was typecast by all the Hong Kong film companies and directors. Whenever they thought of an opponent to good - Dick Wei. Personally, there was no break through. Whenever a film company looked me up, we would talk, and I would always know what to do already. So I was a bit weary... so...
"I really wanted to act in a film of genuine depth, with inner qualities. Actually, I played good guys several times. I was a policeman, a detective, but most people wanted me to be the bad guy.
"I filmed 'Dragon Fight' with Jet Li in San Francisco. At first, in this film, I was also the fight choreographer. I once said to Jet Li, 'You were 5 times champion of martial arts in China. Why don't you be the fight choreographer?' Eventually... he privately... pulled me outside to tell me... He said his type of kung fu is for performances. From the time he was a child at a martial arts institute, he performed with weapons, acrobatics... for performances. Eventually, when we had to act in 'Dragon Fight', the trend was to do freestyle fighting. The fighting style is completely different. He privately said to me that he hoped I would be the fight choreographer because he had never done our kind of fighting. So that was why he didn't want to be fight choreographer and asked me to do the job. In that film, with me acting in a role against him from beginning to end and having to be fight choreographer too, it was pretty tough.
"The way they film in Taiwan and Hong Kong are different. Hong Kongers... for example, staff... either they don't take the job, or if they do, then they're very responsible. The investors don't want to spend a lot of money in Taiwan and .. the talent is another factor.
"Of course, if the budget is low, then you can't really film a good movie. You can't get any famous people to be in your cast. So that's why Taiwan's action films have never been able to match Hong Kong's.
"In the past two years I've done fewer films. Two, three years ago, with my elder brother Ti Lung, and the Taiwan TV company, 'Baat Dim Dong', we filmed an important movie special for the 8pm slot.
"I want to thank all of my friends for their support. I feel that wherever I go where there are Chinese people, in many countries... When I'm recognised, I'm secretly very happy. And overseas friends, I would like to thank you too.
Thank you."
That was the end of the interview. However, it was fairly obvious that more footage must exist.... and sure enough, in the course of the documentary on the making of 'Project A' there were a few more clips from the same session...
Dick Wei on Jackie Chan: "I really admire him. His work ethics and attitude, his perseverance... Impacts, falls, very difficult stunts, he can do them all."
On 'Project A': "When they wanted me to play the role of Lo San, when Sammo Hung wanted me for the role, I was happy, of course, because it was the first time a bad guy would fight the three main characters. Jackie told me later that they had never fought with just one man. So when I heard that I was very happy, very excited. So I gave it my best shot."
On THAT fight scene: "I was young, fit and game for anything. It was very tough. It was impossible to wear protective pads for any of the scenes. So I was hurt and bruised in many places.
"I'm better at using my fists and feet, I'm weaker at weaponry. That scene required me to fight with a long spear. Because of the director's choreography, I managed it easily. Of course, it's more dangerous to fight with weaponry and there's more fancy moves. I think that all hand-to-hand combat is similar. Hand-to-hand combat is easier for me because I didn't learn to use weaponry when I was young. After the fight choreographer had taught us the moves, we all went somewhere prvate. We learnt it the best we could, then used it in the filming.
"While I was fighting with Jackie Chan, before I turned around, Sammo Hung landed on my back. So I wasn't prepared for it and it was a serious injury. The impact hurt my shoulders, strained and injured my muscles.
"After filming... after completion of filming, Jackie, Sammo Hung, Yuen Biao, they each privately told me there had never been a situation where three leading characters... three leading men were beaten up by one opposing character. They said, 'It's never happened before.' When I heard that, for me, it was very exciting."
On 'Project A's enduring appeal: "At that time, the fighting style and the demands of the film... The very dangerous scenes, they were all unprecedented. So that's why it's still popular now."
And that was it. But there must be more.... I can only hope that the Hong Kong Legends' people will be very, very nice and release more of the interview footage on other discs. I can only say thank you to them for showing recognition to this fine character actor and martial artist and to impress upon you to go out and buy the disc, as my basic transcript cannot convey the full splendour.
Image thanks to Megumi.