Technology turns back time for veteran actor Jacky Cheung
Hong Kong singer-actor Jacky Cheung may be 62, but the Heavenly King plays an action hero in his 40s in the new movie Customs Frontline.
Too far-fetched? Not quite, Hong Kong filmmaker Herman Yau told Singapore media in a Zoom interview on July 2, ahead of the action drama’s release in Singapore cinemas on July 4.
It revolves around a team of Hong Kong Customs and Excise Department officers who encounter a mysterious container ship carrying the bodies of dead crew members and a huge cache of arms. That puts them on a dangerous collision course against a ruthless arms dealer.
The director shared that Cheung’s Customs officer character is supposed to be 45 years old. Given that Customs Frontline was shot from March to June 2022, the leading man was a few months shy of 61 at the time.
The Cantopop superstar is in the midst of his 60+ Concert Tour, with performances in Hangzhou scheduled for July and August. The tour made a stop in Singapore from July to August 2023, when he played 11 shows at the Singapore Indoor Stadium.
“Can Jacky Cheung play the character’s age? I think he can. Technology is very advanced nowadays,” hinted Yau, 62, who stopped short of mentioning the use of digital de-ageing, a visual effects technique commonly used in films.
“Anyone can easily find out Jacky’s real age online. But if you ask me, I do not think he looks 62.
“Does he look 49? I can believe that. In movies, what matters is what age you look like.”
Yau added: “Actually, Jacky’s action scenes can be very good. He is not the sort who goes one, two, three, fight. But he has a lot of experience with action films, and he is very humble.”
Cheung’s last lead role was eight years ago, as a disgraced pastor in the drama film Heaven In The Dark (2016). It earned him a Golden Horse Award nomination for Best Leading Actor.
He has worked with Yau on at least four other films, including Best Of The Best (1992) and No More Love, No More Death (1993). The film-maker credits these past collaborations for convincing Cheung to make his acting comeback.
Yau said: “I must have left a good impression during the times we worked together.”
Equally youthful-looking is Nicholas Tse, 43, who plays a cocky Customs officer in his 30s. Yau said: “If I did not know his real age and went solely by his looks, I might even cast him to play a fresh university graduate.”
Customs Frontline also marks the Hong Kong actor-singer’s first foray into action choreography. Despite Tse’s lack of experience in the field, Yau had no concerns about him being the film’s action choreographer, given that he has appeared in action movies such as New Police Story (2004) and Raging Fire (2021).
Yau worked with Tse on the action film Time And Tide (2000), and was touched by the star’s interest and passion for action scenes.
Yau said: “Even back then, in our conversations, he shared how he would handle certain scenes. That alone gave me the confidence that being an action choreographer would be suitable for him.”
In a scene from Customs Frontline, Tse’s character is shown hanging from a car suspended in the air and pulled along by a helicopter. Yau said: “That was quite hard to execute. I give Nicholas’ performance a nine out of 10.”
Cheung and Tse’s characters share a close mentor-mentee relationship, and Yau felt the co-stars’ palpable chemistry off-screen too.
“Tse has always looked up to Cheung as a show-business veteran, and Cheung also felt that working with Tse would be a good experience – enough for him to take on his first acting role in such a long time.”
Customs Frontline opens in Singapore cinemas on July 4.
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