| Stephen Chow |
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Stephen Chow (also know as Stephen Chiau / Chow Sing Chi) () (born June 22 1962 ) is a Film Director and Actor in many blockbuster movies in Hong Kong . Chow is considered the finest Hong Kong screen Comedian since Michael Hui , and a mucho, macho- Superstar to all concerned in the Hong Kong entertainment circle, epitomized by his nickname 星爺 (Sing Yeh, lit. Grandmaster Sing). However, his brand of Mo Lei Tau Comedy , which includes Pun s, Double Entendre and poking fun at Chinese culture, meant that few of his earlier films could exercise much impact in the West until his later films, '' Shaolin Soccer '' (2001) and '' Kung Fu Hustle '' (2004). PROFESSIONAL CAREER Chow was a graduate at the Shaw Brothers ' TVB acting school and co-hosted a popular Hong Kong children's program, '' 430 Shuttle '', as a character named "Black and White Vampire", and though this was a stepping stone for his career, it limited it, offering no outstanding performances. At that time, Stephen Chow mainly played dramatic roles in Hong Kong TVB television series, in one of which called [Dun Fei Final Combat] (蓋世豪俠) (1989), Chow has outstanding performance and started to gain popularity in Hong Kong. Also, in those television series, he started the long-term collaboration relationship with director, LEE，Lik Chi (李力持)and actor, Ng Man Tat (吳孟達). In 1990, his performance in Jeff Lau 's smash-hit '' All For The Winner ''launched him in his comedy film career, which is now his prime genre. His subsequent films were built on the success of ''All For The Winner'', and he developed his distinct brand of Humour known as '' Mo Lei Tau '' (nonsense or "no-brainer") which makes frequent use of Euphemism s and Double Entendres in unoffensive Cantonese slang. He regularly demonstrates his talent for improvisation, suggesting gags to directors to enhance the script, allowing chances to make rewrites of the plot. By 1994, he was writing and directing some of his own films. The films themselves often follow a similar template: Chow portrays either an under-achiever who beats the odds, or an arrogant overachiever, who is himself then humbled and receives a lesson in Humility before fighting back. Stephen Chow tends to use the Underdog or Rags-to-riches story to portray his character. '' Fight Back To School '' ( 1991 ), '' From Beijing With Love '' ( 1994 ) and '' God Of Cookery '' (1996) are notable examples of this style of work. Sometimes, his films would utilize a historic environment, but demonstrate the same use of modern-period cross-cutting comedy, as in the films '' Justice, My Foot '' (審死官) ( 1992 ) and '' Flirting Scholar '' ( 1993 ). Occasionally, however, Chow would break from his comedies. One of his more serious films is the second part to '' A Chinese Odyssey '', ''Cinderella'' (1994), loosely based on the classic Chinese epic '' Journey To The West ''. Although essentially a comedy at heart, Chow was able to develop his character more seriously than before. It was a box-office smash in Hong Kong and even ignited a cult following in Mainland China. Recent films by Chow have begun to focus on comic action and special effects sequences rather than verbal humour to appeal to a wider international audience. The film which launched him to international fame was '' Shaolin Soccer '' (2001), which made heavy use of CGI and was directed by Chow himself. A later film, '' Kung Fu Hustle '' (2004), was also directed by Chow and in February 2005 went on to surpass '' Shaolin Soccer '' as the highest grossing domestic movie in Hong Kong. In July 2006, Chow started the filming of his latest feature, '' (US$13 million; €10.2 million). In August 2007 the film was given the title ''CJ7'' (Chang Jiang qi hao), a play on China's successful Shenzou manned space missions - Shenzhou 5 and Shenzhou 6 . It was previously been known by a series of Working Title s - ''Alien'', ''Yangtze River VII'', ''Long River 7'' and most notably, ''A Hope''. This latest film will introduce newcomer Zhang Yuqi as his romantic lead - continuing Chow's tradition of introducing young female actresses who eventually go on to have successful film or music careers of their own. These "Chow's Cuties" include well-known names as Gigi Leung , Karen Mok , Cecilia Cheung , Huang Shengyi , Cheung Man , Christy Chung and Michelle Reis . Recently, Chow did a collaborative project with Hong Kong entertainer and JUICE owner Edison Chen, which they designed t-shirts underlying vulgar messages. FILMOGRAPHY
QUOTES ''Mo lei tau'' comedy became popular as a result of Chow's performances. The opening phrase in the TVB drama '' The Final Combat '', "飲杯茶，食個包" (A cup of tea to drink, a bun to eat) was one of the most memorable phrases of the time. ;Other quotes:
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