Chapter Seventy-Seven: The Golden Statue Awards (III)

After the award for Best Screenplay, the first major highlight of the Hong Kong Film Awards arrived: the fierce contest for Best Actor and Actress. Li Xiuxian’s performance in “Civil Servant” fully embodied a courageous, intelligent, empathetic, and deeply human police officer, grounding the character in everyday life and reshaping the public image of the police. Through this film, the audience rediscovered the true meaning of the police as public servants. This accomplishment allowed him to surpass numerous contenders and seize the crown of Best Actor.

As for Best Actress, it unfolded exactly as Yan Xu had anticipated, falling to Siqin Gaowa. This Mongolian woman, for a long time, was unaware that she had become the recipient of the Hong Kong Film Awards’ Best Actress. Siqin Gaowa’s acting was universally acknowledged, yet such a prestigious award not going to a local actor sparked some debate. However, the earlier win by Kong Liang had already subdued much of the controversy. Some even expressed relief that only these two mainland artists were nominated; otherwise, the Hong Kong Film Awards might as well have been renamed the Mainland Film Awards.

Following the announcement of Best Actor and Actress, the award for Best Music was presented, won by Lin Minyi for “Love in a Fallen City.” This marked Shaw Brothers’ second victory at this year’s awards.

“Our Hong Kong cinema has flourished over the past year, producing a multitude of masterpieces and achieving box office records far beyond previous years. Last year alone, seven films surpassed twenty million at the box office, and twenty-one exceeded ten million. These successes were not only due to our veteran actors but also the emergence of many new faces, injecting fresh blood into our industry. The next award is for Best Newcomer. The nominees are: Li Lizhen from ‘Shanghai Nights,’ Lin Wei from ‘Police Story,’ Gu Meihua from ‘The Flowing Years,’ Jiang Liping from ‘Crazy for You,’ and Yan Xu from ‘The Butcher on a Rainy Night.’”

After Best Music, another award closely related to Yan Xu was up next. Yan Xu was quite satisfied with his own performance; despite lacking acting experience, his debut had turned out remarkably well. Of course, he had no certainty about winning, and losing the Best Screenplay award had dampened his confidence considerably. He had, after all, been a favorite for that category.

“And the winner is…” Yu Zheng spoke as she picked up an envelope from the podium and slowly opened it, her eyes scanning its contents. “Yan Xu, ‘The Butcher on a Rainy Night.’ Congratulations!”

Happiness came swiftly and unexpectedly. When Yu Zheng announced Yan Xu’s name, he didn’t even react at first. Had the camera been on his face, it would have captured his shocked expression in vivid detail.

It wasn’t until Zhou Huimin beside him grabbed his arm in excitement and let out a soft scream, and Wu Mengda along with other film artists around him turned their gazes toward him, applauding and congratulating him, that Yan Xu finally realized what had happened. If one were to ask how Yan Xu felt at this moment, it was as though he had just experienced the extremes of heaven and hell in a dark room—having lost hope for the awards after missing out on Best Screenplay, only to suddenly find a grand prize unexpectedly in his lap.

It wasn’t that the Best Screenplay award was more important than Best Newcomer; rather, failing to win Best Screenplay meant there would be many more opportunities in the future. But for Best Newcomer, an artist has only one chance in their lifetime. If you miss it, there’s no second shot.

“Thump! Thump!” Yan Xu took the trophy from Yu Zheng, his mind still blank. He hadn’t prepared any acceptance speech at all, so he tapped the microphone a few times to steady his emotions.

“To be honest, Miss Yu Zheng asked me to say a few words, but I really don’t know what to say. I always thought of myself as a fairly decent director, but winning this award makes me realize that perhaps I’m actually an actor. Frankly, receiving this honor is truly unexpected for me,” Yan Xu said, looking embarrassed, his words prompting laughter from the audience.

“In fact, I consider myself far from qualified as an actor—certainly not as skilled as Miss Yu Zheng is at pursuing girls,” he continued playfully, drawing even more laughter. Yu Zheng’s prowess in romance was legendary within the industry.

“By convention, I suppose I ought to thank some people. But after thinking it over, the person I most should thank for this award is the original actor of ‘The Butcher on a Rainy Night.’ If not for his generosity in handing the role over to me, I wouldn’t have had this opportunity,” Yan Xu declared, eliciting a roar of laughter from the audience. The meteoric rise of “The Butcher on a Rainy Night” had led journalists to dig up every detail, and the replacement of the lead actor had become common knowledge. No one expected that Yan Xu, who had stepped in due to budget constraints, would win Best Newcomer.

“Of course, besides him, I must also thank my colleagues at Hundred Battles Film Company. With so little funding, making this film was no easy task. Thanks to the Hong Kong Film Awards committee for your encouragement, perhaps I’ll take on more roles in the future. And thank you to the audience who always supported me—it’s your support that allowed me to achieve such great results. Thank you all!” Yan Xu bowed deeply, then raised the trophy high.

“This trophy is really strange,” Zhou Huimin snatched it from Yan Xu as soon as they left the stage, eyeing the statuette with its two-headed male figure and sticking out her tongue.

“It’s indeed a bit odd—a muscular man running with raised hands, and the two heads are meant to convey movement, connected with flowing lines,” Yan Xu observed, agreeing with Zhou Huimin. Many filmmakers felt the same way, which was why, in a few years, the trophy would be replaced.

While Yan Xu and Zhou Huimin discussed the trophy, the Hong Kong Film Awards ceremony continued. Most of the major awards had already been announced; only Best Movie Song, Best Director, Best Picture, and the newly established Kodak Honor Award remained—the climax of the ceremony, with the final three awards to be revealed last.

There were six nominees for Best Movie Song: Sally Yeh’s “Evening Breeze,” Alan Tam’s “Roots of Love” and “Phantom,” Lam Chi Mei’s “Chance Encounter,” Anita Mui’s “The Flowing Years,” and Zhou Huimin’s “Devotion for Love.”

When Yu Zheng announced the nominees, Zhou Huimin clutched Yan Xu’s trophy in one hand and squeezed his arm tightly with the other. Yan Xu could clearly hear her heavy, rapid breathing.

This was her first nomination, and the nervousness was written all over her face.

“The winner of the Fourth Hong Kong Film Awards for Best Movie Song is…” Yu Zheng wasted no time, quickly revealing the answer.