The beginning of the new millennium is so gorgeous, so that Andy Lau has a deeper worry about the future, the industry, and life. The rise of the new generation of singers, the change of popular music trends, the impact of overseas films on Local Films, the gradual northward movement of the mainstream position, the accumulation and tempering of 20 years of life experience, the responsibility of idols and social responsibility. Andy Lau made his own choice, gradually withdrawing from the music scene, leaving the opportunity to more young people; shouldering the burden of reviving and revitalizing Hong Kong films, exploring the integration of Hong Kong stars and mainland emerging markets; since the replacement of a new generation of new people is an irresistible natural law, it is an opportunity to take the initiative to create a dream for the new filmmakers with dreams, and cultivate more fresh blood for the film circle.
In the late 1990s, Wan Ziliang introduced Lin Jiadong, who was a popular student in the TV drama industry but was full of confusion about the future, to Andy Lau, and Andy Lau saw his former shadow in Lin Jiadong, so he asked Lin Jiadong to spend a year or two to forget the performance methods and skills he learned in the TV drama industry. In 2001, Andy Lau starred in the movie "Love Jun Like a Dream" to start filming, he pulled Lin Jiadong, who was still a newcomer in the film industry, to play the second male lead, to know that in this play, Lin Jiadong was accompanied by Mei Yanfang and Wu Junru. Since then, as long as there are films performed by Andy Lau, we can basically see the shadow of Lin Jiadong, from "Infernal Affairs" to "Brothers' Life and Death Alliance", from "No Thief in the World" to "Storm", we have seen a Lam Ka Tung who has gradually grown into a powerful actor of the Hong Kong Mesozoic generation, during which Andy Lau also helped Lin Jiadong to tap his talent in directing and supervising producers (the best film "Fight in the Ring" at the 30th Hong Kong Film Awards in 2010 was a good film invested by Andy Lau's Film Entertainment and supervised by Lin Jiadong). Finally, when Lin Jiadong's wings were full, Andy Lau encouraged Lin Jiadong to come out and fly alone, and choose a film alone to pick a beam. In 2017, in the fifth year after Lin Jiadong flew solo, he finally won the Golden Statue With the movie "Tree Trick", which is the best reward for Andy Lau, which is also a real contribution of Andy Lau to Hong Kong films.
In addition to Lin Jiadong, and The one who was brought to the peak of his career by Andy Lau was Jiang Haowen, the best supporting actor at the 2018 Hong Kong Film Awards. The Jiang Haowen, who is one year older than Lin Jiadong and nicknamed "Black Boy", was also once ready to change careers, and the discerning Andy Lau helped him to play an impressive "perverted murderer" in his 2013 movie "Blind Detective", and since then, in Andy Lau's films, we can basically see the wonderful performance of "Black Boy" Jiang Haowen. Today, Jiang Haowen has become a powerful actor in the Hong Kong film circle, participating in mainstream Hong Kong films many times, and gradually becoming the male number one. In the upcoming Andy Lau movie "Goldfinger", we can also see him fighting alongside Andy Lau.
In 2001, Andy Lau, Zheng Xiuwen, Du Qifeng's "Iron Triangle" followed the 2000 annual champion film "Lonely Man and Widow" and cooperated again with the sadistic comedy film "Slim Men and Women", this time the box office was even more brilliant, Hong Kong local sales of 40.44 million Hong Kong dollars (the second of the year), helplessly they met the "King of Comedy" Stephen Chow's peak work - "Shaolin Football" (box office 60.74 million), Xingye in addition to winning the Hong Kong local box office annual champion for the sixth time, but also won the only Golden Emperor Trophy in his acting career. In the same year, Andy Lau's other film, "Full-time Killer", also ranked fifth in the year with a box office of 25.68 million Hong Kong dollars.
In 2002, Hong Kong's economy was a little weak, Hong Kong's film market was even more deserted, because of the SARS epidemic, the mood of the entire Hong Kong citizens was almost gray and gloomy, even after the epidemic ended a few months later, the market opened normally, people's mood did not immediately improve. In order to give the indomitable Hong Kong citizens a shot in the arm, under the efforts of a group of filmmakers led by Andy Lau, Leung Chao-wai and Tsang Chi-wai, the film "Infernal Affairs", which is known as the "work of salvation", came out of nowhere, which continued the glory of classic Hong Kong films, although it was like a general illumination of the last glory, but the short-term pride carried the inherent stubbornness of the spirit of Hong Kong films, which seemed to be the last chapter of the glory of the Hong Kong entertainment industry for more than 30 years. Even if Hong Kong films have since produced high-quality Hong Kong films such as "Kung Fu", "Yangtze River No. 7", "Ip Man" series, "Anti-Drug" series, "Cold War" series, "Peerless" and "Bomb Disposal Expert" series, the highest local box office of Hong Kong films (66.82 million Hong Kong dollars, 2016 film "Cold War 2") is really insignificant compared with the box office of mainland films with more than one billion and billion.
After "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon", "Hero" and so on to open the Chinese film co-production mode, Andy Lau, who is good at insight into market opportunities, seized it, if the 2003 New Year film "Mouse Loves Cat" is an attempt, then from 2004, "Ten Faces Ambush" and "No Thief in the World" let mainland filmmakers see Andy Lau's strong box office appeal, but also let Andy Lau feel the unlimited potential of the mainland film market, Andy Lau is not the first actor to develop north, However, Andy Lau was one of the first Hong Kong stars to be accepted and recognized by both the Mainland and the Hong Kong film market after going north. After Liu Dehua went north, he also led more Hong Kong stars to cooperate northwards, and gradually let the tried and tested co-production model of Hong Kong male No. 1 + Mainland Female No. 1 be recognized and carried forward, such as his "Storm" (Andy Lau + Yao Chen), "Bomb Disposal Expert 2" (Andy Lau + Ni Ni), "Surging Crowds" (Andy Lau + Wan Qian), and then "Ip Man" (Zhen Zidan + Xiong Dailin), "Sweeping Drugs" (Liu Qingyun, Gu Tianle, Zhang Jiahui + Yuan Quan), "Peerless" (Zhou Runfa, Aaron Kwok + Zhang Jingchu) and so on.
In 2003, at the 22nd Hong Kong Film Awards and the 40th Taiwan Film Golden Horse Awards, Andy Lau and Leung Chao-wai were both shortlisted for Best Actor for "Infernal Affairs", but it is reasonable to be surprised that in both competitions, the winner was Liang Chaowei. Especially at the Golden Horse Awards ceremony on December 13 of that year, the host Cai Kangyong and Zheng Yuling's long-term ridicule of Andy Lau made people think that Andy Lau would be the final winner, but when the award guests Xia Yu and Qin Hailu read out that Liang Chaowei, who was not present at the scene, was the final winner, in a popular phrase now, it was "awkward field". When director Ang Lee comforted Andy Lau, who had rosy eyes, he had already seen it, he just wanted to get more people, especially people in the industry, to recognize his acting skills, because the Taiwan Film Golden Horse Awards at that time were more fair, open and authoritative than the Hong Kong Film Awards, and the golden horse awards were nominated twice every three years (the first nomination for "Slim Men and Women" in 2001) was really a bit of a blow to confidence. He would not allow himself to be defeated three times in a row by one man, and he would rivet enough to lose and fight again.
2003 was a sad and sad year for Andy Lau, for Hong Kong films, and for the Chinese entertainment industry. On April Fool's Day, the elegant and heroic and magnificent "brother" Zhang Guorong jumped at the Mandarin Hotel in Hong Kong, and since then the Hong Kong music scene has lost the "Song Immortal" and the Chinese film has lost the "Cheng Butterfly Dress". On December 9, "Little Black" Ke Shouliang died suddenly due to drunken asthma, and since then he can only continue to challenge the difficult motorcycle movements in heaven, Andy Lau has also lost his best friend and big brother, there is no longer a three-person chorus of "Stupid Child", and no one has taught Andy Lau to sing "Orphan Tears".
On December 30, Mei Yanfang died of cancer at the age of 40, Hong Kong's "Xia Yu Fanghong" finally someone has to go first, the "singer" who dares to seek the welfare of Hong Kong artists, dares to insert a knife for his friends and the founder of the Hong Kong Performing Arts Association, Zhongxiang Yuyu, asks, if Mei Yanfang is still there, will Lan Jieying, who was once "beautiful wutai Mountain", go so sorry and regretful, will Li Shau-kee, Liu Jiahui, etc. be so miserable, will the cgx teacher who loves photography mentioned by Mei Sister go astray and cause an uproar? It is really meaningless to renegotiate after the fact, but it can lead to reflection and introspection.
For Andy Lau, the most important person in the entertainment industry, the person who can be trusted and relied on the most, the supreme red face that is the most inseparable and intimate, just like this, with the feeling of "hating not meeting and not meeting" and the regret of marrying the stage of "self-deception". There is a kind of love that will always be beyond love, and this kind of love is Andy Lau and Mei Yanfang. When the global premiere of the movie "Ten Faces Ambush" was released in 2004, when the concert to commemorate the tenth anniversary of Mei Yanfang was held, we could all see a choked voice, dignified expression, almost tearful Andy Lau. Perhaps when the movie "Mei Yanfang" is released on November 12, we will not see how an immortal king who has been struggling for 40 years will remember his confidant and former friend. "Jun lives at the head of the Xiangjiang River, I live in the tail of the Xiangjiang River, thinking about the Jun every day and not seeing the Jun, drinking the water of the Xiangjiang River together", in someone's heart, someone has never left, she/he has melted in bone and blood, and death has followed. Interjection digression, Sister Mei, are you okay in heaven, I am one of your little fans of the film really miss you, "Seems to be the old man" listened to it over and over again, but when I saw you, it was only in memory.
Time has passed through the unforgettable year of 2003, and how will Andy Lau take his own heavenly king road after that, please listen to the next breakdown.