Patrick Tam's Fu zi / After This Our Exile won this year's Golden Horse for Best Film of the year at the Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival, which ended yesterday.
Set within a Chinese community in rural Malaysia, After This Our Exile depicts the complex relationship between a boy and his no-good father. Curiously, Patrick Tam's name was not included among the four Best Director nominees.
After This Our Exile leading man, Hong Kong pop singer Aaron Kwok, won the Best Actor award — his second in a row (Kwok had previously won for Divergence). "The movie is a huge challenge for me … but I never thought I could win [the Best Actor award] again," Kwok remarked upon accepting his award. His nine-year-old co-star, Goum Ian Iskandar, was given the Best Supporting Actor award thus becoming the youngest Golden Horse winner ever.
The evening's other top winner was the Hong Kong musical Ru guo · Ai / Perhaps Love, which revolves around a love triangle taking place on a film set. Among its four wins were those for director Peter Chan and for Mainland performer Zhou Xun, who was chosen Best Actress.
Earlier in the festival, two nominated films were pulled out of the competition.
Malaysian-born but Taiwan resident Tsai Ming Liang withdrew his film I Don't Want to Sleep Alone, following comments from jury members that it was self-indulgent and unengaging, while Tianzhuang Zhuang's The Go Master was unexpectedly pulled out reportedly due to pressure from Mainland authorities.
The Golden Horse, the Chinese equivalent to the Oscars, covers productions made in China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan.
Full list of winners at the 43rd Taipei Golde Horse Film Festival.
Thessaloniki Film Festival 2006 Winners
Queens International Film Festival 2006 Winners