Assassin, Thanatos lead Golden Horse nominations
By Kevin Ma
Thu, 01 October 2015, 20:00 PM (HKT)
Awards News
The Golden Horse Awards 金馬獎 nomination committee showed plenty of love for local productions this year as two Taiwan films lead the shortlist.
As may be expected, HOU Hsiao-hsien 侯孝賢's The Assassin 刺客聶隱娘 scored the most nominations with 11, including Best Film, Best Director, Best Actress (SHU Qi 舒淇), Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Action Choreography.
Hou was also named Outstanding Taiwanese Filmmaker of the Year for his Best Director win at Cannes. Ten years ago, Hou's Three Times 最好的時光 (2005) had 9 nominations, but won only Best Actress for Shu and Best Taiwanese Film of the Year. Hou also won the Outstanding Taiwanese Filmmaker of the Year award that year.
Following its wins at the Taipei Film Festival 台北電影節, CHANG Tso-chi 張作驥's Thanatos, Drunk 醉・生夢死 secured ten nominations, including Best Film, Best Director, and nominations in all the acting categories except Best Actress.
Philip YUNG 翁子光's Hong Kong thriller Port of Call 踏雪尋梅 received nine nominations, including Best Film, two Best New Actor awards, Best Actor (Aaron KWOK 郭富城) and Best Original Screenplay.
Rounding out the Best Film category are Pema Tseden 萬瑪才旦's Tharlo ཐར་ལོ | 塔洛 and JIA Zhangke 賈樟柯's Mountains May Depart 山河故人. Both films also have Best Director nominations.
Mainland China nominations are led by Mountains, with seven recognitions. Other nominated films include XU Haofeng 徐浩峰's The Master 師父 (three nominations), Saving Mr. Wu 解救吾先生 (two nominations) and GUAN Hu 管虎's Mr. Six 老炮兒 (two nominations). Gone with the Bullets 一步之遙 and Monster Hunt 捉妖記 are nominated in technical categories.
China's FENG Xiaogang 馮小剛, DENG Chao 鄧超 and DONG Zijian 董子健 receive three nominations in the Best Actor categories. The 21-year-old Dong, one of China's hottest young actors, will compete in the category with 25-year-old LEE Hong-chi 李鴻其, also nominated as Best New Performer for Thanatos, Drunk.
Last year, Mainland cinema was the majority winner, with six awards going to LOU Ye 婁燁's Blind Massage 推拿.
Last November, Taiwan's Ministry of Culture 台灣文化部 announced that any Mainland China film that wins the Best Director and/or Best Film award at the Golden Horse can bypass Taiwan's ten-film China film quota. Mountains May Depart, which did not win a local release quota, will need to win in one of the two categories to receive a local release.
Several Taiwan films were also recognised: Zinnia Flower 百日告別 has three nominations (including Best Actress for Karena LAM 林嘉欣), Sylvia CHANG 張艾嘉's Murmur of the Hearts 念念 has three nominations. Local hit youth romance Our Times 我的少女時代 earned three nominations and The Laundryman 青田街一號 earned four nominations.
Besides Port of Call, Hong Kong is also represented by Johnnie TO 杜琪峯's Office 華麗上班族 (six nominations) and The Taking of Tiger Mountain 3D 智取威虎山 (four nominations), including a Best Director nomination for TSUI Hark 徐克.
The Best Animation category returns this year with two nominees: Monkey King: Hero is Back 西遊記之大聖歸來 and McDull: Me & My Mum 麥兜 我和我媽媽.
According to Golden Horse Festival CEO WEN Tien-hsiang 聞天祥, 427 films were submitted to this year's awards. 71 films made the second-round shortlist and 39 films (including shorts) were finally nominated.
As previously announced, actress LI Lihua 李麗華 will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award at the ceremony on 21 Nov 2015 in Taipei.
2015 Golden Horse Awards Nominations
Best Feature Film
Thanatos, Drunk
Port of Call
The Assassin
Tharlo
Mountains May Depart
Best Director
Chang Tso-chi; Thanatos, Drunk
Hou Hsiao-hsien; The Assassin
Jia Zhangke; Mountains May Depart
Pema Tseden; Tharlo
Tsui Hark; The Taking of Tiger Mountain 3D
Best Actor
Deng Chao; The Dead End
Dong Zijian; Delan 德蘭
Feng Xiaogang; Mr. Six
Aaron Kwok; Port of Call
Lee Hong-chi; Thanatos, Drunk
Best Actress
Sylvia Chang; Office
Karena Lam; Zinnia Flower
Shu Qi; The Assassin
Vivian SONG 宋芸樺; Our Times
ZHAO Tao 趙濤; Mountains May Depart
Best Supporting Actor
Michael CHANG 張少懷; The Laundryman
CHENG Jen-shuo 鄭人碩; Thanatos, Drunk
Lawrence KO 柯宇綸; Murmur of the Hearts
Michael NING 白只; Port of Call
WANG Qianyuan 王千源; Saving Mr. Wu
Best Supporting Actress
CHIEN Man-shu 簡嫚書; Maverick 菜鳥
JIANG Wenli 蔣雯麗; The Master
Elaine JIN 金燕玲; Port of Call
LÜ Hsueh-feng 呂雪鳳; Thanatos, Drunk
Sandra MA 馬思純; The Left Ear
Best New Director
BI Gan 畢贛; Kaili Blues 路邊野餐
Frankie CHEN 陳玉珊 ; Our Times
LEE Chung 李中; The Laundryman
Alec SU 蘇有朋; The Left Ear
XIANG Guoqiang 相國強; Young Love Lost 少年巴比倫
Best New Performer
Ado Kaliting PACIDAL 阿洛・卡力亭・巴奇辣; Panay 太陽的孩子
Lee Hong-chi; Thanatos Drunk
Jessie LI 春夏; Port of Call
Michael Ning; Port of Call
Cecilia So; She Remembers, He Forgets 差一點我們會飛
Best Original Screenplay
Mountains May Depart
Mr. Six
Port of Call
Thanatos, Drunk
Zinnia Flower
Best Adapted Screenplay
The Assassin
The Master
Office
Tharlo
Panay
Best Cinematography
The Assassin
Mountains May Depart
Port of Call
Thanatos, Drunk
Tharlo
Best Visual Effects
Gone With the Bullets
Monster Hunt
Rise of the Legend 黃飛鴻 英雄有夢
The Taking of Tiger Mountain 3D
Wolf Totem 狼圖騰
Best Art Direction
The Assassin
Gone with the Bullets
Monster Hunt
Office
The Taking of Tiger Mountain 3D
Best Make-up and Costume Design
The Assassin
De Lan
Gone With the Bullets
Office
Monster Hunt
Best Action Choreography
The Assassin
The Master
Rise of the Legend
SPL2: A Time for Consequences 殺破狼Ⅱ
The Taking of Tiger Mountain 3D
Best Original Score
The Assassin
Mountains May Depart
Murmurs of the Heart
Thanatos, Drunk
Zinnia Flower
Best Original Film Song
The Laundryman
Office
Our Times
Port of Call
Panay
Best Film Editing
The Assassin
Murmur of the Hearts
Saving Mr. Wu
Thanatos, Drunk
The Verse of Us 我的詩篇
Best Sound Effects
The Assassin
The Laundryman
Monster Hunt
Mountains May Depart
Office
Best Animation Feature
Monkey King: Hero is Back
McDull: Me & My Mum
Best Documentary
32 and 4
The Chinese Mayor
On the Rim of the Sky
The Verse of Us
Wansei Back Home
Best Short Film
The Death of a Security Guard
Filial Piety Award
No No Sleep
Time to Die
Under the Sun
Outstanding Taiwanese Filmmaker of the Year
Hou Hsiao-hsien