Where’s the zing, Bingbing?
Chinese actress Li Bingbing goes from bare to blah
By Tan Kee Yun
November 07, 2009
IS Li Bingbing becoming too safe, serious and as a result, too boring for her own good?
Going by the outfit the 33-year-old wore to the opening of fashion label Burberry’s new store at Ion Orchard on Tuesday, it seemed to be the case.
The Chinese actress – best known for her role as the white-haired witch in the movie The Forbidden Kingdom starring Jackie Chan and Jet Li – was in town as a special guest for the invite-only event.
Also adding to the star power of the affair was handsome South Korean actor Won Bin.
Decked out in a delicate and simple white flapper dress, Bingbing looked elegant and sophisticated as she made her entrance.
However, if one had followed her wardrobe choices over the past few years, her dress that evening was definitely tame in comparison.
‘When I’m in the public, I don’t like wearing clothes that are too revealing,’ she told The New Paper.
You’d probably never catch her in a situation where she accidentally exposes some skin.
‘I always take all the necessary precautions to avoid wardrobe malfunctions,’ she said.
‘Just before I came here, I checked every part of my dress, making sure it’s totally secure.’
She revealed she hasn’t selected an outfit to walk down this year’s Golden Horse Awards red carpet, which will be held at the end of the month in Taipei.
She is nominated for a Best Actress award for her lead role in espionage thriller The Message, where she plays an intelligence officer suspected of double-cross.
With her newfound conservative attitude, we’re wondering what she will wear.
Past appearances
Strangely, sexiness didn’t seem to have bothered her in the past.
In 2007, she made jaws drop when she attended the Golden Horse Awards – she had received a Best Actress nomination for her role in the romantic drama The Knot – in a shimmering, cleavage-baring silver blouse.
Last March, at a Hong Kong press conference to promote The Forbidden Kingdom, she turned up in a low-cut black top, complete with hot pants and a ridiculously long blanket-like cloth dangling from her waist.
But her sexiest turn was for a 2005 photoshoot.
Together with fellow actresses Vivian Wu and Christy Chung, she posed nude as part of a campaign for breast cancer awareness.
Her intense, emotional performance in The Message had several mainland China critics raving that she ‘has finally proven her mettle as a serious actress’.
In an earlier interview with Guangzhou Daily, she admitted that The Message could well be the ‘turning point’ in her career.
But apparently, her newfound seriousness meant giving bland, politically correct answers too.
Asked how she would rate her chances at the Golden Horse Awards, Bingbing said: ‘It’s really up to fate, whether I win or not. Even if I don’t, it’s not a bad thing, as it means there is still much room for improvement.’
When asked how she felt about being named by the mainland Chinese media as one of the country’s ‘top four actresses’, she smiled and said: ‘That’s just the media trying to create news, it doesn’t matter who is named.’
The other three actresses are Zhou Xun, Vicki Zhao and Fan Bingbing
Li Bingbing also dismissed the rumours of bad blood between her and Zhou Xun, her co-star in The Message.
‘When you put two female stars in the same film, the paparazzi will inevitably try to whip up some gossip of feuding between the actresses,’ Bingbing said.
Korean star hides in changing room at event
NOW you see him, now you don’t.
Lanky Korean superstar Won Bin, 31, unwittingly played a game of hide-and-seek with local media and high society guests on Tuesday.
Invited by Burberry as one of its special guests for the opening of its new store, the suave actor, who shot to fame in films like My Brother (2004) and Brotherhood (2004), was surrounded by a wall of security the whole night.
Looking dapper in a black jacket, Won Bin – sporting longer hair than usual but with the unmistakable shy smile – created a commotion when he entered the mall.
Fans – mostly excited women – attempted to take pictures of him.
But he stayed for only a few seconds before being whisked away by his minders into the store, which doubled up as the VIP area for guests.
No media interviews were allowed, but a few intrepid ones tried our luck within the store itself.
But it was the same situation inside.
While local celebrities such as Zoe Tay, Jacelyn Tay and Terence Cao mingled freely with guests, Won Bin was still under heavy protection.
Most of the time, he hid himself in the changing room located at the far end of the store. Even finger food and drinks had to be delivered into the changing room for him.
At one point, a decoy was sent out of the room. Some guests went into a frenzy, clamouring for a picture of him.
‘That’s not Won Bin,’ commented someone who had taken a closer look.
The Singapore public relations team handling the event told The New Paper that the no-interview policy and tight security were decided by Won Bin’s management.
It could partly be due to the language barrier.
The spokesman said: ‘Unlike the other celebrities who were invited, Won Bin doesn’t speak English or Mandarin. So it’s much harder for him to talk to anyone.’
Tan Kee Yun
The NewPaper