USA: Director Ang Lee and cast arrive in Beverly Hills for the red carpet premiere of the sexually explicit spy drama, "Lust, Caution"

Taiwanese director Ang Lee graced the red carpet Wednesday night (October 3) for the Los Angeles premiere of his latest film, "Lust, Caution". The 2 1/2 hour erotic, spy thriller, which earned an NC-17 rating in the United States for its explicit sex scenes, is a film the Academy Award winner called very personal. "Where it is controversial about the sex or the length itself, it is still Chinese made, or a mixed genre, Chinese melodrama, which is so important in my upbringing, that is part of my cultural root, or mixed that with film noir. Is it art house? Whatever it is, it's me," explained Lee. "I'm just glad that it came out, it is a very personal film, although somewhat in a grand scale. I just feel fortunate that I made the movie. The rest I just deal with it. I'm glad how it went so far." "Lust, Caution" is Lee's return to the theme of forbidden love after the director's gay cowboy hit "Brokeback Mountain", but this time the setting is the teeming streets of 1940s Shanghai. The film centers on a group of revolutionary students bent on killing a powerful political figure who collaborates with occupying forces during the Sino-Japanese war. First-time actress Tang Wei portrays the young woman who agrees to ensnare the sinister figure, played by one of Asia's biggest screen stars, Tony Leung. The game of cat-and-mouse and the assassination plot builds until the final moment of where love and caution collide. Actor Wang Leehom, who's a well known pop star in China, called the making of the film gruelling. "Definitely, it's taken a toll on all of us, emotionally and physically, including the director and all the cast members. But, it's something we all felt very strong and we are all proud to be a part of this movie," Leehom told Reuters. Although, controversial, Lee said he's very pleased with the response to the film. "Lust, Caution," which was the surprise winner of the top award at the Venice film festival, opens in select cities on October 5.

ITN Source | October 4, 2007

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