Brigitte Lin Ching-hsia (; born 3 November 1954) is a
Taiwan
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...
ese actress. She is regarded as an
icon
An icon () is a religious work of art, most commonly a painting, in the cultures of the Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, and Catholic churches. They are not simply artworks; "an icon is a sacred image used in religious devotion". The most ...
of Chinese language cinema for her extensive and varied roles in both
Taiwanese
Taiwanese may refer to:
* Taiwanese language, another name for Taiwanese Hokkien
* Something from or related to Taiwan ( Formosa)
* Taiwanese aborigines, the indigenous people of Taiwan
* Han Taiwanese, the Han people of Taiwan
* Taiwanese people, ...
and
Hong Kong
Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...
films.
Biography
Lin was born in
Chiayi
Chiayi (, Taigi POJ: ''Ka-gī''; ), officially known as Chiayi City, is a city located in the plains of southwestern Taiwan. Formerly called ''Kagee'' during the late Qing dynasty and ''Kagi'' during the Japanese era (), its historical name i ...
, Taiwan. She was scouted in 1972 on the streets of Taipei by a film producer after she finished women's high school and was preparing for university.
Lin debuted in the film adaptation of
Chiung Yao
Chiung Yao or Qiong Yao (; born 20 April 1938) is the pen name of Chen Che, a Taiwanese writer and producer who is often regarded as the most popular romance novelist in the Chinese-speaking world. Her novels have been adapted into more than 100 f ...
's ''
Outside the Window'' (1973), which propelled her into stardom.
Lin, along with
Joan Lin
Joan Lin Feng-jiao (born 30 June 1953) is a Taiwanese former actress. She is married to Hong Kong-Chinese actor and martial artist Jackie Chan.
Early life
Born 30 June 1953 in Taipei, Lin was the second child out of five children. She dropped out ...
,
Charlie Chin
Charlie Chin Hsiang-lin (; born May 19, 1948) is a Taiwanese actor.
Background
Born in Nanjing, China in 1948, he first had his break when he moved to Hong Kong with his family at an early age. At only 12 years of age Charlie moved to Taiwan t ...
and
Chin Han, thus became known as the "Two Chins, Two Lins" (二秦二林) for their extensive roles in romantic movies of the 1970s based on Chiung's novels that dominated the Taiwanese box office.
She subsequently joined Chiung Yao's company in 1976
and, by 1982, had played the lead in 12 of her films.
Lin won the Best Actress award at the
Asia-Pacific Film Festival
The Asia-Pacific Film Festival (abbreviated APFF) is an annual film festival hosted by the Federation of Motion Picture Producers in Asia-Pacific. The festival was first held in Tokyo, Japan, in 1954.
History
The festival was first held in Toky ...
for her role as a girl scout in ''
Eight Hundred Heroes
''Eight Hundred Heroes'' () is a 1976 Taiwanese historical war drama film directed by Ting Shan-hsi about the Defense of Sihang Warehouse in 1937 Shanghai, China. The film was selected as the Taiwanese entry for the Best Foreign Language Fil ...
'' (1976).
After having worked on more than 50 films within the first seven years of her career, Lin took a hiatus from acting in 1979 and moved to the US for a year and a half.
Known for being a "screen goddess" by Chinese film lovers, Lin's early collaborations with Hong Kong New Wave directors
Ringo Lam
Ringo Lam Ling-Tung (, Cantonese: Lam Ling-tung, 8 December 1955 – 29 December 2018) was a Hong Kong film director, producer, and screenwriter. Born in Hong Kong in 1955, Lam initially went to acting school. After finding he preferred making f ...
,
Tsui Hark
Tsui Hark (, vi, Từ Khắc, born 15 February 1950), born Tsui Man-kong, is a Hong Kong film director, producer and screenwriter. Tsui has directed several influential Hong Kong films such as ''Zu Warriors from the Magic Mountain'' (1983), the ...
and
Jackie Chan
Fang Shilong (born 7 April 1954), known professionally in English as Jackie Chan and in Chinese as Cheng Long ( zh, c=成龍, j=Sing4 Lung4; "becoming the dragon"), is a Hong Kong actor, filmmaker, martial artist, and stuntman known for ...
in ''Love Massacre'' (1981), ''
Zu Warriors from the Magic Mountain
''Zu Warriors from the Magic Mountain'' ( zh, t=新蜀山劍俠) is a 1983 Hong Kong supernatural ''wuxia'' fantasy film directed by Tsui Hark and based on the xianxia novel ''Legend of the Swordsmen of the Mountains of Shu'' by Huanzhulouzhu. ...
'' (1983), ''
Police Story'' (1985) and ''
Peking Opera Blues
''Peking Opera Blues'' () is a 1986 Hong Kong film directed by Tsui Hark. The movie combines comedy, Hong Kong action, and serious drama with scenes involving Peking Opera. Director Tsui Hark described the film as a satire on the "Chinese igno ...
'' (1986) brought her success. In 1990, she won the Best Actress trophy at the 27th
Golden Horse Awards
The Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival and Awards () is a film festival and awards ceremony held annually in Taiwan. It was founded in 1962 by the Government Information Office of the Republic of China (ROC) in Taiwan. The awards ceremony is us ...
for her depiction of a Chinese female writer who fell in love with a Japanese collaborator in ''
Red Dust'' (1990).
It was common for women to
cross dress as male characters in Chinese movies and operas.
And Lin is particularly well known for her androgynous roles, her earliest being
Jia Baoyu
Jia Baoyu (, and his surname is a homophone with "false" or "fictitious") is the principal character in the classic 18th century Chinese novel ''Dream of the Red Chamber''.
Introduction
The first chapter describes how one piece of stone was l ...
, the male protagonist of the 1977 film adaptation of ''
Dream of the Red Chamber
''Dream of the Red Chamber'' (''Honglou Meng'') or ''The Story of the Stone'' (''Shitou Ji'') is a novel composed by Cao Xueqin in the middle of the 18th century. One of the Four Great Classical Novels of Chinese literature, it is known for ...
''.
In ''
Peking Opera Blues
''Peking Opera Blues'' () is a 1986 Hong Kong film directed by Tsui Hark. The movie combines comedy, Hong Kong action, and serious drama with scenes involving Peking Opera. Director Tsui Hark described the film as a satire on the "Chinese igno ...
'' (1986), she was a guerrilla revolutionary and in ''
Royal Tramp II
''Royal Tramp II'' is a 1992 Hong Kong film based on Louis Cha's novel ''The Deer and the Cauldron''. The film is a sequel to '' Royal Tramp'', which was released earlier in the same year.
Plot
Having been revealed as the false Empress Dowager, ...
'' (1992), she was the leader of the Heavenly Dragon Sect, both of whom were women characters dressed as men. And in ''
Ashes of Time
''Ashes of Time'' (Chinese: 東邪西毒) is a 1994 Hong Kong film written and directed by Wong Kar-wai, and inspired by characters from Jin Yong's novel ''The Legend of the Condor Heroes''.
Background
The film's story is a prequel to the novel ...
'' (1994), she played twin brother/sister duo Yin and Yang.
However, she is perhaps most well known for her role as
Dongfang Bubai
Dongfang Bubai, literally "Invincible East", is a fictional character in the wuxia novel ''The Smiling, Proud Wanderer'' by Jin Yong. He is the leader of the Sun Moon Holy Cult (), an "unorthodox" martial arts sect. In his quest to dominate ...
in ''
Swordsman II
''Swordsman II'', also known as ''The Legend of the Swordsman'', is a 1992 Hong Kong ''wuxia'' film very loosely adapted from Louis Cha's novel ''The Smiling, Proud Wanderer''. It was the second part of a trilogy: preceded by '' The Swordsman'' ...
'' (1992). ''Swordsman II'' marked the peak of her career in terms of box office earnings
for which she was listed among the 10 greatest performances in cinema of all time, by ''
Time
Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, to ...
'' magazine.
Subsequently, she starred in many other notable martial epics including ''
New Dragon Gate Inn
''New Dragon Gate Inn'' is a 1992 Hong Kong ''wuxia'' film directed by Raymond Lee and produced by Tsui Hark, starring Brigitte Lin, Tony Leung Ka-fai, Maggie Cheung, and Donnie Yen. It was released as ''Dragon Inn'' in North America.
The film ...
'' (1992) and ''
The Bride with White Hair
''The Bride with White Hair'' is a 1993 Hong Kong wuxia film directed by Ronny Yu, starring Brigitte Lin and Leslie Cheung.
The film's main character, Lian Nichang, is loosely based on the protagonist of Liang Yusheng's novel ''Baifa Monü Zh ...
'' (1993).
At the height of her popularity, Lin was one of the most sought-after actresses in the Chinese film industry. She starred in more than 100 movies.
Lin was credited for boosting Taiwan's film production in the 1970s before earning even greater popularity in Hong Kong in the 1990s, becoming a trans-island legend of her time.
She retired from acting in 1994. Her last acting role was in ''Ashes of Time'' (1994).
Personal life
Lin traces her family roots to
Shandong
Shandong ( , ; ; alternately romanized as Shantung) is a coastal province of the People's Republic of China and is part of the East China region.
Shandong has played a major role in Chinese history since the beginning of Chinese civilizati ...
, China.
It's been reported that Lin has dated both Chin Han and Charlie Chin of "Two Chins, Two Lins" back in the 1970s, even sustaining a proposal from the latter before eventually cancelling it.
Lin married Hong Kong businessman
Michael Ying
Michael Ying Lee Yuen (; born December 1949) is a Hong Kong billionaire businessman and philanthropist. Ying is the former chairman and chief executive officer of Esprit Holdings Limited, and remains the largest individual shareholder, with a 15% ...
in 1994. She is the mother of Eileen Ying Oi Lum (born 1996) and Melani Ying Yin-oi (born 2001) and stepmother to Claudine Ying.
She made her first public appearance since her marriage at the screening of ''
Ashes of Time Redux'' during the 2008
New York Film Festival
The New York Film Festival (NYFF) is a film festival held every fall in New York City, presented by Film at Lincoln Center (FLC). Founded in 1963 by Richard Roud and Amos Vogel with the support of Lincoln Center president William Schuman, it is ...
.
In 2015, Lin made an appearance as a regular cast member in ''
Up Idol
''Up Idol'' () is a Chinese celebrity reality show broadcast on Hunan Television. The first season debuted on 1 August 2015 with 12 episodes featuring two captains and ten popular celebrities as they travel to different places and experience the ...
'', a 12 episode Chinese reality show on
Hunan Television
Hunan Television or Hunan TV () is a provincial satellite TV station officially launched on 29 September 1970 and is currently China's second-most-watched channel, second only to CCTV-1, owned by China Central Television, although Hunan STV occasio ...
.
Filmography
Awards and nominations
Related publications
* ''The Last Star of the East: Brigitte Lin Ching Hsia and Her Films'' (2005)
* 窗裏窗外 ''Inside and Outside the Window'' (2011)
* 雲去雲來 ''Cloud Goes, Cloud Comes'' (2014)
References
External links
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lin, Brigitte
1954 births
Hong Kong people of Taiwanese descent
Living people
Actresses from Taipei
Taiwanese Buddhists
Taiwanese film actresses
20th-century Taiwanese actresses
21st-century Taiwanese actresses