The Federation of Motion Film Producers of Hong Kong Ltd has picked Wong Kar-wai‘s ‘The Grandmaster‘ as Hong Kong’s representative at the Oscars in the Best Foreign Film category. The China co-production was chosen over two other finalists: Herman Yau‘s ‘Ip Man: The Final Fight‘ and Dante Lam‘s ‘Unbeatable‘.  Due to The Grandmaster‘s North American box office takings of US$ 6.3 million and its selection as one of the Telegraph’s 2013 Top Ten Best Films, its chances to receive to be shortlisted in the Oscar’s Best Foreign Film category are even higher. Many Hong Kong films applied for the honour. The box office hit ‘Unbeatable’ was fierce competition with ‘The Grandmaster’ but in the end Wong Kar-wai’s film came out ahead.
“The film is very artistic and it shows a lot of local Chinese elements,” federation chairman Crucindo Hung Cho-sing said. “The Oscar academy usually chooses films that reflect the country’s features, so there’s a big chance it will be a nominee.” Comparing ‘The Grandmaster’ to previous films based on Ip Man, board member Patrick Tong Hing-chi said earlier ones focused more on action, while Wong’s version was more emotional. “He paid a lot of attention to shooting techniques,” Tong said. “The kung fu moves are very elegant.”
The spokesperson of the movie’s producer said the production crew are exciting about the news. “It’s our honor to have it selected to represent Hong Kong in the Oscars,” said the spokesperson, “We are thankful to the recognition by the selection committee in Hong Kong, and we do hope ‘The Grandmaster’ can shine in the top notch international venue.” Actors Tony Leung and Zhang Ziyi were happy for Wong Kar-wai when they received the good news in Qingdao and they hope to be able to walk the Oscar red carpet again.
The 2014 Oscars will be presented on March 2 in Los Angeles.