Carina Lau: The Life Story Behind Hong Kong's Strong Star

Carina Lau is one of the strongest actresses in Hong Kong, and strength, in her case, is not about being loud or tough. It is about endurance, about staying, about working for more than forty years, through good times and bad, and about never giving up on a career that could easily have ended many times. She came to Hong Kong as a teenager from Suzhou, in mainland China, with little money and little Cantonese, and she became a star, a wife, a producer, and a respected figure in the film industry. Her story is about a woman who built a life in a new city, and who built it to last.

She was born in Suzhou in 1965, and she moved to Hong Kong in 1980, when she was fifteen, with her family. She did not speak Cantonese well, she did not know the city, and she had to learn everything from scratch: the language, the culture, the work, and the way to survive in a fast, competitive place. She joined the TVB acting class, she learned, she worked, and she became an actress, first on television, then in film, and then as a star who could play almost any role, from a romantic heroine to a gangster’s wife to a detective.

What makes Lau different is her resilience. She has faced difficult times in her life, including a traumatic incident in 1990 that was widely reported, and she has faced the ups and downs of the Hong Kong film industry, which has changed many times. Through it all, she has kept working, kept acting, kept producing, and kept her dignity. She is a reminder that strength is not about never falling down. It is about getting up, again and again, and continuing to work, even when the work is hard.

From Suzhou to Hong Kong at Fifteen

Carina Lau was born on 8 December 1965 in Suzhou, a city in Jiangsu province, in mainland China, known for its gardens, its canals, and its beauty. She grew up in Suzhou, in a family that valued education and culture, and she learned to speak Mandarin, to read, and to appreciate the arts. In 1980, when she was fifteen, her family moved to Hong Kong, a city that was very different from Suzhou: busier, louder, more crowded, and more competitive, with a different language, Cantonese, and a different way of life. The move was a major change, and Lau had to adapt quickly.

In Hong Kong, Lau had to learn Cantonese, which was not easy, and she had to learn how to live in a new city, with new schools, new friends, and new expectations. She was a teenager, and she was also an immigrant, and that feeling of being new, of being an outsider, stayed with her. She has spoken in general terms about the difficulty of that time, about the need to work hard, and about the feeling of wanting to belong. That experience gave her a strength that would serve her for her whole career, because she learned early that she could adapt, that she could learn a new language, a new culture, and a new job, and that she could succeed in a place that was not originally her home.

In 1983 Lau joined the TVB acting training class, the same class that trained many of Hong Kong’s best actors, and she began to learn how to act for television. The training was hard, with long hours, with many students, and with little guarantee of success, but Lau worked hard, and she was noticed for her beauty, her elegance, and her seriousness. She began to appear in television dramas, including The Duke of Mount Deer, a popular adaptation of a Louis Cha novel, and she became known as a young actress with potential. Television gave her a regular income, a regular audience, and a chance to learn her craft, and she took that chance seriously.

Television, Film and the First Starring Roles

In the mid-1980s Lau moved from television to film, and she began to appear in a wide range of Hong Kong films. She played in comedies, in dramas, in action films, and in romantic films, and she showed that she could do all of them. She was not limited to one type of role, and that range became her trademark. She could be a beautiful heroine, a funny character, a serious woman, and a tough woman, all in the same year, and she did each with a professionalism that made directors want to work with her again.

One of her early film successes was in Days of Being Wild in 1990, directed by Wong Kar-wai, in which she played a woman in love, a woman who is waiting, a woman who is part of a story about youth, about Hong Kong in the 1960s, and about the feeling of being lost. The film was not a commercial hit at first, but it became a classic, and Lau’s performance was praised for its emotion and its depth. Working with Wong Kar-wai was a major moment for Lau, because he was a director who demanded a lot from his actors, who worked slowly, and who wanted a performance that was real, not just beautiful. Lau rose to that challenge, and she proved that she was a serious actress, not only a television star.

In the 1990s Lau continued to work in film, appearing in many productions, including Intimates, a film about love and friendship, and Forbidden City Cop, a comedy with Stephen Chow, in which she showed her comic side. She also appeared in films with other major stars, including Tony Leung, who would later become her husband, and with whom she would work many times. Her career was building steadily, and she was becoming one of the most respected actresses in Hong Kong, known for her work ethic, her versatility, and her professionalism.

A Difficult Time and the Strength to Continue

In 1990 Lau faced a traumatic incident that was widely reported in Hong Kong, in which she was kidnapped and photographed, and the photographs were later published without her consent. The incident was a violation, and it caused her great pain, and it could have ended her career. Many people in her position would have left Hong Kong, or left the film industry, or given up. Lau did not give up. She continued to work, she continued to act, and she continued to live her life, with a dignity that impressed many people in Hong Kong. Her response to that difficult time is now seen as a sign of her strength, and it is one of the reasons she is admired, not only as an actress, but as a woman.

Lau has spoken about that period in general terms, as a time that was hard, and as a time that taught her about herself, about who her friends were, and about what mattered in life. She did not let the incident define her, and she did not let it stop her. She kept working, and she kept building her career, and over time the incident became a part of her story, but not the whole story. The whole story is about a woman who faced a terrible thing, and who kept going, with courage and with grace.

That strength is also visible in her work in the years after 1990. She took on more challenging roles, she worked with more serious directors, and she showed a depth in her acting that came from experience, from having lived through difficult times, and from understanding what it means to be vulnerable and to be strong at the same time. Her performances in the 1990s and 2000s are marked by that understanding, and they are more powerful because of it.

Infernal Affairs, Detective Dee and a Mature Star

In the 2000s Lau’s career entered a new phase, as she became a mature star, playing roles that were more complex, more powerful, and more interesting than the romantic heroines of her youth. She appeared in Infernal Affairs II in 2003, a prequel to the famous crime trilogy, in which she played a gangster’s wife, a woman who is strong, intelligent and dangerous, and her performance was praised for its power and its control. The film was a success, and it showed that Lau could play a character who was not only beautiful, but also formidable, and that she could hold her own in a film full of strong male characters.

She also appeared in Curiosity Kills the Cat, a film about love, betrayal and murder, and in other dramas that showed her range as an actress. In 2010 she appeared in Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame, a historical action film directed by Tsui Hark, in which she played Empress Wu Zetian, a powerful, intelligent and ruthless ruler. The role was a perfect fit for Lau, because it allowed her to play a woman of great power, with a commanding presence, and with a complexity that few actresses could capture. Her performance was praised, and the film was a success in China and in Asia.

In 2013 Lau starred in Bends, a film that was shown at the Cannes Film Festival, in which she played a wealthy Hong Kong woman who befriends her driver, a man from mainland China, and who learns about his life, his family, and his struggles. The film was quiet, thoughtful and emotional, and Lau’s performance was praised for its subtlety and its warmth. It showed a different side of her, a side that was not about power or glamour, but about kindness, about listening, and about understanding another person’s life. Bends was a reminder that Lau could still surprise audiences, even after thirty years in the industry.

Marriage, Producing and a Life in Film

In 2008 Lau married Tony Leung, one of the most famous actors in Hong Kong, in a wedding in Bhutan, after a long relationship that had lasted for many years. The marriage was a major event in Hong Kong, and it brought together two of the city’s biggest stars, who had worked together many times, and who had grown up together in the industry. Their relationship is a long one, built on mutual respect, on shared experience, and on a deep understanding of what it means to be an actor in Hong Kong. They are a couple who are both famous, both private, and both respected, and their marriage is seen as a model of a lasting partnership in a difficult industry.

Lau has also worked as a producer, and she has been involved in projects that support Hong Kong cinema, and that give opportunities to younger filmmakers. She has used her experience, her contacts, and her reputation to help others, and she has shown that an actress can also be a builder, a person who makes films happen, not only a person who appears in them. That work behind the scenes is an important part of her later career, and it shows her commitment to the industry that gave her a career.

In recent years Lau has continued to act, to produce, and to appear at film festivals, as a jury member and as a guest, and she remains a respected figure in Hong Kong and in Chinese cinema. She has been honoured for her contribution to film, and she is still regarded as one of the great actresses of her generation, with a career that has lasted for more than forty years, and with a story that is still being written.

Why Carina Lau Endures

Carina Lau endures because she is strong, because she is versatile, because she is professional, and because she has never given up. She came to Hong Kong as a teenager, she learned a new language, she built a career from nothing, she faced a traumatic incident, and she kept going. She has played many roles, in many genres, and she has done each with a skill that has earned her respect. She is a star, a wife, a producer, and a survivor, and her story is a reminder that a career can last, if the person is willing to work, to learn, and to keep going, even when the work is hard.

Curiosity Kills the Cat, Bends and the Later Roles

Curiosity Kills the Cat, released in 2006, was a film about love, betrayal, and murder, in which Lau played a woman caught in a complex, dangerous relationship, with a performance that was praised for its subtlety, its intelligence, and its ability to suggest a whole inner life, with very little dialogue. The film was a thriller, but it was also a drama, about people who make bad choices, who hurt each other, and who try to live with the consequences, and Lau’s performance was at the centre of it, as a woman who is both a victim and a participant, both strong and vulnerable, and both sympathetic and flawed. That complexity is a sign of a good actress, and it is why Lau was praised for the role, even in a film that was not a major commercial hit.

Bends, released in 2013, was a quieter film, shown at the Cannes Film Festival, in which Lau played a wealthy Hong Kong woman, Anna, who befriends her driver, Fai, a man from mainland China, and who learns about his life, his family, and his struggles, as she drives with him across the border, between Hong Kong and Shenzhen. The film was about the relationship between Hong Kong and mainland China, about wealth and poverty, about a woman who has everything, and a man who has very little, and about the kindness that can grow between them, when they listen to each other. Lau’s performance was praised for its warmth, its subtlety, and its humanity, and it showed a different side of her, a side that was not about power or glamour, but about listening, about learning, and about understanding another person’s life.

The later roles are important because they show Lau still growing, still trying new kinds of characters, and still finding new ways to express herself, even after thirty years in the industry. She could have stopped, she could have retired, she could have played only the roles she knew, but she did not. She kept working, kept choosing interesting films, and kept showing that she was still curious, still learning, and still willing to be surprised, by a new director, by a new story, and by a new character. That curiosity is what keeps a long career alive, and it is why Lau is still respected, still cast, and still watched, after more than forty years.

Producing, Festivals and Supporting Hong Kong Cinema

Lau has worked as a producer, using her experience, her contacts, and her reputation to support films, to help younger filmmakers, and to keep Hong Kong cinema alive, in a time when the industry has faced many challenges, including competition from mainland China, from Hollywood, and from streaming, and a decline in the number of films made each year. Producing is a different kind of work from acting, because it involves raising money, finding a director, choosing a cast, and making sure a film is finished, on time, and on budget, and Lau has done it, with a professionalism that comes from years of working on sets, of watching how films are made, and of understanding what it takes to get a film from an idea to a screen.

She has also served as a jury member at film festivals, where she has watched films, discussed them, and helped to choose winners, using her experience as an actress, and her knowledge of cinema, to judge new work. That role is an honour, and it shows that the film world respects her opinion, her taste, and her understanding of what makes a good film. She has also appeared at festivals as a guest, as a star, and as a supporter of Hong Kong cinema, and she has used those appearances to talk about the industry, about its future, and about the need to support young filmmakers, who are the future of Hong Kong film.

In recent years Lau has continued to act, to produce, and to appear in public, and she remains a respected figure, not only in Hong Kong, but in Chinese cinema as a whole. She has been honoured for her contribution to film, with awards, with retrospectives, and with tributes from filmmakers who admire her work, and who see her as one of the great actresses of her generation. Her story is still being written, and it is one of the most enduring stories in Hong Kong cinema, because it is about a woman who came from Suzhou, who built a life in Hong Kong, and who has stayed, worked, and thrived, for more than forty years, through good times and bad.

Detective Dee, Wu Zetian and Playing an Empress

One of the finest roles of Carina Lau’s later career came in 2010, when she played the Empress Wu Zetian in Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame, directed by Tsui Hark. Wu Zetian is one of the most famous figures in Chinese history, the only woman to rule China as emperor in her own name, and the role asks an actress to be powerful, clever, and frightening, all at the same time. Lau played her as a woman who had fought for power and who would not give it up, but who was also tired, lonely, and aware of how much her power had cost her. It is a large performance, and it fills the screen, and it showed audiences that Lau, who had once been known as a young television actress, could now carry a great historical figure with ease. For that role she won the Hong Kong Film Award for Best Actress in 2011, one of the highest honours in Hong Kong cinema, and it was a win that felt earned, because it came after nearly thirty years of work.

The Detective Dee film was also a big production, with a large cast, with action, with mystery, and with the kind of visual scale that Tsui Hark is known for, and Lau held her own at the centre of it. She did not need to shout to show power. She showed it in the way she sat, in the way she looked at the men around her, and in the way she spoke, slowly and clearly, as a person who expects to be obeyed. That kind of acting is harder than it looks, because it asks the audience to believe in a ruler without a crown being waved in their face. Lau made them believe, and the film became a success, leading to further films in the series, though her role as Wu Zetian in that first film remains the one people remember most.

Lau’s skill in serious roles had been recognised before Detective Dee, and one of the clearest examples is Curiosity Kills the Cat, a film from 2006 in which she played a woman caught in a story of money, desire and betrayal in modern Shanghai. For that performance she won the Golden Rooster Award for Best Actress, one of the main film honours in mainland China, and the win showed that her work was respected on both sides of the border, in Hong Kong and in China. She has often chosen roles like these, roles about women who are strong but not simple, who make mistakes, who want things they cannot have, and who keep going anyway. Those are the roles that suit her best, because they let her show both the strength and the softness of a person, and they ask the audience to see a whole woman rather than a single idea of one.

Later, in 2013, she starred in Bends, a quiet film about two women in Hong Kong, a rich housewife and a poor driver, whose lives cross for a short time. The film was shown at the Cannes Film Festival, and it was praised for its gentle, honest look at a city where rich and poor live close together but rarely meet. It was a small film, very different from the large scale of Detective Dee, and Lau chose it because the story mattered to her, not because it would make her famous. That choice tells you a lot about her as an actress. She has never chased only the largest roles. She has chosen roles that interest her, roles that teach her something, and roles that let her show a different side of herself, and that is why her career has lasted so long without becoming dull. An actress who only plays one kind of part will be forgotten when that part goes out of fashion. An actress who plays empresses, housewives, detectives and lovers will always have a new story to tell.

Days of Being Wild, Intimates and the Wong Kar-wai Years

Days of Being Wild, released in 1990 and directed by Wong Kar-wai, was a film about youth, about Hong Kong in the 1960s, about love, about longing, and about the feeling of being lost, and in which Lau played a woman who is in love, who is waiting, and who is part of a story that is both beautiful and sad, with a performance that was praised for its emotion, its depth, and its ability to suggest a whole inner life, with very little dialogue, with a look, with a pause, and with a movement. The film was not a commercial hit at first, but it became a classic, and Lau’s work in it is now seen as one of her best performances, because it showed that she could work with a demanding director, who worked slowly, who wanted a performance that was real, and who would shoot a scene many times, until it was exactly right, and that she could rise to that challenge, with a professionalism, a patience, and a talent that made her a serious actress, not only a television star.

Intimates, released in 1997, was another film about love and friendship, about a group of people who are connected, who love each other, who hurt each other, and who try to live with the consequences, and in which Lau played a woman who is both strong and vulnerable, both loving and flawed, and who must navigate a complex, emotional world, with a performance that was praised for its subtlety, its intelligence, and its ability to capture the feeling of being in love, of being hurt, and of still caring, even when it is hard. Intimates showed Lau’s range, her ability to play a character who is not only a heroine, but a person, with a history, with a past, and with a future that is uncertain, and that is a sign of a good actress, who can make a character feel real, even when the story is fictional, and even when the character is not like herself.

These films, together with other work with Wong Kar-wai, form a key part of Lau’s career, and they show that she was willing to work with directors who demanded a lot, who worked slowly, and who wanted a performance that was true, not only beautiful, and that she was able to do it, again and again, with a professionalism that made directors want to work with her, and with a talent that made audiences want to watch her, in film after film, year after year, for more than forty years. That willingness, to work hard, to be patient, and to be true, is a key part of her strength, and it is why she is respected, not only as a star, but as an actress, who cares about her craft, and who wants to do it well, every time, even when it is hard, even when it takes a long time, and even when the audience does not immediately understand, what she is doing, and why it matters.

The Wong Kar-wai years are also important because they show Hong Kong cinema at its most artistic, with films that are slow, beautiful, and emotional, and with actors who are willing to trust a director, to follow his vision, and to give a performance that is both personal and universal, and Lau did that, with Days of Being Wild, and with other films, and her work in those films is still watched, still discussed, and still loved, by fans of Wong Kar-wai, by fans of Hong Kong cinema, and by anyone who loves a film that is both beautiful and sad, and that speaks to the human heart, in a quiet, thoughtful, and powerful way.

My Take:

I think Carina Lau is a woman who has survived, and I mean that in the deepest sense. She came to Hong Kong at fifteen, from Suzhou, with a different language and a different life, and she built a new life from nothing. She learned Cantonese, she learned to act, she became a star, and then, in 1990, she faced a terrible incident that could have destroyed her. She did not let it destroy her. She kept working, she kept acting, she kept living, and she built a career that has lasted for more than forty years. That is not only talent. That is strength, and it is the kind of strength I admire most, because it is quiet, it is persistent, and it does not ask for applause.

What strikes me about her early life is the move from Suzhou to Hong Kong. I think about what it must have been like to be fifteen, to leave a beautiful, quiet city, and to arrive in a loud, crowded, fast city where you do not speak the language well, where you do not know anyone, and where you have to start again. That is a frightening thing, and many teenagers would struggle with it. Lau did not only survive it. She thrived in it, by learning, by working, by joining the TVB acting class, and by becoming an actress. I think that early experience taught her something important: that she could adapt, that she could learn a new world, and that she could succeed in it. That lesson stayed with her, and it helped her later, when she faced other difficult changes, in her career and in her life.

Days of Being Wild is the film I think about when I think about her as an actress, because it is a film about youth, about waiting, about love that does not work out, and about Hong Kong in the 1960s. Lau plays a woman who is in love, who is waiting, who is sad, and her performance is quiet, emotional and real. I like that she did not try to be the centre of the film. She was part of an ensemble, with other actors, and she played her part with a generosity that made the whole film better. That is a sign of a good actress: she does not need to be the star of every scene. She needs to be true to the character, and to the story, and Lau does that, again and again.

Infernal Affairs II is a different kind of role, and it shows me another side of her. She plays a gangster’s wife, a woman who is strong, intelligent and dangerous, and she does it with a control that is chilling. I like that she can play a woman like that, a woman who is not a victim, who is not a romantic heroine, but a person with power, with ambition, and with a will of her own. That is a rare role for a woman in Hong Kong cinema, especially in a crime film, and Lau played it brilliantly. It tells me that she is not afraid of difficult roles, and that she is not afraid to be unlikeable, if the character demands it. That courage is part of her strength.

Detective Dee, in which she plays Empress Wu Zetian, is another role that stays with me, because Wu is one of the most powerful women in Chinese history, a ruler who was intelligent, ruthless and commanding, and Lau captures that power without overacting. She does not shout, she does not wave her arms, she just stands, looks, and speaks, and the audience understands that she is in charge. I think that is a perfect fit for Lau, because she herself is a woman of quiet power, who does not need to shout to be heard. She has a presence, and that presence is enough, and it is why she is so effective as Wu, and as other strong women she has played.

Bends is the film that moves me most, because it is quiet, thoughtful and kind, and because Lau plays a wealthy Hong Kong woman who befriends her driver, a man from mainland China, and who learns about his life. I think that story is close to Lau’s own life, because she herself came from mainland China to Hong Kong, and she understands what it means to be from one place and to live in another. Her performance in Bends is warm, subtle and human, and it shows that she can play a character who is learning, who is listening, and who is growing, not only a character who is already powerful. I like that, because it shows that Lau is still learning, still growing, even after forty years.

Her marriage to Tony Leung is something I think about with respect, because it is a long relationship, built over many years, between two famous people who have managed to keep their private life private, and to support each other through the ups and downs of a difficult industry. I do not know the details of their marriage, and I do not want to guess, but I can see the shape of it: two people who understand each other’s work, who have grown up together in the industry, and who have chosen to stay together. That is a rare thing in the film world, and it is a sign of their mutual respect, and of their commitment to each other.

I do not think Lau is perfect, and I think her very strength can sometimes make her performances feel too controlled, too polished, too careful. She rarely loses control on screen, and she rarely shows a raw, messy emotion, and I sometimes want to see that mess, to see her fall apart, to see her be vulnerable in a way that is not elegant. I understand that control is her gift, and that it is what makes her so effective as a strong woman, but I also think that a little vulnerability can make strength feel more human. That is a small criticism, and it does not change my admiration for her, but it is an honest one.

If a young actress asked me what to learn from Carina Lau, I would say this: learn a new language, learn a new place, and do not be afraid to start again. Work hard, be professional, be on time, learn your lines, and respect the people you work with. Do not let a difficult time define you, even if it is terrible, and do not give up, even when it would be easier to give up. Play many kinds of roles, from romantic to dangerous to powerful to kind, and do each with honesty. And find people you can trust, who will support you, and who will stay with you, through good times and bad. That is what Lau did, and it is why she is still here, after more than forty years.

In the end, I think Carina Lau has taught me that strength is not about never falling down. It is about getting up, again and again, and continuing to work, to learn, and to live, even when the work is hard and the life is hard. She came from Suzhou, she built a life in Hong Kong, she faced a trauma, she married, she produced, she acted, and she is still going. That is a life worth admiring, and it is why I will keep watching her films, and why I think Hong Kong will keep calling her its strong star for a long time.

I also think about Bends, and about the story of Anna and Fai, a wealthy Hong Kong woman and a driver from mainland China, and about what that story says about Hong Kong, about China, and about the relationship between the two. Lau herself came from mainland China to Hong Kong, and she understands both places, both languages, and both cultures, and her performance in Bends shows that understanding, in a quiet, human way, without preaching, without making a political point, but by simply showing two people, listening to each other, learning from each other, and caring for each other. That is a powerful story, and it is one that I think is close to Lau’s own life, because she has lived in both worlds, and she knows what it means to belong to both, and to neither, at the same time.

I think about her producing work, and about what it means for an actress to become a producer, to use her experience to help others, to raise money, to find a director, and to make a film happen, not only to appear in it. That is a generous act, and it is one that shows Lau cares about the future of Hong Kong cinema, not only about her own career. She could have retired, she could have stopped working, and she could have lived a quiet life, but she did not. She kept working, kept producing, and kept supporting young filmmakers, because she believes in the industry that gave her a career, and she wants it to survive, for the next generation. That belief is a form of loyalty, and it is one I respect deeply.

I wonder what it must be like to be married to Tony Leung, to be one half of Hong Kong’s most famous acting couple, and to have to live with that fame, with that attention, and with that expectation, year after year. That must be hard, because a marriage is a private thing, and fame makes it public, and yet Lau and Leung have managed to keep their marriage private, to support each other, and to stay together for many years, in an industry where many marriages fail. I do not know the details of their marriage, and I do not want to guess, but I can see the shape of it: two people who understand each other’s work, who respect each other, and who have chosen to stay together, through good times and bad. That is a rare thing, and it is a sign of their mutual respect, and of their commitment.

I also think about the future, and about what Lau will do next, and I hope she will keep acting, keep producing, and keep supporting Hong Kong cinema, because the industry needs her, needs her experience, needs her strength, and needs her example. There are many young actresses in Hong Kong who look up to her, who see her as a model of how to build a long career, how to survive difficult times, and how to keep working, even when the work is hard. Lau is that model, not because she is perfect, but because she is real, because she has faced difficulties, and because she has kept going, again and again, for more than forty years.

In the end, I come back to the girl from Suzhou, who moved to Hong Kong at fifteen, who learned a new language, who became an actress, who faced a trauma, who married, who produced, and who is still here, still working, still strong, and still respected. That journey, from a small city in China, to the top of Hong Kong cinema, is a remarkable one, and it is a reminder that a life can be built, step by step, year by year, by a person who is willing to work, to learn, and to keep going, even when the work is hard and the life is hard. That is a lesson I will carry with me, and it is why I admire Carina Lau, not only as an actress, but as a woman who has survived, and thrived, for more than forty years.

I think about her marriage to Tony Leung Chiu-wai, because it is one of the most interesting partnerships in Hong Kong cinema. They married in 2008 in Bhutan, after many years together, and they are both actors of the highest level, yet they have kept their careers separate, working with different directors, choosing different roles, and rarely appearing in the same film. That is a wise way to live, I think. When two famous people marry, the world wants them to become one story, to be seen always together, to be judged as a couple rather than as two people. Lau and Leung have refused that. They support each other, they appear together in public with grace, and then they go back to their own work. I admire that balance, because it says that love does not need to swallow a person whole. Two people can stand side by side, each with their own life, and still be a family.

I also think about what endurance really means, because Lau’s career is a long one, and long careers are often misunderstood. People think endurance means never changing, but Lau has changed many times, from a young television actress to a film star, from a star to a producer, from a leading lady to a character actress who can play an empress one year and a housewife the next. Endurance, for her, has meant being willing to change, to learn, and to take a smaller role when the role is good. That is a harder kind of endurance than simply holding on. It asks a person to let go of the past, to accept that the young star they were will not come back, and to find a new way to be useful. Lau has done that, again and again, and her work is better for it.

There is one more thing I want to say, about the way she has given back to Hong Kong cinema. As a producer and as a senior actress, she has supported new films, she has appeared at festivals, and she has spoken up for the industry she has worked in for forty years. That work does not win awards, and it does not make headlines, but it matters, because an industry is kept alive by the people who stay, who help, and who believe in it even when times are hard. Lau has stayed, and she has helped, and I think that is part of why she is respected, not only as an actress, but as a person who belongs to Hong Kong cinema in the fullest sense. She came from Suzhou as a girl, and she became a daughter of Hong Kong, and that is a story worth remembering.

I also think about Days of Being Wild, and about what it means to work with Wong Kar-wai, a director who is known for working slowly, for shooting many takes, and for demanding a performance that is real, not only beautiful, and I find that impressive, because it requires an actress to be patient, to trust the director, and to be willing to try again, again and again, until the scene is right, even when it is tiring, even when it is frustrating, and even when it feels like it will never be right. Lau did that, and she did it well, with a performance that is now seen as one of her best, because it is quiet, emotional, and true, and because it shows a woman who is in love, who is waiting, and who is sad, in a way that is both personal and universal, and that is a rare gift, and one I admire deeply.

I think about Intimates, and about love, friendship, and the complexity of human relationships, and about how Lau plays a woman who is both strong and vulnerable, both loving and flawed, and who must navigate a world where love is not simple, where friendship is not simple, and where people hurt each other, even when they care for each other, and I find that honest, because life is like that, too, with few simple answers, with many grey areas, and with people who try to do their best, even when they fail. Lau’s performance captures that complexity, with a subtlety, with an intelligence, and with a feeling that is both strong and tender, and that is a sign of a great actress, who can make a character feel real, even when the story is fictional, and even when the character is not like herself.

I wonder what it must be like to be a young actress, working with Wong Kar-wai, in the early 1990s, when Hong Kong cinema was at its peak, with many films, many stars, and many audiences, and to know that you are part of something special, a film that will become a classic, even if it is not a hit at first, and that your performance will be remembered, discussed, and loved, for many years, by fans who were not even born when the film was made. That must be a powerful feeling, a mix of pride, of gratitude, and of humility, and I hope Lau felt it, because she earned it, through hard work, through patience, and through a willingness to trust a director, even when the work was hard, and even when the reward was far away.

I also think about the audience for Wong Kar-wai’s films, in Hong Kong, in Asia, and around the world, who love those films, not only for their beauty, but for their feeling, for their sadness, and for their hope, and I think Lau’s work in those films is a key part of why they are loved, because she gives those films a human centre, a woman who is trying, a woman who is loving, and a woman who is still going, even when it is hard. That human centre is what makes a film more than a beautiful image, and it is what makes Lau’s performances in Days of Being Wild, in Intimates, and in other films, so memorable, and so worth watching, again and again, for the feeling they give, for the story they tell, and for the truth they speak, about love, about loss, and about being human.

In the end, I come back to the girl from Suzhou, who moved to Hong Kong at fifteen, who learned a new language, who became an actress, who faced a trauma, who married, who produced, and who is still here, still working, still strong, and still respected, after more than forty years. That journey, from a small city in China, to the top of Hong Kong cinema, is a remarkable one, and it is a reminder that a life can be built, step by step, year by year, by a person who is willing to work, to learn, and to keep going, even when the work is hard and the life is hard. That is a lesson I will carry with me, and it is why I admire Carina Lau, not only as an actress, but as a woman who has survived, and thrived, for more than forty years, through good times and bad, with strength, with grace, and with a quiet determination that does not ask for applause, but that earns it, through the work itself.

Frequently Asked Questions

How did Carina Lau come to Hong Kong?

Carina Lau was born in Suzhou in 1965 and moved to Hong Kong with her family in 1980, when she was fifteen. She had to learn Cantonese and adapt to a new city, culture and way of life, a difficult change for a teenager. That experience gave her a strength and adaptability that has served her whole career.

How did Carina Lau start acting?

Lau joined the TVB acting training class in 1983, after moving to Hong Kong, and began appearing in television dramas, including The Duke of Mount Deer. Television gave her a regular audience and a chance to learn her craft, and she then moved into film in the mid-1980s. She built her career slowly, through hard work and versatility.

What are Carina Lau’s best-known films?

Her best-known films include Days of Being Wild from 1990, Intimates, Infernal Affairs II from 2003, Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame from 2010, and Bends from 2013. In Infernal Affairs II she played a gangster’s wife, while in Detective Dee she played Empress Wu Zetian. Each role shows a different side of her range.

What happened to Carina Lau in 1990?

In 1990 Lau faced a traumatic incident in which she was kidnapped and photographed, with the photographs later published without her consent. The incident caused her great pain, but she continued to work and to live her life with dignity, and she did not let it end her career. Her response is now seen as a sign of her strength and resilience.

Who is Carina Lau married to?

Lau married the actor Tony Leung in 2008, in a wedding in Bhutan, after a long relationship that had lasted for many years. Leung is one of Hong Kong’s most famous actors, and the two have worked together many times. Their marriage is seen as a lasting partnership between two of the city’s biggest stars.

Is Carina Lau still working in film today?

Yes, Lau is still active, acting, producing, and appearing at film festivals, after a career of more than forty years. She has worked as a producer as well as an actress, supporting Hong Kong cinema and younger filmmakers. She remains one of the most respected actresses in Hong Kong and Chinese film.