JUNNA RISA'S EYES shine expectantly. 'You can be honest,' the Japanese idol of stage and television asks, 'how did I do?'
She breathes a sigh of relief at a positive answer. Risa is in Hong Kong to promote Jacob Cheung Chi-leung's new film Midnight Fly, which opens here today, and is understandably more than a little anxious about her performance. The star of TVB Jade's popular Japanese drama Love Generation does not lack confidence in her talent; it's just that Midnight Fly has set new precedents in her career.
The film not only marks Risa's movie debut in Hong Kong and Japan, but the actress' first chance to speak all her lines in English.
The predominantly English-language film is about two women, Michelle (Anita Mui Yim-fong) and Miki (Risa) who become friends on a tour of Europe. During their exchange of confidences, however, Michelle realises that Miki is actually the Japanese mistress of her husband (Simon Yam Tat-wah). When Miki is suddenly kidnapped by slave traders and sold into prostitution, Michelle has to fight an emotional battle of deciding whether to save her friend or allow her husband's lover to perish.
'That was such a big challenge for me,' says Risa, looking none the worse for her 'ordeal' on set. 'My mind was thinking in Japanese, but the lines that came out had to be in English. I had a lot more dialogue to go through than Anita too. When Jacob first talked to me, he assured me that I just had to speak my broken English, but as filming went on he began to expect more and more of me.
'The early days were the worst, especially since my manager and I were the only Japanese on the set. We felt a little left out, even though the crew was really nice and friendly. But we didn't know what they were saying and I didn't know what was expected of me. In the end, I had to tell the director to look me in the eye and explain directly to me what he wanted me to do. I had to keep reminding him to do that.'
The role reminded Risa of the importance of English in the international arena and she took time off in May to brush-up on the language in New York. 'Before the movie, I think I would have graded my grasp of the language between a C and a D. I can communicate much better now,' she says.
