Director John Woo (Hard, Broken Arrow, Tackle / Off, Mission: Impossible II) is developing a new film based on American Chinese Dean Polmone. The historical drama will follow the story of Lung, “the waiter of Oakland’s first mayor, Horace Walpole Carpentier, whose donation helped found Columbia University’s Department of East Asian Languages and Cultures.”
The university still refers to the letter Lung sent to Columbia President Seth Low in 1901, which stated: “I am sending you here with a deposit check for $ 12,000 as a contribution to the Chinese learning fund at your university. “. Later, to honor him, Carpentier provided further donations.
Woo spoke Variety on the project at Montréal’s Fantasia Film Festival, where he won the Lifetime Achievement Award, saying:
“I hope to make it before the retirement. I really want to do it. He was this man’s servant and at first there were conflicts, but later they started learning from each other. When he retired, he donated all of his savings to college. The photo of him still hangs on the wall. “
Woo described the film as a “serious but not too serious drama” and “a very human story,” he said, also emphasizing its universal appeal. He went on to say:
“These days, there are so many misunderstandings between people in the West and people in the East. I think we have to work harder, work to understand each other. I want to make a film that serves as a bridge between two different cultures. We can be friends, I really believe it ”.
It sounds like a great story. I can’t wait to learn more about this project and see how it turns out.
by Jessica Fisher
Source: Geek Tyrant
