By Ada Tseng
Even while dressed modestly in an elegant purple halter dress -- much less revealing than the eye-popping outfits she's been known to display on red carpets -- Bai Ling still manages to steal the show at the Dim Sum Funeral press conference, never failing to exude her unique Bai Ling-ness. (At one point, she tells everyone she sees ghosts.) More bubbly than one would expect from an actress who's often known for her cold, slightly dominatrix-y, stare of seduction (whether on film or in Playboy spreads), Bai Ling speaks in run-on sentences, gesticulates wildly, goes in and out of impressions, and can't stop herself from telling us the utter and absolute truth. At least, the truth through Bai Ling's eyes.
When she speaks about her characters, the "she" and the "I" become interchangeable. Because every character she plays is Bai Ling. Bai Ling as seductress. Bai Ling as mother. Bai Ling as high-class call girl. Bai Ling as mafia boss. She's said in interviews that sometimes she just makes up her own lines. (Later, director Anna Chi disappointingly insists there was little improvisation on the Dim Sum Funeral set.)
As Bai Ling tells stories about how she saw ghosts in the curtains while filming Dim Sum Funeral, it dawns on me that this is the type of sound bite that always makes headlines, in a "let's see what crazy Bai Ling is doing/saying now" fashion.
Bai Ling has her share of haters who think she's an over-exposed, bat-shit-insane D-list celebrity who just caters to lowest-common-denominator tabloid culture. But maybe Bai Ling is not actually overexposed, but in fact, underexposed. (Stay with me here.) Because all we see is the crazy. All we see is the girl who wears bras and fishnets to premieres, who is photographed with Mickey Rourke at after-Oscar parties, who prances in pink panties singing "I Touch Myself" on the reality show But Can They Sing?
Sure, these are the type of images that earn websites massive amounts of clickthroughs, but maybe that is not all of Bai Ling. Why are we so quick to judge? I, for one, would argue that perhaps while every everyone else is busy being dutiful and telling us how great their film Dim Sum Funeral is (it was not great), Bai Ling is the only one at the press junket who was telling us the truth. How do we know that she doesn't see ghosts?
- It's possible she hallucinates, and some of her hallucinations are ghosts.
- Maybe ghosts can only be seen by people like Bai Ling.
- Also possible: Bai Ling sees a lamp shade and thinks it's a ghost, and therefore she tells people she sees ghosts (since when do we persecute people for innocent confusion?)
- Maybe Bai Ling is a ghost. And she sees herself.
The possibilities are endless. Admittedly, I haven't seen most of her recent work (other than Fruit Chan's Dumplings, which she was pretty good in). But for some reason, when Bai Ling tells me she's a genius, I want to believe.
Asia Pacific Arts: Can you tell me about playing the character Dede in Dim Sum Funeral?
Bai Ling: The director is a friend, and she asked me to do this film. By me being involved, I bring a sexiness, craziness and free spirit, and I help attract a young audience, male and female.
APA: Did you get to choose the role you wanted to play?
BL: Actually, I can't because all the siblings are supposed to be speaking English without accents. I'm Chinese. So I have to play Dede. But I love her, she's so free and she brings so much delightfulness to the movie, to make it lighter and fun. I seduce a monk. It's nothing serious, but she is really very honest, very sincere, and she really cares and loves her partner. So in contrast to her craziness, there's something very beautiful about her.
APA: You were born in China, but haven't you been based in the US for a while?
BL: Oh no, I'm always traveling. I just got a script from a Taiwanese director. So if I like it, you'll hear about it in July. And I'm shooting two movies right now. Confidante, where the original role was written for a big black guy. You can imagine the Lakers. He's a deadly killer mafia gambler. I'm playing him, and I turned it into me. I'm like "My name's Black." I'm Black; that's my name. And the director loves me, he says I'm so talented, but there was no role for an Asian character. So he said, "I'm going to do something for you," and he changed the role into me. He said, "Only Bai Ling can pull it off." I said, "Wow, I'm playing this black mafia guy." Can you believe it? I'm gambling with three mafia professionals, and I just went [her voice goes deep] "I do this for a living, bro." And I didn't even know what I was doing, and afterward, the director said "You killed it! It was so good." I was seducing him, threatening him, doing all these tricks. The big guy was like, "Wow, you really dominated the whole thing."
And tomorrow, I start another role where I play this heroin addict. I said, "I've never done drugs, so naturally I'm going to do this [part]." That's a whole different character that's really fun. I'm really lucky. It's a film called Love Ranch, starring Helen Mirren and Joe Pesci. I got a part that has nothing to do with an Asian character. It's this 20-year-old with big boobs, this blond girl from Vegas. Her name is Samantha Smoke. And it had nothing to do with me, but I auditioned with Taylor Hackford, and I got the part. She is the highest-earning prostitute in that brothel. It's a true story of the first illegal brothel in the United States in the 70s. She's so mysterious. She's like a movie star, dressed up. But I play it, so it becomes me. Joe Pesci's character, he fires everybody; he's so nasty and bad. Only with me, he has to be careful, because they depend on me. "Don't give me shit, you know?"
APA: I'm curious about your acting style. I've heard of the "inside out" vs. "outside in" philosophies. Method acting versus other techniques. What style do you use when you work?
BL: You know, the good thing about me is that I don't have style. I'm free. In this way, I'm brilliant. You know what I learned about myself? When I'm thinking, I'm an idiot. When I'm not thinking, I'm a genius. I mean, for the [Confidante role], I was kind of nervous because it's intimidating because people have expectations -- how are you going to play a big black guy? But if it's me, then it's easier. Even the casting director drove his car to come see me and give me all this pressure. And I didn't know what to do about it, because I can't prepare. How am I going to do it by myself? I just trust; it's totally innocent trust. I sit there, and it comes to me. Even people say, "You just got that power." I don't know where it comes from. But it's innocent trust. I think I channel all the earth, other elements. I believe in ghosts. And all the power comes to me. People say, "Wow, you're brilliant. How do you do it?" I just sort of jump out of my body and say, How did I do it? I really have no clue. I even don't know what I was doing. I'm just there.
Because for me, I'm not playing. Like, a lot of people are acting. For me, they may call it acting, but for me it's real. I'm there talking to you. If I say, "I love you," I love you. There's no more and no less. I'm not joking. I love you, that's what I do. A lot of actors are like, [stiffly] "Hmm. I love you." They don't even feel it; they're just talking by themselves. But for me, when I say it, I mean it. That's why when I played the mafia guy, I just said "Look at me. I'm not joking." I just said that! And he knew that I wasn't joking. And I don't know what I'm doing, but I just believe what I do. It's about belief. It's like children: they do whatever is true. I'm telling you the truth. That's it.
APA: You mentioned that you couldn't play any of the siblings in Dim Sum Funeral because you're not Asian American. But couldn't you practice an American accent and still play the character?
BL: I don't practice. Last year, my agent said, "Oh you should lose your accent." But I'm not interested in languages. I'm interested in the soul and the heart, other elements. I always believed that if I lose my accent, then I won't be me anymore. I'll be like talking like an American. I'll lose all my sensualness, who Bai Ling is. I become American. And even then, I don't think people will cast me as original Americans, because I'm not. There's still differences in my persona. Even if I was American, there's so many parts. Some people like you, some people don't; it's just natural. Even [Asian] American actors, every part they get, they ask them to put on an accent. They think "You're Asian. You're supposed to have an accent." So you can't win. I think I just like to be who I am. The only way that I can be brilliant is to be proud and be most brilliant in who I am. Regardless if people like me or not, because that's being an individual. If I'm trying to please him, please her, I'd be lost. I wouldn't know who I am. I'd be stupid.
It comes from a beautiful place. I'm giving talent and love and delightfulness as my gift to live. What can be wrong?
APA: I read an interview where you said that you wrote your own lines for Crank 2.
BL: Oh my God. Even in the mafia part, I make up my lines. I said "Believe it or not. I'm Black."
APA: Did you make up any lines for Dim Sum Funeral?
BL: Yeah, like a ghost. All those lines. I see ghosts. It's a funeral. Give me a break. A lot of things, I just go with how I feel. Most directors, if they're brilliant, they always take my ideas. Seriously. Even Spike Lee, I worked with him. You know, he always makes people nervous. He doesn't talk to talent. Everyone is scared. I know he likes me, but we never really talked. Finally one day, everybody was in a hurry, but I had this idea. I just wanted to talk. And he makes everyone nervous, so normally everyone would give up. But as an artist, I had to do it. I said, "Spike, I know everyone is in a hurry, but I just have this idea, and if you won't listen, I will not say it." He said, just say it. And I told him, and he said, "Shoot it." Brilliant directors are open. They got you. I'm not just saying bullshit, like -- oh I want you to show my nipples. No. I have an idea with a reason. And he just shot it.
They all see. Because they want your contributions. They don't want you to be a puppet. They cast you and they see you're interesting. You just have to be brave. And also, I don't take it seriously when someone doesn't cast me in something. It's your problem. I have this brilliant gift, and if you don't want it, it's your loss.
APA: I saw in an MTV Iggy interview that you have a book coming out... called Nipples?
BL: Yes, my own book, my own movie. Because I was in Playboy, people were making fun of my huge nipples. And I said, Nipples are actually beautiful. When babies come to life, they first touch a mother's nipples. They're loving, giving, essential, sexy to men. Beautiful spirit. I said, Why is it wrong to talk about? There's all these dirty thoughts in people's minds.
APA: Will the film be fiction or documentary?
BL: It's very modern, very hip, and very fast-paced with music. Young people will love it because you've never seen a movie like this. It's very hip, very provocative. It's about a young, modern girl and how she deals with modern life, men, and Hollywood. It's beautiful.
APA: Are you acting in it too?
BL: I shot it, I directed it, I produced. I did everything. It's in post-production. I have an editor. He said, "I'm working with Bai Ling." They asked, "How's the script?" He said, "There's no script."
I'm also writing a book called Nipples, but it's different from the film. I finished it, but I'm just editing it because I wrote 400 pages in 40 days. So I want to make it shorter. I'm going to use pictures that I've taken myself. It's how I see the world.
But I think I'm lucky in life. I'm working in a foreign land. I made everything myself. I come from the East. I didn't even speak the language. I think I'm a very good role model for lots of young people who want to find their dream, regardless of whether it's in the entertainment industry or anything. I think you can if you just follow your heart. You have to be fearless. You have to be daring. Not trying to listen to what other people say. You have to be you.
To learn more about Bai Ling, check out her blog "Naked Seduction". She writes in it every day. It is hilarious.