Memoirs of a Geisha won three Oscars last week (Cinematography, Art Direction and Costume Design), but I am not sure if any Asian actress was ever nominated for an Oscar? Although it’s quite difficult to name my favourite Asian actresses, I will give it a shot anyway.
My current top 5:
1. Ziyi Zhang (China, 1979)
2. Shu Qi (Taiwan, 1976)
3. Lucy Liu (USA, 1968)
4. Chiaki Kuriyama (Japan, 1984)
5. Eugenia Yuan (Birthplace/year N/A)
Do you want to share your own top 5 with us? Go ahead, make my day and comment! 🙂
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1. Ziyi Zhang
2. Lucy Liu
3. Lisa Ling
4. Grace Park
5. Ming-Na Wen
Hmmm, that’s a difficult one but here are my favorites (in random order): Ziyi Zhang, Kelly Hu, Grace Park, Tia Carrere, and Lucy Liu.
1. Gong Li
2. Joan Chen
3. Michelle Yeoh
4. Ziyi Zhang
5. Faye Wong
My list is mainly based on acting ability and screen presense not necessarily how beautiful they are.
1. Gong Li
2. Christy Chung
3. Fujiwara Norika
4. Shu Qi
5. Zhang Ziyi
Yes, acting and screen presence
1. Tran Nu Yên-Khê
2. Maggie Cheung
3. Xun Zhou
4. Sandra Oh
5. Wong Faye/Eugenia Yuen
Tran Nu Yên-Khê (Scent of Green Papaya, Cyclo, Verticle Ray of the Sun) has a hypnotic presence beyond words.
Maggie Cheung is a simply a superb film actress. Period.
Xun Zhou (Suzhou River, Balzac and the Little Seamstress) is a very standout Chinese style actress, quirky and adorable.
There’s just something about Sandra Oh (Double Happiness, Sideways, Under the Tuscan Sun) that pulls me in.
And who didn’t fall in love with Wang Faye in Chungking Express, or Eugenia Yuan in Mail Order Bride–both in performance and beauty.
Honorable Mention: Lucy Liu, Ming Na Wen, Zhang Ziyi.
As far a the world’s love affair with Zhang Ziyi, she proved herself in 2046, then took a big step back in Memoirs. I live in Shanghai, and girls of her beauty are a dime-a-dozen.
Lastly, somewhere on this list–and the site–we need to find some space for HK pop star and actress, Karen Mok–a total Asian Siren.
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I really don’t have a top five. I usually separate it to the four main regions, U.S.A., Japan, H.K./China, Korea.
U.S.A
1. Ming-Na
2. Michelle Krusiec
3. Kelly Hu
That is it for the U.S.
Japan
1. Matsu Takako
2. Shibasaki Kou
3. Ueto Aya
H.K./China
1. Maggie Cheung
2. Liu Yi Fei
3. Zhang Ziyi
Korea
1. Kim Hee-Sun
2. Ha Ji-Won
3. Jeon Ji-Hyun
That is about it.
Hi CrackAss, you’ll be glad to know Kristin Kreuk is half Asian. 😉
And I agree with you about Bai Ling – I’m surprised she didn’t make anybody else’s list. She is damn sexy!
There’s a lot of great names above. I’ll just throw in two more that didn’t get mentioned.
Vivian Wu (Pillow Book and The Last Emperor.) Wow.
Valerie Chow (Chungking Express. Faye Wong was cute, but Valerie stole the show for me (looks wise, given her very small role). I kept urging Tony Leung to pick up the phone and call his smoking-hot flight attendant ex. Idiot didn’t listen. 🙂
How about Vicki Zhao Wei and Vivian Shu ?
Or HK actress Sophie Ngan…Category III movies count right? 😉
Diane Mizota and Carrie Ann Inaba in “Austin Powers in Gold Member”
[broken links removed!]
I will not be greedy. I choose only three in no order, other than alphabetically:
Akira Fubuki
Jun Kusanagi
Ryoko Mitake
The first two have beautiful faces as well as outstanding bodies.
I like Jun’s age … now maturing and knowledgeable. Speaking of THE “doll ” Jun, check out 3 scans in black and white that I found to be the absolute tops as an erotic, sensuous and provocative experience!!!! And all she is tying to do in the photos is to remove a T-shirt which gets delightfully hung up on her gorgeous breast.
http://www.dynamix.net/gallery/juku/A'La-Mode-Scan/jun_kusanagi_41.jpg
http://www.dynamix.net/gallery/juku/A'La-Mode-Scan/jun_kusanagi_47.jpg
http://www.dynamix.net/gallery/juku/A'La-Mode-Scan/jun_kusanagi_48.jpg
What say you erotica experts??
Cheers,
horny2
Some of the comments are too much like the one by CrackAss.
I think his topic was favorite actresses not porn stars. Anyways here goes:
1. Maggie Cheung (she’s just so talented)
2. Gong Li (also very talented)
3. Michelle Yeoh (great in action & dramatic roles)
4. Yukie Nakama (performs well in both comedic
and dramatic roles plus she’s just a natural
beauty)
5. Kelly Hu (just because she’s from Hawaii and
because I couldn’t think of anyone else at the
moment)
Sorry Korea I don’t watch many of your films.
Oh yeah I forgot Kobe Tai.
My list is more contemporary and, pardon me, more North Americanized.
1. Kristin Kreuk
2. Brenda Song
3. Grace Park
4. Zhang Ziyi
5. Lucy Liu
If you want more Asian Asians, I’d add Bai Ling, Gong Li and Aishwarya Rai.
1. Celeste Thorson
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2294576/
2. Lucy Lui
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0005154/
3. Maggie Cheung
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001041/
4. Zhang Zyi
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm095547/
5. Grace Park
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0661825/
I guess the only non-Korean actress that would be on my top 5 would be Maggie Cheung. The others would be:
Sung Hyun-ah (IMHO, on of Korea’s most underrated)
Shim Hye-jin
Jeon Ji-hyun (Used to think she was just another pretty face until I saw her in “The Uninvited”)
Lee Bo-hee (Popular in the 80s-90s)