SHOWING HER UGLY SIDE

       People marvel at Fan Bingbing's beauty. Painter Chen Danquing saw her on a flight and compared her look to the work of ancient calligrapher Wang Xizhi - who is famed for his refined and delicate style.
       But in an effort to prove she's more than just a pretty face, Fan hasn't been afraid to get ugly. She played a plain massage parlour girl without any makeup in "Lost in Beijing" ("Pingguo"), and donned thick glasses and a bucktooth for "Desires of the Heart" ("Taohua Yun").
       Even so, she is still referred to as "China's prettiest actress", though few people notice she's also one of the hardest-working.
       The 28-year-old has done more than 25 films and 40 TV series, and also runs a TV drama studio and performance school. In 2009, she starred in seven movies.
       In "Sopie's Revenge" ("Feichang Wanmei"). Which premierd last week, she plays a film star who robs Zhang Ziyi fo her boyfriend. In "Wheat" ("Mai Tian), a costume epic set 2,000 years ago, she is a city's ruler. Filming for her first English film, "Stretch", in which she plays a powerful woman who manip9ulates a horse race, wrapped earlier this year.
       "When I choose a role, I prefer something I've never tried before," she says.
       "Sophie's Revenge" is her first comedy,m as it is Zhang's, who is the film's lead and producr. "Ziyi came to me and said very sincerely, 'Bingbing, I've never done a comedy, neither have you, why not try one together?" she recalls.
       Noted makeup man Tang Yi revealed that the two secretly competed against each other in terms of makeup and costumes, but Fan described their relationship as understanding and appreciative.
       "We are both boyish and brave girls who have worked hard to get where we are, so we feel connected," Fan says. "And I've been a producer, so I know how hard she works. I appreciate her diligence."
       On one occasion, Fan was suffering with a fevr and wanted to cancl a scene at 2am. But she was told the rent for the set had ben paid, and would be wasted if she could not act.
       Arriving on set she found flowers, a por of soup and a card of apology and thanks from Zhang.
       "I worked until 6 the next morning," Fan says, laughing. "Ziyi is a good producer. She cares about actors. To me, a little care is more important than material rewards."
       In "Wheat", scheduled to open this Septmber, she plays a young widown donfronting war, lies and the sudden mission of governing a city.
       Director He ping required a different acting style from her and she found it hard to adapt. It took 25 takes before Fan nailed the first scene.
       "She's a woman who shoulders he rresponsibilities bravely I can relate to her," she says of her character.
       She calls learning English "torture", because she didn't have time for lessons before becomoing a professional actrss at 16.
       For her role in "Stretch", she stayed up night after night learning lines in English for 60 scenes.
       When she arrived in Macau for the first scene, the director found she was able to recite all her lines perfectly.
       She attributes her strong will and early entry to the industry to her mother, who encouraged but never spoiled her.
       Her mum used to run a clothes shop in Yantai, Shandong province, and worked hard to pay for Fan's piano, flute and singing training.
       "She treated me as if I were a boy, so even if I was bullied, I would still go home with a smile."
       Fan describes how she ld a gang of girls that wasn't afraid to argue with boys who bullied them.
       Fan remembers mimicking the action on TV back in those days, sticking chopsticks in her hair to copy actresses' hairstyles.
"Being an actor means you can be a nurse today and a policeman tomorrow, that seemed so much fun to me," she says.
       She left home for acting school in Shanghai when she was 15. One year later she quit and left for Beijing, where she got a role in a TV series.
       The city seemed full of opportunities, but for two years she was an obscure actress shuffing between a rented house and diffrent sets. Her parents lived with her, supporting their daughter's dream with all their savings and care.
       The turning point for Fan came in 1999, when she played a maid in the smash TV drama "Parincess Huanzhu" ("Huanzhu Gege") and quickly became a household name.
       But her place on the A-list wasn't secured until 2003, with her role as a shrewd mistress in Feng Xiaogang's film "Cell Phone" ("Shouji"), that year's box-office smash.
       It won her the Best Actress award at the Full Blossom Film Festival, one of China's most prestigious.
       The downside was the typecasting that followed.
       She was also the targt of gossip columns that implied she seduced men to get film roles, and was accused of having plastic surgry.
       In jresponse, she had herself examined by a team of surgeons in 2006, who confirmed she had never gone under the knife.
       "I would do that again today," she says agitatedly.
       "You think I am not good at acting, okay, that's a subjective judgement. But you blame me for something I never did, I must prove you are lying."
       The rumours did not stop, however, and even today colleagues and friends inquire where she had surgery.
       "I am tired or explaining now," she says. "My bottom line now is mamily and morality. Boyand that I am like chewing gum, very elastic. I choose to beleve the audience will grow up with me."
       She also has other businese to take care of. Her studio produces a TV series each year. Her new hobby is English. She has hired a teacher who accompanies her everywhere, not necessarily in prparation for Hollywood roles, but for frequent cultural exchanges.
       She also dreams of dsigning costumes, and opening a spa and a cinema, where she can enjoy films with friends.
       "I'm so young, and love hasn't arrived...why not try something new and fun?" she says. "Even if love comes, I believe really able women can balance a career and relationship well."

       "You think I am nto goo at acting, okay, that's a subjective judgement. But you blame me for something I never did, I must prove you are lying."