Joan Chen

Joan Chen

Birth : 1961-04-26, Shanghai, China

History

Joan Chong Chen (born April 26, 1961) is a Chinese American actress, film director, screenwriter and film producer. She became famous in China for her performance in the 1979 film Little Flower and came to international attention for her performance in the 1987 Academy Award-winning film The Last Emperor. She is also known for her roles in Twin Peaks, Red Rose White Rose, Saving Face and The Home Song Stories, and for directing the feature film Xiu Xiu: The Sent Down Girl.

Profile

Joan Chen
Joan Chen
Joan Chen
Joan Chen

Movies

Hero
Director
The background of "Hero" is set in 2020: a sudden disaster that disrupted everyone's lives. When society face unemployment when families fall apart, when lovers are separated, when death is approaching quietly, and when a peaceful life suddenly undergoes unexpected changes, how will women respond? What are the vital and irreplaceable roles that men play in women’s lives and growth? The three female directors Zhang Aijia, Li Shaohong and Chen Chong used their unique female perspectives to explore and show people's plights and struggles in family, career, and love in special times.
Ava
Toni
A black ops assassin is forced to fight for her own survival after a job goes dangerously wrong.
The Iron Hammer
Director
In this personal and rousing documentary, Joan Chen charts the inspiring life and career of “Jenny” Lang Ping, a fearless and independent Olympic athlete who propels China to international prominence in volleyball. On the court, her most effective weapon is her lethal spike, hence her titular nickname, while her leadership skills and calm demeanor solidify her unique status as the first player and coach to win multiple World Championships and Olympic gold. Chen, in her documentary feature debut, skillfully combines thrilling excerpts from championship games, intimate conversations with Lang Ping, her colleagues, and players to craft an entertaining and multi-dimensional portrait of this groundbreaking athlete who transformed women’s volleyball.
Tigertail
Yuan
A man reflects on the lost love of his youth and his long-ago journey from Taiwan to America as he begins to reconnect with his estranged daughter.
Sheep Without a Shepherd
La Wen
Li and his wife A Yu run a small business in Thailand and enjoy a happy home life with their two daughters. When their eldest daughter is violently assaulted, blackmailed and left traumatised by another student, her parents intervene, leading to a dead body which needs to be hidden, and every trace of the boy buried to cover up the accident.
The House That Never Dies II
医生
A cultural relic restorer discovers the skeletons of babies while working in an old mansion. The bloody events of the past drags everyone working on the project into a dark abyss.
The One
汤母·柯露思
Funny scramble of an esoteric book of cooking between a guy without feeling, a tough girl, a master out of date, a dark-minded rich man, a emotion-manipulating woman and a OCD-suffering samurai.
Lifeline
Xin Zhou
Kai (Leehom Wang) awakens on his Shanghai houseboat––alone. His girlfriend Emma (Olivia Munn) has suddenly disappeared, leaving behind the one thing that could lead to her whereabouts: her smartphone. Deeply disturbed, Kai seeks to uncover where she went, with whom she's connected, and what she took with her. Is Emma really who she says she is? Or is there something more sinister at play?
Lady of the Dynasty
Consort Wu
The tragic story of a Tang Dynasty imperial consort who was the favorite of the Emperor Xuanzong.
For Love or Money
Xu's mother
"For Love or Money" is based on a novel by Zhang Xiaoxian, which tells the moving story between a fallen noble lady and a rich heir to a large company. She’s broken and has lost the direction in life, whereas he chooses a life of poverty and freedom to pursue his passion as a painter. Together, will they be able to find themselves in this world of twists and turns before it’s too late?
Twin Peaks: The Missing Pieces
Josie Packard
A feature-length compilation of deleted and extended scenes from the 1992 film Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me.
Swordsman
Yue Lingshan
By the China Audio Visual, in the studio together to build a positive, gold medal screenwriter, producer is based in Jin Yong's famous novel "Swordsman" on March 24 at the first national 4A-class tourist destination Zhejiang Xiandu boot. Joe Chen unassailable modeling exposure, following Wallace (Linghu), Yuan Shanshan (Ren Yingying), such as modeling exposure, the highly anticipated and controversial Joe Chen (Swordsman) modeling has finally surfaced. In addition, Leung Kar Yan (Feng Qingyang), Han Dong (Tian Boguang), Lv Jiarong (Blue Phoenix), Zhang Tianyang (total no Shi) Dingzhuang Zhao also be exposed April 5
Swordsman
Dongfang Bubai
By the China Audio Visual, in the studio together to build a positive, gold medal screenwriter, producer is based in Jin Yong's famous novel "Swordsman" on March 24 at the first national 4A-class tourist destination Zhejiang Xiandu boot. Joe Chen unassailable modeling exposure, following Wallace (Linghu), Yuan Shanshan (Ren Yingying), such as modeling exposure, the highly anticipated and controversial Joe Chen (Swordsman) modeling has finally surfaced. In addition, Leung Kar Yan (Feng Qingyang), Han Dong (Tian Boguang), Lv Jiarong (Blue Phoenix), Zhang Tianyang (total no Shi) Dingzhuang Zhao also be exposed April 5
Double Xposure
Dr. Hao
When Song Qi stumbles upon her boyfriend's affair with her best friend, her life quickly starts falling apart and she is subsequently drawn into a quicksand of revenge and murder. Though all is not as it seems and Song Qi will have to embark on a twisted journey into her past and the very depths of her own mind
Passion Island
Joanna
The comedy of the year. This wannabe magical romance-drama is one of the most illogical films ever and the actors, if not director Kam Kwok-Leung, may be aware of it. Featuring CGI tears and paintings of corn-eating monkeys. The highlight: Chang Chen pretending to be Korean.
Hemingway & Gellhorn
Madame Chiang Kai Shek
Writer Ernest Hemingway begins a romance with fellow scribe Martha Gellhorn.
Shanghai Strangers
Writer
A young woman in modern-day Shanghai whose chance encounter with a stranger moves her to divulge a deep-seated secret. In atmospheric flashbacks she is shown in an old house filled with mementos of the Jewish population who were given asylum in Shanghai during World War II.
Shanghai Strangers
Director
A young woman in modern-day Shanghai whose chance encounter with a stranger moves her to divulge a deep-seated secret. In atmospheric flashbacks she is shown in an old house filled with mementos of the Jewish population who were given asylum in Shanghai during World War II.
White Frog
Irene Young
Story of a neglected teen with mild Asperger’s syndrome whose life is changed forever when tragedy hits his family.
Ensisuukko
Shanghai, two months ago... What would you risk to help a loved one?
1911
Longyu
At the beginning of the 20th century, China is in a state of crisis. The country is split into warring factions, the citizens are starving, and recent political reforms have made matters worse, not better. The ruling Qing Dynasty, led by a seven-year-old emperor, and his ruthless mother, Empress Dowager Longyu is completely out of touch after 250 years of unquestioned power. Huang Xing has recently returned from Japan, where he has studied the art of modern warfare. When he finds his country falling apart, he feels he has no choice but to pick up the sword.
Color Me Love
The plot is vaguely reminiscent of The Devil Wears Prada. The heroine is a new fashion editor who has to deal with her female boss and boyfriend, an arrogant young painter who has a chaotic past with other girls.
Love in Disguise
Joan
Famous from an incredibly young age, DMH (Wang Lee Hom) has only ever known a celebrity pop star existence. Yet, despite all the glamour, there is still something lacking in his charmed life - true love. With the help of fellow musician and friend WZB, DMH disguised himself as a regular Joe in the hope of finding true love. While incognito, DMH and WZB stumble across the performance of a classical Chinese orchestra and DMH is immediately captivated by the melodies of the guzheng soloist, LMQ (Crystal Liu Yi-Fei), a student at the Shanghai Conservatory, whose affections lie with the accomplished but arrogant virtuoso, ZXZ. In his attempt to spend more time with LQM, DMH promises to help LQM get together with ZXZ. As DMH and LQM grow closer, it becomes increasingly difficult to conceal his identity.
To Whom It May Concern: Ka Shen's Journey
Herself
The definitive and true-life story of Nancy Kwan who as a young Eurasian girl from Hong Kong captured the hearts and minds of cinemagoers around the world in her stunning motion picture debut in THE WORLD OF SUZIE WONG (1960). Nancy Kwan's story is both fairytale and poignant as it takes its audience on a personal journey, a woman's journey, which is as equally compelling as it is inspiring.
Mao's Last Dancer
Niang
At the age of 11, Li was plucked from a poor Chinese village by Madame Mao's cultural delegates and taken to Beijing to study ballet. In 1979, during a cultural exchange to Texas, he fell in love with an American woman. Two years later, he managed to defect and went on to perform as a principal dancer for the Houston Ballet and as a principal artist with the Australian Ballet.
All God's Children Can Dance
Evelyn
In Korea Town Los Angeles, a young man, Kengo, believes he's the son of God - that's what his mother told him since he was a young boy. He spends his days working his dead-end job and figuring out his complex feelings for his girlfriend until, one day, he sees a one-eared man who could be his father and decides to follow him around Los Angeles.
24 City
Xiao Hua
24 City chronicles the dramatic closing of a once-prosperous state-owned factory in Chengdu, southwest China and its conversion into a sprawling luxury apartment complex. Three generations, eight characters : old workers, factory executives and yuppies, their stories melt into the History of China.
The Leap Years
Li-Ann (age 48)
Li-ann, a dreamer, is a strong believer of the soul mate theory and rejects all men, especially her best friend KS, till she falls in love with Jeremy, at first sight. They tour Chinatown, Singapore, together on February 29 1980. Unfortunately, she is heartbroken when he tells her he is engaged. He decides to make up to her by meeting her same time, same place, every leap year. Their love spans twenty years, as they realize the pain of love until they take the leap of faith...and the leap of love...
Secrets from Another Place: Creating Twin Peaks
A select group of key creative forces involved in the making of Twin Peaks reveals their take on the fascinating creation and journey of the wildly popular show.
Lust, Caution
Mrs. Yee
During World War II, a secret agent must seduce then assassinate an official who works for the Japanese puppet government in Shanghai. Her mission becomes clouded when she finds herself falling in love with the man she is assigned to kill.
The Sun Also Rises
Dr. Lin
A polyptych of interconnected stories in different time-zones, shifting between a Yunnan village, a campus, and the Gobi Desert.
Hollywood Chinese
Self
Hollywood Chinese is a captivating look at cinema history through the lens of the Chinese American experience. Directed by triple Sundance award-winning filmmaker, Arthur Dong, this documentary is a voyage through a century of cinematic delights, intrigues and treasures. It weaves together a wondrous portrait of actors, directors, writers, and movie icons who have defined American feature films, from the silent era to the current new wave of Asian American cinema. At once entertaining and enlightening, Hollywood Chinese reveals long-untold stories behind the Asian faces that have graced the silver screen, and weaves a rich and complicated tapestry, one marked by unforgettable performances and groundbreaking films, but also by a tangled history of race and representation.
The Home Song Stories
Rose Hong / Hong Meigui
Tom, now in his 40s, begins to write the memoirs of his 1960s childhood, as the little boy whose mother Rose was a glamorous Shanghai nightclub singer. When Rose meets Aussie sailor Bill, they are quickly married, and she packs up Tom and his older sister May to head for Melbourne. The marriage just as quickly breaks up and Rose moves with the kids to Sydney. After a succession of male friends and little success, in 1971 Rose moves back to Melbourne, in an uncomfortable arrangement living again with Bill – and his mother. With Bill called away to sea, Rose takes up with young Chinese cook Joe, but despair and conflicts over May's relationship with Joe tear the family further apart. Little Tom is deeply hurt, but May's ongoing conflict with her mother takes a respite when Rose tells her daughter about her traumatic teenage years.
Americanese
Betty Nguyen
Long after their breakup, Chinese American Raymond Ding and Amerasian Aurora Crane struggle to let go. Torn apart by mismatched ideals, meddling friends, and the complexities of racial identities, they find other suitable mates but cannot stay away from each other
Sunflower
Zhang Xiuqing
Sunflower is the story of the Zhang family in Beijing father, mother and son across three decades, centering on the tensions and misunderstandings between father and son. Nine-year-old Xiangyang is having the time of his life, free of adult supervision until the day he meets the father he can hardly remember. Having spent years away, he returns with strong ideas about his son learning to draw. But Xiangyang chafes under his father's constant rules and soon stages his own revolution against the lessons enforced.
Cyber Wars
Madame Ong
In the near future in the Asian city-state Sintawan, everyone's identity is recorded in the vast CyberLink. The only way around this is using illegal simulated identity implants (sims). A young bounty hunter who makes her living tracking sims, finds herself the unlikely ally of a police detective who suspects the CyberLink is being perverted for an insidious and deadly purpose
Saving Face
Hwei-Lan Gao - Ma
A Chinese-American lesbian and her traditionalist mother are reluctant to go public with secret loves that clash against cultural expectations.
Jasmine Women
Elder Mo
Zhang Ziyi plays the youngest of three generations of women who leads lives in Shanghai. Joan Chen plays the great-grandmother, grandmother, and mother. The film recounts this family, the mistakes they make, and a cycle that the granddaughter breaks out of.
Autumn in New York
Director
Autumn in New York follows the sexual exploits of Will Keane - New York restaurateur, infamous verging-on-50 playboy, master of the no-commitment seduction - until he runs into an unexpected dead end when he meets Charlotte Fielding. Charlotte is half Will's age and twice his match, a 21 year-old free spirit yearning to get out and taste the excitement of adult life.
What's Cooking?
Trinh Nguyen
In LA's Fairfax district, where ethnic groups abound, four households celebrate Thanksgiving amidst family tensions. In the Nguyen family, the children's acculturation and immigrant parents' fears collide. In the Avila family, Isabel's son has invited her estranged husband to their family dinner. Audrey and Ron Williams want to keep their own family's ruptures secret from Ron's visiting mother. In the Seelig household, Herb and Ruth are unwilling to discuss openly their grown daughter's living with her lover, Carla. Around each table, things come to a head. A gun, an affair, a boyfriend, and a pregnancy precipitate crises forcing each family to find its center.
Purple Storm
Shirley Kwan
Khmer Rouge terrorist Kieron Chow and his unit arrive in Hong Kong for their latest mission. Todd, Chow's son and fiercely loyal right-hand man, sustains a serious head wound. Now a total amnesiac, Todd wakes from a coma to find he's been given a new life, one that may be the death of him. With the help of psychiatrist Shirley Kwan, anti-terrorist officer Mark Chan tries to convince Todd that he is actually an undercover cop sent to infiltrate Chow's group. As fragments of his shattered memory return, Todd is forced to choose between his dark past and this one shot at redemption
Xiu Xiu: The Sent-Down Girl
Writer
Young teen girl Xiu Xiu is sent away to a remote corner of the Sichuan steppes for manual labor in 1975 (sending young people to there was a part of Cultural Revolution in China). A year later, she agrees to go to even more remote spot with a Tibetan saddle tramp Lao Jin to learn horse herding.
Xiu Xiu: The Sent-Down Girl
Director
Young teen girl Xiu Xiu is sent away to a remote corner of the Sichuan steppes for manual labor in 1975 (sending young people to there was a part of Cultural Revolution in China). A year later, she agrees to go to even more remote spot with a Tibetan saddle tramp Lao Jin to learn horse herding.
Precious Find
Camilla Jones
The year is 2049. 200 years after the great Californian goldrush. The new generation of gold diggers are just as full of gold fever as their ancestors.
Stallone's Law: The Making of 'Judge Dredd'
Herself
Documentary on the making of the 1995 film 'Judge Dredd.'
Judge Dredd
Dr. Ilsa Hayden
In a dystopian future, Dredd, the most famous judge (a cop with instant field judiciary powers) is convicted for a crime he did not commit while his murderous counterpart escapes.
Wild Side
Virginia Chow
A bank accountant who moonlights as a high-priced call girl becomes embroiled in the lives of a money launderer, his seductive wife, and his bodyguard.
The Hunted
Kirina
Paul Racine, a high-powered American business executive in Japan, is catapulted into a maze of danger and intrigue after he and his sexy companion are the targets of assassins hired by the ruthless Kinjo. To survive, Racine must join forces with a powerful samurai and together they will fight the force of evil in an awesome battle rooted in centuries of brutal conflict.
Red Rose White Rose
Wang Jiaohui
Chronicles the love life of a man, Zhenbao. He has a steamy fling with the wife of a friend, the saucy and exciting Red Rose. Even though he feels happy with her, he knows he will not end up with her. To maintain his reputation, he marries an antiseptic, frigid but classy lady of a prim and proper background (White rose). Dissonance abound when he finds his bride irritating.
On Deadly Ground
Masu
Forrest Taft is an environmental agent who works for the Aegis Oil Company in Alaska. Aegis Oil's corrupt CEO is the kind of person who doesn't care whether or not oil spills into the ocean or onto the land—just as long as it's making money for him.
Heaven & Earth
Mama
Le Ly lives in a small Vietnamese village whose serenity is shattered when war breaks out. Caught between the Viet Cong and the South Vietnamese army, the village is all but destroyed. After being both brutalized and raped, Le Ly resolves to flee. She leaves for the city, surviving desperate situations, but surviving nonetheless. Eventually she meets a U.S. Marine named Steve Butler who treats her kindly and tells her he would like to be married -- maybe to her.
Golden Gate
Marilyn Song
A brash 22-year-old FBI agent trumps up charges of Communist spying against a Chinese laundryman. Ten years later, he wants to make amends to the man and his teenage daughter.
Temptation of a Monk
Princess Hong-e - Scarlet / Qing-shou - Violet
Near the beginning of the Tang dynasty, in 7th century China, General Shi Yan-sheng is tricked into leaving the crown prince unguarded. The crown prince is murdered by one of his brothers who then becomes emperor. Shi retreats to a monastery, perhaps to hide, perhaps to plan a coup. When his loyal troops as well as the princess he desires are slain, he seeks refuge in a remote, abandoned monastery where an aged abbot schools him with practical, earthy teachings. The emperor's forces pursue Shi: first a woman, then a general seek to overpower him with lust and might. Over the course of the film, the reds of battle give way to blues of meditation.
Shadow of a Stranger
Vanessa
A action thriller directed by Richard Friedman.
Steel Justice
Nicole Loa
David Nash has lost his son and his will to live. But the boy appears in his dreams, as well as his Robosaurus toy ! A mythical figure will help Nash to turn the Robosaurus into a real creature in order to avenge his son's death.
Strangers
The Girl
Three provocative short stories. An American in Paris seduces a young man only to have the tables turned; a tourist recovering from an accident is alone but far from lonely; and an exchange student decides to intervene when he sees the woman in the opposite apartment being tied, gagged and beaten by her lover.
Turtle Beach
Minou
Reporter Judith Wilkes leaves her husband and two sons in Sydney and goes to Malaysia to cover the story of the Vietnamese boat people. She becomes romantically involved with Kanan, and strikes up a friendship with Lady Minou Hobday, who keeps a regular vigil at "Turtle Beach" where the refugees try to land secretly in the hope that one day her own children will arrive. Accompanying Minou one night, Judith witnesses a brutal massacre by the Malaysians which spurs her on to expose the horrors of the internment camps at Bidong.
Wedlock
Noelle
A male prison escapee heads for his hidden loot, electronically attached to a female prisoner.
Twin Peaks
Jocelyn Packard
An idiosyncratic FBI agent investigates the murder of a young woman in the even more idiosyncratic town of Twin Peaks. (This standalone version of the series pilot was produced for the European VHS market and has an alternate, closed ending.)
The Blood of Heroes
Kidda
Set in a futuristic world where the only sport that has survived in a wasted society is the brutal game known as jugging. Sallow, the leader of a rag-tag team, has played in the main Leagues before, but was cast out because of indiscretions with a lady. However now joined by a talented newcomer, Kidda, an ambitious young peasant girl he and his team find they have one last chance for glory
Dim Sum Take-Out
Dim Sum Take-Out shows how the heterogeneity and complexity of Asian American experiences can be erased. It was literally cut together from film that was shot for Dim Sum, which was conceived as a film about the ways in which five women of the Chinese diaspora—three American-born, a naturalized citizen, and a recent immigrant—try to balance their personal goals and the expectations of the Chinese American community in which they live. The original story line was thought to be too complicated and ambitious, and, ultimately, significant portions of Dim Sum were rewritten and reshot to focus on Geraldine, a second-generation Chinese American woman, and her relationship with her immigrant mother. However, footage that had already been shot for the film was edited together to create Dim Sum Take-Out, an eleven-minute film made up of narrative segments intercut with music video style segments, set to English- and Chinese-language versions of the song "My Boyfriend's Back."
The Last Emperor
Wang Jung
A dramatic history of Pu Yi, the last of the Emperors of China, from his lofty birth and brief reign in the Forbidden City, the object of worship by half a billion people; through his abdication, his decline and dissolute lifestyle; his exploitation by the invading Japanese, and finally to his obscure existence as just another peasant worker in the People's Republic.
Tai-Pan
May-May
The film begins following the British victory of the first Opium War and the seizure of Hong Kong. Although the island is largely uninhabited and the terrain unfriendly, it has a large port that both the British government and various trading companies believe will be useful for the import of merchandise to be traded on mainland China, a highly lucrative market.
The Night Stalker
Mai Wing
A tough homicide cop is assigned to track down a serial killer who is murdering prostitutes.
E nan
Lindy Ng (Joan Chen) and her younger brother and sister eke out an impoverished life together, living in a rundown apartment. When Lindy is diagnosed with terminal leukemia, her first thoughts are her siblings. Who will take care of them after she passes away? With her apartment too dangerous to continue living in, Lindy is forced to move to another location where she encounters the worst of flatmates, hot-tempered petty criminal Morrie (Frankie Chan).
Dim Sum: A Little Bit of Heart
Young m.j. player
San Francisco's Richmond District. A widow welcomes the Chinese New Year. 62 years old, she wants to make a trip to China to pay last respects to her ancestors. A fortune teller has told her this is the year she'll die, and a daughter, Geraldine, remains unmarried. Geraldine's boyfriend lives in Los Angeles and she's not sure she's ready for marriage, nor does she want to leave her mother alone in her declining years. Mrs. Tan's cheerful brother-in-law, Uncle Tam, tries to help out.
Awakening
Su Xiaomei
A disillusioned and lonely young man working for a foreign trade company finds his enthusiasm for life revived when he meets a young woman who seems to reflect the ideals and ambitions he once had.
The Little Flower
赵小花
This movie is adapted from the novel Heroes in Tongbai. Xiao Hua, a sister of Zhao Yongsheng, is deserted by her poor family. He Xiangdong, a woodworker, adopts her and rename her He Cuigu. To steer clear of arrest by the enemy, Dong Hongguo, offspring of a revolutionary family, is renamed Xiao Hua so as to be adopted by her adopter. Later, Zhao Yongsheng's parents are killed by the enemy, he joins the Liberation Army. In 1947, when Zhao Yongsheng returns to his own village Tongbai, his sister Xiao Hua happens to find her brother. Doctor Zhou who works in the hospital of the army, adopts Xiao Hua without knowing she is her own daughter. He Cuigu has become a well-known guerrilla hero after she grows up. She doesn't recognize her brother Zhao Yongsheng when she carries him on the stretcher. After the war, Zhao Yongsheng, Xiao Hua and Cuigu meet each other happily; Dong Xiangkun and Doctor Zhou also feel happy to reunite with their own daughter after 17 years of departure.
A Loyal Overseas Chinese Family
黄思华
Youth
Shen Yamei
After her senses are surgically restored, a formerly deaf mute teenager enlists in the army and is assigned to communications work. But her inexperience with even such simple tasks as answering a telephone lead her supervisor to conclude she is incompetent, and try to have her reassigned. However, a courageous action by another soldier leads him to reevaluate his judgment.
Under the Light
He Xiuli
An urban crime drama film which will cover topics from anti-corruption to anti-crime. The story revolves around Su Jian Ming and Li Hui Lin jointly investigating an undercurrent criminal case involving a huge interest group. In order to investigate the case, Su Jian Ming ignores the persuasion of his powerful father Zheng Gang, and rushes to the "Hongmen Banquet", hosted by rich businessman Li Zhi Tian. More and more clues gradually surface. The undercurrent surging behind these clues makes people faintly feel that a big game of chess is being planned.
Tonight at Noon
Joan
Lee and Mae are a couple trying to work out their differences. As Mae struggles with memories of a former flame, Lee, who is a writer, works through his frustration by forming his problems into a story in his mind. And that's when everything starts shifting back and forth from reality to Lee's imagination.
English
Director
A child's-eye story of Shanghainese settlers in Xinjiang during the late Mao era.