Elemental

范冰冰 (Fàn Bīngbīng) poses on the red carpet to attend the closing ceremony and the screening of the animated film Elemental out of competition, during the 76th Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, France. Photo: Lionel Hahn/Getty Images.

Second Act

胡迪尼 (Houdini)

Life begins (again) at forty for Chinese movie star 范冰冰 (Fàn Bīngbīng), who after facing up a tax audit, along with a heavy fine and a four-month disappearance, brilliantly succeeded in maintaining her prominent role as China’s prima donna on Hollywood stages. But not everything was easy. She mentioned how learning to speak English was her first and most challenging priority. “I would have to say that language was the most difficult part for me. I had to learn a lot of technical language in the script. It is very hard for me. I just memorise all my lines in the screenplay. Learning to speak English has been most challenging”, she told Hindustan Times. Photos: 张家诚 (Leslie Zhāng)/Vogue Singapore.

山寨 (Shānzhài)

范冰冰 (Fàn Bīngbīng) as Che Guevara for Esquire China’s June 2010 “Women Issue”. Courtesy of Esquire China.

重返大海 (Back to the Sea)

范冰冰 (Fàn Bīngbīng) for The New York Times Travel Magazine China August 2021 issue. Coming home to her birth city of 青岛 (Qīngdǎo), 山东省 (Shāndōng province), China. Photos: 姜南 (Jiāng Nán).

回文 (Palindrome)

范冰冰 (Fàn Bīngbīng) dons seven masks to form a girl group of her own called FANAᖷ in preview pics for her Madame Figaro cover shoot. Photos courtesy of Cfensi.

“Love, who exempts no loved one from loving”

范冰冰 (Fàn Bīngbīng) for Madame Figaro: “Boundless expectations of love / Love connects us / Love makes us believe / Love keeps us together / Like spring blossoms”. Photo: Madame Figaro 中文版/新浪微博 (Sina Wēibó).

猫女 (Catwoman)

Chinese show star 范冰冰 (Fàn Bīngbīng) posing as Catwoman in the March 2017 issue of Cosmopolitan. Photo courtesy of Hi 范冰冰 (Fàn Bīngbīng) (@HiFanBingBing).

The Unbearable Lightness of Being Alone

Just last month Chinese actress, model and singer 范冰冰 (Fàn Bīngbīng) posed and gave an interview for Flaunt Magazine which is well worth reading. Let’s just quote one of her reflections on the meaning of life: “Experiencing challenge means you are meant to struggle in order to learn and grow. I encourage everyone to face them and work through them bravely. Don’t be afraid of challenge. It’s a gift, but such gifts won’t be easily delivered to you. You must work hard and be mentally strong to overcome each challenge presented”. Photos: 楊大龍 (Yáng Dàlóng)/Flaunt Magazine.

Eye of Ra

陈漫 (Chén Màn) is a fine art photographer born and based in 北京 (Běijīng), China who has been shooting covers and layouts for leading fashion magazines for a long time. Consequently, she is also the “best beloved” photographer of most Chinese divas, and she is said to be the only lenswoman able to make 范冰冰 (Fàn Bīngbīng) unveil herself. Photos courtesy of sohu.com.

星星们在俯视 (The Stars Look Down)

From riches to rags in two hours. So much time it took on last Friday for the French luxury fashion house Louis Vuitton to first name Chinese movie star 范冰冰 (Fàn Bīngbīng) — recently involved in a tax evasion scandal — as a worldwide brand ambassador and then to revoke her mandate due to public opinion pressure against her. The two-hour catwalk stage, however, allowed 范冰冰 (Fàn Bīngbīng) to style her Louis Vuitton Trendy Multi-Pochett Handbag with a colourful, silk midi dress with hints of lace, just to be sure that was no dream. Photos courtesy of Louis Vuitton.

費拉蘆薈 (Aloe vera)

Although not confirmed by official government sources, there is quite a reliable 星島日報 (Sing Tao Daily) report that Chinese movie star 范冰冰 (Fàn Bīngbīng) had to “cede” her starring role in the spy thriller movie The 355 — in fact, her big comeback after her big tax case — to a body double, 鹿寧 (Lù Níng), due to her being still under prohibition to leave the country.

The Woman at The Window

On Wednesday, August 7, 2019 the Chinese-language edition of The New York Times also published the uncut version of Steven Lee Myers’s interview with movie star 范冰冰 (Fàn Bīngbīng) (pictured at the window) — entitled “范冰冰 (Fàn Bīngbīng) talks about last year’s ‘lowest ebb’ and today’s ‘peace’” — which indeed does not add anything particular to the “edited” version, if not for the fact that the uncut one consists of a question and answer type interview conducted by Myers himself, plus two young 北京 (Běijīng) correspondents: 牟静雯 (Zoe Móu) and 付欣怡 (Claire Fù). On the eve of her glorieuse rentrée in Simon Kinberg’s spy thriller movie The 355, 范冰冰 (Fàn Bīngbīng) has no revenge to take and no secrets to tell either, but just a (hopefully not final) thought to share with her audience: “I just said that others can’t help you. Only you can help yourself”. Photo: 丛妍 (Cóng Yán) for The New York Times.

多语制 (Multilingualism)

The exclusive interview of The New York Times correspondent Steven Lee Myers with Chinese movie star 范冰冰 (Fàn Bīngbīng) (the woman in purple pictured in the mirror) is now available online also in Chinese at https://cn.nytimes.com. Just after surviving her tax scandal to make her experience not a tragedy that need never have staged but an empress saga, 范冰冰 (Fàn Bīngbīng) decided to guess deeper meanings from her own dark times: “It may be a trough I encountered in my life or in my work, but this trough is actually a good thing”, she said. “It has made me calm down and think seriously about what I want to do in my future life”. Apparently “牟某 (Móu Mǒu)” is no longer her agent. And apparently, 李晨 (Lǐ Chén) is no longer her boyfriend. But, of course, do not take rumours for facts. Photo: 丛妍 (Cóng Yán) for The New York Times.

The Second Time Around

Finally things came to a head. Chinese movie star 范冰冰 (Fàn Bīngbīng) gave an exclusive interview to Steven Lee Myers, 北京 (Běijīng) correspondent of The New York Times, in which, for the first time, she humbly talked of the possibility of a comeback, provided the Chinese audience and society forgive her for her tax scandal — which is not granted at all. As often happens with Chinese fiction, the invisible and the untold may be even more significant than any spoken words, so many questions remained unasked (and unanswered). No one will ever know, for instance, whether “牟某 (Móu Mǒu)” is still her agent or not. “There are regrets, pain and fragility”, she told the interviewer. “But I still feel that I need to keep on living”. Photo: 丛妍 (Cóng Yán) for The New York Times.

百萬美元寶貝 (Million Dollar Baby)

Chinese movie star 范冰冰 (Fàn Bīngbīng)’s recent public reappearance at the IQIYI Ninth Anniversary Gala in 北京 (Běijīng), China last Monday raised some unanswered questions about her tax disputes with the Chinese tax authorities, which after fining her $129 million dollar and sentencing her to nearly one year in wilderness, might still not be satisfied. Luckily for her, bargaining agreements, however unofficial they may be, prohibit payment in kind, even in China. Photos: afinance.cn.

無條件基本收入 (Universal Basic Income)

Chinese movie star 范冰冰 (Fàn Bīngbīng) finally appeared in public again after having being in hiding for almost a year, which was allegedly due to her tax evasion scandal. She herself shared on her Instagram handle a couple of pictures of her posing on a red carpet at the IQIYI Ninth Anniversary Gala in 北京 (Běijīng), China on April 22, 2019. Photo: 范冰冰 (Fàn Bīngbīng).

His Word Is His Bond

It had been rumoured that Chinese movie star 范冰冰 (Fàn Bīngbīng) might lose her starring role in the spy thriller movie The 355, due to her tax evasion scandal. However, The 355 director Simon Kinberg confirmed in a very recent interview that 范冰冰 (Fàn Bīngbīng), as well as other female actresses announced earlier, will all appear in the movie. Pictured above, from left to right, they are Penélope Cruz, 范冰冰 (Fàn Bīngbīng), Marion Cotillard, Jessica Chastain, and Lupita Nyong’o. Photos: sohu.com.

范冰冰 (Fàn Bīngbīng)

Gif Art © Frank Nitty/Propaganda Studio.

太陽眼鏡 (Sunglasses)

After sinking into the vertigo of a tax scandal which caused her a great deal of inconvenience, including fines and detention, Chinese movie star 范冰冰 (Fàn Bīngbīng) (pictured above) would be planning a powerful comeback on the scene by advertising a well-known brand of sunglasses. Chinese netizens have already seized previews of her next alleged photo shoot, which should be officially released on March 2019. Photo credit: 新浪微博 (Sina Wēibó).