SAIGON'S CALLING : A BASH FOR THE 'CLASH'

Reels, deals and wheels in Ho Chi Minh City

Prior to 'The Rebel', I didn't really know any Vietnamese people, and really only thought of that country as a place on the map and a war that America lost. That all changed after actor Dustin Nguyen slipped me an advanced screener of this amazing period martial arts actioner. We acquired it for my label of the time, Dragon Dynasty, and I flew to Saigon to put together the DVD materials, including (unusually) a full English dub executed by the film's stars: Johnny Nguyen, Veronica Ngo and Dustin himself. To this day, 'The Rebel' remains one of my favourite DD releases.

I had always planned to fly to Vietnam for meetings on future projects and for the premiere of the new film, 'Clash', starring Johnny and Veronica. Fortunately, we finished principle photography on my new film ('The Blood Bond') in time, and a few days in Saigon seemed particularly welcome after so long in the Nanhai trenches.

I have to thank the ever charming Maryline Vo, French speaking femme fatale and long-time TWC Vietnamese rep, for helping coordinate  my trip. She's also just jumped (finally!) in front of the camera for a couple of Vietnamese comedies. Maryline is just the latest in a series of Maggie Q lookalikes that I find myself surrounded by. What can this mean...?

I jjust love being in Saigon. The atmosphere of the city if welcoming, and I love the blend of European and Asian architecture, and the occasional edifice that defies any culture!

I found a great art shop and bought this amazing series of samurai prints for our new B&E Productions office in Sheung Wan. In an ancient book store, I found an old French language book on jujitsu for my friend Salem Assli, a student of the great Dan Inosanto.

I'll say one thing: producer Jimmy Pham knows how to throw a premiere. There was a red carpet, a fun crowd... Gorgeous women in gorgeous gowns. It was fun to work the room with Maryline, especially as I hardly knew anyone there.

I'd tried to keep it a surprise from Johnny and Veronica that I'd definitely make the premiere, and it was gratifying to see how delighted they were to see me there.

(Mind you, they ARE actors, so who knows?)

The film itself is a lean, mean martial arts crime thriller; a worthy follow-up to 'The Rebel'. I was pleasantly surprised to see my name (kind of) in the title: its called 'Bay Rong' in Vietnamese. Okay, so 'Clash' isn't a bio pic of Joe Strummer and the lads, but nothing's perfect...

The producers staged a flamboyant after party on the roof of an upscale Saigon restaurant. The event was sponsored by Johnny Walker (Johnny Nguyen and his support team shot a successful ad campaign for the brand), and we 'Kept on walking' until the early hours (God help us...)

The next day's meeting took place under a dark cloud of hungoverness. (I hope I didn't sign anything I'll live to regret...)

That night, I had dinner with Jimmy Pham, his wife and partner Tawny (who is also in 'Clash' as an actress!) and various business associates and other friends and fiends. Some of us ended up in a karaoke bar, and I found myself chatting to a local actress, Sarah Tu Van. When we moved to another location, Sarah offered to "Give me lift" to the next venue, leading me to assume that she had a car. Instead, I found myself hanging on for dear life as her Vespa whizzed through the midnight Saigon traffic. 'Producer dies in head on collision with young actress.'. I guess there are worse ways to go...