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Taiwanese film star Brigitte Lin – how she lost herself in cinema, her most memorable roles and how, turning 65, she stays young at heart

  • Brigitte Lin Ching-hsia appeared in 100 films, from Taiwanese romantic dramas in the 1970s to Hong Kong action films of the 90s, before retiring 25 years ago
  • Playing roles from shy schoolgirl to a woman in search of love to invincible male martial arts fighter, Lin stretched the boundaries for Chinese actresses

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Taiwanese film star Brigitte Lin Ching-hsia, who acted in 100 films before retiring in 1994 when she wed Hong Kong billionaire Michael Ying Lee-yuen, turns 65 on November 3. Photo: SCMP

To Brigitte Lin Ching-hsia, age is just a number. The screen goddess of Chinese-language cinema might be celebrating her 65th birthday on Sunday, but it is how she feels deep inside that matters.

“I see that you are 22 years old. But take a look at my heart, it is a 22-year-old too. As long as you have the heart of a child, you will stay as a 22-year-old forever.” Such was Lin’s advice for her then 22-year-old stepdaughter Claudine Lauren Ying, who was going through heartbreak – revealed in Inside and Outside the Window, Lin’s writing debut in 2010.

Unlike most 22-year-olds, Lin has spent a major part of her life in the limelight. From the age of 19, when she made her big-screen debut in 1973’s Outside the Window, a romantic drama based on the novel of the same name by popular author Chiung Yao, Taiwan-born Lin starred in 100 films; she retired after appearing in Wong Kar-wai’s martial arts drama Ashes of Time in 1994.

“During the busiest time of my career, I was shooting six films, playing six different roles. I forgot about playing myself. One day, I stood in front of the mirror, I only saw an estranged face. ‘Who am I?’ I asked myself. ‘What do I like? What do I not like? Why am I unhappy?’ I could not answer those questions. And it dawned on me that I had lost myself unknowingly,” she wrote in her book.

Brigitte Lin in a still from Outside the Window (1973).
Brigitte Lin in a still from Outside the Window (1973).
Lin (centre, front) in Wong Kar-wai’s star-studded martial arts film Ashes of Time (1994).
Lin (centre, front) in Wong Kar-wai’s star-studded martial arts film Ashes of Time (1994).
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