ABSTRACT
The title of this chapter deliberately evokes both the only English-language book devoted to this retired star and Howard Hampton’s definition of her as ‘the late twentieth century’s last, strangest movie goddess’ (Hampton 1996: 42). But the title also attempts to make a strong case for the actress’s claim to this title in terms of contemporary studies of stardom. Why Brigitte Lin Ching Hsia (Lin Qingxia, b. 1954) rather than Gong Li or Maggie Cheung Man-yuk? These competitors are highly accomplished stars who have made films in the artistic as well as the popular realms of Southeast Asian cinema. Gong Li owes much to her exotic roles in the Fifth Generation Chinese films of directors such as Chen Kaige (b. 1952) and Zhang Yimou, while the no-less accomplished Cheung has achieved notable transnational stardom after freeing herself from the glamour roles of her early career (Williams 2003).
