Ben Wong: “When a Third Person Enters, It Destroys Your Marriage”
In the TVB drama Between Love & Desire <完美叛侶>, Ben Wong (黃智賢) plays the third person in Moses Chan (陳豪) and Maggie Shiu’s (邵美琪) marriage. His character is a lawyer, but unlike his barrister role in last year’s Raising the Bar <四個女仔三個BAR>, Ben’s story in Between Love & Desire is less about his prowess in court, and more about his relationship with Maggie.
“My character is kind of like a ‘warm guy’ (暖男),” said Ben. ‘Warm guy’ is a Chinese buzzword to mean ideal boyfriend. “Maggie Shiu and I were somewhat like childhood friends. We had a history. I couldn’t stand the way how Moses Chan treated her so I decide to protect her myself. We don’t really have a passionate relationship. It’s a pretty emotional character and quite challenging to play.”
Ben’s real life, thankfully, is not as eventful. He and his wife, who is an office worker, has been married for 12 years. They have maintained low-profile lives and have quietly supported each other through the years.
Asking if Ben ever had an experience where a “third person” tried to get into their relationship, Ben admitted, “I’ve had women approach me before, but once I felt something was wrong, I immediately bounce off. It destroys your marriage. A relationship takes time to cultivate and protect.”
How does Ben and his wife maintain their relationship? He said, “My wife is an office worker so her world is very different from mine. Building trust takes time. We talk about work a lot, and I would always tell her the things I do so she’ll understand my field of work more. Once you understand something, you’ll be more at ease.”
Mentioning that his collaboration with Moses Chan and Maggie Shiu is a fresh team-up, Ben said, “We’re all veterans so we were all very prepared. Filming went by really smoothly.”
Source: Oriental Daily
This article is written by Addy for JayneStars.com.
I am enjoying this MUCH more than expected. I’m not minding Moses’ acting here, and all the other veteran actors are really nice to watch. The newbie girl, Roxanne, is actually not annoying either!
Anyone else get a slight Jonathan Chik vibe from this series? I guess it’s mainly because of the presence of Maggie, Moses, and Rachel Kan (Ben Wong has also appeared in his productions too). The pacing is also slightly reminiscent of a Chik series.
@sasamii me too! It’s actually really realistic and has a great slow burn tempo without losing focus of the plot or character development. Def one of the better dramas
@coralie Yes, the tempo is terrific. I also thought that the flashbacks brought a lot of emotional depth, and a great example of showing rather than telling (which TVB does waaaay too often).
@sasamii yes and the flashbacks add to the dialog of what’s happening to them now versus before. it’s a great tool to contrast their relationship and what led to its demise.
personally for me, this drama was a dead-ringer and perhaps even caricature of what real workaholics are like. it’s an insanely accurate depiction.
@coralie Exactly! The chipping away of a relationship, the erosion of trust…often not because of some great drama, but from years of little promises broken. It’s heartbreaking precisely because that is how real life works.
I’m glad I’m not the only one seeing the drama this way!
@sasamii Haha. Same as you. I’d never thought I will enjoy this drama so much. Moses acting is still not good. But the rest top it up.
@dramadrama I think Moses’ slightly stiff acting works for this particular character, who is quite repressed emotionally. He may not fare as well later into the plotline, which I suspect will require him to show more emotional range… we’ll see!
@dramadrama oh i actually really like moses’ acting. maybe not so much in his recent series, but i think they have more to do with the roles than his acting itself. like in that ghost drama with kristal tin – his role was supposed to be this stiff, wooden guy with no idea how to be sociable and stuff.
have you seen him in “the gentle crackdown” with Nikki Chow? he really displays a great versatility there.
Who is Moses’ secretary at the beginning of the series? She was flaunting her wardrobe choices.
Must clap for Ben. His answer is so direct and realistic. But most rich (or poor) married guys fails to do. Hope his marriage can last till forever. He is so cool!
@dramadrama I like ben wong, especially his unforgettable role as 辣姜. he does sound like an understanding husband who cares to explain ‘his world’ to his other half. this will reduce any misunderstanding in the entertainment industry.
I haven’t watched this drama…because I just can’t tolerate moses.
@janet72
lol….You spoke my mind too….whoever can stand Moses Chan I gotta hand it to them. haha…. I don’t know if it’s his face, voice or acting I dislike more. haha lol….
@kiki i actually like Moses. Not the best looking guy but I think he looks ok. I enjoy his acting too.
@kiki Moses is not good looking to begin with. acting rather 木, like Jason chan. so he does best for roles which require him to be arrogant like this drama.
as for Ben, he looks better and has more emotions. in fact, he deserves supporting actor award.