Fala Chen Not Ugly Enough For “Queens of Diamonds and Hearts” Role
In TVB’s currently aired drama, Queens of Diamonds and Hearts <東西宮略>, Fala Chen (陳法拉) portrayed “Chung Mo Yim” and Sharon Chan (陳敏之) portrayed “Ha Ying Chun” fighting for emperor, Roger Kwok’s (郭晉安) affections. Due to Sharon and Fala’s onscreen performances as love rivals in Queens of Diamonds and Hearts, this may have prompted tabloids to fabricate an offscreen “rivalry” story between the costars!
Regardin the rivalry rumors, Sharon laughed and stated that she got along extremely well with Fala and Roger. Sharon only sung praises for Fala, noting that she had prepared some western dishes for her to eat recently. Sharon added, “Christine Ng (伍咏薇) and I had celebrated Fala’s 30th birthday with her earlier.”
“Fala Chen Is Not Ugly Enough!”
While tabloids ran with the alleged “rivalry” rumors, the online community was concerned with a more serious matter: the inappropriate casting of Fala Chen as the lead character, “Chung Mo Yim,” in Queens of Diamonds and Hearts! Netizens complained that Fala was too beautiful to portray the character, which was known for her ugly facial birthmark repulsing even the emperor!
Although Fala had vowed to do her best to fit into the unflattering role and exhibit her rough side, netizens denounced, “Fala is not ugly enough for the role!” and “She is not suitable at all!” A male fan even remarked with wild disbelief, “If I were the emperor and saw such a pretty ‘Chung Mo Yim,’ I will immediately give her a Consort title!”
*SPOILERS ALERT*
Lead Characters to Swap Souls
While Fala may not be physically suitable for the image of “Chung Mo Yim,” fans praised her for her colorful and cute expressions. Sharon Chan also praised Fala for her humorous streak while filming, adding creative ideas to their comedic performances. In an attempt to add new material to the classic rivalry between “Chung Mo Yim” and “Ha Ying Chun,” Queens of Diamonds and Hearts will feature a plot twist in which the two female leads and the emperor will swap souls, due to the rare alignment of six heavenly constellations! No doubt this scenario will result in many gag jokes!
The premiere episode of Queens of Diamonds and Hearts, which had aired in Hong Kong on February 27th, garnered overall positive reaction due to its comedic elements. Queens of Diamonds and Hearts was the third Hong Kong adaptation of the popular “Chung Mo Yim” story. In 1985, TVB cast the Carol Cheng (鄭裕玲) in the title role and Rebecca Chan (陳秀珠) as the evil “Ha Ying Chun.” The 2001 film version cast featured the awkward casting of Anita Mui (梅艷芳) as the emperor, Sammi Cheng (鄭秀文) as “Chung Mo Yim” and Cecilia Cheung (張栢芝) as “Ha Ying Chun.” It will be interesting to see how Queens of Diamonds and Hearts measures against its two previous incarnations!
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Fala Chen is too damn pretty for that role
Ekinfan ,
Were you one of complaining netizens quoted in the article?
REALLY? Thought Chung MO YIM is actually really pretty without the birthmark. Plus, I don’t think Fala is all that pretty 😀 She’s cute, but not that “TOO DAMN PRETTY”.
I agree that Fala is not that great looking and her looks are overrated… Chung Mo Yim is really beautiful so I think that Fala is not pretty enough…
Agreed. She has nice features but isn’t breathtakingly beautiful. Hard to find true beauty these days with all the plastic surgery available honestly.
@Kidd,
No, actually even with her make up, I still don’t think that Fala looks that great but of course she looks better with make up than without it. If you really compare to the many actresses of today, Fala honestly doesn’t look that good.Even at TVB, there are some other actresses that are not that famous, but I think they look better than Fala.
Oh wow what a joke to put that birthmark on her face. Why cast her for that role? She is not ugly enough to be Mo Yim. she is definite not pretty/beautiful once she is in her goddess form.
I always said Fala is overrated. I think she can be for 2nd line actress and not 1st line actress. Just watch this series and I think the girl playing Ho Wai is acting better than her….Fala needs to go back and just play supporting role instead of Lead.
Actually, the character of Chung Mo Yim is not supposed to be ugly when she is in her goddess form. She is actually very very beautiful(so in a sense Fala is NOT beautiful enough for this role). However, after she accidently let the fox spirit escape, she was punished and became really ugly in her reincarnated form. But after she takes off that ugly exterior, she is beautiful beyond words…
^ I didn’t know that. I read comments on how Fala and Sharon should have switched because Fala is a better fit to portray the beautiful, Ha Ying Chun. But now that you pointed it out, maybe that’s why TVB cast Fala to portray Chung Mo Yim. Fala’s looks aren’t comparable to Gigi Lai, but she’s one of the best looking actresses at TVB right now.
Yea, people always think that Chung Mo Yim is very ugly, BUT she is actually ONLY ugly when she is in one of her usual forms. However, after she takes it off when her punishment is over, she is really really beautiful. Ha Ying Chun cannot even compare to her… I don’t know if you saw the 80s version, but there was one part in there where she used a big pearl that gave her beauty back for a day and she was soooo beautiful that the king dumped Ha Ying Chun and went to her right away. I actually don’t think that Fala is beautiful enough to play Chung Mo Yim…
The actress chosen to play Ha Ying Chun has always been more beautiful than Chung Mo Yim.
With or without birthmark, Rebecca Chan is still more beautiful than Carol Cheng. It’s only the plot states that the Emperor abandon CMY for HYC.
So, there should be no problem with Fala playing CMY. If Carol Cheng is beautiful enough to play CMY, Fala is beautiful enough.
I have always wonder. HTS. Did you start thinking Fala is not beautiful enough after seeing her without make up? I notice you start saying her not beautiful only after the picture of her without make up was published.
Out of the first-line actresses, Fala is the most fitted to cast as a beautiful goddess. I don’t think anyone else would be as convincing. Who would you recommend then? Sharon is also very pretty, so I’m glad that she is portraying Ha Ying Chun.
Tracy, I never found Gigi Lai as pretty, average at most. I do agree that Fala is one of the best looking actresses right now at TVB that is popular.
Both Linda and Fala I would consider to be girly pretty, not a timeless beauty.
Kate Tsui will be suitable of she stop pouting and start acting again.
Eventhough I like Kate, I’ve to say, I’m disappointed with her current acting. She used to give all out. But, now, she seems more concern with looking good and look sexy.
@swtlav3ndar – Say what? Gigi is a timeless beauty! 🙂
@Kidd – Seems like that’s the case with the current 5 fadans. Their acting has gone downhill once they made it. Quite sad, actually.
Yup, Fala is pretty but not beautiful. I think she somehow lacks the elegant feel of a woman like Chung Mo Yim.
I find Fala weak in this series. And she cant do comedy it comes across unnatural
She is too pretty for the role. Also, she’s pretty bad at doing comedy.
Come to think of it, Myolie Wu or Linda Chung would be better. Especially Myolie, because I think she’s pretty good at doing comedy.
Addy,
I’m so glad Myolie was not cast as Chung Mo Yim as she had filmed too many romantic comedies. Her role as Zoe in upcoming TITS hopefully will be less hyperactive and matured in real life timeline. Neither do I wish to see her cry her heart out either.
Thinking back, my favorite Myolie role may be her performance in Survivor’s Law, before overtook her acting technique.
Meant to say before fame overtook her technique and she seems to be forcing her acting nowadays. Is she better in mainland dramas.
Wars of In Laws 1 is special for me because she fell in love with Bosco on set.
Myolie has very “cute” facial features though (lol), which is probably why I find her comedic performances much more comfortable to watch. I am obviously not the minority here, because a lot of people like to watch Myolie in comedies (which explains why she has so much of them!). Of all the dramas I’ve seen Myolie in, my favorite is her performance in A Chip Off the Old Block. She was simply excellent. Absolutely perfect for the role. I was very disappointed when she didn’t make into Top 5 Best Actress for it.
I wasn’t much of a Triumph in the Skies fan, but Zoe is definitely one of the few characters in the show that I still remember, and her relationship with Sam was beautiful.
Funny, I didn’t like Myolie in Survivor’s Law at all. Frankly, I don’t even remember her very much. But I think that’s mainly because Raymond Lam and Bernice Liu were just so likeable and memorable in it (to me), I just started hating on everyone else.
I’ve mixed feelings about Myolie as Chung Mo Yim. She’s lovely in romantic comedies but I would rather she challenge herself. I would actually prefer seeing her in SL roles, or roles that seem closer to her personality and not overly ditzy/annoying/irrational roles. But yeah, Fala just doesn’t seem to fit this genre for me. In In the eye of the beholder, I found her acting awkward and this is a similar genre to that so I dunno.
Lychii04,
The old characterization of Chung Mo Yim is a strong, righteous woman who was also a good fighter. However, she was a bit rash and not as clever as Ha Ying Chung. Carol Cheng and Rebecca Chan fit their respective roles quite well in the old series.
In terms of appearance, I don’t find that Fala Chen or even Myolie Wu fits the Chung Mo Yim character that well. Myolie can fit the righteous and rash bit, but her appearance is still somewhat girly.
In my mind, Chung Mo Yim possesses traits and characterizations similar to Mulan, with a righteous, courageous outlook. A person who will stand up for others, advocate for the weak, a strong fighter, an independent woman unwilling to stand in the shadow of a man. Hmm…among the current TVB fadans, I don’t find anyone to fit this characterization.
Maybe if Michelle Ye is around, she can play Chung Mo Yim? She’s elegant, yet tough.
Totally forgot about Michelle Ye. She looks elegant in ancient series. I find CMY a little similar to MLK, so maybe Michelle can pull it off.
I think Myolie can do the role but not sure about Linda. Anytime she tries to act funny, her acting will exaggerate.
I agree, Michelle Ye was great in Eternal Happiness. Michelle isn’t too girly and can do tough roles well. She has the right look, she’s not too beautiful, and she’s charismatic enough for the audience to like her.
Hmm…maybe Jessica Hsuan could also play this role as well.
Michelle now dun really look like her image last time. She is more feminine and sexy.
Omg!linda chung?that cucumber face cant act .anyway shes also nt ugly n funny enough
I agree with Michelle ye she’s elegant yet tough, like in god of honors. If only she comes back.
And perhaps bernice Liu would suit the role of CMY ?
And I also think that Nikki chow would suite one of these role as well, do you agree ?
That is not true at all. Chung Mo Yim is actually very beautiful when she is in her true form. When she is in her punishment form, then she is really really ugly. My mom told me that she did not just have a mark on her face, but had 2 horns, fur and many other ugly things… She looked sort of like a monster. But after she takes that form off, she is as beautiful as a goddess.
HST, you are talking about Chung Mo Yim from the previous versions or some chinese opera story? I’m sure Chung Mo Yim in history is a hideous woman, not a “very beautiful woman in her true form”. Her name’s 鍾離春, Google it up.
So Fala is more than pretty enough to play Chung Mo Yim.
Yeap, Nicole is right. The Chung Mou Yim in the TVB series and maybe some opera story is a beauty with an ugly birthmark. But, the real Chung Mou Yim (aka Chung Lei Chun) in legend is very ugly.
http://history.cultural-china.com/en/48History8901.html
It depends on wat version of Chung Mo Yim you’ve read. I bl tat she is just an ugly woman who is very smart. And guess tat ppl write about her uglier to be a moral story for children: Don’t judge the book through its cover. The punishment is just something put in to make the story more interesting.
I am not talking about the other versions since I only saw the 80s version all the way through. My mom said that there are stories and she has read them and yea, my mom said that when she reincarnated in I guess “human form”, she was not just ugly but hideous like you said. However, her true form as a goddess which is after her punishment is over, she is actually very beautiful.
Thanks for the link Kidd, very interesting. But each description is a bit too short.
Any other sites where I can get Chinese history/ historical figures which are good too?
I said, the fox spirit is just to make children scared. There is no actual version for a fairy tale or legend. Even history sometimes wasn’t correct
I don’t think Fala is real pretty lol and i think she just can’t act.
Isn’t this is the 4th adaption as there is a drama called Love is beautiful (2001) Starring by Annie Heung or may be similar but difference story lines.
Love is Beautiful was about swapping souls, but the characters weren’t Chung Mo-yim and Ha Ying-chun.
ya she totally cant act because she got that kind of princess look and her voice is so soft in real life..n she cant act rude or rough..i think sharon is better acting than her..life is beatiful definitely a great drama!i watch again n again..
@Janelle i was not a fan of Sharon not until life is beautiful drama. i think she is a good actress and have the potential to protray diff characters.
Yes! I love Life is Beautiful. I gotta say, I think Anne Heung is stunning and is prettier than Fala. She had a very elegant and regal aura. Also love her with Kwong Wa. But yeah…
Only the 85 version is serious on making Chung Mou Yim ugly. The other 2 version is 2 fearful to mar the actress’ beauty too much, thus, settled for a small birthmark.
If TVB is really serious about making Fala ugly, they should do something like this
http://i3.tdimg.com/066/840/866/m20.jpg
Nadia Chan in ‘Mark of Triumph’.
Wow, and Nnadia is actually quite pretty irl. Nice makeup!
In episode 2, they explained that CMY’s birthmark resembled the shape of their nation “chai kwok”. Thus that size is appropriate for this version.
They could cast Nnadia look-a-like Mandy in the role lol
this reminds me of Love Is Beautiful with Marianne Chan and Anne Heung although that series wasn’t about Chung Mo Yim
I decided to give this a miss.
I think I will skip it as well since I think they will mess the story up. My mom would hate it since she know the actual story…
Uhm, wat is the actual story? Like live in this period and know Chung Mo Yim in person? I’m not trying to be harsh but their are tons of versions for an unhistorical stories, so which one is the actual story, nobody can know. Yeah, even the history might be wrong sometimes.
In my opinion, this is why not a lot of actresses are able to break into the U.S. market and it’s that they don’t try hard enough to portray the character adequately. I don’t buy the bull**** that Fala is too pretty for an ugly role, it’s because she doesn’t want to look ugly! That’s it. Prime example is Charlize Theron and her role and transformation in Monster. If Charlize can go ugly, then everybody else should be able to.
If u’re a really good actress and the role offers the potential for a career breakthrough then i’d try my best to become the role. That’s it 🙂
Jayne,Fala too not pretty enough to play Ha wing Chun ,why you complain about her role in this drama ?Are you a Fala hater?
Anyways if they want to hire a actress to play Chung Mo yin ,they shall hire the ugly women named Shu Qi ,her mouth lips are ugly and her face make me vomit in cinema when she appear in ekin movies a man called hero ,anyways most guy hate ugly actress and guy don’t care fala is not ugly enough to play the role ,guy only hope the actress they hire are not ugly to play the role.
Sorry, but as I have mentioned above, Chung Mo Yim is actually very beautiful…Therefore, it is true that Fala is not pretty enough for this role.
yep agree chung mu yim suppose to be really pretty, it’s just she have that birth on her face which made people think she look ugly. fala is not really pretty, i think she is pretty average.
I keep reading, “Fala is not pretty enough for this role.” Then, who do you suggest should play this role? TVB’s current actresses only.
I suggest Kaki Leung. I think her plain look fits the role.
Kaki Leung’s acting sucks.
But for the look she is suitable. She was truly bad in Academy 3 but in Twilight Investigation she improved much. Maybe give her some more time.
I think Mandy Wong probably could’ve pulled off the role well. She is quite masculine and a very average looking girl. I don’t think I’ve seen her in a period drama yet.
Mandy Wong need more second lead roles first to sharpen her acting. She can act but not that great yet. She showed weakness in THC
That makeup on Fala is absolutely terrible. The ’01 version’s costume and makeup look much better. Also I lol’d at the gigantic smiles of the 2012 pair. XD
I don’t like any of Fala’s roles besides in MR and HOG
I always found the birthmark funny and cute to look at.
Somehow, I don’t think the makeup for Fala’s birthmark is appropriate. Make up can do wonders and if you really want to make a person look ugly, I am sure you can…Fala looks like she has pink star by her eye and she looks more like a Rock star than the ugly CMY.
I think it they gave her a mole or did the scar and in a darker shade and actually gave her a slightly darker look…she could pull off the role.
My biggest problem with her is her western accent…it doesnt fit with these ancient roles.
Her eye makeup resembles an 80s/90s cartoon character “Jem”
Actually I think Fala’s birthmark is one of the uglier ones. Fann Wong actually had a Flower birthmark! which was very pretty. And Sammi’s birthmark looks so stylish like Harry POtter’s lightning bolt scar. LOL
Off topic, but Fann Wong is so pretty and cute, totally fits the Chung Mo Yim personality. But maybe not beautiful. I still think she has the charisma to pull it off.
You mean Fann Wong was so pretty and cute, prettier than Fala. Now she looks like skeleton, and too much botox.
Fala is really cute. I wish I could have a girlfriend like her. But her acting…is not very good. I do not think that she really cares much about improving.
Fala is pretty but i think only for modern drama. Some actress look pretty for modern drama but not in ancient drama.
If TVB want CMY to be ugly, Fala not convincing. If TVB want CMY to be pretty, Fala actually is prettiest among the big 5 leads
Fala is just ordinary girl that you can find anywhere… I mean, come on, we saw many beauties out there but to overrate Fala’s beauty is a bit ridiculous. Well, I must say, I am just short of her height and 10 pound heavier..:)
If you compare her to Myolie, Tavia, Linda, and Kate, nope! No overrating there. But I find Kate getting prettier. Myolie hasn’t really changed, but she’s aging very nicely. Tavia is… no comment, lol. And I don’t know why people think Linda is pretty. IMO, she’s the least pretty of the five.
Jealous? Fala is a natural beauty who doesn’t need make-up to be beautiful. This day, many people have pretty bad taste, I guess many think that ***** looking girls look pretty.
Well can’t blame TVB for casting Fala when the quality of their actresses in terms of the beauty department is at record low levels, hehe.
This series is lame in my opinion just after watching 1st episode.
In my opinion, they should make her uglier and even more plain.
Come on, be brave… Sacrifice for the sake of art… Make a pretty girl really ugly like Charlie Theron in Monster. We will respect a pretty girl who dares to uglify herself.
I also think that Fala isn’t suitable for this role not because she’s too pretty or ugly for this but simply because she sucks in comedy series and her acting is still pretty raw imo. Even Sharon’s acting is better than hers.
I disagree. Fala’s comedic acting is very natural and humorous in this drama. Her acting is raw? Her acting may not be one of the best compare to other TVB actresses, but its certainly not raw. She has potentials. On the other hand, Sharon’s acting is okay-ish. Her expressions doesn’t change much.
I also disagree, her acting is pretty decent and at times very natural, Even though Sharon is a tad better.
Mandy Wong would have been perfect!
In my own opinion, I think Fala is pretty good at comedic roles. I really liked her in “Can’t Buy Me Love” opposite Kenneth (which reminds me, I need to catch up on his news!).
I think Fala and Sharon are both beauties of equal caliber but different looks. Actually, I will be anticipating both of them in this new series 🙂
The birthmark is so weird. It is like spray paint right on her face with stencil. The hard edges are really unflattering, I agreed it looks like a star on her face (rock star). The makeup artist can retouch the edges or have it in gradation to give it a subtle look.
I would say this drama has a lot of actresses that can not speak Cantonese correctly. Of course Fala is one of them.
Who are the other actresses that don’t speak Cantonese properly?
Emm… Fala speaks pretty good Cantonese, so I don’t know what you are talking about, she doesn’t even speak with a little “English” accent!
@TC-man
I also think Fala’s cantonese is pretty decent, but there was an interview by Fala in which she spoke some words wrong. Simple things such as “salt” is supposed to be “yeem”, but she said “yeen”. Maybe that’s what Summer is talking about?
Niki Chow should play the role Chung Mo Yim
better than Fala Chen because shes too cute and pretty to be said ‘ugly’ in the film! But I support you because you’ve improved so much during the years.