Fiona On this week "8-days" Issue 969

Article!

- No one personifies the angel-demon dichotomy like FIONA XIE
does. Is she nice, naughty or plain nonsensical? Like Keanu Reeves'
acting, the signal is never clear --- especially with the cryptic answers
in her interviews. One wonders: Is she deceptively coy or just confused?
By: Douglas Tseng

Fiona Xie has just called this writer a idiot. At least, that's what i heard. No,
she didn't, Fiona protests. Turns out she's just saying out loud an amusing
catchphrase printed on a polka-dotted tissue napkin that reads "Achoo!
Geseundheit! I must be allergic to idiots." She shows me the paper and that
trademark mischievous (read: act-cute) smirk of hers.

Thanks goodness. For a second, I thought I'd caught Fiona on a bad day.
On the contrary, she appears to be in an ebullient mood. Then again,
why wouldn't she be? We're far removed from the ruthlessly scorching heat
outside, and comfortably nestled in an air-conditioned two-bedroom, $,4000-
a-night villa at the new Capella resort on Sentosa.

In the dressing room, the 27-year-old perky lass is being briefed by the stylist
about the day's languorous itinerary: a photo-spread very 'loosely' inspired
by Angels & Demons, the new Ron Howard thriller --- and the sequel to the
Da Vinci Code --- which pits Torn Hanks' symbologist Robert Langdon
against a doomsday sect.

"What's the first thing that pops in your mind when you think of angels and
demons?" I venture. She pauses, taking a breather from button-toggling on her
BlackBerry. "[The American rock band] Dishwalla," she chirps, "and their song
'Angels and Demons'". Actually, it's 'Angels and Devils', but it close enough an
answer. She even offers to sing it, but i turn down her vocal showcase. "Thanks,
but we've already seen your Don't Forget The Lyrics performance," I joke.

From time to time, Fiona herself has been perceived as an Angel (she's still
one of Seven Princesses, remember?) and a Demon (how often has she been
referred to as a Sex Kitten?). And sometimes she's a bit of both --- a hybrid.
Of course, these are all conjectures. And that's why i have a gazillion queries
for this complex creature, like her thoughts on the US exit strategy in Iraq,
the latest plot twists in Lost, and most pressingly, the longstanding rumours of
her quitting showbiz.

But there's just a teensy little problem: She doesn't return your calls. That's another
thing with Fiona these days, a colleague warns me --- she's become very evasive
and guarded, like Greta Garbo. Or one of those lock-changing Aware women.

She freely gives out her mobile number but ignores your calls. So i try e-mailing
her. A face-to-face pow-wow is out of the question, she writes back, attributing her
unavailability to her tighter-than-spandex schedule (she's rehearsaling for a
fourthcoming Community Chest variety special, and then it's off to Monte Carlo
for an episode of Singapore Grid Girls on Tour at the Grand Prix de Monaco).
She won't even entertain a phoner. She prefers a less spontaneous way of
verbal sparring --- via e-mail. Hmm...interesting. Considering how Fiona is kinda
like a budding poet, this could be fun.

Then an e-email Q & A it is. And there lies another challenge in interviewing the
buxomy Miss Xie. She doesn't give you regular answers. She's notorious for
speaking in Haiku, which can be very charming and frustrating. Or, as she
herself puts it, "Sometimes I'm not sure people understand my brand of humour."

Consider this musing: "One will never be great merely living off the experience of
others. You will shine, when you go on a clean slate and create your own
blueprint. ;) Cheers. Looking forward to your probing :)"

Here's another sample: "I'd have my wrists slit after I get 'em, have crimson ribbons
flowing in my bathtub and attempt to answer [the question] before I become
a dried prune :)"

It's like reading David Lynch's perplexing Twitter updates. Her replies are like those
autostereograms:
Concentrate long enough and you'll see a 3-D image of a schooner emerging. Or
there's nothing to being with, no matter how hard you scare at it. You may just
end up with a brain aneurysm.

Make no mistake, Fiona Xie is a hard nut to crack, a cipher within a cipher. Now,
where's Robert Langdon when you need him most?


Interviews!

8-DAYS: Let's talk about angels and demons in general.
Do you have a favourite angel?

FIONA XIE: Farah Fawcett. Who else could pull off such a mane?

8-DAYS: Not St.Cabriel? Okay. What's the most charitable thing you've done?

FIONA XIE: More like how people have been charitable towards me...I count my blessings and I appreciate it hen i feel their love and kindness. Like how I'm my boyfriend's
latest charity case. Haha. Kidding. Hmm...I believe making a difference in people's
lives every day of the week. A small gesture goes a long way. It doesn't need to be
dramatic. And I think one doesn't need to be lauded for how charitable one is.
It should be intimate understanding, knowing and appreciation between the giver
and the receiver. I'm not gonna blow my own trumpet and list down everything I've
done. I'm sure those who have felt my love know in their hearts what difference I've
made in their lives and that's enough for me. No point waxing lyrical about it in
national magazines. But, yes, I do support people whenever possible. With friends,
family and with strangers, "Love your neighbour as you would love yourself."

8-DAYS: And what's the most evil thing you've done?
FIONA XIE: I decapitated a reporter who asked inappropriate questions. Haha.

8-DAYS: Any demons to confront?

FIONA XIE: I've done that already. Sat on the gargoyle --- it didn't like me being
on top.

8-DAYS: On the scale of 1 to 10, with I being the most 'Angelic'
and 10 being the most 'Demonic', where would you be?

FIONA XIE: Tipped scales don't give readings!

8-DAYS: Who are the role models in your life?

FIONA XIE: God, mummy and the bravery I see in people with turbulent lives.
They teach me so much more than I can ever imagine. To march on like an
intrepid soldier is what we should all do in these crazy times.

8-DAYS: And what about the bad influences in your life?

FIONA XIE: Stella McCartney, Karl Lagerfield and MarcJacobs.
(For the gossamer threads they entice me to part my money for).

8-DAYS: You've become more evasive towards the media. Why?

FIONA XIE: Next question (*rolls eyes*) (*shrug*) P/S. The media should be
thankful I'm not pulling a cracked-up Whitney Houston or throwing phones
a la Naomi Campbell.
8-DAYS: Then you don't see yourself as a difficult interviewee?

FIONA XIE: Baring all is a privileged treat. As it is, I think I'm valued for being
one of the most candid and interesting interviewees.
8-DAYS: You've been in showbiz almost a decade, and we keep hearing stories of you wanting to quit. So do you have plans to call it a day?

FIONA XIE: Every day.

8-DAYS: When do you know it's time to jump ship?

FIONA XIE: When the Titanic sinks.

8-DAYS: What's stopping you from quitting?

FIONA XIE: When I see the sparkle in people's eyes when they come up to talk
to me. When I see how people are excited about my work. I feel like I've done
a good thing by bringing pleasure and joy into their lives and I feel like it's my
given purpose in life. And of course, I'm thankful for my bubble. Its insulation
is conductive for sound sleep.

8-DAYS: What would you do if you left showbiz?

FIONA XIE: Do an amazing triple flip and land victorious and happy!
freedommmm!! But I would also leave the country 'cos only then can I have
a glimmer of hope for a shot at normal life.

8-DAYS: What's your fall-back option?

FIONA XIE: Pure faith and trust that God will open new doors for me and let me
have divine favour.

8-DAYS: Your thoughts on not making the Top 10 at this year's Star Awards?

FIONA XIE: Only because I refuse to sell my soul. Being the devil's advocate comes
with a price. A hefty phone bill, to say the least. My approach to dealing with tribulations
is to do it with grace, and ask for strength to go on despite the odds. Being on the
cover of the magazines, being a household name even if the trophy isn't on my shelf -
that is God way of blessing the underdog. Maybe. Haha.

8-DAYS: Were they any shows you wished you didn't do, say, like Serves
You Right?

FIONA XIE: I cringe at every show I've done, only because I want the next one
to be even better.

8-DAYS: What were the best things you've done on TV?

FIONA XIE: Everything I've done. It's always a personal breakthrough since
ploughing through [a project] is like axing two years off my life. It's like
lighting a cigarette and seeing the ambers smoulder away into withering ash...
I might die young (by the way, I don't smoke and will not kiss anyone who does).

8-DAYS: Did you enjoy playing Joleen in Calefare?

FIONA XIE: Yes. I love deadbeats.

8-DAYS: People said she's very you --- always speaking cryptically.
Care to comment?

FIONA XIE: Perhaps. Only in writing though. My director and scriptwriter live
vicariously through me and Joleen. The new emo kids on the street love
the Joleen character.

8-DAYS: What do you have to say to people who say you try to be too-cute
in front of the camera?

FIONA XIE: I have many personas and I think as an actor, that is my palette
of paints to create each character I play. Most times, we are bound by a script.
So, really, we are restricted by what is required of us. I'm actually quite a
melancholic, dark person and most people know this. I think people only think I'm cute
'cos of my character in My Genie, which is like a Japanese manga cartoon.
But [it] was legendary in its own right 'cos it was the highest rating sitcom of all the time.

8-DAYS: What project are you doing now?
Like the one that requires you to fly away and
give me grief with this interview.

FIONA XIE: Trying to achieve immortailty. Either praying for a project that will
help me achieve that or by not dying.

8-DAYS: So, you're seeing someone now...

FIONA XIE: The reflected glow on my face is from the light of my life. A very special
soulmate who has been the pillar and structure of my very existence.

8-DAYS: Describe your current boyfriend in five words.

FIONA XIE: Brevity is the soul of wit. You want five words, I give you one, "Mine".

fionaxiefc ♥
11:35 AM

Monday, May 4, 2009

fionaxiefc