Hong Kong thriller Cold War opens Asia's top film festival

BUSAN, South Korea (AFP) - A glittering line-up of top Asian cinema stars converged on the South Korean port city of Busan on Thursday for the opening of the region's premier international film festival.

For the first time the hosting role was handed to an international guest as Taiwanese actress Tang Wei helped open the 17th edition of the Busan International Film Festival alongside the veteran Korean actor Ahn Sung-Ki.

"I have been impressed by the passion people here have for film," said Ms Tang, who broke on to the international scene in director Ang Lee's sexually explicit Lust, Caution (2007). "Busan is a city full of energy."

The world premiere of Hong Kong thriller Cold War, which stars screen veterans Aaron Kwok and Tony Leung Ka-fai, opened the 10-day event. Festival director Lee Yong-Kwan said in choosing a Hong Kong production to open the gala, the festival was serving its purpose of promoting films from the region.