Woo says Zhang Ziyi immediately loved her character and waited for him for five years. [Photo/Bjnews]

Background to the story

The sinking of The Crossing happened on the night of Jan 27th, 1949. The ship, sailing from Shanghai to Keelung in Taiwan province, was carrying 1,000 people, 600 tons of steel girders, about 1,000 boxes of documents, and 100 tons of machinery. When it reached the area of the Zhoushan Archipelago, The Crossing collided with a Jianyuan ship carrying 2,700 tons of coal and other construction materials. 932 people died in the incident, including many famous people, Kuomingtang officials, and rich merchants. The company that owned The Crossing belonged to Tsai Tianduo, who was the father of a famous Taiwan-based TV host Kevin Tsai.

Stills from John Woo's film 'The Crossing'	Posters of director John Woo's new film 'The Crossing'