PUBLISHED ONMarch 25, 2019 8:16 PMByBryan LimMore Than Blue may be a romantic movie about a pair of star-crossed lovers and how much they'll do in the name of love.
However, the film's lead actress, 36-year-old Ivy Chen (who plays Cream), has a different take on what it means to love.
Ivy, who recently had a son and is married to Taiwanese director Hsu Fu-hsiang, believes that people should protect themselves and not let love consume their lives.
"I do have a lot of female friends who have made sacrifices for love, although I think that most people in a relationship nowadays would be willing to do so if they love their partner.
"However, I think it's also important to protect yourself.
"If you are constantly giving in the relationship and it doesn't work out, you'll end up hurting and you might even lose the ability to believe in love.
"I have friends who are like that, so I think it's important to maintain a sense of self in the relationship and not let love consume your life," she told AsiaOne in an exclusive interview.
Ivy also believes that if you like someone, you just have to tell them how you feel - which is contrary to Cream's "passive" approach to love.
She admitted: "If I were to know my partner is terminally ill, I wouldn't hesitate to talk to him (about my feelings) and treasure the time I have with him.
"My take on love is quite different from Cream's but I like the way they get along with each other. As both of them do not have families, they can only count on each other."
In the movie, the terminally ill K (played by Jasper Liu) keeps his condition a secret from his love interest, Cream, in an attempt to preserve her happiness. He even pushes her into the arms of another man so she wouldn't have to be alone.
The definition of love and how one shows it has always been highly debatable - and its conclusion (if any) has eluded even the greatest minds.
This is apparent in the fact that one could argue that K's love is self-sacrificial but Jasper, 32, begs to differ. The Taiwanese hunk believes that K has a more straightforward view on the relationship.
He explained: "When K is doing all these (for Cream), he doesn't think he's sacrificing. He thinks that he's just showing his love and loving her in a way that feels right.
"I actually don't think he keeps this idea of 'sacrificing' in his head because things would be more complicated if he does. In fact, it might even come across presumptuous.
"To K, it's as simple as, 'I love you and everything I do is for your own good'."
And while the boyishly handsome actor prefers not to judge anybody's relationships because it's not his place to do so as a "third party", he does have some pearls of wisdom for his onscreen persona.
He mulled for a while and replied: "My advice for K would be, 'I know you're sick and are uncertain about the future but I hope you'll still have the power to believe'.
"It's important to have faith because if you lose faith, you'll lose everything. So my suggestion for K would be to believe, and to believe that it'll get better."
When asked about the success of the film across Asia, director Gavin Lin and scriptwriter Hermes Lu attributed it to the music, the performance of the cast and the script.
Gavin also expressed his gratitude to all audience and hopes that "the love and courage portrayed in the film inspires them to be brave in declaring their feelings for their loved ones".
Hermes added: "After watching the movie, if you have a partner, I hope that you can appreciate your other half more.
"Whereas if you're single, hopefully you'll muster up the courage to pursue someone you love."
The dynamic duo will also be reuniting for their upcoming film, A Trip With Your Wife.
The romantic comedy sees the terminally ill protagonist Ah Zhi setting off on a trip with his best friend's wife, Xiao Ya - whom he has also loved for a long time - before he dies.
As More Than Blue made many moviegoers cry from broken hearts, Gavin hopes that this new film will now make them cry tears of joy.
The film is currently in pre-production and Gavin promises to assemble an interesting cast - which might possibly include some familiar faces from More Than Blue.
But will there ever be a sequel to More Than Blue?
Unfortunately, no, according to Gavin.
He said: "I think More Than Blue has a perfect ending and we have no plans for a sequel. I feel like it'll be quite difficult to develop one."
"I think it's best if the film is kept alive in the hearts of the audience," Hermes concurred.
More Than Blue is still showing at Cathay Cineplexes.
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