Former 'doll' learns all about fear

TAIWAN actress and singer Barbie Hsu is known mostly for her role in TV dramas such as "Meteor Garden" and "Corner With Love."

But she recently challenged herself with a difficult role in the thriller "Connected" by Benny Chan, a Chinese remake of the 2004 Hollywood film "Cellular."

Hsu plays a woman who is kidnapped by brutal gangsters and makes a call to a random mobile phone seeking help.

Hsu said that, in sharp contrast to her usual roles as an elegant doll-like woman, she had to show the deep fear and despair of a hostage locked up in a dark room.

Hsu had a singing career prior to her acting career. She was in a duo group called "S.O.S" with her sister, Dee Hsu.

She was in the headlines when her romance with the Taiwan heartthrob Vic Zhou ended unhappily, even though they were once called Taiwan's golden celebrity couple.