A scene from Hong Kong director Cheang Pou-Soi's "Accident", one of the two Chinese-language candidates for the top prize at this year's Venice Film Festival. [File Photo: on.cc]

Chinese-language films "Accident" and "Prince of Tears" are among the 23 candidates announced Thursday for the top prize at this year's Venice Film Festival, Sohu.com reported.

They will compete for the coveted Golden Lion, with each other and other films, including Michael Moore's "Capitalism: A Love Story" and "A Single Man", the directorial debut of fashion designer Tom Ford.

"Accident", a film by Hong Kong director Cheang Pou-Soi, revolves around the internal conflicts within a group of assassins. It stars Louis Koo, Richie Ren and Suet Lam.

"Prince of Tears" is a film by Taiwan-raised director Yon Fan, focusing on Taiwan in the 1950s and 1960s. Cast members include Viter Fan, Hsiao-Chuan Chang and Terri Kwan.

The Venice Film Festival has a tradition of announcing a "surprise film" during the festival. It will then join the battle for the Golden Lion. Chinese mainland director Tian Zhuangzhuang's film, "The Warrior and the Wolf", is one of the many hopefuls.

The 66th Venice International Film Festival will run from September 2 to 12. An international jury chaired by?director Ang Lee will present the Golden Lion award on the last day.

Italian epic comedy "Baaria - La porta del vento" and Chinese romantic feature "Chengdu, I Love You" are the opening and closing films, respectively.

(CRI July 31, 2009)