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"She is such a revered person" Yeoh said of Aung San Suu Kyi

HONG KONG (AFP) - Actor Michelle Yeoh said Friday that playing the role of Aung San Suu Kyi in the "The Lady" was an opportunity of a lifetime, as the film about the Myanmar democracy leader made its debut in Hong Kong.

But the Hong Kong-based, Malaysian-born star refused to be drawn on the film's likely reception in Myanmar, otherwise known as Burma, where Suu Kyi's recent release from house arrest has ignited the democracy movement.

"When I first heard that someone wants to make a movie about Aung San Suu Kyi, instinctively I knew as an actor that this is a role of a lifetime," the former Bond girl told reporters ahead of the film's Hong Kong premiere.

"She is such a revered person, she is such a good human being (who) would be very inspirational for me not just as an actor but for my audience as well."

The 48-year-old star of films including "Tomorrow Never Dies" and "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" said the pressure of playing a Nobel Peace Prize winning icon of democratic struggle was a weight on her shoulders.

"Of course I was pressured, of course you feel a great sense of responsibility because of who she is and what she represents," Yeoh said.

"But I think what is important for me is my commitment not just to myself but to the profession that I love... This was truly an opportunity of a lifetime."

"The Lady" is a two-hour biopic that focuses on the private life of Suu Kyi, her late British husband, Michael Aris, and their two sons as she assumes the mantle of democracy leader in a country ruled by an iron-fisted junta.

Suu Kyi's struggle for her country came at a high personal cost. Her husband died in 1999 in Britain, and in the final stages of his battle with cancer the Myanmar junta denied him a visa to see his wife.

Suu Kyi refused to leave Myanmar to see him, certain she would never have been allowed to return.

While there is no scheduled release of the film in Myanmar, pirate copies of "The Lady" have flooded the streets of Yangon, which its French director Luc Besson described as an "excellent news".

"As an artist I'm always very happy even if it's through piracy that they can have access to culture, so obviously I'm really fine with that," he said.

But Besson said he hoped the recent signs of opening in Myanmar would see the film being officially released in the impoverished Asian nation.

"I'm even ready to give it for free... in Burma you know but the film is banned from Burma. They show a couple of signs of opening so I hope they will tolerate the film," he said.

"It's a wonderful film about Burmese people -- not so much the government but the people and I think any Burmese should be proud of the film," he added.

During the shoot, Yeoh met Suu Kyi at her Rangoon home in December 2010 weeks after the Nobel laureate was released from a seven-year house arrest.

The star was however deported and blacklisted when she tried to visit again in June last year.

Besson filmed the movie in Thailand near its border with Myanmar, as well as secretly in Myanmar itself, and used footage shot by pro-democracy activists.

©AFP/Getty Images/File / Scott Boehm

A survey shows that 60% of mobile owners will check or use their devices during the Super Bowl

WASHINGTON (AFP) - Millions of American football fans will be watching the Super Bowl on television Sunday with one hand in the potato chips and the other holding a smartphone.

The "second screen" experience will be fueled by Facebook and Twitter and a host of Super Bowl-related applications for mobile devices providing everything from recipes to game statistics to re-runs of the celebrated commercials.

Sixty percent of mobile owners will check or use their devices during the showdown between the New York Giants and the New England Patriots, according to a survey commissioned by mobile marketing company Velti.

And nearly half of all viewers will check or use their mobile device up to 10 times during the game, mostly during commercial breaks, according to the survey by Harris Interactive of 1,428 US adult mobile owners.

"You're looking at your phone as the second screen or your iPad as a third screen and it's not just about watching the game on TV, it becomes part of the entire experience," said Krishna Subramanian, Velti's chief marketing officer.

"People are using their mobile devices to communicate with friends, to share information and to engage with ads and TV content," Subramanian said. "They're looking at the game and going like a level deeper."

Facebook and Twitter apps will be getting a workout during Super Bowl 46, which kicks off at 6:30 pm (2330 GMT), but so will many of the other programs available in Apple's App Store or on the Android Market.

Both the Giants and the Patriots offer free apps with team and player news while the National Football League is offering a Super Bowl 46 Commemorative App for the iPad for $2.99 that promises "exclusive video" and other content.

The official Super Bowl game program is available as a free app for the iPad. Another free app, Football Connect, lets users play against other fans and earn points based on events in the live game.

For those actually going to the game, there is a free Super Bowl 46 Guide with information on restaurants, nightlife and Super Bowl events in the host city, Indianapolis, along with an interactive 3D map of the stadium.

Another free app is NFL Pro Tweets which features tweets from NFL players -- although not from any of the Giants or the Patriots, who are banned from using the service during the game.

This year's Super Bowl will be the first ever streamed live over the Internet, and there's an app for that too.

Computer users can watch the game live at NBCSports.com and mobile or tablet owners can also tune in -- provided they are customers of Verizon and download an NFL Mobile application.

Super Bowl commercials are a sport of their own and Subramanian said fans will be using their smartphones more than ever this year to engage with ads.

"In the first quarter, perhaps, you'll have a brand saying vote for your favorite flavor," he said. "So you'll have people texting in and voting and in the fourth quarter you'll actually see the results."

A Shazam app for advertisements directs smartphone users to bonus content or special offers on the web and a $1.99 Super Ads app for the iPhone offers over 200 Super Bowl commercials from 2006 to 2011 as well as the 2012 ads.

As for Subramanian, he'll be in London on Sunday -- smartphone in hand.

"I still need to figure out where to watch the game," he said. "And I'll have to stay up all night watching it."