Days of Being Wild

Written and directed by Wong Kar-Wai, Days of Being Wild is the story of a notorious playboy who tries to find his identity while dealing with his own romantic entanglements as those women seek solace in other men. The film is the first part of an informal trilogy that would be followed by 2000’s In the Mood for Love and 2004’s 2046 that explores the idea of love and loneliness as it’s all set in 1960s Hong Kong. Starring Leslie Cheung, Andy Lau, Maggie Cheung, Carina Lau, Jacky Cheung, Tony Leung Chiu-Wai, and Rebecca Pan. Days of Being Wild is a ravishing yet captivating film from Wong Kar-Wai.

The film is a multi-layered story that revolves the lives of a cruel playboy whose entanglements with two different women has them feel hurt while the playboy goes on a journey of his own to find out his true identity when the escort who had raised him told him about his true parentage. It’s a film that explores the idea of rejection and loneliness all in the world of his playboy named York (Leslie Cheung) who likes to wander around in the many situations he’s in where he woos a woman and then moves on to something else. For the two women he woos in Su Li Zhen (Maggie Cheung) and Mimi (Carina Lau), both of them go into different journeys after the rejection where Zhen talks to a cop named Tide (Andy Lau) while Mimi is being pursued by York’s friend Zeb (Jacky Cheung). York would also go into his journey to find his real mother as his relationship with his guardian in the aging escort Rebecca (Rebecca Pan) starts to disintegrate.

Wong Kar-Wai’s script has this very unique narrative where it doesn’t follow any conventional narratives where its first act is about York’s antics with Su Li Zhen and later his affair with Mimi. The second act is about Zhen meeting Tide where the latter is just a beat cop doing his job as Zhen just talks to him where the two become friends for a while. The second act also plays into the tumultuous relationship between York and Mimi where it’s filled with a lot of indifference from York who is more concerned about his adopted mother’s life with another man and her desire to move to the U.S. It all plays to this third act where York travels to the Philippines to find his biological mother but he would endure the similar kind of pain Zhen and Mimi endured but in very different ways.

Kar-Wai would add bits of voice-over narration to express the loneliness the characters face. Especially where York keeps talking about a bird that just flies continuously only to land when it dies which serves as a metaphor for the life he’s leading. A life that is often quite empty where he would meet a major character in the film’s third act who witnesses the emptiness of York’s life up close. The third act would also play into a lot of ambiguities over the fate of these characters including an unnamed gambler (Tony Leung Chiu-Wai) who appears at the end of the film.

Kar-Wai’s direction is truly evocative in the way he presents life in 1960s Hong Kong where it’s a world that is quite exciting. Going for a hand-held style that is quite loose but also with a sense of control, it plays to this sense of change that is occurring in the 1960s where the attitudes of men start to lose its way a bit as the two women that York encounters would both deal with tribulations over the fallout of their relationship with him. Zhen and Mimi would have similar reactions to the way they were rejected by York as Kar-Wai’s compositions shows them in very fragile moments where the framing is very succinct with very little emphasis on close-ups in favor of wide and medium shots. Even where the two women would meet two men who were willing to help as it plays into how they would react to this gesture.

The direction also has Kar-Wai take great care into the way he presents not just Hong Kong but also the Philippines as it has this air of style that is seductive in its imagery. While much of the Hong Kong presentation is a bit dreary with some unique palettes to convey a mood, there is something about the scenes in the Philippines that is more dream-like but also off in some ways where York would encounter elements of danger. Notably as Kar-Wai would utilize some strange camera angles to present something that is a bit surreal but also grounded in the way York had lived his life. Yet, it is followed by an ending that is described as ambiguous but also something where things are changing over everything that the characters in the film have endured. Overall, Kar-Wai crafts a very abstract yet intoxicating film about rejection and loneliness.

Cinematographer Christopher Doyle does phenomenal work with the film‘s cinematography with its use of grainy colored palettes and dark lighting schemes for some of the film‘s interior scenes along with its emphasis on the color green to play with its mood as Doyle‘s work is truly a major highlight of the film. Editors Kit-Wai Kan, Patrick Tam, and William Chang do fantastic work with the editing where it is quite straightforward in its presentation while they do create a few montages and some rhythmic moments for some of the film‘s darker moments. Production/costume designer William Chang does amazing work with the look of the apartments and such for the scenes set in Hong Kong and in the Philippines along with some of the clothes that Mimi wears to play into her exotic style.

Sound recorder Benny Chu does excellent work with the sound to convey some of the intimacy that goes on in some of the scenes along with the craziness and textures into the sense of longing that occurs. The film’s music by Terry Chan is wonderful as it is mostly low-key with its orchestral-based music and jazz pieces while the soundtrack includes lots of jazz pieces as well as Latin-based cuts to play into the world that the characters live in.

The film’s cast is brilliant for the ensemble that includes some notable small appearances from Tita Munoz as York’s mother, Danilo Antunes as Rebecca’s mother, and Tony Leung Chiu-Wai as the unnamed gambler at the end of the film. Jacky Cheung is excellent as York’s friend Zeb who helps York go to the Philippines while trying to woo Mimi. Rebecca Pan is wonderful as York’s adopted mother Rebecca who seems to despise him for wanting to find the truth of his real parentage while also being someone who feels like she’s got nothing more to give. Carina Lau is amazing as Mimi who is also called Lulu and Leung Fung-ying as this woman who falls for York only to feel jealous over his other affairs as she starts to fall apart. Andy Lau is fantastic as the policeman Tide who befriends Su Li Zhen as he listens to her troubles while offering to be someone to talk to as he laments over his feelings for her.

Maggie Cheung is superb as the shy and melancholic Su Li Zhen as a woman whose encounter with York has her feeling hurt and alone while she tries to figure out how to move on. Finally, there’s Leslie Cheung in a phenomenal performance as York as this cruel playboy who likes to play around with women while trying to find out about his roots as he’s also a man who wanders into every situation he’s in no matter how foolish it can be.

Days of Being Wild is a seductive yet gorgeous film from Wong Kar-Wai. Armed with a great cast, lush visuals, and a rapturous film soundtrack, the film is truly one of Kar-Wai’s finest work in terms of what he’s all about in his exploration of love and loneliness. Especially in the way he delves into the themes of rejection and wandering through life in its most poetic manner. In the end, Days of Being Wild is a sensational film from Wong Kar-Wai.

Wong Kar-Wai Films: As Tears Go By - Chungking Express - Ashes of Time/Ashes of Time Redux - Fallen Angels - Happy Together - In the Mood for Love - 2046 - Eros-The Hand - My Blueberry Nights - The Grandmaster - The Auteurs #28: Wong Kar-Wai

© thevoid99 2013

The Grandmaster (2013 film)

Note: This Review is Based on the Original 130-minute full-length Chinese Cut of the Film.

Directed by Wong Kar-Wai and screenplay by Kar-Wai, Zou Jingzhi, and Xu Haofeng from a story by Kar-Wai, The Grandmaster is the story about the life of Wing Chun grandmaster Ip Man who was famous for teaching kung fu where one of his greatest students was Bruce Lee. The film tells the story of Ip Man’s life from the 1930s to his time in Hong Kong following the Second Sino-Japanese War as he is played by longtime Kar-Wai regular Tony Leung Chiu-Wai. Also starring Zhang Ziyi, Chang Chen, Zhang Jin, Song Hye-kyo, and Wang Qingxiang. The Grandmaster is a majestic yet exhilarating film from Wong Kar-Wai.

The film is essentially about the life of Ip Man in the course of thirty years of his life where he starts off as this revered master in the small town of Foshan who was considered the best martial arts master in the South of China to being a man who would popularize kung fu after the Chinese Civil War where he moved to Hong Kong for the rest of his life. During his journey, Ip would encounter many things that would shape his life where he successfully defeated the revered Northern grandmaster Gong Yutan (Wang Qingxiang) in a game of wits only to later be challenged by his daughter Gong Er (Zhang Ziyi) where they both had a mutual sense of respect towards each other. Yet, war would eventually emerge when the Japanese take over China where Yutan’s successor Ma San (Zhang Jin) would join the Japanese only to lose his own path as he, Ip Man, and Gong Er would all feel lost in changing times as they’re in Hong Kong.

The film’s screenplay isn’t a traditional bio-pic though it does have a unique structure that does tell the story. The first act is about Ip Man’s reputation as a master and how he proved himself to be worthy of being Gong Yutan’s successor for the South as well as Ip Man’s complex relationship with Gong Er where they would correspond through letters after their battle. The second act is about the Second Sino-Japanese War in the 1930s in which Ip Man’s family life is ruined as he is forced to live in poverty while Gong Er tries to challenge Ma San over his actions in the hopes to defend the honor of her late father. The third act is about all three individuals in early 1950s Hong Kong though only Gong Er and Ip Man would contact each other during this period where Ma San finds himself lost and having to deal with a master known as the Razor (Chang Chen).

Much of the film’s narrative is quite straightforward as it includes some voice-over narration from Ip Man as some of it is told from his perspective. Yet, the second act is more about Gong Er’s conflict with Ma San who would collaborate with the Japanese during the Second Sino-Japanese War where a confrontation would eventually occur. Yet, that confrontation would be unveiled in the film’s third act in a flashback scene that would have some serious repercussions into the fates that they would live in the years to come. The third act is very melancholic in not just what happen to both Ma San and Gong Er but also the loneliness that Ip Man would deal with as he is someone who is still able to pass on his knowledge to the world as he spends that portion in the film trying to find himself again.

The direction of Wong Kar-Wai is very stylish which is really nothing new to say since Kar-Wai is always a filmmaker who is known for style over substance. Still, what he presents is definitely just entrancing to look at from the fight scenes to the exotic imagery that Kar-Wai creates in the drama. With the help of action choreographer Woo-ping Yuen, Kar-Wai’s approach to action isn’t about the energy but rather the way the movements feel and how there’s a certain dance to these confrontations. Some of which are quite lavish from fights in the rain to others that are just intense as there’s a lot of stakes that get involved. All of which is important to the story as well as what these characters are fighting for.

Kar-Wai would balance the film with some drama as well as a bit of romantic tension between Ip and Gong Er as they respect each other but there’s also something about them that has them wanting each other. Yet, Ip has his family and Gong Er knows that as she would devote her life to reclaim her family’s honor but she would eventually pay the price for her actions. Many of the compositions that Kar-Wai would create would have this very lingering gaze to not just the way he creates pictures but also play into changing times as it’s seen from Ip’s perspective as he realizes what he has to do. Overall, Wong Kar-Wai creates a very mesmerizing yet thrilling film about Ip Man and his legacy that would bring kung fu into the world.

Cinematographer Philippe Le Sourd does fantastic work with the film‘s cinematography from the use of low-key, sepia-drenched lights for some of the film‘s nighttime scenes and interiors to the use of colors in the scenes set in the snow to play up the sense of moodiness in the film. The work of editor/Production-costume designer William Chang, along with co-art directors Tony Au and Alfred Yau, is brilliant where Chang creates that element of style in the editing to play up some of the emotion and action that is quite prevalent in his work while his set/costume design is just amazing to watch in the way it plays to the look of the times.

Visual effects supervisor Isabelle Perin-Leduc does superb work with some of the film‘s visual effects such as a few backdrops for the fight scenes as well as some of the slow-motion elements that occur in the fights. Sound editor Robert Mackenzie does excellent work with the sound to create an atmosphere in some of the dramatic moments while using some nice sound effects for the fights including the sound of punches and kicks. The film’s music consists of pieces by Frankie Chan, Stefano Letini, Traithep Wongpaiboon, Nathaniel Mechaly and Shigeru Umebayashi that plays into many of the film’s different tones from some bombastic orchestral pieces to some somber yet serene moments involving the string arrangements as its soundtrack, that includes some Chinese opera and pop songs of the times, is truly incredible to listen to.

The film’s cast is marvelous for the ensemble that is used as it features some notable small appearances from action choreographer Yuen Woo-ping as Ip Man’s master Chan Wah-shun, Song Hye-kyo as Ip Man’s wife, Lo Hoi-ping as Ip Man’s uncle Deng, and Chang Chen as a master named the Razor who would run a small crime organization in Hong Kong. Shang Tielong is terrific as Gong Yutian’s longtime right-hand man Jiang who would later become Gong Er’s protector as he would also befriend Ip Man. Wang Qingxiang is superb as Gong Yutian as an old grandmaster who tries to find his successor but tries to deal with changing times and Ma San’s affiliation with the Japanese. Zhang Jin is excellent as Ma San who would become a successor of Gong Yutian only to use his skill to advance himself in power where he is forced to deal with his choices.

Zhang Ziyi is remarkable as Gong Er as a woman who has these expectations to be like every other woman yet she is someone who wants to honor her father and the family legacy as she strikes a friendship with Ip Man while dealing with the consequences of her actions in the third act. Finally, there’s Tony Leung Chiu-Wai is phenomenal as Ip Man where Leung brings a restraint to his performance where he is quite stoic in his performance whether it’s in drama or in action. Leung also proves to be a badass but in a very low-key way as it’s definitely one of his finest performances of his career.

***The Following is an Overview of the 108-Minute American Cut of the Film***

The American cut of the film is quite different from the original 130-minute Chinese cut where Wong Kar-Wai and his editor William Chang created a cut under the order of Harvey Weinstein who is distributing the film to American audiences. The resulting factor isn’t a very good one and more indication that Weinstein needs to be kept out of the editing room.

There aren’t a lot of additions made to this cut as includes a brief meeting between Ip Man and Razor in Hong Kong where it’s about respect as well as a flashback scene of Gong Er reflecting on her happiest moments that includes a moment where she was a child looking at her father’s work. These are moments that do add a nice touch to the story as well as showcase more dimensions to the lead characters. Unfortunately, it doesn’t help the result of the shortened version that Kar-Wai had to present because the narrative isn’t just more disjointed but also loses a lot of its emotional impact and motivations.

Some of the material that is cut involves bits of dialogue as well as some moments about Ip Man’s family and some scenes relating to the Second Sino-Japanese War in the late 1930s. They there’s some added text exposition that is laid out on screen, it ends up being unnecessary as it tends to explain too much. Even as the original cut does have some text to fill in parts of the story but doesn’t reveal too much including any mention of Ip Man’s greatest student in Bruce Lee. In the American cut, it does mention Bruce Lee which wasn’t really necessary as the Chinese cut only implied Lee’s presence in the story. Among the things that is cut out in the American version is Ip Man’s relationship with Gong Er as a lot of it taken out for much of its second act. Even as Gong Er’s story in the second act about getting her revenge on Ma San is moved to the third act in a flashback sequence just after she meets Ip Man in Hong Kong.

In moving Gong Er’s story of her vengeance to the third act really doesn’t do much to what Kar-Wai wanted to tell originally as the third act in the Chinese cut is more about Gong Er’s own journey to get vengeance and the vows that she takes. By moving it to the third act, it doesn’t carry the same emotional impact and melancholia that Kar-Wai wanted as the sequence of Gong Er’s journey for vengeance goes immediately to her confrontation with Ma San in the train. It’s that element of the editing that really loses a lot of the film’s emotional punches as it adds to the messiness of the narrative.

In turn, the American cut of the film is only worth seeing for anyone that wants to see a Wong Kar-Wai film in the big screen. Yet, they will have a hard time dealing with the narrative as well as not grasp into some of the melancholia and emotional elements that Kar-Wai wanted in his original cut.

***End of American Cut Overview***

The Grandmaster is a sensational film from Wong Kar-Wai that features brilliant performances from Tony Leung Chiu-Wai and Zhang Ziyi. The film is definitely one of Kar-Wai’s more stylish films but also an engaging one for the way it tells the story of Ip Man. It’s a film that has something for fans of martial arts films but also has something for audiences that love drama as Kar-Wai manages to put both genres into one captivating story without making it uneven. In the end, The Grandmaster is a remarkable film from Wong Kar-Wai.

Wong Kar-Wai Films: As Tears Go By - Days of Being Wild - Chungking Express - Ashes of Time/Ashes of Time Redux - Fallen Angels - Happy Together - In the Mood for Love - 2046 - Eros-The Hand - My Blueberry Nights - The Auteur #28: Wong Kar-Wai

© thevoid99 2013

2013 Cannes Marathon: Happy Together

(Winner of the Best Director Prize to Wong Kar-Wai at the 1997 Cannes Film Festival)

Written and directed by Wong Kar-Wai, Happy Together is the story about a tumultuous romance between two men as they travel from Hong Kong to Buenos Aires where they endure more trouble as they make up, break up, and do all sorts of things. The film is a look into the world of love and its complications told from the perspective of a man overwhelmed in his troubled relationship. Starring Tony Leung Chiu-Wai, Leslie Cheung, and Chang Chen. Happy Together is a rich yet exotic film from Wong Kar-Wai.

The film is about a relationship between two different men as they travel to Argentina in hopes to visit the Iguazu Falls. Instead, they get lost on their way as they get separated only to meet again in Buenos Aires to resume their relationship but it becomes back-and-forth as one becomes frustrated while the other becomes very selfish. As much as Ho Po-Wing (Leslie Cheung) and Lai Yui-fai (Tony Leung Chiu-Wai) have their differences in personalities and drive, they definitely love each other but there comes the question about whether or not they are right for each other? Ho is a very volatile individual who likes to party, get into fights, and be very controlling though he is often apologetic for his behavior but gets into that dangerous cycle again. Lai is a more responsible and sensitive man who is willing to help but doesn’t feel appreciated for what he does for Ho.

The film’s screenplay does have a structure of sorts though it’s very loose as Wong Kar-Wai is more interested in this very tumultuous relationship where it begins with the two arriving in Argentina where they attempt to travel to the Iguazu Falls by car but things don’t go well aside from the fact that the car is a piece-of-shit. Ho and Lai split up where the latter has to find work in order to raise money so he can return to Hong Kong while Ho just wanders around partying with various people and getting into fights where one fight has him coming back to Lai. The two end up being together in Lai’s apartment but the cycle of chaos and selfishness returns where Lai has to work to buy cigarettes and make food for Ho while Ho would blow the money gambling and such. It then raises questions into why does Lai put up with Ho’s selfishness? Another question is why can’t Ho just step up and actually do something for Lai other than teach him tango?

A lot of the film is told from the perspective of Lai as he tries to deal with his relationship with Ho while the narrative would later introduce another character in a Taiwanese immigrant named Chang (Chang Chen) who is definitely the kind of person that Lai needs in his life. While Chang is also someone trying to raise money to return to Taiwan, he’s an individual that is embarking on a journey of his own though his voice-over narration doesn’t reveal whether or not that he’s gay. Chang just adds a new dynamic for Lai’s character development though it also increases his sense of melancholia over how troubled his relationship with Ho is where things finally reach a breaking point.

The direction of Wong Kar-Wai is just intoxicating to watch with its hypnotic imagery and stunning approach to presentation. While it plays to a lot of the visual styles that Kar-Wai is known for that includes slow frame-speeds towards lingering images and motifs that includes lots of references to the Iguazu Falls such as the lamp Ho bought for Lai. It is told with a sense of restraint for the scenes in Lai’s apartment that is a bit cramped but also comforting though it would devolve into chaos once Ho stays there. There is an intimacy to those moments though Kar-Wai would maintain some energy to the scenes where Lai has to cook in the kitchen at his apartment building where it’s always chaotic and then walk up the stairs to his apartment carrying food.

For the scenes in Buenos Aires, Kar-Wai makes the city a character onto itself where it does have this strange yet ethereal quality for what happens in night such as tango dances and what goes on in the city. Notably a sequence where the Obelisco de Buenos Aires shown in the middle of the frame while the frame also contains the clock showing what time it is as it time moves forward. It plays into that world where Lai starts to feel lost as he is obsessed about going to the Iguazu Falls. The direction has Kar-Wai playing up that sense of frenetic style as the film is shown in this heightened yet grainy black-and-white film stock early on before going into full-on color where it plays up that mood of melancholia. Even in the end where once again the colors have this sense of style but also the fact that it plays about the outcome of this relationship as well as Lai’s journey to find strength in himself. Overall, Wong Kar-Wai creates a truly evocative and riveting drama about love gone wrong.

Cinematographer Christopher Doyle does phenomenal work with the photography from the use of grainy black-and-white to play up the turmoil of Ho and Lai‘s relationship to the use of colored lighting schemes to heighten that mood with the use of blue to showcase the images of the Iguazu Falls as well as some of the scenes in the morning as Doyle‘s work is a major highlight of the film. Editors William Chang and Wong Ming-lam do amazing work with the film‘s very stylized editing with its use of jump-cuts as well as playing around with frame-speeds to create these exotic images that play up some of its melancholia.

Production/costume designer William Chang does excellent work with not just the look of Lai‘s small yet quaint apartment but also the Chinese restaurant he and Chang work at as well as the Cantina the two go to while the costumes are mostly casual with some style to play up the different personalities of the three men. The sound work of Chi-Tat Leung and Du-Che Tu is brilliant for the atmosphere is created in some of the film’s locations including Iguazu Falls plus some of the moments at the places the characters encounter. The film’s soundtrack is wonderful for its intoxicating mix of music that features elements of tango-based music from Astor Pataleon Piazzolla as well as ballad by Caetano Veloso plus some frenetic music by Frank Zappa and a cover of the Turtles song Happy Together by Danny Chang.

The film’s small cast consists a lot of interesting appearances from the people in the film though it really belongs to its three principle actors. Chang Chen is great as Chang as a man who is intrigued by Lai’s presence in the restaurant they work as he is eager to go to the lowest point of South America where he would become the one sense of hope in Lai’s troubled life. Leslie Cheung is remarkable as the volatile Ho as a man who wants to party and do crazy things as he often takes advantage of Lai’s kindness while he also tries to apologize to him unaware of how valuable Lai is. Finally, there’s Tony Leung Chiu-Wai in an incredible performance as Lai as a man lost in a trouble relationship as he tries to pull away only to come back as Leung displays that sense of vulnerability and despair as a man who is unsure about who he is in a land that is foreign to him.

Happy Together is a magnificent film from Wong Kar-Wai that features superb performances from Tony Leung Chiu-Wai, Leslie Cheung, and Chang Chen along with some amazing technical contributions from Christopher Doyle and William Chang. The film is definitely one of Kar-Wai’s finest films in terms of its visual style and exploration into the world of troubled relationships. It’s also a film that dares to ask questions while not giving any answers into this relationship that is very chaotic but also very loving. In the end, Happy Together is an outstanding film from Wong Kar-Wai.

Wong Kar-Wai Films: As Tears Go By - Days of Being Wild - Chungking Express - Ashes of Time/Ashes of Time Redux - Fallen Angels - In the Mood for Love - 2046 - Eros-The Hand - My Blueberry Nights - The Grandmaster - The Auteurs #28: Wong Kar-Wai

© thevoid99 2013

Lust, Caution

Originally Written and Posted at Epinions.com on 11/11/07 w/ Additional Edits.

In 2005, Taiwan-born director Ang Lee released Brokeback Mountain to the world and garnered a surprise reaction. The film about gay cowboys, drew rave reviews with critics as well as surprising smash in the box office along with a load of parodies all over the Internet. The film walked away with several Oscars nominations plus three wins including Best Director for Ang Lee. Despite the upset and controversial loss of Best Picture to Paul Haggis' race-relation drama Crash, Lee moved forward as he decides to return to his native Taiwan to create an espionage thriller that pushed the limits of his directing style entitled Se Jie (Lust, Caution).

Directed by Ang Lee based on Eileen Chang's story, the film tells the story of late 1930s/early 1940s Shanghai when a young woman plays spy in order to stop a man working with the Japanese only to be seduced by him. Reuniting with longtime collaborator and producer James Schamus who co-wrote the adapted screenplay with Hui-Ling Wang, the film reveals Lee's moody, harrowing tale of passion and suspense. Starring Tony Leung Chui-Wai, Tang Wei, Lee-Hom Wang, Anupam Kher, and Joan Chen. Se Jie is an eerie, provocative spy drama that is also seductive and hypnotic from Ang Lee.

It's 1942 in Shanghai as a young woman named Wong Chia Chi (Tang Wei) under the guise of Mrs. Mak is playing mah-jong with Mrs. Yee (Joan Chen) as she later goes to an English restaurant to make a phone call to Kuang Yu Min (Lee-Home Wang). Wong sits down to think about how she's gotten herself into this role as spy. Four years ago, she was just a young student in Hong Kong who is also an aspiring actress along with friend Liang Junsheng (Ko Yue-Lin). After a successful performance in a play directed by Kuang. Things seem to go great for the young students as Kuang suddenly gets an offer to help the Chinese resistance in their war against Japan. After making contacts with the resistance, Kuang decides to organize a plan to help the resistance in aiding the assassination of Mr. Yee (Tony Leung Chui-Wai), who is a high-ranking official working directly for a national traitor named Wang Jingwei.

Liang and Wong join Kuang with Wong playing the role of Mrs. Mak, the wife of an export-import salesman as she finds herself in the posh circle of Mrs. Yee. Rarely capturing a glimpse of Mr. Yee, they finally meet during a game of mah-jong as she helps him pick out clothes and such. Befriending the Yees became easy while she finds herself getting closer to the much-cautious Mr. Yee. Realizing that she might become a mistress of the man, she sacrifices her virginity in order to prepare for the role. Unfortunately, a chance to assassinate Mr. Yee fails thanks to Mr. Tsao (Chin Ka Lok) who destroyed their chance as things went awry with Wong leaving the team.

Three years later as she lives in Shanghai with her aunt and as a student learning Japanese, she meets Kuang who is now working directly for the secretive Chinese resistance. Kuang along with a spy named Wu (Ton Chung-Hua) who learned about her role. He gives her background files as Mrs. Mak where she would continue her role as another attempt to assassinate Mr. Yee was planned. Catching up with Mrs. Yee, she and Mr. Yee find themselves again in good company as eventually, a sexual-driven affair ensues. Realizing how close she is getting into her role, she starts to become confused by Mr. Yee's charms as their sexual affair troubles Kuang. Learning more of Yee's role, Wong realizes the dark position she's in as she suddenly finds herself in a comfortable, closer world that is a shock to the very guarded Mr. Yee. With the plan getting closer, it's all up to Wong to play her part as she becomes confused about her own loyalty.

While the film’s plot of a young spy trying to play her role while being seduced by her target is easy. The journey that screenwriters James Schamus and Hui-Ling Wang take through Eileen Chang's short story is mesmerizing. In reality, the film is about performance and how it can distort things including loyalty. The film is not really a thriller or fits into any kind of period drama but rather a character study and the character that is the heart of the film is Wong Chia Chi. Her development from this shy, quiet young student who exudes the kind of ideal innocence anyone is startling from that to in the film’s beginning and third act, a woman who is confused by her role and morals.

It's a very complex character and so is the target in Mr. Yee. Here's a man who is indeed a villain but also human. Despite what he does for the Japanese, he comes home feeling somewhat detached by his own wife who enjoys her time shopping and playing mah jong. In Wong as Mrs. Mak, he finds the cure he needs for his loneliness and companionship.

Ang Lee's eerie, observant direction definitely harkens towards not just some of the provocative style of Italian auteur Bernardo Bertolucci and 1940s cinema but also the internal moral conflict of the late Ingmar Bergman. Lee's vision of China and its occupation by Japan in those times is true that includes a line of Mr. Yee being aware that Japan's day in the countries are numbered. Lee definitely gets a lot of things right in terms of the time while the atmosphere plays to how the Japanese and working-class Chinese are defined in their environment. Still, it's all about character as Wong and Mr. Yee try to figure out their own worlds while figuring out how to take their relationship away from the politics.

Then there's the film's sex scenes which have garnered the film the very-dreaded NC-17 rating in the U.S. Yes, the sex scenes between Tony Leung and Tang Wei are very graphic indeed. Lots of flesh are shown and such to the point it's almost real that will also lead questions into whether the sex was simulated or not. Sex scenes are often used as an excuse to show naked body parts but through Lee's direction. There's layers in those scenes to reveal the complex emotions of both Mr. Yee and Wong and how they react to each other. The sex is complementary to those emotions that even in their Kama Sutra-like positions, are wonderfully presented. While for a film that's 158-minutes long, there's a few issues in pacing that does drag a bit. Still, Lee's direction and his approach to the story is solid throughout as he's starting to become a real cinematic master.

Mexican cinematographer Rodrigo Prieto, who worked with Lee on Brokeback Mountain, brings some amazing colors to the camera with its bright, evocative shots of Shanghai, Hong Kong, and parts of Malaysia for many of the film's exquisite exterior scenes. Prieto's camera in the exterior scenes are very intimate with low-lights and colors to convey the dark atmosphere of the film, notably the sex scenes that are wonderfully shot without being too polished. Production designer Lai Pan along with a team of art directors do amazing work in recreating 1940s Shanghai with its restaurants, cars, and such including a scene in a Japanese restaurant that is jaw-dropping to watch. Editor Tim Squyres does some fascinating, meditative editing to convey the tension of the film as well as its suspense throughout its 158-minute running time despite a few pacing issues in some scenes.

Sound editor Phillip Stockton does some great work with the sound to convey the different atmospheres of poor China and Japanese-occupied Shanghai with its sound effects and tone. The music of Alexandre Desplat is very enchanting with its chiming, majestic orchestral score. Desplat brings a lot of grand arrangements to convey the film’s suspense and drama with a lot of subtlety. The music also plays to the times with piano music and such including a traditional pop song called A Singing Girl At The Edge Of The World that is performed onset by Tang Wei in an amazing scene at a Japanese restaurant.

The casting of the film is wonderfully assembled with small performances from Johnson Yuen, Ying-hsien Kao, Chih-ying Chu, and Ko Yue-Lin as Kuang's fellow students who are apart of the early organization in Mr. Yee’s assassination plot. Other small roles from Ton Chung-Hua as Wu, Indian actor Anupam Kher of Gurinder Chadha's Bend It Like Beckham fame as a jeweler, and the incomparable Joan Chen as Mrs. Yee are brilliantly performed. Notably Chen as a charismatic, mah-jong playing wife who cracks jokes and manages to steal a few scenes. Chinese pop singer Lee-Home Wang is great as Kuang, a director and resistance soldier who worries about Wong's life while dealing with the role she has to play for him as his performance is superb.

Tony Leung Chui-Wai, who is known by many for his work with Wong Kar-Wai, is brilliant as the very guarded, cautious Mr. Yee. Leung brings a lot of subtlety and brutality to his role as the government official who seems to deal with the loneliness of his work while having a relationship that's a bit brutal but also fulfilling. Leung is really solid in his role while proving that behind every villain, there's some redeeming qualities in him. In a true breakout performance, Tang Wei is phenomenal as Wong Chia Chi. A very multi-layered performance full of complexity, Wei brings a mixture of innocence and passion in the film's early sequences while in the second act, she is full of charm and wonder as she deals with reality as well as Mr. Yee. By the end of the film, she is confused, very flawed, and also older as her performance is very layered as if she's performing within a performance.

The chemistry between Leung and Wei are amazing to watch as they perform together in scenes that are so hypnotic, it's almost as if they're acting in an old-school 1940s film. For the sex scenes, both actors expose themselves not just physically but emotionally as it's very erotic but also eerie to watch. With Leung being a man with little charm, he also manages to be very relaxed with Wei acting with him. Notably a scene in a Japanese restaurant as she sings an old Chinese song that is amazing to watch. Overall, the performances of Leung and Wei make the entire film worth watching.

While Se Jie isn't a perfect film, it's still a powerful, provocative period thriller from Ang Lee and company with brilliant performances from Tony Leung Chui-Wai and Tang Wei. While the film might have something to offer for art-house film buffs for its amazing acting, great set pieces, and its observant, eerie direction. It's a shame that the film is not being widely accepted by a mainstream audience. Then again, a film like this won't really work with a general audience for three reasons. One, it's 158-minutes with a meditative pacing that won't get everyone's attention. Two, it's in subtitles that will annoy a general portion of American audiences. Three and finally, it's NC-17 for its graphic sex scenes. Despite all of those issues, Se Jie is still a solid film from Ang Lee who continues to amaze audiences with such provocative topics and themes.

Ang Lee Films: Pushing Hands - The Wedding Banquet - Eat Drink Man Woman - Sense & Sensibility (1995 film) - The Ice Storm - Ride with the Devil - Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon - The Hire: Chosen - Hulk - Brokeback Mountain - Taking Woodstock - Life of Pi - Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk - The Auteurs #19: Ang Lee

(C) thevoid99 2011

Ashes of Time/Ashes of Time Redux

After two feature films, Wong Kar-Wai was emerging as a new voice in Hong Kong cinema who was making films that weren’t the traditional martial arts or crime films of the time. Instead, Kar-Wai stood out as he was making the kind of films that related more to the world of European cinema than the world of his native Hong Kong. For his next feature, Kar-Wai decided to enter the world of the martial arts epic known as wuxia by adapting Louis Cha’s novel The Legend of the Condor Heroes. With getting a cast of some of Asian cinema’s finest actors, the project entitled Ashes of Time wouldn’t just be his most ambitious project to date. It would also become his most complicated and troubled production of his burgeoning career at that time.

The production for Ashes of Time dragged for a year as it went over-budget and over-scheduled largely due to Kar-Wai’s insistence of working without a script. The headaches of the ambitious production shot on location in mainland China’s desert proved to be overwhelming. After shooting completed, Kar-Wai took a break to work on another project that would become Chungking Express as it was released in early 1994. While working on another project that would become Fallen Angels, Kar-Wai went to work on editing and finishing Ashes of Time for its release in the fall of 1994.

The film would received mixed reviews as it also became a box office failure where the film disappeared for years as Kar-Wai’s cult began to grow internationally. Even as audiences became interested in Ashes of Time where the film was shown but in different versions. In 2003, Kar-Wai along with his longtime cinematographer Christopher Doyle and longtime editor/art director William Chang to create a re-assembled version of the film with copies of the film from China and France to be their source since the original negatives were in bad shape.

Another problem for the re-assembled version wasn’t just color-correcting the film but also creating a new score since the soundtrack was heavily-damaged to re-record. With the help of Yo-Yo Ma in creating new cello solos based on Wu Tong’s new arrangements. A new score along with pieces from the original score was re-created for the new assembled version that would be called Ashes of Time Redux.

Written for the screen and directed by Wong Kar-Wai. Ashes of Time (Dung che sai duk) tells the story of a heartbroken swordsman who serves as a middleman between bounty hunters and those seeking help. Along the way, the swordsmen deal with individuals who want revenge on bandits or siblings while he also deals with his own past and regrets. Part wuxia film and part drama, it’s a film that would broaden the wuxia genre as it would help set the course of other films of that genre such as Ang Lee’s Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and the recent films of Zhang Yimou. Featuring choreography from legendary martial arts star Sammo Hung, the film stars such Kar-Wai regulars Leslie Cheung, Brigitte Lin, Tony Leung Chiu-Wai, Carina Lau, and Maggie Cheung along with Tony Leung Ka-Fai, Charlie Yeung, and Jacky Cheung. Ashes of Time/Ashes of Time Redux is a hypnotic yet mesmerizing film from Wong Kar-Wai.

(Note: The following plot description and film analysis is based on the Redux version of the film)

Living alone in the desert as a middleman for bounty hunters and its customers, Ouyang Feng (Leslie Cheung) is a man filled with cynicism as he only cares about making money no matter what side he’s on. It’s spring as one of Feng’s bounty hunters named Huang Yaoshi (Tony Leung Ka-Fai) has arrived for his yearly visit but with a bottle of wine this time. Yaoshi talks about a woman (Carina Lau) he’s fallen for as he learns he’s the wife another bounty hunter (Tony Leung Chiu-Wai). Yet, Yaoshi is in trouble with that bounty hunter as he was an old friend. The problem is that Yaoshi is losing his memory while the other bounty hunter is going blind.

Returning to his home, Yaoshi has an encounter with a drunk yet masterful swordsman named Murong (Brigitte Lin) as a fight ensues. Later, Murong hires Feng to have someone kill the man going after her sister. Feng meanwhile, gets an offer from Murong’s sister to kill her brother as Feng realizes that something isn‘t right as he believes they could be the same person. It’s summer as a young woman (Charlie Yeung) offers her mule and eggs to Feng to find a bounty hunter to fight off some bandits. Feng refuses the offer as the blind swordsman arrives to talk about Yaoshi as he is thinking of taking the young woman’s offer to fight off the bandits.

Yet, the bandits continue to become a threat as another bounty hunter named Hong Quiong (Jacky Cheung) decides to fight them. While he’s a man known for simple things and has a way of handling business. Something is off as Hong gets himself injured as Feng believes that the woman with the eggs and mule is a curse. Hong however, thinks the opposite as he decides to leave with his wife (Li Bai) as Feng becomes haunted by the memories of his former flame (Maggie Cheung) who had already married his brother. Feng meanwhile learns why Yaoshi has come to the desert every year as he waits for the next spring for Yaoshi to arrive.

While the film’s complex story takes place in the span of a year, its loose structure in placing the film on its seasonal settings gives way to an epic that isn’t like anything else. While at times, the pacing lags a bit in a few scenes. It’s a film that is really about a man whose lack of morals about hiring bounty hunters to do their jobs would only have him face his own regrets and mistakes that he’s made in the past. A lot of the story is told from Feng’s perspective in the narration as he reflects on his own past and hopes of attaining glory while looking on at his bounty hunters. Each have their own story to tell through a bit of their own narration as they all deal with their own issues and moral conflict.

The looseness of the story is attributed to Kar-Wai not using a script as his direction of the film is truly mesmerizing. Particularly shooting on location at the desert where he goes for a huge, epic feel. Kar-Wai definitely displays grand visuals for many of the film’s deserts and battle scenes with help from Sammo Hung’s choreography in the fights. Yet, he maintains a sense of intimacy for some of the non-action, dramatic scenes while creating gorgeous shots filled with landscapes being exploded along with a shot of water gushing from a lake. In many ways, it’s a dream-like film of sorts with lush images of water and landscapes set in a rough desert. Yet, it has all of the touches of a Kar-Wai film where despite a few flaws in the story.

Longtime Kar-Wai collaborator Christopher Doyle brings a gorgeous yet hypnotic look to the film’s cinematography. Shot with grainy film stock, Doyle’s photography maintains a gritty look to the film, notably the fight scenes. For the scenes in the jungle, there’s a lush feel with its mesh of green, white, and other colors. A lot of Doyle’s photography plays to a lot of the work he’s done with Kar-Wai as it’s definitely one of the film’s technical highlights.

Another Kar-Wai collaborator in William Chang does a lot of excellent work to the film’s art direction, costume design, and editing. The look of the homes and places that the characters encounter have a decayed film with the exception of the home of Feng’s former lover that is grand yet intimate. The costume design is also exquisite with the ragged robes the men wear and the gorgeous ones that Maggie Cheung wears for her character. In the editing, Chang along with Patrick Tam and Kit-Wai Kai bring a fluid yet mesmerizing editing style that is filled with shimmering speeds for some of the film’s action and dramatic scenes that is a trademark of Kar-Wai’s work. Even as its stylized approach help move the action scenes while the film does a lag a bit in a few places, notably in the first act.

Sound designer Robert MacKenzie and sound editor Nopawat Likitwong do some very good with the film’s sound in creating collages for some of the dramatic action scenes or something intense in more intimate fight scenes. The music of Frankie Chan and Roel A. Garcia (with additional music and re-arrangements by Wu Tong in the Redux version) is wonderful for its bombastic pieces for some of the film’s action scenes along with more soothing pieces that includes some cello solos from Yo-Yo Ma (in the Redux version) for the closing pieces of the film.

The cast is definitely phenomenal with a small appearance from Li Bai as Hong Quiong’s wife along with Maggie Cheung in a small but pivotal appearance as Feng’s ex-love as she brings a radiance that isn’t seen much on film. Carina Lau is very good as the wife of the blind swordsman who becomes the object of affection for Yaoshi. Brigitte Lin is excellent in the role of Murong, a woman disguised as a master swordsman who is intent on seeking war against her sister’s lover. Jacky Cheung is great as Hong Quiong, a master swordsman with simple ideals as his encounter with a young woman makes him re-think about the ways of being a bounty hunter.

Charlie Yeung is wonderful as the young woman who tries to make an offer to Feng with just a basket full of eggs and a mule as she ends up playing a major role in affecting the lives of the bounty hunters. Tony Leung Ka-Fai is brilliant as Yaoshi, a bounty hunter who meets Feng yearly as he is dealing with own issues while losing his memory as he carries a secret that would later impact Feng. Tony Leung Chiu-Wai is superb as the blind swordsman who is dealing with his sudden blindness as well as the appearance of the young woman who asks for help.

Finally, there’s the late Leslie Cheung as Ouyang Feng. A middleman between the bounty hunters and its customers who is trying to deal with regrets and other issues while maintain his role as an outsider. Cheung’s performance is definitely marvelous to watch as a man who is filled with snide cynicism about the ways of the world as he tries to hide his own past. Even in the way he’s restrained throughout while showing that he can be a badass in the few fight scenes he has. It’s definitely one of Cheung’s finest roles of his great career.

(Note: The Following 3 Paragraphs is a compare/contrast about the original Ashes of Time and its Redux version)

In the original Ashes of Time, the film opens with a intense, fast-paced battle scene where Feng fights a bunch of bandits in an epic, sprawling battle that is meant to introduce him. That sequence is cut from the Redux version along with details about Yaoshi that is spoken though the subtitles are improved in the Redux. Also cut are little details and introduction as the material is added in the Redux are the breaks for the seasons as well as additional scenes that are essentially second unit shots of water and skies.

Since the original version (that can be found online) is in such bad condition, the cinematography is brighter and much rougher while the pacing in the original is a bit more ragged where it lags the story more than in the Redux. Other things that the Redux does in order to bring a better visual feel to the film are the visual effects. The BUF visual effects team add a few things to the film including a scene of flies flying up from a lake.

Another major sequence that is cut from the original is another battle scene at the end of the film involving Feng, Murong, Hong Quong, and Yaoshi that is as intense and stylized. It’s understandable why Kar-Wai cut some of the sequences not only to improve the pacing of the film but also clarify things in the story. Another notable thing that is prevalent in the original that was forced to be re-done for the Redux version is the score by Frankie Chan and Roel A. Garcia that is more dramatic in the original. While the score in the original is slightly better than the one in the Redux, the Redux version is a better film in terms of visuals and in storytelling despite the plot’s complexity.

The 2009 Region 1 DVD from Sony Pictures Classics presents Ashes of Time Redux in its theatrical anamorphic widescreen aspect ratio of 1:78:1 with Dolby Digital for Cantonese and 5.1 for French with English subtitles. Among the special features that appears in the DVD is a 42-minute Q&A with Wong Kar-Wai held by The Village Voice film critic J. Hoberman. The interview has Kar-Wai talk about the production and why it took five years to restore, re-cut, and re-do Ashes of Time.

Kar-Wai revealed that because of the economic crisis in Asia in the late 1990s, the warehouse that stored all of the negative prints of his films and many others were to be destroyed. Kar-Wai managed to save his films as did many others where he found that the negative of Ashes of Time was in very bad shape. Thanks to copies that circulated in France and other places, Kar-Wai and his team were able to do work on the restoration which proved to be tough. Even as he told Hoberman about having to make some changes in order to improve things though he knew that not everyone would like it though the original version of the film remains in bad shape. Even as they had to remix and re-do some sound and dialogue (some of which proved to be very difficult due to Leslie Cheung’s suicide in 2003).

Kar-Wai also talked about his collaboration with William Chang and Christopher Doyle. The latter of which, he reveals about Doyle’s personality and how he takes his work seriously as a cinematographer. Even as they often have clashes, notably in In the Mood for Love as Kar-Wai didn’t want hand-held and Doyle did. Kar-Wai also talks about his approach to writing as he does write screenplays but he only uses it as a guide into what he wants since he finds the film when shooting.

The 14-minute Born From Ashes: The Making of Ashes of Time Redux is a special that features rare behind-the-scenes footage of the making of the original film. Featuring interviews with Wong Kar-Wai, Tony Leung Chiu-Wai, Charlie Yeung, Carina Lau, Sammo Hung, and Christopher Doyle. The actors talked about making the film and revealed how difficult it was in just shooting there while Hung talked about how Kar-Wai was able to do something different from the typical martial arts films that were being made at the time. Even as everyone (with the exception of Hung) is interviewed at the 2008 Cannes Film Festival where they’re promoting Ashes of Time Redux as they talked about how great it is to have the film finally come out at Cannes to an audience that wants to see it.

The trailer for Ashes of Time Redux appears in the DVD along with trailers for films like Synecdoche, New York, Rachel Getting Married, Adoration, Kung Fu Hustle, and Waltz with Bashir. It’s definitely a DVD that fans of Kar-Wai must have in their collection.

Ashes of Time/Ashes of Time Redux is an excellent yet spectacular film from Wong Kar-Wai featuring a great ensemble led by the late Leslie Cheung. Fans of Kar-Wai will no doubt want to see this though they will probably be dismayed by the changes Kar-Wai made for this new version. Audiences new to Kar-Wai should see other films like In the Mood for Love and Chungking Express before seeing this one. Notably the Redux version which is more preferred due to its remastered look and a clearer plot. In the end, Ashes of Time/Ashes of Time Redux is a marvelous yet stylish film from Wong Kar-Wai and company.

Wong Kar-Wai Films: As Tears Go By - Days of Being Wild - Chungking Express - Fallen Angels - Happy Together - In the Mood for Love - 2046 - Eros-The Hand - My Blueberry Nights - The Grandmaster - The Auteurs #28: Wong Kar-Wai

© thevoid99 2011

In the Mood for Love (Expanded Criterion DVD Review)

Originally Written and Posted at Epinions.com on 10/4/05 w/ Additional Edits & New Content.

When Sofia Coppola won the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay for her 2003 masterpiece Lost in Translation, one of the people she thanked was a Hong Kong-born director named Wong Kar-Wai. Admitting to borrowing elements of his work into her own film, Coppola acknowledged the director as a profound influence. While not being known entirely in the American mainstream, Wong Kar-Wai has attained a cult following in the U.S. especially among directors like Quentin Tarantino. Internationally and in Asia, Kar-Wai has always garnered all sorts of acclaim for his moody, colorful look of Asia with storylines that were inspired by his love for European cinema, notably the French New Wave.

Born in Shanghai, China in 1958, Wong Kar-Wai provided an alternative to the already huge action and martial films that was dominating mainstream Asian cinema. Though he incorporated action into his early features like 1988's gangster film Wang jiao ka men (As Tears Go By) and 1991's psychological coming-of-age drama A Fei jing juen (Days of Being Wild). In 1994, Kar-Wai released two different features that year, the first was a stylized martial arts epic Dung Che Sai Duk (Ashes of Time) and the more personal romantic drama Chunghing Samlam (Chungking Express). The latter became Kar-Wai's first taste of real international success as Asian film fan Quentin Tarantino got the film its first American distribution to some acclaim and art house numbers.

With frequent collaborators like cinematographer Christopher Doyle and editor/production designer William Chang, Kar-Wai's films were getting large notices, especially in the regular company of actors he used from Tony Leung Chui-Wai, Maggie Cheung, Leslie Cheung, and Brigitte Lin. In 1995, Kar-Wai released Duoluo Tianshi (Fallen Angels) which broke ground in terms of the visual style Kar-Wai and Doyle wanted for the crime film. Then in 1997, Kar-Wai released his most international successful work to date with Cheun Gwong Tsa Sit (Happy Together), a gay romantic drama that not was filled with lavish visuals and frame speeds but also in unconventional storylines as Kar-Wai won a Best Director prize at the Cannes Film Festival. Kar-Wai was becoming a hero in Asian cinema as he would wow audiences and critics again with another unconventional romantic film with 2000's Fa yeung nin wa (In the Mood for Love).

Written and directed by Wong Kar-Wai, Fa yeung nin wa is a romantic drama set in 1962 Hong Kong about two young couples living next door in a cramped apartment building. With a man working at a newspaper and a woman being a secretary for a company, the two often see each other whether it's picking up noodles or bumping each in seeing other tenants in the building. Then, the two begin to suspect about the frequent absences of their spouses wondering if they're having an affair. Starring Tony Leung Chui-Wai and Maggie Cheung, Fa yeung nin wa is an engrossing, harrowing romantic drama that brings mystery into love and its aftermath.

It's 1962 in Hong Kong as Mrs. Chang (Maggie Cheung) is ready to move to a cramped apartment owned by Mrs. Suen (Rebecca Pang). With her husband (voice of Roy Cheung) on business, Mrs. Chang moves in while another man, Mr. Chow (Tony Leung Chui-Wai) is also moving with his wife, who is also on a business leave. With both moving in at the same time, Mrs. Chang and Mr. Chow would often bump into each other giving things that didn't belong to them. Mrs. Chang works as a secretary to Mr. Ho (Lai Chen) while Mr. Chow works in a newspaper publication with friend Ah Ping (Ping Lam Sau). While their spouses would return, Mrs. Chang and Mr. Chow would only see them for a brief period of time. Mrs. Chang would often talk to neighbors and go into an alley to get noodles and sometimes, would run into Mr. Chow.

During a dinner with Ping, Mr. Chow's suspicions of his wife's absences finally gets to him. With their spouses going out on business trips in separate places, the loneliness of Mrs. Chang finally gets to her. Even after returning books to Mrs. Chow (voice of Paulyn Sun) before her departure, she longs for the presence of her husband. After bumping into Mr. Chow again, they go to dinner one day and immediately, she learns of Mr. Chow's suspicions as they notice a few things that their spouses had bought. With their spouses not around, Mr. Chow and Mrs. Chang often go into conversation where immediately, they're being suspected into having an affair by a few neighbors.

Mr. Chow tells Mrs. Chang his interest into writing a martial arts serial for his newspaper as Mrs. Chang helps by staying in his apartment room where they hide for a while. Even as one of their neighbors, Mr. Koo (Cheun Tung Joe) got himself drunk. Mrs. Chang finally gets to her apartment after a few days. They begin to learn more about the idea that their spouses had an affair, even as they learn about what they like to eat and do. Mr. Chow decides to leave his apartment for a while to live in a hotel. Mrs. Chang would often visit his place in room 2046 where he was writing. Immediately, the loneliness of the two gets to them.

The two would rehearse about how to confront their spouses over the affair which has become too emotional for Mrs. Chang. Then when Ping calls from Singapore to ask Mr. Chow to help him work in a newspaper in Singapore, Mr. Chow is trying to figure out if he wants to go. Mrs. Chang wonders if her husband is coming back while Mr. Chow ponders his own future with his wife as he admits to falling for Mrs. Chang. He asks her if she would go to Singapore with him. One year later in Singapore, Mr. Chow continues in his investigation as things with Mrs. Chang were falling apart that leads to loss.

If there's any similarities in what Lost in Translation and Fa yeung nin wa had, it's the fact that both films are about two people being alone in disintegrating marriages. In Kar-Wai's approach, it's more of a momentum-driven film where Mr. Chow and Mrs. Chang both begin to suspect what's going on and try to understand on what is happening. In Kar-Wai's script (though he never really uses one), he has a very interesting structure that's more about building the story as opposed to going into a situation right away. The first act being Mr. Chow and Mrs. Chang living their life at home and at work while starting to suspect things. The second act is the two confirming their suspicions and pondering their loneliness. Then, there's the third act where the story not only moves in different places but in different times from Hong Kong in 1962 to Singapore in 1963 and going back to Hong Kong in 1966 with the finale in Cambodia, 1966.

The third act of the film is really the emotional payoff. Throughout the first two acts, there's a sense of repetition in the way Mrs. Chang would bump into Mr. Chow when they go for noodles or in the corner alley near their apartment where they would talk. In the third act, the scene where they rehearse about confronting their spouses and their own feeling for each other. It's not they fall into their own affairs but it's because why they got into an affair. It's because they're driven by loneliness and their spouses just ditching them. Then after the trip to Singapore, things get really weird when the film moves into more emotional territory, notably in its finale but that's another story that is talked about in Kar-Wai's 2004 sequel-of-sorts called 2046 after the hotel room Mr. Chow stayed in.

If Kar-Wai in his approach as a storyteller is fascinating in his unconventional approach to European and Asian dramas. Then its his directing that really comes across as entrancing. There's an intimacy to many scenes as well as a subtlety in the restraint of emotions in the film. There's also some claustrophobic situations in the apartment settings as Kar-Wai moves the camera with such ease to see two people at the end of their emotional ropes. The way Kar-Wai presents the film is seductive in its setting and sadness in the characters with the way he shows a little bit of detail, including some slo-motion shots where it brings out an emotion to what the character is feeling, especially in the way Kar-Wai has Chui-Wai and Cheung together in their own situations. It's some fine, observant direction where Kar-Wai would rather give the audience their own interpretation as opposed to what he's thinking though in the end, he creates a situation for one of the characters to come into another world.

Helping Kar-Wai in capturing the intimacy and feel of the film is his longtime cinematographer Christopher Doyle along with another cameraman in Mark Lee Ping-bin. Ping-bin and Doyle capture a colorful, luminescent feel to the film in many of the film's interior settings, notably the hotel and restaurant scenes while on the exterior, the use of light from the streets captures an authenticity that really captures the realness of Hong Kong and Singapore later on. Even the finale in the Cambodia scene is just amazing to watch as Doyle and Ping-bin bring in some of the most inspiring and exhilarating camera work ever captured on film.

Then there's the work of Kar-Wai's jack-of-all-trades William Chang. Bringing a solid, stylized cut to the editing including a few jump-cut sequences, Chang gives the film a nice pace that at first might seem slow but it only serves to present the story's momentum as Chang surprises in the editing. With art director Man Lim-chung, Chang's production design is filled with a lot of color whether it's a bland setting in the restaurants to the hallways of the hotel with its red walls and the little things in the apartments of Mr. Chow and Mrs. Chang. There's so much that is to love in Chang's production design. Another brilliance in what Chang does is the costumes, notably the thin dresses that Maggie Cheung wears. There's a lovely movement to the clothes that Cheung wears that is filled with all sorts of colors and styles that doesn't present itself as something beautiful but also conveys what mood that Mrs. Chang is in. William Chang really brings a lot to the film in terms of its technical brilliance.

Then there's the film's music that really plays to the emotions of the film. With three songs sung by Nat King Cole in Spanish that plays in the background. The songs give the film a romantic, playful feel as it serves to not just the loneliness but also a feeling of love for the main characters. With other music pieces that includes an Asian rendition of Happy Birthday, there's a mournful yet hypnotic score piece from Michael Galasso that comes in the end of the film. The film's most dominant musical moment comes from composer Shigeru Umebayashi who brings in this waltz-like score piece that is later accompanied by a mournful violin. The way the music moves with the way Cheung walks to get her noodles with the dress is by far one of the film's most sexiest moments. It's just an amazing scene to watch heightened more by the music.

Finally, there's the film's cast that includes several amazing small performance like Rebecca Pan as Mrs. Suen, Lai Chen as Cheung's sensitively flawed boss, Ping Lam Sau as Chow’s funny associate, and a cameo from Cheun Tung Joe as a neighbor. The two actors who play the cheating spouses never show their faces but their presence is amazing since it provides the jolt that the story is needed for its two central characters. The leading performances of Tony Leung Chui-Wai and Maggie Cheung is really the film's emotional centerpiece as the two use their faces and body language to convey a lot of the emotion in their film, even when they're not speaking. From the detail of clothing to the places their in. Chui-Wai and Cheung have great chemistry in every scene they're in. Especially in the emotional moments with Chui-Wai being more determined in his suspicions while Cheung conveys more of the film's heartbreak and alienation. It's those two actors who shine together while individually, both provide honesty and electricity to the film and its story.

***Additional DVD Content Posted on 1/18/11***

The 2002 Region 1 2-disc Special Edition Criterion Collection DVD for Wong Kar-Wai’s In the Mood for Love is presented with a new digital transfer that is enhanced for 16x9 televisions from its original 1:66:1 theatrical aspect ratio. Along with a 5.0 Dolby Digital Soundtrack. The film is presented in such an evocative fashion that the cinematography of Christopher Doyle and Mark Li Ping-Bin is stunning.

The special features in the first disc includes four deleted scenes that features 25 minutes worth of footage along with a commentary track by Wong Kar-Wai. The first deleted scene revolves around the room 2046 where Chow and Su try to engage into an affair as they wonder why their spouses were able to do it while they’re reluctant. Chow checks into the room 2046 to figure things out as Su visits as they both ponder about their own feelings and behaviors. The second scene revolves around Chow’s work in Singapore where he sends a postcard to Su along with a song dedicated to her on the radio. The scene also has Su working with her boss as he receives a ticket to Singapore for Su as she later has dinner with Ah Ping about Chow.

The third deleted scene is set in the 1970s where Su is trying to sell her apartment as a woman named Lulu arrives to check it out. Revealing to be married to Chow, she asks Su about the place. Su decides not to sell it as Lulu later meets Chow who learns that it’s the old apartment he lived in. An argument with Lulu and Chow ensues as he and Su later meet at the noodle place as they’re both surprised by their appearances. The fourth scene is an extended scene that relates to the film’s ending in Cambodia where Su and Chow meet one last time as they talk about the past. The scene also reveals what did Chow put into the hole of a temple wall as well as extended images of the temple itself.

In Kar-Wai’s commentary tracks (all subtitled) for the first three scenes, he reveals why they’re cut from the final film. The first scene about room 2046 has Kar-Wai discussing where the room was shot which was in a British hospital that was to be torn down following the 1997 handout from Britain to China. He also revealed that he had a moment that was similar to Fellini’s 8 ½ where he was meeting William Chang about some costumes he was making. Kar-Wai felt it should’ve been used in the scene but didn’t while he had originally intended the scene to be used early in the film but make it into the final cut because he felt it didn’t fit with the tone of the film.

For the second deleted scene, Kar-Wai talks about Chow’s brief scene as it relates to the short story Intersection by Liu Yi-chang. Notably the scene of Chow eating a fruit about how a Chinese man would eat this fruit in Singapore and never return to China. In the third deleted scene, Kar-Wai revealed that it’s set in 1972 where the clothes and looks of the characters has changed while his approach for the film’s ending remains true.

In the section for the film’s soundtrack, the feature includes an overview of the material used in the music told by Joanna Lee through interactive essays. Lee discusses the importance of music in the film and why Kar-Wai chooses these tracks. Notably Yumeji’s Theme by Shigeru Umegayashi that had a waltz-like melody that plays as the love theme between Su and Chow. The traditional music used in the film were used to play up to the film’s melancholia while Lee also gives some historical insights to the traditional pieces as well as the Asian pop music of the 1930s and so on. Including a song by Rebecca Pan whom Kar-Wai adored as a child.

For some of the Latin influences, notably the songs in Spanish sung by Nat King Cole to convey the feeling of nostalgia and love. With Michael Galasso’s music, notably in the final scene, Kar-Wai wanted something that was to complement Umegayashi’s piece in the same way to emphasize the film’s melancholia. The essays also features video clips of where those musical pieces are used.

In Michael Galasso’s statement, he talks about his first meeting with Wong Kar-Wai in 1995 at film festival after he learned that Kar-Wai used one of his pieces in Chungking Express. They met again at the 1997 New York Film Festival for the premiere of Happy Together where they talked about working together. He talked about being sent a bunch of traditional Chinese operas and classical pieces to create a score for the film which he spent a few months in 2000 to create the final theme in the film through various incarnations. Wong Kar-Wai’s statement about the film and music as he talked about an idea for a project called Summer in Beijing that would later become In the Mood for Love as some of the music was influenced by John Coltrane and traditional Chinese pieces.

The two-and-a-half minute short film Hua Yang De Nian Hua is a short by Kar-Wai that features old nitrate footage of films from the past as it serves as a tribute to the Chinese films of the past. Featuring a statement from Kar-Wai, it also includes press notes about the short where he found the numerous nitrate films at a warehouse in Southern California. The short is essentially images of women in all of these old films from China and Hong Kong as it plays in a dream-like fashion to the song that the film is named after by Zhou Xuan that also appeared in In the Mood for Love.

The second disc of the DVD includes more special features that relates to the film’s production and the promotion that went on about the film. Headlining the second disc is a 51-minute making-of documentary on In the Mood for Love entitled @ In the Mood for Love. The documentary features interviews with Wong Kar-Wai, Tony Leung Chiu-Wai, Maggie Cheung, Rebecca Pan, and Siu Ping-lam as they talk about Kar-Wai’s process and how he tries to find the film when he’s making it. Even as the film started out with more looser, comical scenes that featured deleted scenes that weren’t in the final cut. Among them is Chow and Su dancing to some surf music or them trying to cook in room 2046.

Other material shown in the film is Su and Chow singing as both Cheung and Leung explain their characters and their motivations. Cheung revealed that making the film for her was hard at first because she hadn’t worked with Kar-Wai in a while and didn’t understand what he was trying to do. Even as Leung reveals that it’s pointless to try and talk to Kar-Wai about what the film is about as Kar-Wai is trying to find the story when he’s shooting which is a reason why it took so long to make. Rebecca Pan talks about the period where Kar-Wai was shooting and how women behaved then while Siu Ping-lam was just a prop master before being asked to play Ah Ping. The documentary ends with a look into the worldwide promotional trip Kar-Wai, Leung, and Cheung took as the film became a worldwide hit.

The interviews with Wong Kar-Wai features the director being interviewed at the 2000 Cannes Film Festival for two different interviews. The first is a 22-minute interview with Michel Ciment and Hubert Niogret has Kar-Wai talking about the film and why it took so long to make it. One of the reasons is Kar-Wai working very slow to make his film and the other was the Asian economic crisis at the time which created a lot of problems in the production. Kar-Wai also talks about his desire to re-create the feeling of 1960s Hong Kong in terms of behaviors, the look, and the way food was cooked at the time. He also talks about the actors, Christopher Doyle, and the film’s soundtrack in relation to the period of the film.

The 16-minute Cinema Lesson interview at Cannes with Gilles Ciment where Kar-Wai talks about the filmmaking process. On screenwriting, he reveals that he never works with a script though he would write down ideas that would become one or two films. That was the case with Chungking Express where a third portion of that film eventually became Fallen Angels. Ciment also asks about Kar-Wai’s upcoming project 2046 where some of the material was made during the production of In the Mood for Love as Kar-Wai talked about overlapping productions that he did with Ashes of Time and Chungking Express. Kar-Wai also talks about the unused footage of the film which was Kar-Wai’s attempt to find the story when making the film. Even as he strays away from the conventions of how Hollywood tries to make their films while keeping costs low.

The 43-minute Toronto International Film Festival with Tony Leung Chiu-Wai and Maggie Cheung. Led by moderator Robert Gray, Leung and Cheung discuss the production of the film as well as Kar-Wai’s process in making the film. Particularly since some of the idea of the film was inspired by a short story called Intersection by Liu Yi-chang. They also talk about the production and why it took so long along with William Chang’s art direction and costume design and the dresses that Maggie Cheung wear. Cheung and Leung also talks about working with Kar-Wai and why he’s so different from other directors in terms of working without a script and such. Even as they create scenes that don’t make it to the final film as they’re a bit disappointed over what’s cut though it’s all part of a bigger picture.

Leung and Cheung also talk about working with each other which they’ve done for years as it was easy for them to work with each other for this particular film. Even as they talk about each other in a humorous way. They also talk about the long shoot where just after finishing the last scenes just before Cannes, Cheung revealed that she was drained from finishing the film since she believed she was still in character. The overall interview is fun and lively as Leung and Cheung looked relaxed despite its duration.

Gina Marchetti’s essay about the film’s period setting reveals a lot of what was it like during those times as it also includes a photo gallery of stills from the film and what Hong Kong looked like in the 1960s. The objects, such as the metal contain Su carries to the noodle shop, plays an important role to what women did at the time in Hong Kong. Marchetti also dwells on the history of Hong Kong as it dwells on the period in the 1960s which was a period where things were definitely changing rapidly until 1967 when the revolutions in mainland China were emerging.

Marchetti also talked about people originated from Shanghai that emigrated to Hong Kong as they became known as Shanghainese. Their history is complex in the way they helped Hong Kong’s economy in such a big way. Even in the apartments of the time as it housed Shanghainese where despite their workaholic personas were able to find time to interact socially. Marchetti’s essays are a wonderful read to see what influenced the film as well as the period Kar-Wai is capturing. Notably a brief video clip of how the cheong sam dresses are made with careful measurements.

The promotional material section includes an 18-minute behind-the-scenes promotional special. Among the material presented were unused art and concepts that were supposed to use to promote the film internationally as it also includes a gallery of posters that were used for the film once it was released. There’s also two Hong Kong TV spots plus a U.S. trailer and TV spot along with a French trailer and TV spot. The Hong Kong ads used Bryan Ferry’s cover of I’m In the Mood for Love which inspired the film’s title as it also featured some deleted footage. The U.S. ads also use Ferry’s song while trying to promote it as a conventional, romantic film of sorts. The French ads go for the film’s more melancholic tone while using Yumeji’s Theme as its musical background.

The 18-minute behind-the-scenes special is a conventional special of sorts as it features interviews with Wong Kar-Wai, Tony Leung Chiu-Wai, and Maggie Cheung as they talk about the film. Leung discuss his own persona and how different he is to his own character while Kar-Wai revealed he got the English name of the film after hearing Bryan Ferry’s cover of I’m in the Mood for Love. Cheung believes her character is an unhappy woman trying to be a good wife with small ambitions as they all discuss Kar-Wai’s idea on storytelling and his filmmaking process.

The photo gallery section includes stills of the film in three different sections. Other sections a bio on cast and crew members in the film. The last big section is an essay on Wong Kar-Wai. The essay is an overview of his career with photos of the director and his films along with posters for the films (including the aborted Summer in Beijing) and trailers for Ashes of Time, Fallen Angels, Happy Together, and In the Mood for Love.

Also in the DVD set is a 48-page booklet that features a director’s statement from Kar-Wai about his experience on the film as well as making what he believes is a definitive sequel of sorts to his 1991 film Days of Being Wild. The bulk of the booklet features the short story Intersection by Liu Yi-chang, the story that inspired Kar-Wai to make In the Mood for Love as the story is also set in 1960s Hong Kong. Finally, there’s an essay by film critic Li Cheuk-To about the film with its themes and relation to Days of Being Wild where both films carried similar ideas about love but in different context. The overall work in the DVD is magnificent as it’s a must-have for any fan of Wong Kar-Wai.

***End of DVD Tidbits***

When the film came out in 2000 at the Cannes Film Festival, it won 2 prizes for its technical achievements to Christopher Doyle, Mark Lee Ping-bin, and William Chang and a Best Actor prize to Tony Leung Chui-Wai. While the film was well-received and became a modest art house hit in the U.S. More interesting is what was going on during the 15 month shoot of the film where concepts kept changing around and Kar-Wai's ability to work without a script along with several costumes being made and stuff. Even a week before its initial release at Cannes, Kar-Wai and his crew went to Cambodia to shoot and edit the film altogether at a rapid pace. While it's a reputation that some might not like, still the result of his film did prove what a great director he is while it led to an immense amount of anticipation for his follow-up film 2046, which premiered at the 2004 Cannes Film Festival and becoming the first film to have a delayed release at the festival because its final print arrived, three-hours late.

In the end, Fa yeung nin wa is an engrossing, romantic masterpiece from Wong Kar-Wai. While at first, it's not an easy film to watch for its slow pacing but its build-up and resulting factor will leave you breathless. With great performances from Tony Leung Chui-Wai and Maggie Cheung plus the talents of Michael Galasso, Christopher Doyle, Mark Lee Ping-bin, and William Chang. It's one of the most beautiful and enchanting films of the decade. For an introduction to the director, it's a very good start while anyone who really loved Lost in Translation should check out Wong Kar Wai's masterpiece.

Wong Kar-Wai Films: As Tears Go By - Days of Being Wild - Chungking Express - Ashes of Time/Ashes of Time Redux - Fallen Angels - Happy Together - 2046 - Eros-The Hand - My Blueberry Nights - The Grandmaster - The Auteurs #28: Wong Kar-Wai

© thevoid99 2011