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

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon

Based on the wuxia novel Crane Iron Pentalogy by Wang Dulu, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is the story about a swordsman trying to stop a young thief from stealing a legendary sword as he and another warrior try to stop the thief and her master. Directed by Ang Lee and screenplay by James Schamus, Wang Hui-Ling, and Tsai Kuo-Jung, the film is a stylized martial arts drama set in ancient times as it revolves around themes of honor as well as identity. Starring Chow Yun-Fat, Michelle Yeoh, Chang Chen, Cheng Pei-pei, Sihung Lung, and Zhang Ziyi. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is a majestic yet visually-gorgeous film from Ang Lee.

Returning from Wudan after a period of meditation, legendary swordsman Li Mu Bai (Chow Yun-Fat) meets with his longtime friend Yu Shu Lien (Michelle Yeoh) as he plans to give up life as a warrior and give the legendary Green Destiny sword to their friend Sir Te (Sihung Lung). Shu Lien accompanies Mu Bai to Peking where she gives Sir Te the sword while encountering the daughter of the town’s governor named Jen (Zhang Ziyi) who is set to marry a bureaucrat in an arranged marriage. Later that night, a mysterious young woman had stolen the Green Destiny sword as Shu Lien, Sir Te’s guard Bo (Xian Gao), and many others try to retrieve it. Mu Bai and Shu Lien believe that the infamous Jade Fox (Cheng Pei-pei) might’ve been involved as a police inspector named Tsai (De Ming Wang) and his daughter May (Li Li) are after Fox over the death of Tsai’s wife years ago.

Fox also killed Mu Bai’s master years ago as Mu Bai, Bo, Tsai, and May decides to confront the mysterious Jade Fox until her mysterious masked apprentice appears with the Green Destiny causing problems as Mu Bai knows who is the thief. Fox meanwhile, confronts her apprentice over the fact that she was able to fight against Mu Bai very well. Later that night, Jen receives a visit from her lover in a desert bandit named Lo (Chang Chen) who learns about Jen’s upcoming nuptials as he wants to take her away back to the desert where they first met. Jen refuses only for Lo to interrupt the wedding procession until he’s captured by Mu Bai and Shu Lien. With the recently-returned Green Destiny sword stolen again, Mu Bai and Shu Lien return to Shu Lien’s home where some revelations occur about the thief as Mu Bai tries to offer her something which then leads to a final confrontation with Jade Fox.

While the film is a martial-arts adventure film that revolves around a legendary sword, it’s a film that explores the confines of duty and what is expected from people as well as breaking out of this repression. In this multi-narrative story, there’s two warriors who definitely have feelings for each other but could never express it due to the fact they lost someone they cared for and felt that it would insult that person’s memory. There’s also this story about the daughter of a governor who is set to be married only to be in love with a desert bandit she had encountered some time ago. It definitely leads to all sorts of complications when a sword is stolen as there’s those who are involved trying to retrieve this famed sword.

The film’s screenplay isn’t just complex in its narrative but also in the way the characters are presented. Li Mu Bai is a man who has endured enough training and fighting who feels like there is nowhere to go until he encounters this young thief whom he believes has the potential to be something greater and undo whatever mistakes that had been made by his masters years ago. Mu Bai’s friend Yu Shu Lien is a woman who knows what she should do as a woman but feels repressed by the fact that she and Mu Bai have feelings for each other but is still saddened by the death of her lover who was also Mu Bai’s best friend. Then there’s Jen Yu, a governor’s daughter who is feels stilted by her duty as she wants to do the things Shu Lien does while there’s something about her that becomes intriguing.

Notably as the screenplay features a flashback narrative about how Jen meets this desert bandit Lo where they fall in love as Lo becomes the escape that Jen craves for only for other things to complicate matters. The character of Jade Fox isn’t just this venomous antagonist who wants to kill Mu Bai over the fact that she never got the chance to grow as a warrior. She becomes upset that her apprentice has started to surpass her in skill as she starts to become envious and eventually corruptive. Eventually, a showdown occurs where Mu Bai wants to become the one person who can provide Fox’s apprentice something more.

Ang Lee’s direction is definitely stylish not just in terms of the presentation of the martial arts scene but also in the film’s dramatic moments. Shot on location in the mountains and deserts of China as well as locations around Beijing, it’s a film set in a period where there isn’t a lot of conflict happening and times are definitely changing in some ways. Lee’s approach to framing and not employing lots of close-ups allows the film to present the characters in the environment they’re in whether it’s the lushness of the forests or in the homes of government officials. Lee always find a way to put the actors in a frame where it isn’t show-dressing but rather express what is happening as there’s a lot of intrigue that occurs.

For the fight scenes, Lee employs the services of choreographer Yuen Wo Ping for a very stylized approach to martial arts where it involves lots of flying and moves where it is about the intensity of the fight as well as what is at stakes. Lee also employs bits of humor such as an elaborate scene at a restaurant where a bunch of men try to gang up on someone only for everything to wrong. Lee also knows when to give the audience a break from the fighting for a moment of serenity where it allows the characters to find themselves or to figure out what to do next. Overall, Lee creates an exquisite yet spellbinding film about love and identity.

Cinematographer Peter Pau does brilliant work with the film‘s photography from the lushness of the forests to the vast look of the scenes in the deserts while the nighttime interior and exterior scenes play to the element of style as well as a mood that was needed for those scenes. Editor Tim Squyres does amazing work with the editing by employing lots of rhythmic cuts for some of the film‘s fight scenes that were very stylized along with more methodical cuts in the dramatic moments. Production/costume designer Timmy Yip does fantastic work with the set pieces in the look of the restaurant with all of its chaos as well as the stylish clothes that Jen wears.

Visual effects supervisor Rob Hodgson does terrific work with the visual effects for some of the scenes of flying as well as other stylistic moments to play up that sense of fantasy. Sound editor Eugene Gearty does wonderful work with the sound to create an intimacy in the quieter scenes while splicing lots of different sound effects for the fight scenes. The film’s music by Tan Dun is mesmerizing for its mixture of somber string pieces with cellos provided by Yo-Yo Ma as well as bombastic, percussion-based music for the film‘s fight scenes.

The film’s ensemble cast is excellent as it features some memorable small roles from Li Fazeng and Hai Yan as Jen’s parents, Xian Gao as the guard Bo, Li Li as Inspector Tsai’s daughter May, and De Ming Wang as Inspector Tsai. Sihung Lung is wonderful as Sir Te who knows about the feelings between Mu Bai and Shu Lien while dealing with the theft of the Green Destiny. Cheng Pei-pei is great as the venomous Jade Fox who deals with her enemies as well as the fact that her apprentice is starting to surpass her in every way. Chang Chen is superb as the bandit Lo who is in love with Jen while trying to stop her from getting married.

Zhang Ziyi is amazing as Jen as a young woman dealing with the role she is forced to play as well as desire to rebel in order to find happiness as a young woman. Michelle Yeoh is brilliant as Yu Shu Lien who is determined to retrieve the Green Destiny sword while dealing with her own feelings for Mu Bai. Finally, there’s Chow Yun-Fat in a marvelous performance as Lu Mu Bai as a man who feels lost in his role as he deals with loss and uncertainty while trying to retrieve the Green Destiny sword and deal with his feelings for Shu Lien.

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is an outstanding film from Ang Lee that features incredible performances from Chow Yun-Fat, Michelle Yeoh, Chang Chen, and Zhang Ziyi. The film is definitely among one of the great films of the martial arts genre as well as a unique take on the world of fantasy. It is also one of Lee’s best films for exploring big themes on identity and repression as it serves as one of his most definitive works. In the end, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is a phenomenal film from Ang Lee.

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

© thevoid99 2013

2011 Cannes Marathon: House of Flying Daggers

(Premiered at the 2004 Cannes Film Festival, Out of Competition)

2002’s stylized wuxia film Hero helped raise the profile of Chinese filmmaker Zhang Yimou. Thanks to Quentin Tarantino’s love for Yimou’s work that allowed the film to be shown in the U.S. in 2004, Hero became an international hit for the director as he decided to create another stylized wuxia film that was to come out in that same year. This time around, Yimou takes the stylized action of Hero with a love story between a police captain and a blind dancer called Shi Mian Mai Fu (House of Flying Daggers).

Directed by Zhang Yimou and written by Yimou, Peter Wu, and Bin Wang, Shi Mian Mai Fu is set in the 9th Century during the Tang Dynasty as two police captains plot a scheme against a group of rebels who are fighting a corrupt government. Using a blind dancer to lead them to the rebel leaders, the move becomes complicated as one of the men fall for the dancer. Starring Andy Lau, Takeshi Kaneshiro, and Zhang Ziyi. Shi Mian Mai Fu is an extraordinary yet visually-dazzling film from Zhang Yimou and company.

It’s 859 during the Tang Dynasty as its corrupt rule is in decline leading to a rebellion. The most dangerous rebel group is the House of Flying Daggers who has a fearsome reputation only to be recently sidelined by the death of their leader by police officials. With a new leader taking charge of the House of Flying Daggers, two police captains named Jin (Takeshi Kaneshiro) and Leo (Andy Lau) are given the assignment which will take them 10 days to do. Before the mission, Jin gets drunk at a brothel where he asks the brothel lady (Song Dandan) to bring him someone new. The new girl is a blind dancer named Mei (Zhang Ziyi) who Jin likes only to get into some trouble until Leo arrives to calm things down only to have a dance of his own from Mei to be entertained by.

Mei is eventually arrested following a duel with Leo as he asks her about the whereabouts of the House of Flying Daggers. She refuses to tell as Jin decides to go undercover by pretending to be a rebel by freeing Mei from jail and gain her trust so she can lead him to the House of Flying Daggers’ hiding place. Calling himself Wind, Jin helps the blind Mei lead her across the country to the secret compound while he is followed by Leo secretly gives him orders on what to do. Even warning Jin not to get too close to Mei as an attraction between the two happens. During another encounter with soldiers, things become more complicated as Jin and Mei get closer.

Another secret report to Leo has some harsh revelations about who is after Jin and Mei with Leo unable to help them as more soldiers are approaching. Jin and Mei have a spat where they break up for a while only to be surrounded by more soldiers from a general as they’re saved by the House of Flying Daggers. For Jin, he and a captured Leo learn some shocking discoveries about the House of Flying Daggers along with the people who are in the group.

The film is about two police captains during the Tang Dynasty charming a blind dancer to the whereabouts of a rebel group where one of them falls in love with the dancer. Yet, that is the film’s plot but the progression of the story becomes more intriguing as the relationship between one of the captains and the blind dancer starts to gel though at times, there’s tension. Then there’s the other captain in Leo, a man who is trying to keep his follow officer in check but the warnings he gives about Mei are very strange. Even more intriguing are the identities of the House of Flying Daggers.

The screenplay Zhang Yimou and his co-writers Peter Wu and Bin Wang create definitely plays up to the momentum of the identity of the House of Flying Daggers group. They’re known simply by the way they throw spinning boomerang-knives at their enemies and they’re not seen until the third act. By the time they’re revealed, the entire tone of the film changes somewhat along with the characters that are presented in the story. What happens isn’t just a series of twists and revelations but also the motives of the two characters. Yet, this would lead to even more complications over loyalties with Jin suddenly stuck in the middle of what is happening.

Zhang Yimou’s direction is truly mesmerizing not just in his presentation but also in his approach to a lot of the dramatic elements of the film. Yimou is known for vast compositions with wide shots and lots of action flourishes. Yet, he is also manages to present things in a very simple manner such as scenes of Mei in a field of flowers or Mei and Jin just talking. Largely because he wanted the audience to soak in the landscape of China though a scene set in the snow was shot in Ukraine. There is a heightened atmosphere to the look of the film where it’s not only gorgeous to look at but also plays to the world that the characters are encountering.

Then there’s the action which is presented with not just a great degree of style but also in such precise choreography that is presented by Tony Ching Siu Tung. The movements in the action and fight scenes play like a ballet where it’s not just about the rhythm of the movements but also the staging of it. This is where Yimou really lets the film shine as the stakes in the battles are just as interesting. It’s not just about survival but also the fact that there’s two people in love fighting for their love. Even as there is a climatic duel towards the end of the film that intensify the stakes. Overall, this is a marvelous film from Zhang Yimou who creates a film that is entrancing from start to finish.

Cinematographer Zhao Xiaoding does an amazing job with the film‘s photography from the look of the brothel interiors to the gorgeous shots of the forest with its naturalist yet heightened look. Particularly with the scenes in the bamboo forest where the greenish look of the film is extremely awesome to look at. Xiaoding’s work is definitely the technical highlight of the film. Editor Cheng Long does an excellent job with the film’s editing from playing up to the intense rhythm of the action and fight scenes while maintaining a straightforward approach to the editing in the dramatic scenes. Even as the pacing for the film is very leisured without being too slow or too fast.

Production designer Huo Tingxao, along with art directors Zhong Han and Bin Zhao, does a great job with the set pieces created for the film. Notably the brothel that is rich in its look and color along with the intimacy of the secret home of the House of the Flying Daggers and its forest. Costume designer Emi Wada does a spectacular job with the costumes from the dignified clothes the men wear to the array of colors and layers of clothes that Mei wears throughout her journey as the costumes are another highlight of the film.

Visual effects supervisors Andy Brown and Angie Lam does a very good job with some of the visual effects needed for the film such as Mei‘s drum-dance with nuts flying around or the bamboo battle scenes with soldiers throwing bamboo spears though the latter sequence looked rough in some spots. Sound designer Tao Jing does a superb job with the sound design from the way swords hit each other to the movement of the fights and battle sequences.

The film’s music by Shigeru Umebayashi is another highlight of the film Umebayashi‘s lush yet flourishing score ranging from traditional Chinese music to sweeping orchestral pieces that plays to the dramatic elements of the film and its action sequences. The song that is sung early in the film by Zhang Ziyi is later sung by Kathleen Battle in the final credits that alludes to a legend that is told in the film.

The cast is definitely phenomenal with a large array of extras that are presented in the film to play up to the ambition of the film. For the main cast, there’s only four principle actors as they all do a great job in their performances. Song Dandan is very good as a brothel owner who is keen on pleasing her customers. Andy Lau is great as Leo, a police captain intent on making sure his fellow partner does his duties while giving him vague warnings. Takeshi Kaneshiro is excellent as Jin, a police captain who takes Mei by pretending to be a rebel warrior only to fall for her and be conflicted by his role. Finally, there’s Zhang Ziyi in a radiant performance as Mei. Ziyi brings a wonderful sensuality to her role while bringing something even more remarkable by being blind throughout the film as well as being very agile in her fighting and ballet dancing in what is one of her finest performances of her career.

Shi Mian Mai Fu is a stunning yet exhilarating film from Zhang Yimou featuring a superb cast led by Zhang Ziyi. Fans of Yimou’s films will no doubt enjoy this for this visual splendor, stylish action sequences, and heightened drama. It’s a film that is entertaining but also stimulating in its visual presentation with a third act that really changes everything about the film. In the end, Shi Mian Mai Fu is a brilliant film from Zhang Yimou.

Zhang Yimou Films: (Red Sorghum) - (Codename Cougar) - (Ju Dou) - (Raise the Red Lantern) - (The Story of Qiu Ju) - (To Live) - (Shanghai Triad) - (Keep Cool) - Not One Less - (The Road Home) - (Happy Times) - (Hero) - Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles - Curse of the Golden Flower - A Simple Noodle Story - (Under the Hawthorn Tree) - (The Flowers of War) - Coming Home (2014 film) - The Great Wall (2016 film) - (Shadow (2018 film)

© thevoid99 2011

2046

Originally Written and Posted at Epinions.com on 5/25/06 w/ Additional Edits.

2000's In the Mood for Love by Hong Kong director Wong Kar-Wai brought him his biggest success internationally. Notably for its visual flair and unconventional approach to storytelling. Even his style of directing on set and last-minute additions before the film was released gave him a reputation that is considered legendary. After doing some work including commercials and a short film segment for the omnibus film series Eros with Steven Soderbergh and Michelangelo Antonioni, Kar-Wai returned to work on an unlikely venture. A sequel of sorts to In the Mood for Love taking Tony Leung Chui-Wai's character of Mr. Chow into a series of surreal affairs in the future in a room number for the film's title called 2046.

Written and directed by Wong Kar-Wai, 2046 is a film about Mr. Chow's post life after his affair with Su Li-Zhen where embarks on a series of strange affairs while telling erotic stories set in the year 2046 in a time when people are trying to recapture lost memories on a train. More ambitious in its visual style and storylines than its predecessor, 2046 reveals more of Kar-Wai's unconventional approach to storytelling. With a cast that includes such regulars as Tony Leung Chui-Wai, Faye Wong, and Maggie Cheung plus Zhang Ziyi, Gong Li, Takuya Kimura, and Lam Siu-Ping. 2046 is another of Wong Kar-Wai's enduring films that stimulates not in its visual beauty but its heartbreaking take on love.

The year 2046 in Hong Kong is very different as the trains of 2046 are for people trying to recapture the lost memories through its varied rooms and androids. On the train is a Japanese man named Tak (Takaya Kimura) is trying to persuade an android (Faye Wong) to revisit a lost memory. That trip to revisit a time is a part of fiction as Chow Mo-wan (Tony Leung Chui-Wai) is reeling from the break-up with his lost love Su Li Zhen (Maggie Cheung) during a trip in Singapore. He along with his friend Ah Ping (Lam Sui-Ping), they return to Hong Kong in 1967, amidst its chaotic period in politics. Returning to give up his reporter job to become a consultant, Chow has become a womanizer of sorts as he comes across a woman named Lulu (Carina Lau). After a night with her, he walks out of her room where he recognizes the number 2046, a old hotel room number he stayed in from his lost affair. Turning to his hotel landlord Mr. Wang (Wang Sum), he moves into the room next door known as 2047 while room 2046 is being redecorated.

The series of affairs and one-night stands inspired Chow to write a series of erotic stories for the paper about a futuristic time in Hong Kong in the year 2046 where people go on trains with androids to reclaim lost memories. Just as the room was finished, a hooker named Bai Ling (Zhang Ziyi) moves in as he's become infatuated with her beauty. It's Christmas 1967 as the two would have dinner that eventually began as a secret affair. While Chow enjoys her company, he doesn't adore and only uses her for his stories as their relationship begins to heat up. Then when Bai Ling realizes the kind of man that Chow really is, their relationship falters. Chow would only see her in passing as he continues his un-fulfilling yet inspiring lifestyle.

Often infatuated with Mr. Wang's daughter Wang Jingwen (Faye Wong), he sees her again who still has trouble trying to contact her Japanese boyfriend (Takaya Kimura) through letters as her father still has bad blood with the Japanese over World War II. Chow becomes an unlikely correspondence through the letters as he begins a relationship with Wang Jingwen who helps him write his work after being impressed with her own writing. During a Christmas dinner, she feels hopeless that she'll never speak to her boyfriend as Chow gives a chance to call him where he decides to use them into another story. Suddenly, the tone of the story changes as he tells the story of Tak who falls for an android with a delayed response where he tells a secret through a hole.

The haunting elements of his stories forces Chow to give up his womanizing lifestyle as by 1970, he becomes reacquainted with Bai Ling, who is set to depart to Singapore. Chow tells about his time in Singapore including what happened last Christmas where he met a mysterious woman named Black Spider (Gong Li) who nearly resembles and carries the name of his lost love. For Chow, he has to recall his own memories as his own world of fiction and reality becomes blurry where he's trying to figure himself even more and the people around him.

While 2046 is not as simple as its predecessor, In the Mood for Love. The film does have a more complex approach in telling the story of Mr. Chow. Particularly in his development from this sensitive, quiet man in the preceding film, In the Mood for Love to a gloomier, meaner individual in 2046. In many ways, the film is about a man whose emotions towards rejection makes him colder yet the pain is drawn out in fiction as he becomes more withdrawn in all of these relationships he had with other women. It's in Wong Kar-Wai's story that really reveals the melancholia of love and all of its heartbreak, whether its in the 1960s or in the futuristic setting of 2046. The film just doesn't take those romantic from his previous film but also bringing a character from another Kar-Wai film, Days of Being Wild.

It's not just in Kar-Wai's script, or lack thereof since he never works with a script, that reveals a far more complex plot that blurs the idea of reality and fiction. It's in his direction where he's a master of atmosphere and tone. Using wandering images plus a very surreal look of 2046 Hong Kong where the trains are used for time travel, Kar-Wai goes very deep into the concept of loss and isolation. Fortunately in his script, he manages to take a structure where the audience isn't loss on what's going on or where they are. It's in Kar-Wai's direction that the audience is transported into a world of melancholia and emptiness where it's in Mr. Chow's journey of self-discovery. Even in Kar-Wai's presentation of mood and colors, he takes the audience to a world where things are moving a bit slower as opposed to the fast-paced world of the future while everything is lost. Kar-Wai's concept of the future is very bleak despite its look while the train and androids represent everything that people hold dearly. There, the ending of his previous film is clearly more understood while the ending in this film, shows a development of Mr. Chow and his trying to understand the way love and fate works.

Helping Kar-Wai in his unique, colorful presentation are two of his most enduring collaborators, Australian cinematographer Christopher Doyle and jacks-of-all-trade William Chang Suk Ping. In the photography, Doyle along with Lai Yiu Fai and Kwan Pun Leung create an enormous array of colors and settings of many of the film's interiors of the 1960s sequences where it's similar to the look of In the Mood for Love but only with a decaying feel. The cinematography in those sequences reveal the changing times while showing the atmosphere and withdrawn feel of the characters. In the 2046 section, it's more colorful with its shade of red and white lights to convey the sense of emotions and the lack of emotions in its androids. Truly its some of the best cinematography ever done.

Production designer/costume designer/editor William Chang Suk Ping helps creating the distinctive visuals of the film. With art director Alfred Yau Wai Ming, the film's 1960 look of colors and props reveal the changing times of late 1960s Hong Kong and the dingy look of late 1960s Singapore. It's in the atmosphere of the 1960s look where it represents the gloomy mood of Mr. Chow while the look of 2046 is very different and very polished. Even the costumes of the 1960s from the tight clothing of Bai Ling to the more conservative look of Wang Jingwen reveal the contrasts of their personalities while the costumes of the future are done with an array of things including paper mache. The film's look in its design and costume are done with immense brilliance while Chang's best work is clearly in the editing. Using a shimmering pacing style for some of the film's sequences, it doesn't move too slow or too fast but conveys the ever-decaying mood of Mr. Chow. It's wonderfully cut to convey the perspective of characters while holding together its unique yet complex structure. Overall, William Chang Suk Ping's work in any medium should be commended.

The visual effects team of BUF from France does a great job for creating a surreal yet gargantuan look of Hong Kong in the future. The film's look in its visual effects complement the style of Kar Wai and his collaborators where it presents a surreal yet beautiful look of the future filled with large buildings with neon colors and a green-brown background with everything looking what the future should look like. For the sound work, Kar-Wai regular Tu Duu Chih and French sound designer Claude Letessier do amazing work in bringing the right kind of feel and tone for its atmosphere from the quietness in the hotel rooms of the 1960s sequences to the metallic yet ominous feel of the 2046 scenes.

The film's music which is composed by Peer Raben and Shigeru Umebayashi is more sweeping and epic than In the Mood for Love which had a more waltz-like tempo in its score. For this film, the music conveys the sense of gloom and loss where its arrangements are more lyrical as it builds up the momentum of the film. The music also features not just cuts from Polish composer Zbigniew Preisner, famed for his work with the late Krzysztof Kieslowski, but also Georges Delerue, and pop cuts from Secret Garden, Angela Gheorghiu, Xavier Cugat, Connie Francis, and Nat King Cole singing a Christmas classic.

Finally, there's the film's cast which includes several notable small performances from Dong Jie as Wang Jingwen’s little sister and as an android plus Carina Lau reprising her role as Mimi/Lulu from Days of Being Wild and as an android along with Kar-Wai regular Chang Chen as her lover in both the 1960s and futuristic sequences. Maggie Cheung is also great in her brief appearance as the Su Li Zhen in the early 1966 sequence while Lam Sui-Ping is wonderfully funny as Ah Ping who reminds everyone of his humorous presence. Wang Sum is also excellent in his role as the Japanese-hating Mr. Wang while Gong Li commands a great presence and atmosphere in her performance as Black Spider who carries a secret past that becomes one of the film's most devastating moments. Japanese actor Takuya Kimura is wonderful in his role as Tak, a fictional character who represents all the remorse and sadness of Mr. Chow as he brings a mostly, minimalist performance to many of his scenes where it's truly a marvel of a performance.

Zhang Ziyi is great in her role as the young, emotional hooker Bai Ling who commands a great presence and authority to her role in many of the film's sequences as her character develops into a young woman who longs for the love of Mr. Chow. It's truly one of Ziyi's great performances. Faye Wong delivers the best of the female performances as Wang Jingwen who captures the heart of Mr. Chow through her sadness to connect with her own lost love. Though, the two never got into a more intimate relationship, Wong manages to capture the sense of hopefulness and will for Mr. Chow to re-think his own lifestyle while Wong also brings a wonderfully haunting yet emotional quality to her role as the android who is devoid of emotions.

Then we have Tony Leung Chui-Wai in the role of Mr. Chow. Taking his character to more darker yet withdrawn areas, Leung manages to create a different version of Mr. Chow that was opposed to the sensitive yet quiet man from In the Mood for Love. In 2046, he displays a lot of charm in front of everyone but inside, he's gloomier and meaner. Still, Leung manages to make Mr. Chow a man who is flawed and with a lot of internal conflict of someone who gives up on long love yet cannot yearn for it. Looking more like a modern-day, Asian Clark Gable, Leung brings new dimensions to his famed character as it stands out as another of his great performances.

The Region 1 DVD from Sony Pictures Classic is a truly marvelous DVD with loads of special features and a presentation that works for Kar-Wai's visually haunting film. The first film of Kar-Wai to be shot on a widescreen format of 2:40:1 anamorphic ratio. The look of the film is wonderful while it's done in 5.1 Dolby Digital sound in Cantonese with English and Spanish subtitles. Overall, the film looks and sounds great in its DVD presentation while it also features an array of great little extras. First is a 37-minute Behind the Scenes special featuring interviews with Kar-Wai and the cast where they talk about the film, Kar-Wai's style and the collaborators, notably William Chang Suk Pin about the look and feel of the costumes. The special is informative about Kar-Wai's working habits as they go behind the scenes on everything.

Two deleted scenes are presented except a much-talked about martial arts sequence that possibly never made the final cut or was never filmed. The first is a scene involving Black Spider trying to find Mr. Chow in his room as she ends up staying in the room 2046. The second deleted scene involves another strange meeting with Mr. Chow with meeting of Wang Jingwen's android character from their own collaboration which is one of the more emotional scenes. An alternate ending is also shown which shows Mr. Chow sitting in a bar, though it blurs things even more about the film's ending. The 16-minute interview featurette from a French TV program features interviews with Wong Kar-Wai and Tony Leung as they spoke in English where they talked about the film's concept and their own relationship into working. Zhang Ziyi speaks in Cantonese as she talks about her insecurities into working with Kar-Wai only to be helped by Leung where she found her niche into working with Kar-Wai. The interview also reveals Kar-Wai's non-script approach and how the actors got the freedom to interpret their own characters where for Ziyi, it was challenging yet fun.

The five-minute little featurette called Anatomy of Memories is about the making-of the visual effects of 2046 Hong Kong and the process it took from late 2003 through 2004 where a line-test was revealed in the film's premiere at the 2004 Cannes Film Festival. The film revealed in Kar-Wai's presentation and how he wanted Hong Kong to be bigger with large skyscrapers, smog, and have a neon, techno-like color with the help of his collaborator William Chang Suk Pin. The seven-minute Music Montage special is a collection of scenes played through a few pieces of the film's music, notably its opera track to convey the emotions that Kar-Wai wanted for the film. The featurette on the film's music is a collection of liner notes with the film being played to the clip of the music where that scene is in as Kar-Wai often borrows some of its music from the films of Rainer Werner Fassbinder and Krzysztof Kieslowski.

Two more little specials arrive where the first is in a numerology section about the card numbers, the money that Mr. Chow is paid, and the significance of the number 2046 where it's the year Hong Kong will be under a full rule of China. The second is a gallery of the film's posters from all of the countries to revealed the varied countries and looks of the posters for that country. The previews section from Sony Classics features trailers for such films as Thumbsucker, Junebug, Layer Cake, Heights, and Ingmar Bergman's Saraband. Overall, Sony Classics created a wonderful DVD that complements all the energy and creativity of Wong Kar-Wai.

When production began in 2001 for 2046, Kar-Wai's notoriety to shooting in long periods of time with lots of improvisation and last-minute changes made it a long shoot. There was a running joke on the set that the film would be released in the year 2046. Still, despite a two-year shoot which was nearly halted by the SARs epidemic, Kar-Wai still manage to finish production. During production, he embarked on a few other projects on the side that included his short for The Hand in the 2004 omnibus feature Eros with Michelangelo Antonioni and Steven Soderbergh; the BMW commercial short called The Follow with Clive Owen, Forrest Whitaker, Mickey Rourke, and model Adriana Lima; and a music video for the song Six Days for DJ Shadow.

By late 2003, Kar-Wai and the BUF visual effects team along with William Chang Suk Pin spent months trying to work on the editing and visual effects for the film. Though it was submitted and set for a world premiere, at the 2004 Cannes Film Festival. The film remained unfinished as on the date it was set to premiere and in competition for the Palme D'or, the film print arrived out of its laboratory three hours late as the date for the film had to be rescheduled. The unfinished film got mixed reviews though it wasn't the first time an unfinished film caused a lot of attention as Francis Ford Coppola released an unfinished of his 1979 masterpiece Apocalypse Now at the Cannes Film Festival and co-won the Palme D'or. Still, Kar-Wai manage to get the film done eventually in 2004 while his longtime cinematographer Christopher Doyle announced that 2046 would be the last time he would work with Kar-Wai. Despite Kar-Wai's notoriety in his work ethic, the film proved to be another success for its Hong Kong director.

Though not as potent or as simplistic as In the Mood for Love. 2046 is still an engrossing, hypnotic, and heartbreaking film from Wong Kar-Wai thanks to a dedicated film team and performances from Tony Leung Chui-Wai, Zhang Ziyi, Gong Li, Faye Wong, and Takuya Kimura. Though its suggested to watch In the Mood for Love for some back story, 2046 does manage to be its own film where it gives a great summary to not just the work of Kar-Wai but his unique take on love, memory, and the future. For a film that stimulates you on the visual sense and goes right into your heart, Wong Kar-Wai's 2046 is the film to see.

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 - Eros-The Hand - My Blueberry Nights - The Grandmaster - The Auteurs #28: Wong Kar-Wai

© thevoid99 2011