Year:
2000
Studio:
Paradis Films, Jet Tone Films
Movie:
2/5
DVD:
4/5
In the Mood for Love
is a Hong Kong cinema movie. Not an action movie but more of a drama
and romance. It's the doomed romance of two people, Mo-wan Chow (Tony
Leung) and Su Chan (Maggie Cheung). Both are young, good looking,
married (not to each other) and living next door to each other in a
run-down apartment building.
What draws them together is that they both independently realize that
their respective spouses are having an affair. They secretly get
together to try to figure out how this could have happened. They
roleplay and go through scenarios of how their spouses must have met
and eventually started their affair.
And inevitably, without quite ever meaning to, they fall in love.
Actually Mr Chow falls in love with Mrs Chan. Perhaps Mrs Chan also has
feelings for Mr Chow but she still loves her husband enough not to run
off with Mr Chow. They never have sex or really do anything sexual,
though in a deleted scene they do. It's one of those things where she
is bound by her marriage vows and he is not.
The film has a unique look to it. You never see the spouses' faces and
you rarely see but glimpses of them. You also rarely hear their voices.
There are a few other characters but the movie solidly focuses on the
two main characters, unlike American films which would have subplots
for the best friends.
There is a lot of music. Hmm, maybe not so much that there is a lot of
music but there are many scenes where the music drives the story. We
have slow scenes with no dialogue while various period songs are
playing. At times the movie has a very languid look to it. Sort of
Cuban really, and it's helped by having a few Spanish songs in the
musical score.
So there are a
lot of long music scenes. There are also a lot of short dialogue
scenes. Few dialogue scenes seem to go past a minute or two. Focus on
Mrs Chan interacting at work. Then Mr Chow at work. Then Mrs Chan
talking to her landlady. Then Mr Chan talking to his friend.
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Back and
forth, back and forth. There is a certain sort of jumpy feel
to it. The lighting is for the most part rather dim. The whole look is
one of a dirty, compacy, vibrant city which Hong Kong was in 1963, when
the movie takes place.
Overall I thought it was an ok movie. Perhaps a bit too stylistic for
my tastes. Of course you should know by now that I don't like sad
endings so right near the end when I realized that it was over I was a
bit disappointed. But there are people who get off on tragic romances
so I'm sure they'll like this film.
Extras
Four deleted scenes. Each several minutes long with substantial new
material. Three scens have light commentary by director Kar-wai Wong.
A written essay by Joanna Lee on the music of the film. Also notes from
Michael Galasso who did the main musical theme. Finally some notes by
the director.
A two-minute montage made from old Chinese films that were recently
found. Mostly showing various Chinese film stars of old. This feature
was created to promote the Hong Kong Film Archive and its efforts to
preserve old nitrate-based films.
Disk 2 Extras
@ In the Mood for Love -- behind the scenes (50 min)
Interviews with Wong Kar-Wai
Cannes Interview (22 min)
Cannes "Cinema Lesson" (15 min)
Toronto International Film Festival Press Conference (43 min)
-- with Maggie Cheung and Tony Leung
Hong Kong in the 1960's (essay)
Promotional Material (ads, commercials, 18-minute press kit)
Photo Gallery
The Searcher: Wong Kar-Wai (essay)
Actor bios
Crew bios
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