重慶森林
Romantic drama
Hong Kong
Language: Cantonese, Mandarin
Subtitles: English and Czech
Directing: Wong Kar-wai
Starring: Brigitte Lin, Takeshi Kaneshiro, Tony Leung Chiu-Wai, Faye Wong
Distributor: Block 2 Distribution
In two stories told in sequence, film magician Wong Kar-wai captures the fleeting magic of memories and Hong Kong’s genius loci. This iconic film was shot during a break from Wong’s arduous work on the historical epic Ashes of Time – to rediscover his love of cinema. The result is an unbridled and heartfelt account of how easy it is to love. And how hard it can be to forget.
The nuanced narrative never lets the viewers experience the exuberant emotions of conventional romance. Instead, Wong constantly challenges the audience (and the characters) to re-evaluate what they see and – perhaps more significantly – what they feel. Cops 223 (Takeshi Kaneshiro) and 663 (Tony Leung Chiu-wai) do not go through a conventional romantic storyline. Wong directly encourages the audience to put their emotional suffering in contrast and offers a narrative puzzle full of parallels and differences. One story relies on the conventions of crime thrillers filled with deadlines, suspense and slow motion takes. The second story involves an almost dreamlike haziness and emphasis on the mundane. In the former, love becomes part of the routine; in the latter, love and routine directly collide.
Wong is unrivalled in combining improvisational freedom, the dynamic Hong Kong style and a clear author’s vision that is simply unmatched. Chungking Express frequently appears at the top of cinephile charts and even Quentin Tarantino has repeatedly expressed his admiration for the film. And not surprisingly, because underneath the stylized aesthetics lies a story that describes our innermost feelings. Or those we may have for a can of pineapple.
