In the Mood for Wong Kar-Wai

recently i’ve watched some of my remaining wong kar wai films that left rotting in my letterboxd watchlist, one of them is 2046. 2046 is probably “subtle” sequel i’d say to in the mood for love. why i said “subtle”?, because it’s not literal continuation story from his previous films. instead, it functions as loose, thematic sequel to his “in the mood of maggie cheung” project lol. but in this piece i’d spesifically like talk about one of his best works, in the mood for love, i have seen this film before and decided to rewatch it on newest criterion restoration.

An unfulfilled love

in the mood for love, wong kar wai captures this feeling with extraordinary delicacy. two neighbors, chow and chan, discover that their respective spouses are having an affair. as they try to understand how it happened, they gradually develop a connection of their own. yet, rather than allowing their relationship to unfold into something conventional, wong builds a romance out of hesitation, silence, and everything left unsaid.

what fascinates me most is how little the film needs to express so much. a glance held a second too long, a brief encounter in a narrow hallway, or two people walking together beneath the dim lights of hong long becomes charged with emotions. their feelings are never entirely hidden, but neither are they freely expressed. it is as though both characters understand what is happening between them, yet remain uncertain about whether they have the right to let it happen.

Tony leung acts with his eyes

what other most profound things that you can see is tony leung is really hella good actor, he has rare ability to make a simple sight carrying millions of emotions. i find myself trying to figure out what he’s thinking, even when the character says absolutely nothing. tony leung is def one of them.

Cinematography: Painting with light and colors

it’s impossible to talk about wong kar wai’s visual style without mentioning christopher doyle, the cinematographer behind some of his most iconic films. tbh my top favorite are still fallen angels (1995) because i really like doyle profoundly stylized camera movement, light and colors. but in this film, he make saturated colours red are feel sensual but yet just very beautiful, probably i would like to say it like david lynch do on that red curtain, it just beautiful.

Final thought

i wonder why we haven’t make film like this recently anymore. i’d would like to see this kinda thing on big screen cinema, i know there are arthouses that screen curated alt or festival classics that played but sadly access to them is still pretty limited in my country. i just wish these films could reach a wider audience, hopefully helping grow community and creating more spaces for discussion and film literacy.

what on your thought about wong kar wai films?, reach me on letterboxd!.