CHUNGKING EXPRESS (1994) - Movie Review
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- Опубліковано 1 жов 2024
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You should review Fallen Angels! It was originally intended to be the third story of Chungking but was separated out into its own film. It makes for a lovely and much darker companion piece.
Womg Kar Wai's best film and to me the quintessential Hong Kong movie that combines all the elements so well (unrequitted love, tonal whiplash, Heroic Bloodshed...etc).
This movie really knows how to use a song...i was humming California Dreamin for weeks after watching this
I can't let go of the image of Faye Wong dancing to the song either. She plays a sort of oddball character who has a crush on a guy and tries to force herself into his life.
Every time I hear the song I picture Faye Wong dancing to it.
@@dompuma9620 I still think of Forrest Gump missing Jenny's bus.
Also, In the Mood for Love is my favorite film ever, and I would be so delighted if you reviewed that one :)
Yeah baby! Been wanting you to review a WKW movie for a while now. Chungking Express is one of my favorite movies of all time.
Chris Doyle (cinematographer) aka "the Keith Richards of cinema" deserves equal credit for the look of the movie. One of the great colourists in cinema, the time lapses and weird angles are his signature style. He had no film school training and is definitely worthy of study too.
an unusual case; an untrained Australian jack of all trades with severe wanderlust ends up being one of the most significant cinematographers of the Chinese new wave. Some notable credits include:
*Edward Yang's* _That Day, on the Beach,_
*Wong Kar-wai's* _Days of Being Wild,_ _In the Mood for Love,_ _Ashes of TIme,_ _Happy Together,_ and _2046_
*Zhang Yimou's* _Hero._
He also has worked on *Gus Van Zant's* _Paranoid Park,_
and *Alejandro Jodorowsky's* _Endless Poetry_
you said everything i feel about Chungking Express so beautifully. such a special film.
also Faye Wong is absolutely precious !!
A review for a wong kar wai film... i see a woman of culture
I aways come back to this movie when I'm feeling lost. If you review Fallen Angels someday that will be amazing!
Fallen Angels is my fave
Omg didn’t think of Cowboy Bebop!! Now that you brought it up the influence of Wong Kar Wai is all over it.
- "Where do you want to go?"
- "Wherever you want to take me."
*Meanwhile ... the Cranberries in Cantonese, brought to you by Faye Wong*
Love this cover!
One of the greatest romantic endings in film for sure.
I did not know the lyrics of the song. thank you.
The better translation would be "Wherever you go, I'll go". I think it is much more romantic.
I saw Chungking Express several months ago for the first time. Totally blew my mind in the best way. I love what you said about connections. It is intriguing to me how fleeting moments could end up having such deep meaning in our lives.
My #2 movie of all-time
Yeah this is top 5 for me for sure.
Same
In The Mood For Love!!!!
Thank you for reviewing one of my films of the '90s. When I taught Film Studies, I showed the opening of this film to my students as an example of how to start a film, as you point out, orchestrated by the fractured editing, music and the intrigue set up of the connections of these characters. Like you say, a masterpiece and you mention the connection theme and the details of each section. The use of music is quite a familiar technique of Wong Kar Wai (especially in In The Mood For Love) but here, it is essential in creating mood.
There is a real distinctiveness to his style which combines the use of music, unusual angle camerawork and editing that breaks the line which, since 1994, has become very influential - editing on movement or from one unexpected angle to another. In its own way, as much a zeitgeist film of its year (1994) as Pulp Fiction and, in hindsight, much better.
By the way, the shot you refer to at 06:00 was an innovation of Wong Kar Wai, filming two shots at different speeds and editing them together and has since been used a lot. But this was the first use of this particular digital trickery.
Your review has certainly encouraged me to watch it again as I haven't seen it for 10 years or so.
In all the films I've EVER seen I only love Seven Samurai more than this. and that's mostly down to the second story of the two. Tony Leung is just mesmerising to watch.
This and Fallen Angels are two of the best movies of the 90s
I love the ‘California Dreaming’ sequence. Very epic in my opinion
I love everything about this movie. Every aspect is imbued with so much life and distinct vigour. Even something as trivial as the way Faye waves her hands in front of Leung's face in the final scene to snap him out of the shock of seeing her is embedded with the wistful, rockstar vibe that the film creates.
i liked this movie a lot, and tony leung is mesmerizing (i swear i could watch him act all day), but by the third needle drop of "california dreamin'" i wanted to throw my laptop. i even like that song. i dunno, it was just too much for me to have to hear it over and over again, which was disappointing bc annoyance is not what i was supposed to be feeling in those moments.
Chungking Express is one of my favourite WKW films. Faye Wong's performance alone is worthy of admission.
Never heard of this movie, but it looks interesting
"Chungking Express
" and "Fallen Angels" are awesome - both worth checking out ^^
Themes of time running out and expiration dates are also references to Hong Kong's eventual re-unification with China and the anxiety surrounding that. Surprised this wasn't picked up on. Also, Christopher Doyle, cinematographer and long time WKW collaborator, bears mentioning. His work with Gus Van Sant in Paranoid Park is well worth checking out.
Yes. This is a major interpretation that is obvious to Hong Konger but probably not for a foreigner, so I may accept Maggie for not mentioning it (the theme of identity crisis during the 1997 sovereignty handover is made even more prominent in Happy Together in 1997). But excluding the political implication, I think Chungking Express can still be viewed and appreciated as a romance and representative of the solitude of people dwelling in an crowded urban area.
And yes, Christopher Doyle, the man behind WKW. Other than WKW's films, there are other films also worthy to check out, including Hero (Zhang Yimou), Endless Poetry (Alejandro Jodorowsky). Though I know he has collaborated with Gus Van Sant and Jim Jarmusch, I haven't checked out those films. Though an Australian, I think Doyle is the embodiment of what I personally consider as the spirit of HK: Cosmopolitan, exile, total devotion. He is the first to make me realise the importance of a cinematographer (while Wong encouraged me to explore films from different auteurs from different countries).
Loved the cyber-punk aesthetic, and while I guess everyone found the main girl the cutest character, my biggest soft spot was for the sunglass assassin. She was an adorable killer and my kind of lady.
Fallen Angels is my favorite Wong Kar Wai film.
OMG my favorite film, so excited to see what you will say, please see YI YI too
Cutie
please review in the mood for love by wang kar-wai
She really knows what she is talking about.
I've always heard how great this film is it finally bought the DVD. Had the DVD never got around to watching it then finally one day. I said what the heck I'll pop it on, and see what it's all about, and I was not in the mood at the time either.
And I have to confess this is the only film while watching it put me in the mood. I literally went this is a chore to smiling ear to ear of how charming this film was! I was totally invested and engaged with this story. And the way Wong Kar Wai shoot the film is so stylistic and cool, you can't help but be engaged and charmed by this film. The hype is real! I love this film! And, yes, I love pineapples!
Outstanding movie from Womg Kar Wai. But I prefer Fallen Angels over this. The same way I prefer 2046 over In the Mood for Love. It's just my personal taste don't kill me.
Also you might want to check out Patrick Tam's films like The Sword, My Heart is that Eternal Rose and Nomad among others. This guy was Wong Kar Wai's sifu.
Very good review of this one.
YES! You’re the first person aside from myself that cited 90’s Wong Kar Wai as an influence for Cowboy Bebop.
The element of lonely characters reminded me of Wong Kar Wai who in turn was influenced by film noir but Bebop more directly because of the surreal daydreaming mood elements
Some emotions can't be transalted into words, that's why we have film to fill in the gap. Chunking express does it brilliantly. Great Review!
I finally watched this. This is the kind of film where I methodically parse through the entire synopsis line by line afterwards, trying to decipher why someone would enjoy this story. Because honestly, I can’t name one compelling thing that happened.
My favourite film of all time...
Great review! Insightful as always.
You put into words the way this movie feels.
Do Fallen Angels by Wong Kat Wai
Haven´t seen all of Wong Kar Wai´s films, my favourite of his is Happy Together, not only beacuse it mostly takes place in my homeland Argentina, but also beacuse of his perception of toxic relationships. About Chungking Express, i would say that the second story was the one that hooked me the most, but the first one i really couldn´t connect at all, it felt like a bad soap opera and way too melodramatic. Once we started with Tony Leung´s story, i was like: maybe he did the fist one to get to full length and so that we could get here.
Quentin Tarantino acually like this movie
lovely review but you are totally missing the socio-political aspect of the film; of H.K being between worlds on the eve of the hand-over
Just started following you now ... didn't know about this review channel ... and your art works (sketch) are really good. So nice reviews and sketches and photography. To be frank review videos are quite dark only except Melancholia movie review, but your work is really great.❤❤❤❤❤❤
Enjoyed your review, I actually watched Chunking Express for the first time back in April. Thought it was quite excellent. I feel like watching it during a pandemic somehow elevated it for me; probably something to do with the many moments of longing & isolation. Never actually considered the Cowboy Bebop connection but I can totally see it now haha.
Yesssss!!!
One amazing thing about this movie is that 3 of the 4 main characters were the superstars of HK entertainment during that time, and the young guy was an absolute nobody who became a superstar some years later.
I'm sure this has been brought up but you really give me this Audrey Plaza vibe.
One of my favourite films of all time and you expressed just perfectly why I love it so much. The pain of letting go, moving on. It's a beautiful film, thank you for this review. Also, gotta love California Dreaming
Some of the best romance are those that are never consummated.
if id support you on patreon, will you buy a hairclip?
Ashes of Time is criminally underrated. It's classic Wong Kar Wai - the departure is only superficial, and the movie is visually stunning, and it's very interesting to watch it in contrast to Chungking Express. Faye Wong was also wonderful in 2046!
Though Ashes of Time is based on characters of The Legend of the Condor Heroes (射鵰英雄傳), a martial art novel by Jin Yong (金庸), other than the names the movie has nothing to do with the novel. Before watching the movie, I was expecting some sort of adaptation or interpretation of the novel (I am a big fan of Jin Yong's martial art novels); however, the contrary occurred and to my surprise I was not disappointed. Though confused about what I had just seen, about the plot, about the character, it was a hypnotising experience. Never before have I expected such visual exuberance and themes from a martial art movie (instead of focusing on action or heroism or nationalism). A few days, I rewatched the film again and full absorbed into the voice-over by Leslie Cheung, as well as soundtrack.
An addition point: The version I watched was not the Redux version but the original version released in 1994 (used to present in UA-cam and probably this version is more familiar among local HKers, while foreigners may be more familiar with the redux version). I have to say I prefer the original version (especially the soundtrack and rawness).
Several months ago, I watched the 4K restoration of 2046 on a big screen on which the neon aesthetics really stand out. Faye Wong, as you have pointed out, is amazing in the movie (as always) as if she was not acting AT ALL (or the character is so tailed-made for her that she acted so effortlessly). I recalled in an interview Tony Leung said when he saw the scene where Faye Wong pacing in a room practising Japanese (the camera focused on her legs in high heels), Leung said he really doubted if he really could do the same thing as well.
That movie slipped my radar, and when I checked out trailers for it, I was wondering if it was just a crude precursor to Zhang Yimou's "Hero" a decade later. Perhaps with a certain prejudice that I cultivated for a long time, Cantonese movies have often just been FOB, campy cringe to me.
So "Ashes of Time" (東邪西毒) [1994] is definitely worth watching for both of you?
@@Suite_annamite Yes, definitely, you should check it out, but I would say if you just seek for action sequences and duels in a conventional martial art films, you'll definitely be disappointed. The best aspects of the films lies on the monologue/voice-over (especially if you can understand Cantonese), the cinematography and the characters (tormented by the past and memories, and the inability of acquisition of love and connection).
As for your comment on Zhang's 'Hero', I would say its precursor are the films of Akira Kurosawa, especially Roshomon (which inspires the narration and structure), and Ran plus Kagemusha (which inspire the use of colour (Emi Wada served as costume designer for both Ran and Hero) and the battle/army scenes). As a person from a Sinophone background, I would say Hero, though entertaining, visually stunning and with great action sequences, is style over substance and I would say it appeals to foreigners more (especially Western audience) and it's not a film that I would intend to re-watch.
@@Suite_annamite For your 'prejudice', and as a HKer, I would say I partly agree with your comment LOL. During the golden era of Hong Kong cinema (the 80s and 90s), while certainly many great films that became classics were produced , I have to admit at the same time many crap/trash movies were also churned out (especially those gamble movies about poker or mahjong, crime/gangster, films made and intended to be released in Chinese New Year, etc). Many HK films at the time were produced in a short period of time and I have heard that at that period a film can be within 6 days (so it's a miracle that WKW is born, who can utilise the local studio system with great restrains, while making films with a big budget for an exceptionally long period of time and not for sake of making box office success). Certainly, many crap films have been forgotten, but some become a cult classics for HKers. But that's also one thing I love about the period which had a great vitality and true freedom was enjoyed.
@@tsoitsoi2633 I will check it out then!
And, yeah! Those are exactly the kinds of movies I was implying : HK cinema's answer to action-comedy for the holidays! As a Vietnamese speaker who has never formally studied Cantonese, I can only understand the news in formal-speech Cantonese, but not a random conversation by passersby on the street. A lot of words are either exactly the same or similar enough to easily sound out; between the two languages, the tones are almost exactly the same, while the vowel articulation is different.
This why the Chinese characters for "Hong Kong" (香港) and "Vietnam" (越南) are pronounced differently, but are still recognisable to each others' languages.
For me, HK movies certainly have a nostalgic appeal, and remind me of childhood; and that means, I can simply enjoy a Cantonese-language film without "expecting" anything. I also harbour a kind of respect-driven envy towards HK art-forms; because while HK/ Guangdong and Vietnam are analogous, nearby cultures, the English-speaking world gives a lot more appreciation and attention towards HK. Although Vietnamese art and artists are well appreciated in continental Europe and sometimes French Canada, in particular France, which has entire museums and art galleries dedicated to Vietnamese art.
FALLEN ANGELS
I think Faye Wong was supposed to be the inspiration for the character Faye Valentine. I don't see it.
If anybody "looks" like Faye Valentine, it would be Maggie Cheung Man-yuk (as "Su" or "Mrs. Chan") from "In the Mood for Love" (2000).
Chungkin Express is great but you should watch FALLEN ANGELS (1995) by WKW it's even better and the cinematography is equally as creative. You should also watch First Love: The Litter on the Breeze (1997) it's produced by WKW and is almost like a parody of Chungkin or Fallen Angels except its also a half-making-of by the director who inputs commentary throughout the film explaining his filmmaking process and also
Love you review. This is one of my favorite Wong Kar-Wai films (and Quentin Tarantino as well, I believe.) But my favorite Wong Kar-Wai's movie of all time has to be Ashes of Time. Just absolutely a masterpiece in my opinion. Happy Together would come in second. If you like Wong Kar Wai, you definitely should check out Song Lang (2018), a Vietnamese film. Quite a hidden gem. I would love to hear your opinion on it. (I think it's available on Amazon Prime).
Wonderful film.
Classic ending in the Casablanca school of romance.
"wherever you want
to take me". . . 😉
i thought you nailed it beautifully when you said he gives shape and colour to feelings that maybe can't be easily expressed in words. that's exactly how i felt he was communicating throughout the film. A true masterpiece and it has aged remarkably well which again shows the universal language of love
Still need to watch this one 😔
I'm going to check it out just based off of this review
@@PulseRELOADED I have the Wong Kar-Wai Criterion collection so I have no excuses at this point. Have you seen any of his work yet? If so, what should I expect?
@@caicarney5614
Check out 2046
It was sort of like a Black mirror episode , if you're familiar with the series
wonderfully articulated review. Thank you very much for uploading. I enjoyed listening to it a lot.
Let’s goooo just got the box set
I remember watching this years ago when Quentin Tarantino recommended it. I can hardly remember it now. Might give it another watch.
Can you review "Buck Breaking" next please?
My fav was "FALLEN ANGELS".....the end to the Yazoo music was a killer...I will never get it off my mind. Your review is just sooooo "wow". Fantastic.
wong kaw wai movies show emotions effortlessly & genuinely beside love there are happiness & excitement and boredom & melancholy , the cinematography is always amazing, and the editing & music is great too. his movies lack dialogue and we don't really know the characters, we are literarily an audience that just watching them and their weird life, that's why he don't care about connecting the events to get a logical ending, it is just floating funny stories to look it.
Okay so that's the reason you posted a story on instagram with this song playing 😁
One of my favorite films by wong kar wai, thank you for doing this one
Great review, any plans for Fallen Angels?
this is one of my favorite movies of all time
It’s Mr. Wong’s classic.
This is a really great review
Ooh hell yes
The piece !
IMO, In the Mood for Love
is overrated, didn't feel the chemistry, romance, the slow paced did not help, story wasn't exciting as his others, was a little boring, only good things about it was acting, costume and make-up design, cinematography, and music.
Days of Being Wild is the best of informal trilogy, story was interesting with characters and great acting from all actors too, 2046 is better than In the Mood for Love
too, Happy Together 1997 is amazing too, and As Tears Go By is okay, Ashes of Time is not so great, story was all over the place and a big mess, confusing the audience like hell.
Chungking Express is the best masterpiece made by Wong Kar-wai, along with Happy Together 1997, and Days of Being Wild. Fallen Angels 1995 and The Grandmaster are great films too but not elite level.
Ashes imo won me on feeling, infusing the genre w new wave etc. though I agree the plot kinda got lost. Hou kinda went into similar territory with more success about 6(?) years back w The Assassin.
saw this yesterday for the fourth time, first time in a theatre, and I come to youtube and see you just reviewed it!
I would really love to hear your thoughts on A Brighter Summer Day by Edward Yang.
Stick to books. This review is a joke.
Just because you disagree with her opinion? I couldn’t stand the film but I still appreciate her review
Criterion has released many of Wong's films on Blu-ray and streaming. They all have a sort of green tint in the picture that wasn't there before. This new look was authorized and approved by WKW, but it is raising some eyebrows among fans. Bong Joon-ho's Memories of Murder was also recently released by Criterion, and it also has a new green tint approved by the director. Many directors love to use green tint, but many fans hate it.
@@timetheory84 Wong changed the color grades of his films, in some instances from color to black-and-white. He also changed the aspect ratio in some cases. It's safe to say the end result is different from how he originally shot it in the negatives. A negative is almost always different from the final film because of post-production work like editing, cropping, digital re-coloring, and other effects. How it was shot on the negative is often not how the director wanted the final film to look.
@@timetheory84 With the attitude you have maybe you do need a teacher, in film and in life as well. Come back when you are more mature. No one would want to go near you, let alone having a discussion with you with that attitude. You'll see.
I would love to hear your take on "Satantango".
I just wasn’t moved by either story… visually, the film is gripping, editing is fantastic and raw. The characters, however, felt emotionally flat and simply uninteresting
I honestly don't get the hype surrounding this movie. To me, it's a very basic, bland pair of storylines with a not-so-creative means of connecting them, with the latter of them feeling like any stock romcom that would have been barely paid attention to in the West. The cinematography is also incredibly dated and feels very much of its time in a way that is distracting to me.
It's a competent film in how it's put together, but I just don't respond to it at all.
Do you think his "2046" is better? And would you consider it somehow a spiritual sequel?
@@Suite_annamite I have to be honest, I haven't yet seen his other works. I felt so let down by this one that I've been afraid to dive back in despite wanting to. Is 2046 one you would recommend?
@@Progger11 If you wish to watch 2046, maybe you can watch In The Mood For Love as well as the plots of the two movies are kinda connected. If you wish to explore the urban aesthetics of a WKW film but cannot get into Chungking Express, I may recommend Fallen Angels (which is a darker, bleaker, nocturnal version of Chungking Express).
@@tsoitsoi2633 Thanks for the recs!
Thank you for your review!!!
Wong kar wai is my favorite filmmaker and I am so happy you have finally reviewed one of his films. One of his best and a top 5 favorite of all time for me.
Just opened my new WKW criterion set and saw this review it was meant to be