A True Beautiful Romantic Film From Kong-Wai
I love it too. What’s amazing is that Doyle and WKW went against all their usual filmmaking methods to make In the Mood for Love the way they did. And it’s just as fascinating for it.
Even I am all love for this movie… Breathtaking..
I feel the same way. Not even another Kong-Wai film leaves me the way this does. Beautiful frame to frame.
I hated it the first time. I had no fascination or interest in the characters or the presentation at all.
The second time, I was observing the camera compositions, the sounds & what the narrative was trying to say.
The third time, I finally realised why everyone loved it & why people either love or hate WKW, even if I still hate it.
WKW is probably not the ‘style over substance’ director I once perceived him as. He’s simply chosen loose or simple narratives to convey his imagery. It doesn’t matter if his shots or his style doesn’t support the narrative or enhance its emotions. What matters to him is his presentation of mood & atmosphere. That’s prolly why everyone fell in love with WKW’s ability to tell his story in poetic & romanticised imagery. Presentation is more important to him than what’s really underneath. & it comes down to whether you appreciate that or not. Because if you don’t appreciate his presentation, there isn’t much else to appreciate.
I’m a fan of In The Mood For Love, but i think WKW’s masterpiece is 2046.
There is no denying the fact that ITMFL is a magnificent film with stunning visuals, a hauntingly beautiful soundtrack, and spectacular performances, but it left me yearning for more.
For those of you that have Netflix, In The Mood For Love is on Netflix Watch Instantly.
Thats nice!
In the Mood for Love is one of those rare films that, though I don’t quite “get,” I am totally seduced by. In this case, the look, the sound, and the feel of the picture (not to mention Leung and Cheung, two of the most beautiful and talented people in movies today) had me engrossed from beginning to end.
But, is it romantic? Does being about two people who love each other make a film romantic? What does make a film, a novel, or a play romantic?
When I first saw Max Ophuls’ Madame De at the long-gone, well-loved Bleecker Street Cinema, a young woman who had seen it before remarked,“It’s SO romantic, but I love it!” It struck me at the time as odd, even a bit sad, that she felt the need to apologize for liking something romantic. However, after seeing Madame De (and several other Ophuls) a number of times over the years, I have come to realize that it is not a romantic film, nor is Ophuls a romantic artist, unless films that are essentially about the illusory and transient nature of love are indeed romantic.
Do we need some definitions here? Who are romantic filmmakers? What are romantic films?
Ray Lopez
I love this film. It has potential beautiful imagey and the performance by Leung and Chueng are breathtakingly amazing.