Friday, July 21, 2017

Chungking Express

Chungking Express is a 1994 Hong Kong film. It's structured in an unusual way and consists of 2 separate stories with only incidental overlap as one ends and the other begins. Fascinating.

trailer:


The New York Times has a review. Slant Magazine gives it 3.5 out of 4 stars and says it "is among Wong’s most exciting films and is an early precursor to the expressive odes to romantic longing that have come to define his work." Rolling Stone says, "His hypnotic images of love and loss finally wear down your resistance as seemingly discordant sights and sounds coalesce into a radiant, crazy quilt that can make you laugh in awe at its technical wizardry in one scene and pierce your heart in the next."

TimeOut says, "This is what Godard movies were once like: fast, hand-held, funny and very, very catchy." The Chicago Tribune says it "is a breezy little Hong Kong movie that has more life, energy, humanity and sheer visual zing than most other shows you'll see in a month or so." Empire Online closes with this: "Wong's dreamlike tone and Doyle's stunning cinematography make this strange love story a joy to watch."

Roger Ebert says
This is the kind of movie you'll relate to if you love film itself, rather than its surface aspects such as story and stars. It's not a movie for casual audiences, and it may not reveal all its secrets the first time through, but it announces Wong Kar-Wai, its Hong Kong-based director, as a filmmaker in the tradition of Jean-Luc Godard.
Rotten Tomatoes has a 90% critics score.


2 comments:

  1. Back when Hulu was completely free, I saw a ton of foreign films, many from Hong Kong based directors. I think this sounds like a wonderful one.

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    Replies
    1. Oh, yes! I miss free Hulu. It was a treasure. Now you have to pay and you still get ads.

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