2046
RATING: 7/10
http://www.joblo.com/2046.htm
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PLOT:
To be honest, I'm not entirely sure what this film is about, but from what
I
did gather, there's something in it about the year 2046 and how everyone
can go
there with a train in order to recapture their lost memories. The film is
shown
to us through the visuals of the writer of the story in the future, who
was
apparently writing about his past, not the future. Got all that? Didn't
think
so. Let's just say that it features scenes of this writer interacting with
lovely ladies in his hotel, falling for them, them falling for him, ***
ensuing, as well as conversations and plenty of slow-motion cigarette
smoking.
Love, in all its forms...also ensues.
CRITIQUE:
Now that's what I call an "artsy-fartsy" movie! That said, I actually
enjoyed
this "artsy-fartsy" confection, complete with jumbled continuity,
inexplicable
futuristic sequences, operatic music, fade-to-black poetic text inserts,
pretentious airs and all that other fun stuff. The reason I liked the film
is
that from the first moment I laid eyes on it...I was captured by its
beauty of
essence. Sounds pretentious, right? Well, what can I say...maybe I was in
a
pretentious mood tonight, but the film isn't just a cinematic equivalent
of a
gorgeous painting/poem with hidden meanings that are left to one's own
devices,
but a soliloquy of sorts to love affairs, love spats and yeah, good ol'
fa****oned...heartbreaks. Since everyone can connect to most of these
emotional
entanglements (especially the latter one), it's easy to get caught up in
this
film's enrapturing atmosphere set in the late '60s, but demonstrating a
timeless quality, complete with colorful and endearing set designs, lovely
costumes on everyone, a very unique style of shooting that takes a little
time
to get used to (but works), and most impressively...a musical
accompaniment
that rivals any other director in terms of its complementary nature to the
work. I want to own this soundtrack and cry myself to sleep at nights with
it
in the background. Seriously though, the musical stylings in this film are
what
took it to that whole other pitter-patter level for me with the classical
stuff
adding weight to the film's slow-motion montage sequences, the cover songs
working within every environment created by the filmmaker (loved those
Christmas ditties) and the overall continuous use of song, enriching its
firmly
established "love mood".
The actors were also great and nice to look at, specifically Tony Lueng
Chiu
Wai, who played the lead cool cat to a tee, with a brimming suit and a
cool
manner about him (or was he just cold-hearted?) Zhang Ziyi was also
perfect in
this film, and showed that she's not just another damn gorgeous face, but
a
decent little actress as well. Seriously Zhang...call me! The director,
Wong
Kar Wai, also has to be given props for blending the whole piece together
with
a visual panache that I adored, and that's despite his odes to pretense.
My
biggest problem with the piece? Well, simply put...I just didn't get it.
Most
of the film is set up like postcards on the wall, each telling a story,
intertwined or brought up via the last one, and even though each tale of
pictures and sound put forth an interesting component of what makes up the
act
of a love affair, I didn't really catch the film's entire flow, meaning or
connection. Surely, as I said before, this is supposed to be set up in a
way to
leave the interpretation to each viewer, which in this case, I actually
didn't
mind, since it's a visually impressive enough movie to give yet another
go-around. But if you're looking for a film that explains every detail-or
better yet-anything about itself, you would likely be doing yourself a
favor if
you skipped this subtext-laden Asian love letter. I personally liked it a
lot
and might just like it even more on a second go-around...who knows. It's
that
kind of movie. It's also to note that this film is a sequel of sorts to
Kar
Wai's previously well-received IN THE MOOD FOR LOVE, so those who have
seen
that motion picture, might understand/appreciate this one even more.
Note: Kar Wai had actually just finished editing this movie the night
before it
was screened in Cannes (where I saw it), so perhaps some trims/edits will
still
be worked out for the movie's final print, notably the over-use of the
song
"Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire".
Where's JoBlo coming from?
Anna and the King (8/10) - Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (7/10) - Dark
City
(9/10) - Jerry Maguire (10/10) - Lost in Translation (7/10) - Magnolia
(9/10) -
The Rules of Attraction (9/10) - Solaris (8/10) - When Harry Met Sally
(10/10)
Review Date: May 20, 2004
Director: Wong Kar Wai
Writer: Wong Kar Wai
Producer: Yimou Zhang
Actors: Tony Leung as Chow Mo Wan
Gong Li as Su Li Zhen
Zhang Ziyi as Bai Ling
Genre: Drama
Year of Release: 2004
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(c) 2004 Berge Garabedian
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X-RAMR-ID: 37903
X-Language: en
X-RT-ReviewID: 1285280
X-RT-TitleID: 10003574
X-RT-SourceID: 573
X-RT-AuthorID: 1021
X-RT-RatingText: 7/10
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