If My Memory Of Her Has An Expiration Date...Let It Be 10,000 Years.

Chungking Express (1994)
Director: Wong Kar-Wai
Rating: 8.8

I've been on an art film kick lately. Actually, I go on an art film kick every winter, and a ridiculous action kick in the summer with a sprinkle of art flicks here and there. For those of you who did not read TMR in the olden times, I only review films when music plays a predominate role (this being a music blog and all). Last night I watched Chungking Express the modern classic by Wong Kar-Wai. Going into this film I wasn't really expecting much because I was not a huge fan of the only other Kar-Wai film I had seen 2046. Well let me just say that Chungking Express won me over, it took awhile, but it won me over in the end. Chungking Express is basically split into two stories of two heartbroken Hong Kong cops. The opening half, Cop 223's story, was hit and miss for me, and honestly it was the woman in the wig that was killing it for me. There was something about her visually as a character that was wasn't working for me, but the frenetic camera work during the chase and scenes, along with the general story line of Cop 223 saved it. Cop 223 is beautifully played by Takeshi Kaneshiro, who grasps the characters sadness, naivete, and hopeless romanticism, and projects these feelings in awkward smiles and body language. Cop 223's obsession with buying a can of pineapples with the expiration date of May 1st for every day of the month of April, and then consuming all 30 can on May 1st to memorialized the one month anniversary of his recent break up is one of the funniest and most heartbreaking story lines in modern film. Throughout the first half of the film, chaotic Indian sitar-based music gives chase and market scenes an overwhelming audio energy to match the overwhelming visual energy the hand held motion creates. The use of the reggae tune "Things in Life" by Dennis Brown throughout the woman in the blonde wig's story line probably had an impact on every song Tarantino every put in his film, and the song adds a bazaar touch of whimsy when woman in the blonde wig violently overcomes her own May 1st expiration date.

When Cop 223 bumps into Faye the new employee at the Chungking Express snack bar, and the second half of the film begins...this is where Chungking Express won me over. The story of the relationship between Cop 663 and Faye ranks as one of my all time favorite romance/love stories in cinema history. The heartbroken obsession, and ritualistic behavior of Cop 663 is human longing in its most fundamental form. Tony Leung (who is the best part of 2046 and Hero) gives Cop 663 a hardened sadness that is only eased when in the presence of Faye. Faye, played by Faye Wong, is...well...wow. Wong brings a wide eyed curiosity to Faye that is instantly engaging, and undeniably irresistible. When the second half of the film opens with Cop 663 and Faye meeting to the sounds of the Mamas and the Papas "California Dreaming", and Faye dances her way through work, the scene is mesmerizing and will change the way you hear the way you think of the American standard (see the clip below and you know what I mean). And when Faye secretly immerses herself in the private world of Cop 663 to the sound of a Cantonese version of the Cranberries "Dream", sang by Faye Wong (which is a little weird in my opinion), the film is instantly dated (in a good way), leaves you wondering if they changed the lyrics for a reason or if the English subtitles are poorly translated, and adds sense of lightness that falls over the images of Faye's efforts to become part of and slightly change Cop 663's habitual life. The real star, other than Faye, of this film however is "California Dreaming" which plays a prominent roll throughout the last half and helps in moving the plot forward and connecting the dots. The last half of film is subtle and sublime, and sells this film has a modern classic in my opinion. There are few films about heartbreak and recovery this slight and powerful, and few romances as vivid and resonating as that of Cop 663 and Faye. I highly recommend Chungking Express to anyone who understands the difference between a film and a movie, has ever been in and out of love in the city, ordoes not consider Nicholas Sparks to be a romantic genius.