#stephen teo

[wkw-by-alvina-atmadja]

Hong Kong in Chungking Express (1994)

Chungking Express’ Hong Kong is lively and crowded with people from all origins, both day and night. The density of the objects versus space captured in a shot is really high compared to the other three movies that I’ve watched. To me, this version of Hong Kong offers a bittersweet depiction of life as it is full of chance encounters, as mentioned by Stephen Teo, and offers a degree of freedom in experimenting and falling in love (50). However, at the same time, it also shows that life goes on mercilessly -- whenever there’s a meeting, there’s also a separation. In overall, though, the portrayal of  this version of Hong Kong is very optimistic compared to Wong Kar-Wai’s other Hong Kongs.

This positive imagery of Hong Kong city is further reinforced by the way each of the story in Chungking Express wraps up. By the end of the second part, there’s a hint of reciprocated feelings between Tony Leung’s Cop 663 and Faye Wong’s Sandwich Stand Girl. Even the conclusion of the first part of the movie has a more optimistic tone if we compared it to the fashion in which Wong Kar-Wai's other movies end. Takeshi Kaneshiro’s Cop 223 and Brigitte Lin’s Blond Lady might not end up together as a couple. However, there is a sweet moment where the lady sent a birthday message to the policeman’s pager, meaning that at least she still remember some part of the conversation that they had the night before even if she appeared as if she paid no attention at all during the moment. It is shown as well that both characters are moving on with their lives towards a (hopefully) better future in respect to their current situations. Cop 223 stops obsessing over his past relationship and the Blond Lady takes off her blond wig, which, for me, symbolizes her resolution to mentally step away from the Caucasian man whom she had worked under and possibly harbored a one-sided love to. This conclusion provides a more optimistic tone compared to the death which befall some of the key characters from Wong's other movies (Days of Being Wild’s Yuddy and Fallen Angels’ Hitman) or misunderstanding and betrayal (In the Mood for Love).

Chungking Express’ Hong Kong is also unique compared to the other Hong Kongs in Wong Kar-Wai’s cinemas. Like Teo noted in his Chungking Express chapter, the distance between Chungking Mansion in Tsimshatsui and Midnight Express stall in Central is as good as nothing, especially for audiences who have never been to Hong Kong and watch the international version of the movie. The scenes presented in Chungking Express’ international version has gone through some rearrangement, resulting in the removal of the only scene that shows other method of commuting beside walking (Teo 54). There is another that contains a form of transportation beside walking -- when Cop 663’s ex-girlfriend, who is an air hostess, rode a motorcycle with her new boyfriend in the second part of the movie. However, we as the audience didn’t  have any information on where they traveled from nor where their destination is. Hence for me, the appearance of the motorcycle on-screen is more of a way to express the impression of the new boyfriend being cooler than Cop 663 rather than as a tool to reinforce the distance between the locations where Chungking Express’ characters spend their days in.

Works Cited

Teo, Stephen. Wong Kar-Wai. London: British Film Institute, 2005. print.

[wkw-by-alvina-atmadja]

Hong Kong in Days of Being Wild (1990)

The Hong Kong depicted in Days of Being Wild is spacious, yet, at the same time, strangely empty. It is rare to see more than three characters depicted in a single scene. I believe the only time more than three people present in a scene is when we follow the story of Leslie Cheung’s Yuddy & Andy Lau’s Tide escape from the from tavern after Yuddy's passport deal went awry up until they got inside a departing train. Arguably, making an example out of those scenes to debunk the impression of an empty Hong Kong can be rendered as invalid since those happening are supposed to be set in the Philippines.

A lot of the outdoor spaces which are captured by either medium or long shots have a very low density in terms of the objects shown within the frame versus the space captured in it. Take example from the scene that shows Maggie Cheung's So-Lai Chen as she worked in the baseball stadium, as she waited night after night outside of Yuddy’s apartment complex, or when she and Tide talked as they strolled around Tide’s patrol area. Those scenes barely contain any props and we can see no other living beings captured in them beside the actress and the actor, be it stray animal or random passerby. Quoting Stephen Teo’s description of this version of Hong Kong, “it is almost as if Hong Kong is a deserted city.” (36). Even in terms of the indoor scenes, the density between the objects and space captured within the frame are pretty low compared to Wong Kar-Wai’s other works such as Chungking Express, according to my observation.

So-Lai Chen works in a snack stall inside a baseball stadium, but we never see other visitors beside Yuddy. (source)

Tide finds So-Lai Chen standing in front of Yuddy's apartment building night after night. (source)

Tide and So-Lai Chen take a stroll and talk about their lives. (source)

Chungking Express (1994), in comparison, has a lot of scenes with high density of object vs. space captured on-screen. (source 1 2 3)

Stephen Teo, the author who wrote about Wong Kar-Wai for British Film Institute's World Directors Series, argued that this version of Hong Kong is intended to reinforce social isolation that the characters in Days of Being Wild felt (36). I partly agree with that statement, since  my interpretation of the emptiness of this version of Hong Kong leans more towards it as a projection of the characters’ innermost feelings -- that this intended emptiness is an imagery of their view on life as a vast yet empty space. Social isolation might be a factor that caused this bleak and depressing view on life to be ingrained to most of the focus characters in this movie. There are indications that most of the relationships that the focus characters have revolve only around the them and their immediate family member or members whom are being referred on the dialogues. Aside from Tide who talked about his dream to become a sailor, none of the other characters seems to have any ambition in regards to their future. Leading such a devoid life becomes the source that drives the motif that appears within the characters’ behaviors this movie: obsessing over unrequited love (Teo 34). To me, this sounds like a more plausible explanation over the deserted Hong Kong city that we see in the movie.

Works Cited

Teo, Stephen. Wong Kar-Wai. London: British Film Institute, 2005. print.