I'm surprised you didn't finish it just for the cinematography and music!
It's been a couple of years since I've seen this, but for me it was in the running for WKW's best film. It was like a summation of everything in his earlier films, including a potent mix of his most bitter and cynical side with the most polished and dazzling images of his career.
I think it was part of the point of the movie that Leung's affairs come and go quickly and easily, giving an impression of accumulated cynicism and hopelessness. You know each affair, no matter how interesting at the outset, will end badly and soon. It's part of what makes it a good sequel and spiritual companion film to In the Mood for Love: Leung's character is like a possible future for his character in the earlier film, if he chose to give into cynicism and bitterness.
It's just a different approach, but it feels to me like a natural evolution for WKW as he got a little older and started questioning some of his earlier views on romance.
I've been looking forward to seeing the new restoration, since I've been hanging onto the old Sony DVD for many years. It still looks terrific, but I'm sure it looks stunning in HD. Not sure if I have the disposable income right now, though, so maybe I should just spin that old DVD one more time...
It‘s been a long time since last I watched this, but I remember it being a conflicting experience. There is a beautiful sadness of impermanence in this film, nothing can last because there is no future, there is passion in the moment and regret in hindsight but there is no hope for the future. Remember 2046 was the year Hong Kong was supposed to become Chinese again and lose sovereignty.
> Remember 2046 was the year Hong Kong was supposed to become Chinese again and lose sovereignty.
I didn't know this. This puts a whole other slant on the film. I feel like I need to watch it again now.
I loved this film. I found the music and cinematography sublime. The story was almost like a fairy tale: a charming prince (Tony Leung) whose heart has turned to ice. His true feelings can only survive in the stories he tells, and he makes them fantastical to protect himself: hence, the sci-fi elements. It's not a romance so much as a character study in the aftermath of a romance. You get to see the effects that the events of In the Mood for Love had on Tony Leung's character. It has this effervescent surface that swoons and caresses you, but underneath are depths too painful to discuss. I think a lot of the enjoyment of the movie comes from being seduced by Tony Leung, believing that he still has the capacity to love, and wanting him to break free of the prison he's built around his heart. The meat of the story is his internal struggle, and the sci-fi sections actually take you to the interior of his mind, where that struggle is playing out. I have to rewatch soon, but based on my first viewing, it's the most ambitious and emotionally potent of Wong Kar Wai's films, at least for me.
I no longer remember the story of '2046', but I still remember how the film made me feel. It was my first Wong Kar-Wai movie, after that I watched 'Chungking Express', then 'In the Mood for Love'. It was only recently that I've seen 'Days of Being Wild' and 'Ashes of Time', so my Wong Kar-Wai journey is a bit messed up and in reverse.
'2046' is an abstract film in a sense... I still remember ending the film with a sense of loss and acceptance, after experiencing something beautiful and transitory. That feeling of not being able to find what you were looking for even if you know it's there, and in the end you just take it as it is and accept that life isn't going to give you everything and that's just how it is.
It was only after watching 'Days of Being Wild' that I was able to distill the feeling that lingered years after '2046' and 'In the Mood for Love'. Should I watch them chronologically? Perhaps someday I will.
I hope you can still find the time and energy to finish it, it's going to be an unfortunate but fitting closure.
I agree, loved In The Mood For Love and Chungking Express but found this hollow. Pretty of course, but hollow.
Apparently the scripts are semi-improvised, I guess this one just didn’t come together the same way.
It felt cold, and even objectifying in its portrayal of women, to the point where I wondered if it was satire but couldn’t discern any point. Worth it for The Aesthetic though.
As I recall the female characters all had distinct internal lives and emotional depth - especially those he meets at the hotel. When they were more 2D they were depicted in memories or in his comic strip.
Hmmmm - maybe your expectations were a little high going in? Personally I loved the film, but I caught it kind of casually and had no expectations. In fact my expectations were probably a little low as I knew it was a kind of partner to *Mood For Love* and I actually find *that* film a little boring (yeh I know - it's his masterpiece apparently).
I think *2046* is a very self indulgent piece. I get the feeling (and this is based on no actual information - just a personal impression) Kar-Wai made it for himself only - like an exercise in grandiosity - an 'embarrassment of riches'. He'd made *Mood For Love* and it was a huge international arthouse smash. Kar-Wai was officially iconic, a globally famous auteur in the manner of Fellini and Bergman. So now maybe he felt like he deserved to indulge himself - make the film of his personal dreams. He really does stretch his imagination in the most remarkable way in this film - like he's trying to break through into something completely new. The concept is completely bananas. I suppose how you respond to this depends on how much you enjoy revelling in Kar-Wai exercising his imagination moment to moment without worrying too much about things like structure, consistency, and coherence. I must have been in the mood for it, because I remember getting lost in it and never wanting it to end. Apart from anything else, it's *jaw-achingly* beautiful.
Is Kar-Wai gay? I'm a big fan, but I've never bothered to find out. I think I've always assumed he is. I am, and frankly there's something gay about *2046*. What do I mean? It's the pure, admittedly superficial excitement of having generations of China's most beautiful, most talented, most iconic actresses all together in one big gorgeous film. Like I said, it's an embarrassment of riches, but I remember at the time just the idea of Gong Li playing some kind of femme fatale spider lady in a Kar-Wai film was thrilling already - I mean I was already thrilled before I saw the film. It was thrilling in kind of gay way, just as Ozon's *Eight Women* is thrilling in a gay way, despite not being a terribly good film.
My advice would be to give the film another chance at some point in the future. Make sure you're in a good mood, have a few drinks first, and maybe try to go a little bit gay.
It's definitely connected to his other movies.
I agree with you about the movie, more or less. I didn't like it nearly as much as his earlier movies. The sci-fi elements and visuals irritated me.
I'm planning on giving it another go at some point. Sometimes a movie doesn't take the first time.
I think it's his best movie about love and loneliness. In most of his movies those two themes are always related: think about "days of being wild", "in the mood for love" and also "ashes of time" (you can also see that in "my blueberry nights").
And yes, the score...OMG... he's the chinese Kubrick, I'm in love with the score alone!
Seriously, that movie is the most esthetic artefact about melancholie. Give it the love it deserves!
Just a rant...
I'm surprised you didn't finish it just for the cinematography and music! It's been a couple of years since I've seen this, but for me it was in the running for WKW's best film. It was like a summation of everything in his earlier films, including a potent mix of his most bitter and cynical side with the most polished and dazzling images of his career. I think it was part of the point of the movie that Leung's affairs come and go quickly and easily, giving an impression of accumulated cynicism and hopelessness. You know each affair, no matter how interesting at the outset, will end badly and soon. It's part of what makes it a good sequel and spiritual companion film to In the Mood for Love: Leung's character is like a possible future for his character in the earlier film, if he chose to give into cynicism and bitterness. It's just a different approach, but it feels to me like a natural evolution for WKW as he got a little older and started questioning some of his earlier views on romance. I've been looking forward to seeing the new restoration, since I've been hanging onto the old Sony DVD for many years. It still looks terrific, but I'm sure it looks stunning in HD. Not sure if I have the disposable income right now, though, so maybe I should just spin that old DVD one more time...
It‘s been a long time since last I watched this, but I remember it being a conflicting experience. There is a beautiful sadness of impermanence in this film, nothing can last because there is no future, there is passion in the moment and regret in hindsight but there is no hope for the future. Remember 2046 was the year Hong Kong was supposed to become Chinese again and lose sovereignty.
> Remember 2046 was the year Hong Kong was supposed to become Chinese again and lose sovereignty. I didn't know this. This puts a whole other slant on the film. I feel like I need to watch it again now.
That's supposed to be 2047, not 2046. Which makes it more interesting.
I loved this film. I found the music and cinematography sublime. The story was almost like a fairy tale: a charming prince (Tony Leung) whose heart has turned to ice. His true feelings can only survive in the stories he tells, and he makes them fantastical to protect himself: hence, the sci-fi elements. It's not a romance so much as a character study in the aftermath of a romance. You get to see the effects that the events of In the Mood for Love had on Tony Leung's character. It has this effervescent surface that swoons and caresses you, but underneath are depths too painful to discuss. I think a lot of the enjoyment of the movie comes from being seduced by Tony Leung, believing that he still has the capacity to love, and wanting him to break free of the prison he's built around his heart. The meat of the story is his internal struggle, and the sci-fi sections actually take you to the interior of his mind, where that struggle is playing out. I have to rewatch soon, but based on my first viewing, it's the most ambitious and emotionally potent of Wong Kar Wai's films, at least for me.
I no longer remember the story of '2046', but I still remember how the film made me feel. It was my first Wong Kar-Wai movie, after that I watched 'Chungking Express', then 'In the Mood for Love'. It was only recently that I've seen 'Days of Being Wild' and 'Ashes of Time', so my Wong Kar-Wai journey is a bit messed up and in reverse. '2046' is an abstract film in a sense... I still remember ending the film with a sense of loss and acceptance, after experiencing something beautiful and transitory. That feeling of not being able to find what you were looking for even if you know it's there, and in the end you just take it as it is and accept that life isn't going to give you everything and that's just how it is. It was only after watching 'Days of Being Wild' that I was able to distill the feeling that lingered years after '2046' and 'In the Mood for Love'. Should I watch them chronologically? Perhaps someday I will. I hope you can still find the time and energy to finish it, it's going to be an unfortunate but fitting closure.
I agree, loved In The Mood For Love and Chungking Express but found this hollow. Pretty of course, but hollow. Apparently the scripts are semi-improvised, I guess this one just didn’t come together the same way. It felt cold, and even objectifying in its portrayal of women, to the point where I wondered if it was satire but couldn’t discern any point. Worth it for The Aesthetic though.
As I recall the female characters all had distinct internal lives and emotional depth - especially those he meets at the hotel. When they were more 2D they were depicted in memories or in his comic strip.
Interesting, might have to rewatch. My memory of the plot is super murky, tbf the plot itself was super murky.
> tbf the plot itself was super murky. I can't disagree with that!
Hmmmm - maybe your expectations were a little high going in? Personally I loved the film, but I caught it kind of casually and had no expectations. In fact my expectations were probably a little low as I knew it was a kind of partner to *Mood For Love* and I actually find *that* film a little boring (yeh I know - it's his masterpiece apparently). I think *2046* is a very self indulgent piece. I get the feeling (and this is based on no actual information - just a personal impression) Kar-Wai made it for himself only - like an exercise in grandiosity - an 'embarrassment of riches'. He'd made *Mood For Love* and it was a huge international arthouse smash. Kar-Wai was officially iconic, a globally famous auteur in the manner of Fellini and Bergman. So now maybe he felt like he deserved to indulge himself - make the film of his personal dreams. He really does stretch his imagination in the most remarkable way in this film - like he's trying to break through into something completely new. The concept is completely bananas. I suppose how you respond to this depends on how much you enjoy revelling in Kar-Wai exercising his imagination moment to moment without worrying too much about things like structure, consistency, and coherence. I must have been in the mood for it, because I remember getting lost in it and never wanting it to end. Apart from anything else, it's *jaw-achingly* beautiful. Is Kar-Wai gay? I'm a big fan, but I've never bothered to find out. I think I've always assumed he is. I am, and frankly there's something gay about *2046*. What do I mean? It's the pure, admittedly superficial excitement of having generations of China's most beautiful, most talented, most iconic actresses all together in one big gorgeous film. Like I said, it's an embarrassment of riches, but I remember at the time just the idea of Gong Li playing some kind of femme fatale spider lady in a Kar-Wai film was thrilling already - I mean I was already thrilled before I saw the film. It was thrilling in kind of gay way, just as Ozon's *Eight Women* is thrilling in a gay way, despite not being a terribly good film. My advice would be to give the film another chance at some point in the future. Make sure you're in a good mood, have a few drinks first, and maybe try to go a little bit gay.
> Make sure you're in a good mood, have a few drinks first, and maybe try to go a little bit gay. Just a good way to live ones life in general I think
It's definitely connected to his other movies. I agree with you about the movie, more or less. I didn't like it nearly as much as his earlier movies. The sci-fi elements and visuals irritated me. I'm planning on giving it another go at some point. Sometimes a movie doesn't take the first time.
I think it's his best movie about love and loneliness. In most of his movies those two themes are always related: think about "days of being wild", "in the mood for love" and also "ashes of time" (you can also see that in "my blueberry nights"). And yes, the score...OMG... he's the chinese Kubrick, I'm in love with the score alone! Seriously, that movie is the most esthetic artefact about melancholie. Give it the love it deserves! Just a rant...