花样年华

花样年华

For all of you who are mystified with sensual, sensitive, delicate yet stunning beauty of Asian movies, this movie is all that you have been waiting for. Unknown to many, this movie came out at the same time as Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, and it was MUCH more appreaciated than CTHD in majority in Asia, in term of acting, cinematography and story. The actors are well recognized by their work, Tony Leung won the Cannes Best Actor award for this piece, Maggie Cheung, who holds a large collection of european and asian awards for extradinary acting skills, was crowned the queen of Hong Kong Film Festive for the 5th time this year for her role. A word for those of you who enjoyed action movies, this movie does not have any flying fists or alike. Yet, it is a movie which emits a deep feeling of nolstagia, and it will remind you of the bits and pieces of the "lost sentiments" in your life. The cinematography is so stunning and every little detail is so delicately brushed up, you feel as if you can even smell the scent from the redwood furnitures. The movie is visually breathetaking, in fact, the Chinese dresses wore by Maggie Cheung so beautifully blended into the dim-lit scenes, it started a new fashion movement in Asia! The plot is deeply moving. The two people who are next door neighbors both knew their spouses were having an affair and left them behind. Confused and eager to know what happened, they came to each other. Slowly, the attraction grows between them, yet bound by their morals and impacted by their spouses' betrayal, they silently denied and resisted the growing affection. Slowly, the confined living space and the tight dresses wore by the actress and the dim light transformed into symbols of the social boundaries, confined emotions, suppressed desires, and diminishing hope, and Tony Leung reveals it all in his deep, sorrowful gazes, accompanied with Nat King Cole singing in Spanish " Perhaps, perhaps, perhaps"... I am not a person who loves the indulgence in the past or the blues, yet I willingly fell for the magically reminiscent scenes. I was captivated completely. However, you must see it to believe it.