The Cultural Aesthetic of Wong Kar-wai - Essay Example

Wong Kar-wai Auteur of Time 3rd May 2006 Considered a modern-day auteur, Won Kar-wai is known for his unique cinematic flair combining innovative style filmmaking with an aesthetic quality borne from the first new wave of directors of which he was a part of. He is regarded as one of the worlds premier directors, making audacious, complex films that grab ones heart. Influenced by the French New Wave, bent through the prism of Hong Kong cinema, his is a stylish and unique vision. “Wong belongs to the mid-1980s Second New Wave of Hong Kong filmmakers who continued to develop the innovative and fresh aesthetic initiated by the original New Wave (Wright 2002)”. To understand how Wong achieved this cult status and why certain elements of his films such as time bear significance, it is important to discuss the history from which he grew as they are both linked. Collaborating with well known directors such as Patrick Tam in the early 1980’s, writing scripts and assisting in direction, Wong learnt from his masters and established himself as one of the second new wave of Hong Kong filmmakers living at a time when issues such as Hong Kong’s transfer to China were foremost. Back in 1984 when the Sino-British agreement was drawn charting a plan to handover Hong Kong to mainland China, the uncertainty surrounding this issue forced Hong Kong’s residents as well as its filmmakers to examine this subject in depth. Rather than condemning the take over, the filmmakers sought to explore this previously un-chartered subject, seeking to introspect instead of criticizing. This was the moment when Hong Kong cinema matured and carried forward to the second new wave of filmmakers. In his films Wong essentially captures the cultural identity of Hong Kong which was dual in nature. “The cinema of Hong Kong reflects this notion of a dual identity, combining to create a third, localised identity (Wright 2002).” This duality arose from Hong Kong’s close proximity to China whose cultural identity is vastly different and bore a significant impact to Hong Kong. But Hong Kong’s history of being associated with western culture, absorbing the western way of free life, gave it a new identity which tried to mingle and sit well with its old identity. And Hong Kong films particularly from directors such as Wong Kar-wai, echo this dual identity. “Hong Kong released a few art films that found their way into film festivals. Chungking Express (1994) directed by Wong Kar-wai, became a cult hit (Bordwell 2000).” Hong Kong cinema is both a popular cinema and a cinema of auteurs with directors such as Wong Kar-Wai gaining local as well as international acclaim. In the United States, Hong Kong cinema is seen as cinema of blazing passions. But it is much more. It is cinema that responds to a specific historical situation, what some authors call a space of disappearance where imperialism and globalism overlap with each other. “Hong Kong films are characterized by comic book style images, hyperkinetic quick cuts and mind-blowing storylines. Unlike American films, Hong Kong films are produced in an assembly-line manner (Abbas 2005 p.18).” They are also more immediate and more like “pure cinema”. The films, especially kung-fu retained a degree of athleticism that were the hallmark of the old Hollywood and the era of Buster Keaton and Douglas Fairbanks. “Wong Kar-wai’s films generally favor detail over totality and the part over the whole. His narrative is usually made up of pieces that never add up to the over big picture and sometimes particularly in Chunking Express, the different narrative parts are juxtaposed and other times interwoven (Lalanne 1997).” Along with Wong’s other films such as Day of Being Wild, Happy Together, In the Mood for Love and Fallen Angels, Chungking Express also focuses on the chance nature of romance and the concept of the ‘missed moment’. This is the highlight of Wong’s cinematic composition. The arbitrary crossing of paths of his protagonists is projected in his narrative. In his films, Wong Kar Wai explores what Theodor Adorno thought to be primary to happiness. “To happiness, the same applies as to truth: one does not have it, but is in it.” (Adorno) In other words, happiness and love are felt strongest in their denial, or absence. They lie just beyond our grasp, as eternal dreams, because they exist most presently in our memory. Love is not a state of being, rather something we work towards. As Chungking Express’s cops realize, love is not something we can control, discipline, or manipulate. Chungking Express tells two stories about four individuals who try to connect or split in Hong Kong. The story begins with each cop nursing his wounds – not after solving a crime case, but from being dumped by the women in their lives. Whereas their jobs demand power, control, discipline, and manipulation of others, the film shows the loneliness and longing that depict their private lives. Wong shows that the success of their jobs depends on their inner space being filled. Their longing to fulfill their desires eventually prompts them both to fall in love with criminals and betray their jobs. The protagonists are portrayed as having displaced identities or alienated in some way. The first story in Chungking Express is about an undercover cop and his emotional involvement with a drug moll who constantly wears dark sunglasses even in the dark alleyway in the crime prone area of the city. Recuperating from a failed affair, he hangs around at convenience stores trying unsuccessfully to reacquaint with ex-girlfriends and other casual female friends. He develops strange quirks; “eating large quantities of canned food having the same expiry date as his birthday (Leong 2002)”, and talking to dish rags. He makes himself a promise – to fall for the first lady to enter a bar her frequents. She happens to be the drug moll with the dark glasses. The second story is about another policeman who is the object of obsession by a fast-food waitress. She manages to enter his disorganized apartment filled with memories of his air-hostess ex-girlfriend, and goes about rearranging the cop’s home with child like glee. Her character is in total contrast with Lin Ching-hisa portrayal of a drug moll who is in constant tension over the threat of a killer for messing up a previous drugs consignment. Wong deftly gives the impression of time running out for her as she is always looking over her shoulder as though time and death are catching up with her. Wong conveys this as a metaphor, likening it to Hong Kong’s nervousness over the impending hand over to China and the possibility that it could spell doom for its residents. There are repeated visuals of clocks in various points in the movie highlighting that the expiry date is approaching. This film was made in 1994 just a few years before the date of the hand over which was May 1st 1997. “Chungking Express rather than being a story, appears as a succession of soliloquies (Lusby 2004)” – dialogue where a character talks to him or herself or reveals his or her inner thoughts without addressing a listener. There are common threads of pointlessness, emptiness, lost love in an environment where connections appear to be fragile and undependable in almost every instance. The film is mainly about dead time, that period between occasions of activity such as eating fast food, conversing with a friend, engaging career oriented action, all of which can happen for a few minutes or a matter of seconds. But it is the time when nothing much happens, that Wong concentrates on. His camera focuses on the peculiar acts or behaviors of his “characters waiting for something to come along and transform their lives (Romney 1995).” Wong’s preoccupation with capturing time or ‘the moment’ continues with In the Mood for Love which is believed to be Wong’s second installment of Days of Being Wild, his homage to the 1960’s. Days of Being Wild stirs emotions and desires through unspoken words and the hint of possibilities. Time is constantly referred to through frequent camera shots of ticking clocks. This evokes the sense of time running out or its fleeting nature as well as its indefinable quality. At one point when the protagonists meet, Yuddy tells Maggie Cheung’s character, “let’s be friends for one minute” (Wright 2002). How they spend that one minute is what lingers in memory. In the Mood for Love also highlights the uniform but transient nature of time. In the Mood for Love is a romance melodrama, which tells the story of a married man, played by Tony Leung, and a married woman, played by Maggie Cheung, living in rented rooms of neighboring apartments . “After learning that Chows wife is having an affair with Li-zhens husband, the two become close friends, and the attachment between them grows into something deeper and more lasting than a casual liaison (Berardinelli 2001).” Perhaps out of ethical concerns they appear not to consummate their uncertain affair. “As Maggie Cheungs character says, "We will never be like them!" referring to the off-screen but apparently heated affair of their respective spouses. (Teo 2005)” Their affair Cheung takes on an air of mystery affected by premonitions of destiny and missed chance. It appears to be a platonic relationship based on mutual solace and melancholy evolving from their respective spouse’s unfaithfulness. They question their own relationship, whether it is love, desire or just a way of turning to each other for comfort at a difficult time. In the Mood for Love is about sexual desire or and moral self-control. The film recreates the past (1962) showing only the bare outlines of Hong Kong. Wong shot the film in Bangkok, since the seedy alley ways and sidestreets where the protagonists secretly meet, have long since disappeared from Hong Kong. But he successfully evokes that time and place. As with his other movies there are persistent shots of clocks and time elapsing which are Wong’s trademark. The camera descends from a giant Siemens clock hanging overhead in Maggie Cheung’s workplace to catch her in a contemplative moment. He uses similar motifs to capture the essence of time in most of his movies. In the Mood for Love is a visual treat where every image carries meaning – every sidelong glance, a wisp of cigarette smoke rising in slow motion has a distinctive coil. “Wong Kar-Wai has managed to make his most accomplished film by mixing his usual bag of tricks; the film features less voiceover, no time-shifting, and even less moving camera than his previous works (Kozo 2000).” Letting the actors and situations tell the story, this film becomes quite moving in a quiet restrained way. In all of Wong’s films, there is the constant notion of time and his obsession in encapsulating time is frequently apparent. His camera work hovers on particular moments of a scene and there is a focus on discovering differences in repetitive everyday acts. In Chungking Express, the offices of both Chow and Su Li-zhen are dominated with wall clocks. Wong’s camera frequently “studies the stark black and white face of the clock as it attempts to capture the time that is constantly advancing (Wright 2002).” Mentioned earlier, another example where the director features time prominently in his movie is at the beginning when one of the police officers, Cop #233 played by Takeshi Kaneshiro, compulsively eats from cans of pineapple with the expiry date of the 1st of May. It is as though Wong fears that Hong Kong’s cultural identity will be lost forever once the nation is transferred to the hands of the Chinese and therefore one must ‘enjoy’ Hong Kong’s rich offerings before time runs out. The cop is convinced that everything has an expiry date including love. What director Wong conveys to the audience is the temporary quality of all things, that nothing lasts forever and the inevitability that everything must come to an end is foremost in the minds of the characters. “In his other movies too, Fallen Angels, the hit man Wong (Leon Lai-ming) says, “I do not know who these people are and I do not care, soon they will be history”. In Happy Together, Wong captures the period of Hong Kong’s return to China. (Wright 2002)” His movie links time and memory which are in turn linked to the character’s personal history. His characters, despite living in the moment are dragged down by their own desperate attempts to seek stability in their life. The characters have no solid roots and have a distressing personal history and are compelled to invent their own through their affections and careers. In this respect Wong captures and recognizes that importance and weight of history particularly for the residents of Hong Kong in transition. Another feature his films observe is the overpowering and all encompassing theme of technology and modernity that the characters must come to terms with and establish themselves as part of the times. In their struggles to find justification and clarity in their lives, they often reveal themselves as having splintered personalities. “Throughout each film, the viewer is presented with a constantly flowing pastiche or disjunction of cultural iconography (Bautch 2003).” As Hong Kong is an intersection where several cultural influences interact, merge, and conflict, so are Wong’s films littered with contrasting cultural signifiers that interact, merge, and conflict. Wong’s chief themes are time, memory and death wish - the latter is embodied in As Tears go by and Days of Being Wild. In Chungking Express the same themes are revisited and reinforcing his emigration complex through Faye Wong character. Director Wong also shows that he is capable of creating fast paced action scenes that are well paced and choreographed with great precision. Sometimes the used of slow motion gives a hypnotic effect and the hand-held camera gives added effect. Wong captures the fast paced Hong Kong life as citizens go about their daily life. He achieves this by opening the movie with fast and furious camera work, rushing scenes as they capture the bits and pieces of street life and some of the sleazy inhabitants. It’s as though he is parodying the postcard images, brochures and advertisements that have made Hong Kong so popular. He paints the city using the expertise of cinematographer Chris Doyle, as moody compositions, textured with dark hues, with neon lights and sign boards advertising the city’s lust for commercialism and social interactions. Almost constant hand-held filming and slow-motion sequences create not only unexpected realism but also a mesmerizing atmosphere. The story is very human seems to deal with fear of urban loneliness. The creation of the mood is reminiscent of and may be partly inspired by Ridley Scott’s Blade Runner. The movie has less traditional action and is more character based with thematic explorations rather than a plot. The examination of the similarities and differences in the ways humans communicate and interact are visualized quite well presented. Every day, a person can come into contact with many others some of who may be passers by on the street with little or no social interaction other than brief eye contact, while others we may meet face to face. “Wong believes that, while every persons narrative has a percentage of singular elements, theres always a certain commonality that falls under the broad umbrella of the "human experience." (Berardinelli 1996).” Many aspects of life are common to all with individuals falling into repetitive patterns of behavior and it doesn’t matter who we are talking about, whether a Hong Kong gangster, an American Business or a policeman. In Wong Kar-wai’s films images flash across the screen, appear and disappear before the viewer’s eyes in quick flashes of recognition. “These images do not seem to be highly planned but incidental; the perfect shot decided upon at the time of shooting. This might lead some to believe that these shots, and the aesthetics they present, are merely accidental, and thus lacking in any significant meaning (Bautch 2003).” In fact the opposite is true. Every shot in Chungking Express, Fallen Angels, and Happy Together, seems to be essential, whether incidental, improvised or planned. No shot can be cut as the film’s theme is carried with each shot. Wong’s skill as an improvisationist seems stamped by the fact that the shots are not pre-planned. Compared to Hitchcock and Kubrick who took two weeks to plan a shot, Wong amazes us with his astounding ability to put a deeply meaningful shot together on the spot. Chungking Express excessively and repetitively uses westernized hit songs. It appears as though the movie is aimed at a mainly western audience but Wong probably tries to emphasize that some Hong Kong residents are too influenced by American culture. Fallen Angels too has American-style music but the use is more applicable and subtle. The music Wong employs, come from different parts of the world. In Chungking Express a reggae song is repeatedly used as well as the Mamma’s And The Pappa’s hit “California Dreamin’.” To reflect the Indian culture’s presence in Hong Kong, Wong uses Indian music momentarily. “Like the use of language, these musical selections signify different cultural influences. Juxtaposing these songs in each film thus signifies the heterogeneity of cultural influences affecting these characters. Indeed, through the way these songs are positioned in each film, there even seems to be a confusion of cultural distinction (Bautch 2003).” Chungking Express has an example of this - the Chinese rendering of a Cranberries song. Recurring shots of jukeboxes are a feature in both Chungking Express and Fallen Angels. The jukebox image forms a visual equivalent of the manner in which the songs are being used. The jukebox is a unit where music of all styles and influences can converge and be played over and over from the same group of speakers. “The colors of the jukeboxes, the way they are shot, seem to mimic the colors and aesthetics of the shots of the street (Bautch 2003)”. From this one can observe similarities between the diverse cultural influences of the street and the diverse musical influences from the jukebox. During an interview on Happy Together, “Wong’s cinematographer Chris Doyle on all three films, recalls how “one day, after we’d been in Buenos Aires for six months, Wong suddenly said to me, ‘Buenos Aires is like a grid. The streets are all parallel…Therefore, this film must be a grid…(Bautch 2003)” Wong clearly demonstrates the importance of the culture and physical environment in shaping a film. The film thus becomes a mirror image of that environment, and its influences. This is another example of the aesthetics the film presents. “Like John Woo, Tsui Hark, and other directors who learned their craft in Hong Kong, Wong infuses his films with style and energy (Berardinelli 1996).” Although using hand held cameras give his films a low budget feel, the result turns out to be very engaging cinema where themes are emphasized by visual images. The sensibilities of Eastern culture have never been more amplified than in the films of Wong Kar-wai. Whether he is working on a gangster or martial arts film or making movies that reflect the emotion and cultural mind set of a nation in transition, using alienated lovers and lonely drifters, he stamps his mark of individuality on all his movies. Through the characters he presents the real picture of life in the city, of lonely people trying to find happiness, closure and meaning in a convoluted and confusing world. His adeptness at conveying time in his films is remarkably similar to the way another auteur, Alfred Hitchcock used tension in his films. It is for this reason Wong Kar-wai is regarded as the auteur of time. References Abbas, Ackbar & M.A. (1997). Hong Kong: Culture and the Politics of Disappearance. University of Minnesota Press. p. 16 and 17. Adorno, Theodor (2006). Brainy Quote. Retrieved 1-5-06 from http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/t/theodor_adorno.html Andrew (2006). A Few Clumsy Passes at Wong Kar-wai. Lucid Screening. Retrieved 29-4-06 from http://www.lucidscreening.com/2006/03/wong_kar_wai.html Bautch, Matt (2003). The Cultural Aesthetic of Wong Kar-wai. Latent Image. Retrieved 29-4-06 from http://pages.emerson.edu/organizations/fas/latent_image/issues/2003-07/wong_kar_wai.htm Berardinelli, James (1996). Chungking Express. Movie Reviews. Retrieved 28-4-06 from http://movie-reviews.colossus.net/movies/c/chungking.html Berardinelli, James (2001). In the Mood for Love. Movie Reviews. Retrieved 3-5-06 from http://movie-reviews.colossus.net/movies/i/in_mood.html Bordwell, David (2000). Planet Hong Kong : Popular Cinema and the Art of Entertainment. Harvard University Press. p. 6. Kozo (2000) In the Mood for Love. Love HK Film. Retrieved 3-5-06 from http://www.lovehkfilm.com/reviews/in_the_mood_for_love.htm Kozo. Chungking Express. Love HK Film. Retrieved 29-4-06 from http://www.lovehkfilm.com/reviews/chungking_express.htm Lalanne, Jean-Marc (1997). Wong Kar-wai. Dis Voir. p. 9, 10 Leong, Toh Hai (2002). Wong Kar-wai. Time, Memory, Identity. Kinema. Retrieved 30-4-06 from http://kinema.uwaterloo.ca/toh951.htm Lusby, Jo (2004). Chungking Express. City Weekend. Retrieved 1-5-06 from http://www.cityweekend.com.cn/en/beijing/features/2002_19/Review_Chungking Mitchell, Elvis and Christley, Jaime N. (2000) In the Mood for Love. Coldbacon. Retrieved 3-5-06 from http://www.coldbacon.com/movies/wkw-imfl.html Romney, Jonathan (1995). Chungking Express. Guardian Unlimited. Retrieved 30-4-06 from http://film.guardian.co.uk/News_Story/Critic_Review/Guardian_Film_of_the_week/0,,558510,00.html Teo, Stephen (2004). Wong Kar-wai. Kamera. Retrieved 1-5-06 from http://www.kamera.co.uk/books/wong_kar_wai_auteur_of_time.php Teo, Stephen (2005). Wong Kar-wai’s In the Mood for Love: Like a Ritual in Transifgured Time. Retrieved 1-5-06 from http://www.sensesofcinema.com/contents/01/13/mood.html Wright, Elizabeth (2002). Wong Kar-wai. Sense of Cinema. Retrieved 28-4-06 from http://www.sensesofcinema.com/contents/directors/02/wong.html Read More