Chung Hing sam lam / Chungking Express (1994) - Lonesome Lovers Meeting in the Big City Life - 7/10 (11/10/24)

Chungking Express, originally known as Chung Hing sam lam, is Wong Kar-wai's third feature film to be released and fourth feature film to be made. This romantic drama has been critically acclaimed and can be considered the director's international breakthrough. This movie includes numerous characteristic elements of his previous films such as a strong focus on character development, slice-of-life elements combining different genres and overlapping storylines that don't necessarily have clear beginnings and endings.

It would be most appropriate to call this film a romantic drama. The first story revolves around young police officer He Qiwu who is dumped by his girlfriend. He decides to wait an entire month to see whether she changes her mind. When this doesn't happen, he approaches a mysterious woman in a blonde wig in a girlie bar who turns out to be a drug dealer who has been set up by a drug baron.

The second story revolves around a cop who is about ten years older than his colleague and who also has to deal with a difficult breakup. His former girlfriend is a flight attendant who values her profession over her relationship. When she leaves a letter with a key to his apartment at his favourite restaurant, a new employee starts developing feelings for the cop and secretly visits his apartment to clean and decorate it. When the two finally decide to go on a date, the young employee suddenly decides to leave for California to become a flight attendant.

This movie impresses for several reasons. First and foremost, the characters are detailed, profound and unique as viewers will easily empathize with them. It's fascinating to observe their developments and relations. Since we are not told everything by the director, this movie invites us to figure out the rest by ourselves. It's refreshing to get such a unique script that takes its viewers seriously.

The settings are also memorable. Once again, Wong Kar-wai manages to bring British Hong Kong in the mid-nineties to life. We get to observe the location's big city life where lives of human beings of many different backgrounds intertwine. The titular restaurant, the girlie bar and the second cop's apartment are locations that any viewer could possibly discover which makes it easy to empathize with the two stories that are being told.

Last but not least, one has to point out the excellent acting throughout the movie and I have to point out Faye Wong who plays the restaurant's employee in particular. Her curious, mild and naive manners strike a chord with viewers. Her passion for animals, food and music is inspiring. The way she behaves, dresses and takes care of herself and others shows a unique human being with much depth. The fact that Faye Wong contributed to the soundtrack of this film makes the connection between the artist and the audience even greater. Faye Wong truly shines in this movie and I would recommend watching this film just for seeing an excellent artist at work.

As usual, even this critically acclaimed romantic drama isn't without its flaws. The first story only covers about one third of the movie and should have been developed further in my humble opinion. This story line ends without a proper conclusion and the two interesting characters would have deserved to be fleshed out even further.

The second story on the other hand slightly overstays its welcome. Especially its middle section includes some unnecessary repetition. The movie is thus a tiny little bit too long. It would work even better if it had been cut by about twenty minutes.

At the end of the day, Chungking Express offers Wong Kar-wai's typical trademarks and stands out thanks to Faye Wong's astonishing participation as a gifted actress and a unique singer. I wouldn't go as far to say that this is Wong Kar-wai's greatest feature film. It rather underlines the director's consistency as this movie has the same very good quality as the preceding As Tears Go By, Days of Being Wild and Ashes of Time. It truly is a matter of detailed personal preferences whether you appreciate this movie most or any other of the three films shot beforehand. My best advice would be to watch all four movies if you are interested in realistic dramas set in British Hong Kong of the late eighties and early nineties.