Chung Hing sam lam / Chungking Express (Wong Kar Wai, 1994)

Two stories of policemen falling in and out of love.

I loved the story with Faye Wong - her character's carelessness and (slightly creepy) stalking of the police man she falls in love with is engaging to watch. Some people argued that this would be a horror movie if the genders would have been reversed, but I don't think that the film should be taken realistically anyway. I've seen it as a beautifully dreamed up fantasy about romance.

The other thing I noted that it's really funny. It has so many comedic overtones that ventured on the absurd. I enjoyed the policeman calling his former lovers, just to find somebody he could talk to. At one point he ends up calling a girl he went to fourth grade with - she obviously has not the slightest idea who he is. Another great moment is when the shop owner is supposed to deliver a "very personal" letter - and literally everybody in the shop gets to read it.

Also the side kicks were carefully cast and they too get their little moments of comedy. All the workers in the back of the take-away get one or two funny lines - and they don't feel cheesy. Maybe I would have found the whole film too cheesy if it hadn't been for the many subtle light moments.

I am not a big fan of "Avid slow motion" - unfortunately, the film is full of them. And although the colors already predict what's to come in later years, they are still on the 80s side. The editing is frantic, but not too fast for a story like that.

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