Rating: 
Summary: Wong Kar-Wai: The Next Stanley Kubrick
Review: Now when did they stop making movies like this? No really, I haven't seen a movie this good since, well, Kubrick. In the Mood is a masterpiece for so many reasons, the most obvious being the sheer beauty of the film. Wong Kar-Wai's camera immortalizes everything in frame, from cigarette smoke to droplets of rain, from noodle steam to the grill of a small metal fan. And unlike the oppressive floating bag speech in American Beauty, In the Mood just shows you the damn beauty without the instructions. And what about that dress she had on during the umbrella scene? Hey now. And the narrow red hallway in that hotel. That was just so Shining. And the music? It proved once and for all that you don't need Yo-Yo Ma to have a good cello soundtrack. Now you could argue that there's just too much beauty, too much music and slow motion, not enough kung fu flying.... If you're going to make that argument, I guess you win. The next of WKS's talents is the ability to move the camera. It's not as if lots of other directors don't do this. They do, but the results are often bad. But with the help of Christ Doyle, long time colleague and camera savant, WKW does it in a way that recalls masters like Hitchcock and Welles. The next point of praise would be the humor. Any great film should provide a fair chunk of humor. The bit about the drunken master being 'written in' satisfied this criteria and recognized the serendipity involved in the creative process. A great film should also have surprises. I think I was fooled multiple times by those play rehearsals. And that little slap she gave there was truly an exquisite cinematic moment. Also, the friend (who deals with his problems the sensible way, by going to a brothel) was an amusing contrast to the restraint of the two unlovers just like the simple minded little quail in The Chuang Tzu. Finally, WKW not only chooses a theme with universal importance, the struggle between repression and indulgence, but he handles it with fairness and consistency. Upon seeing the film, a Western response might be to rail against a repressive society for making it hard for these two good-looking people to exercise their love, so we can watch. But In the Mood is great because it doesn't take sides, or if it does, at least it doesn't force you to choose. But it is that repression which is internalized that is more compelling for American viewers, where one is not actually prevented, but rather is pressured almost, at least in popular theory, to run off with whomever one's family dislikes the most. It is this conflict between personal restraint (one Big Mac) and indulgence (two Big Macs) that speaks to at least six or seven American viewers, holdouts. So if you must rail, you might just as well rail at the characters themselves and not China or the Capulets or what have you. But please, go easy on a man. It's hard sometimes. But before you go selling traditional etiquette down the Yangtze, think of its up side. Consider how you applauded [Tony] for insisting the guy keep the present toward the end. That was your enemy you just applauded for. And consider your own love life. Don't you feel better about yourself when you can keep it to a little good night kiss at the end? I know I would. Herein lies the duality of this beautiful issue, which is faithfully represented throughout the film. On the one hand, everyone who's anyone openly mourns the death of etiquette. But at the same time, nobody is rushing to give up any of the freedoms that have replaced it. Wong Kar-Wai's film does what the media no longer can, which is present both faces of an issue and let the viewer make an informed decision, some time or times later, of course, when the storm has cleared. Also, for the first time in as long as I can remember, we have a movie where the characters behave consistently. The final move in going to Angor Wat (and in keeping it to himself) is by no means mere eye candy or some sort of contrivance for tears, but it is a logical continuation of the same behavior that brought him to that point. But we still must not blame him, but either empathize or pity him depending on our own experience. Wong Kar-Wai contains many of the best elements of Hitchock and Welles (great camera skills), Kubrick (for pushing a distinct style and vision to the edge of), Eric Rohmer (maximum human interest), Peter Greenaway (indulgent, rich, colorful), the French New Wave (because he studied Godard) and probably many others. I can't wait for his next film. No, really, I can't. WKW could be the next great director to come along since Kubrick.
Rating:
Summary: Exquisite, haunting.
Review: Rarely does a film have the power to move me the way that this film has. The moments of terse dialogue are interspersed with a powerful artistic vision of Hong Kong in the 1960's. One feels so much sympathy for the characters not just becuase of our insight into their world, but because the director succesfully draws us into his vision. Every facet of the film is delightful to behold, and every aspect of the story is agonizing feel a part of.
Rating:
Summary: The Forgotten Moods of Love
Review: "In the Mood for Love" is a timely reminder that film is a powerful medium for expressing things that words cannot. "In the Mood for Love" is an evocation of the 'love moods' so often neglected in other films but which are, as anyone who has been fallen in or out of love knows, a major part of the whole 'love' experience. Love is not only laughter and clichés. As this film beautifully shows the moods of love also include loneliness, doubt, longing, and regret. The world of love (and everyday life for that matter) is a world of awkward moments, trivial exchanges, half-truths, play acting, missed opportunities and silences. The strength of the film is that it evokes these quiet moods and moments with great skill. The film reminds us that it is in these little moments that the true poetry of human existence can be found and indeed "In the Mood for Love" should be viewed as a cinematic poem. Like the great films of Alfred Hitchcock, Jacques Tati and Peter Greenaway, and the writing of Georges Perec, "In the Mood for Love" is obsessively detailed and meticulously constructed. It is as much an intellectual exercise as an emotional one, and those who are willing to take up the challenge - who are willing, for example, to think about the repetition of images and the use of reflections throughout the film - will be richly rewarded. For anyone interested in the craft of film, "In the Mood for Love" is rewarding for still more reasons. The way individual scenes have been put together, the thoughtful movement of the camera, the framing of the shots and the overall constructon of the film is nothing short of masterful, with each element adding meaning to the finished product and avoiding mere 'showiness'. It reminds us that digital effects, erratic camera movements, pedestrian framing and fast formulaic editing is not the only way of doing things. Finally, one could not end a review of "In the Mood For Love" without mentioning Maggie Cheung's incredible screen presence. She must surely be one of this era's most striking actors, both in terms of her appearance and her acting abilities. If you are interested in intelligent film making, if you appreciate the invitation to think, or if you have an appreciation for life's little moments of quiet poetry, then this is the film for you.
Rating:
Summary: Nostalgia!
Review: This movie is sleek and sexy. The nostalgia quality is overwhelming for me, as the set up , the costume, the hairstyle and music reminds me so much of the time when my own mom and dad were dating (from their photoalbum ). Wong Karwai's style of direction is this movie is something new viewers will have to get use to. Not to mention, Maggie Cheung is very beautiful and sexy and Tony leong is a hot and handsome devil. This film have won many international film festival awards, and the 2 actors respectively won the best actor and best actress award. A definitive romantic arthouse movie.
Rating: 
Summary: Don't be fooled- worst film EVER!
Review: All of the positive reviews will tell you one thing-- this film is visually stunning. Sure enough, the *look* of the film is good, but that is all that is good. This film was shot without a script, and as a result, it was shot without a PLOT too. In the film, two neighbors complain about their cheating, off-screen spouses. That's it. The film has a very slow pace. The soundtrack is repetitive and tortuous. Nothing more to be said on that point-- the music is bad and re-used all too often. Don't take my word for this. Read the other reviews. Read them closely. Ask yourself, what am I being told about this film? People will rave about this film; they will talk about setting and style a lot, but if you pay attention, you'll realize that they never mention anything really HAPPENING in the film. Plot evolution and score will not usually be mentioned in a positive review of this film. This is not to say that I don't like "art" films. I just don't like *this* art film. Rent _Love Serenade_ instead.
Rating:
Summary: A Truly International Film
Review: This is a tale of how delicate love can be even in exceptional circumstances. Ironically the Latin soundtrack fits the mood perfectly and the film has a virtual flavor about it. A great date film. Beautiful cinematography. A first rate film all around.
Rating:
Summary: in the mood for a masterpiece
Review: Wong Kar Wai does it again. This time the movies concentrates on the interraction between two jaded neighbors. Jaded because they discover that their spouses are having an affair with eachother. As the affair becomes more apparent, they found comfort in eachother, and eventually find that their company becomes more meaningful than pleutonic. Their yearning to be together is so much that they eventually accept to separate, to not immitate their own spouses' disloyalty to their own marriages. Everything about this movie is subtle - the discovery of the affair, the walk down the stairwell to get noodles, the lighting, the tone, the music, the camera angles. It makes for a lovely must-see masterpiece.
Rating:
Summary: In the Mood for Love
Review: I was bereaved with this movie when I first saw it ; but then I was seated too much in the front of the theater. So I went to see it a second time, and it was (of course) even better. A masterpiece - well, maybe not (it's hard to be a masterpiece), but one of the best flicks I've seen in let us say ten years (and for the cognoscenti, definitely go and see "Le Fabuleux Destin d'Amelie Poulain" if it shows near ; you will be intoxicated !). I cannot wait until the DVD is published. So much has to be learned from the dresses of Maggie Cheung and of the chronology ; not naming the fabulous sound track... If you know China, or Hong Kong, or, to put it short, CINEMA : go to see that film and ENJOY !!!
Rating: 
Summary: A mood built on human intricacy
Review: The story happened in a limited space, two neighbour in adjacent houses, with the two main characters having limited acquaintance. The arrangement of the story confined to the same places, same people and same instance, like the house lords always playing majong and Maggie Cheung going out to buy noodles, gives rise to a sort of simple and routine life against deep boring feeling. Falling in love with people close to one's life under this circumstance seems to be natural and the kind of natural feeling is as pure as the thought of the people living in that age of 60's. This reminds the audience how complicated we're now living in the 21st century. There is a strong implication of the comparison between the characters, behaviour and thoughts between people of the old age and the present time. They were pure but lack of courage while we are brave, strong yet confused now. When you read further, you see this might not be necessarily a comparison of people of different ages. The age only sets a perimeter in thoughts of people. It could be as simple as the difference of basic human characters and their consequent behaviour that determines the result eventually, not the age, not the environment. Tony Leung and Maggie Cheung were trying to experience the relationship their wife and husband had had when they first started together, something that made their heart broken, they hated and would not accept. When they went on, the passion between them surfaced and though they tried hard to suppress it, at the end they had to admit they both loved each other and wouldn't want to separate. Something they hated in the beginning turned into something they recognised. They refused because the perimeter they're living in didn't allow this relationship. They subordinated their true passion to this perimeter rather than choosing their own life following their desire inside. The monologue by both of them when Tony decided to go to Singapore, "if there is one more boat ticket, would you go with me (take me with you) ?" represented their strong suppressed desire trying to have everything happened explained as fate while actually it's their characters which determined what their life to be. Comparing with their wife and husband, they're living in a cowardly world and this experience made them really confused being first time seeing things in 2 extremes - be faithful to one's thought but weak, or be strong, passionate and ignore any norm of control. Obviously we've seen some significant change in the style of this movie from other Wong Kar Wai previous works. He's given up his "patented" Voice-over approach in telling the story and instead adopted the way of letting message out in wording form like an poem both at the beginning and the end of the movie. There are far more long shots used to replace his usual speedy-edit hand-held shots. It is something you never feel strange to see from some Taiwanese directors' movies but never will one think of from Wong Kar Wai's. The framing of the shots in particular have enough power to express the "limited" situation the people are in through the precise positioning against proportion of people and objects in a tightened up close-up, epsecially those indoor shots,. The design of the cinematography has a high degree of artistry. I doubt whether this should be attributed partly to the contribution by one of the photographers, Derek Yu, who was the director of the movie "Love will tear us apart". The main background music is another credit I have to give to the movie. It stretches audience hearts by pulling the confusion of the characters in the movie together through the entanglement sound of the music. The use of very strong "Red" color as the background color for the credit title both at the beginning and the end of the movie seems to me like blood or something reminds of death under power. I simply don't like them.
Rating:
Summary: It's all mood - thank heavens for that
Review: Everybody knows what the film is about - or else you can read about it in the worthy reviews here and elsewhere - so let me share a thought. A friend of mine saw the film nearly at the same time I saw it, and sent me an e-mail: "I am so smitten by Maggie Cheung". I thought about it for sometime and replied back: "I think you are smitten by the idea of being smitten by Maggie Cheung". He agreed.
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