Lust, Caution (2007)

🌶🌶🌶dramahistoricalromancethrillerchinese

Nov 7

Love is a tough pill to swallow.

Presentation:

Ang Lee presents a very unique experience of an erotic Chinese spy thriller. It is a Chinese film but seemingly somewhat catered toward western audiences with the music choice, which I found to be distractingly too sleuthy. The film is impressively shot with great camera work and a beautiful grade. Pacing is a bit slow, but ramps up about a third of the way through. It also has some of the most explicit sex scenes in cinema, which is profoundly shocking for the naive characters. An extremely sophisticated script, Tony Leung utilizes a lot of the sexual subtlety as In the Mood for Love and I actually found it more powerful here. His neuroticism feels real and intricate, however I can’t say the same for the female lead. She has the innocence, but lacks a bit of gravitas to pull of the demanding emotions required for her complex character. A slow start to a steamy middle to a head scratching ending. The film has some of the sensibilities of Jean-Pierre Melville, but the modern presentation makes it hard to pull off the subtle delivery.

Story:

The film is about the desire for love particularly that Chinese women never receive in their life. This is a very meaningful topic in modern China, but the film barely scratches the surface of this only implementing a few scenes. Perhaps because I am a man, this connection wasn't immediately apparent to me unlike Chili whom was watching by my side. All I had to go on was two offhanded comments in passing mentioning that Wong Chia Chi's father has abandoned her and won't take her to London. If you take out these pieces of dialogue, I don't think there is any connection to be made about the abdonment of women in society. Regardless, all the themes of lust, desire, loyalty are subtlely executed in a tasteful way that never feel didactic or in your face, to general audience's detriment. I suppose that's why you're looking at the analysis for this film. As someone that is not particularly fond of this kind of romance, I also didn't think the main character's motivations for betraying the resistance was developed. It felt shocking in a "why the fuck" rather than "what the fuck" kind of way. There are some ridiculous moments that we can forgive because they are young college students like the sloppy hosue murder, but then we have to suspend belief that she can be a professional seducer. But ultimately the film hinges on the performance of Wong Chia Chi. I personally didn't buy it. She had a lot on her shoulders especially for an actress that wasn't even auditioning for the part. This inexperience allowed for believable naivety but meant weak execution for when the character was required to portray a turning point in motivations. Rough sex and a shiny ring is all it takes for you to fall in love, sabotage your team and your life. It's important to note that once she exposes herself she abandons the suicide pill. Perhaps she accepts her fate, or maybe she really thought she would receive mercy out of love.

Analysis:

This film attempts to explore the abandonment of women in Chinese society. Due to patriarchy and son preference in Chinese culture, many young girls do not receive any love and attention. They are even aborted or discarded if not possible, which has led to legislation making ultrasounds forbidden for pregnant women to determine the sex of the baby. Even today, women are often seen as baby making machines to be the maiden of the household, often to be married off, not carrying the family name. They also do not inherit family wealth. It's only very clear living in China, where you can understand the psychological traumas women face as a consequences of these societal preferences.

Conclusion:

The film is inviting for western audiences, but I can’t imagine anyone understanding the deep nuances of the film unless they are well versed in Chinese culture. But for those that can digest a well told yet exotically foreign ideas, this could be considered a spectacle to be analyzed and discussed. Similar in execution to Army of Shadows with some of sexual mastery of In the Mood for Love. If you liked these film, you certainly should love this one.

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