Fa yeung nin wa (2000)

User Rating:

8.1/10   

Director:

Kar Wai Wong

Writer:

Kar Wai Wong (written by)

Release Date:

26 February 2001 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Romance

Tagline:

Feel the heat, keep the feeling burning, let the sensation explode.

Plot:

A man and a woman move in to neighboring Hong Kong apartments and form a bond when they both suspect their spouses of extra-marital activities.

Plot Keywords:

Hong Kong | Newspaper | Apartment | Japan | What Happened To Epilogue

Awards:

Nominated for BAFTA Film Award. Another 31 wins & 23 nominations

Cast

Maggie Cheung	...	Su Li-zhen - Mrs. Chan
Tony Leung Chiu Wai	...	Chow Mo-wan
Ping Lam Siu	...	Ah Ping
Tung Cho 'Joe' Cheung	...	Man living in Mr. Koo's apartment
Rebecca Pan	...	Mrs. Suen
Kelly Lai Chen	...	Mr. Ho (as Lai Chen)
Man-Lei Chan	...	Mr. Koo
Tsi-Ang Chin	...	Amah
Roy Cheung	...	Mr. Chan (voice)
Paulyn Sun	...	Mrs. Chow (voice)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Po-chun Chow
Kam-wah Koo
Hsien Yu
Julien Carbon	...	French tourist (uncredited)
Laurent Courtiaud	...	French reporter (uncredited)
Charles de Gaulle	...	Himself (1966 visit to Cambodia) (archive footage) (uncredited)

Directed by
Kar Wai Wong

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Kar Wai Wong		written by

Produced by
William Chang	....	associate producer
Ye-cheng Chan	....	executive producer
Gilles Ciment	....	co-executive producer
Jacky Pang Yee Wah	....	associate producer (as Jacky Pang Yee-Wah)
Kar Wai Wong	....	producer

Original Music by
Michael Galasso		(as Mike Galasso)
Shigeru Umebayashi

Cinematography by
Christopher Doyle
Pin Bing Lee		(as Mark Lee Ping-bin)

Film Editing by
William Chang

Production Design by
William Chang

Costume Design by
William Chang

Art Department
Ping Lam Siu	....	property master

Production Companies

• Block 2 Pictures
• Jet Tone Production
• Paradis Films

Distributors

• Artistas Argentinos Asociados (AAA) (2001) (Argentina) (theatrical)
• C-Films (2001) (Netherlands) (theatrical)
• Cinema Mondo (2001) (Finland) (theatrical)
• Filmcoopi Zürich (2000-2001) (Switzerland) (theatrical)
• Océan Films (2000) (France) (theatrical)
• Prokino Filmverleih (2000) (Germany) (theatrical)
• Solar Films (2004) (Philippines) (theatrical)
• Triangelfilm (2001) (Sweden) (theatrical)
• USA Films (2001) (USA) (theatrical) (subtitled)
• Amboto Audiovisual S.L. (Spain)
• C-sales Arthouse Video (2001) (Netherlands) (VHS)
• Criterion Collection, The (2004) (USA) (DVD)
• Criterion Film Corp. (DVD)
• Divisa Home Video (2004-2006) (Spain) (DVD)
• Mei Ah Entertainment (2001) (Hong Kong) (DVD)
• Shochiku Kinema Kenkyû-jo
• Transeuropa Video Entertainment (TVE) (2005) (Argentina) (DVD)
• Transeuropa Video Entertainment (TVE) (2005) (Argentina) (VHS)
• Universal Pictures (2001) (Germany) (DVD)
• Videoimpulse (2004) (Russia) (DVD)

Other Companies

• Asia Legend  opening title design
• Kantana Animation Co. Ltd.  film processing
• Kodak (Hong Kong) Ltd.  film supplied by
• Oriental Post Co. Ltd.  telecine
• Ramindra Sound Recording Studios  Dolby Digital sound mix
• Salon Films  equipment provided by
• True Technic Ltd.  sound re-recording

Also Known As:

In the Mood for Love (France) (Hong Kong: English title) (UK) (USA)
Beijing Summer (Hong Kong: English title) (working title)
Flower Like Years (Hong Kong: English title) (working title)
Hua yang nian hua (Hong Kong: Mandarin title)

MPAA:

Rated PG for thematic elements and brief language.

Runtime:

98 min | Poland:94 min

Country:

Hong Kong | France

Language:

Cantonese | Shanghainese | French

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Iceland:L | Malaysia:U | South Korea:15 | Argentina:Atp | Australia:G | Chile:TE | Finland:S | France:U | Germany:6 | Hong Kong:IIA | Ireland:PG | Netherlands:AL | Norway:A | Philippines:PG-13 | Singapore:PG | Spain:13 | Sweden:Btl | UK:PG | USA:PG

Filming Locations:

Bangkok, Thailand

Company:

Block 2 Pictures

Trivia:

During filming, Kar Wai Wong improvised often with the actors, crafting the story and mood of the film as he went along. Originally, "In the Mood for Love" was a much more obvious romance film, with the actors throwing witty dialog at each other and engaging in several scenes of love-making. Eventually, the actors and director decided to tone the mood down to the more subtle version that was released in theaters.

Goofs:

Continuity: Before Su Li-zhen bestowed her landlady with a electric rice cooker, there already was one sitting on the kitchen counter in an earlier scene.

Quotes:

Receptionist at 'Singapore Daily': [picks up phone] Hello, Singapore Daily.
[into phone]
Receptionist at 'Singapore Daily': Hold on.
[turns to room]
Receptionist at 'Singapore Daily': Mr. Chow, call for you.
Su Li-zhen Chan: [hurriedly arrives to pick up phone] Thanks!
[into phone]
Su Li-zhen Chan: Hello?
Su Li-zhen Chan: [cuts to Mrs. Chan holding phone, she remains silent]
Chow Mo-wan: [into phone] Hello?

Movie Connections:

References Chung Hing sam lam (1994)

Soundtrack:

Yumeji's Theme

A Beautiful, Melancholic and Romantic Love Story

In Hong Kong, 1962, the editor Chow Mo-wan (Tony Leung Chiu Wai) and his wife, and the secretary Su Li-Zhen Chan (Maggie Cheung) and her husband simultaneously move to an old building. Each couple has just rented a room in apartments on the same floor. Their wife and husband stay most of the time away from home, and Chow and Li-Zhen have the same habits: they like kung-fu stories and noodles and soap from a restaurant nearby the building. Their close contact becomes friendship and a sort of platonic and repressed love. Later they realize that their mates are having an affair, Chow falls in love with Li-Zhen, but her shyness and probably repressed condition of married woman keeps her love in a platonic level. 'In the Mood for Love' is a very slow, beautiful, melancholic and romantic love story, with a wonderful photography and soundtrack and a very unusual edition. The film had not had a screenplay, and the actors were never sure about what they would be shooting. Later, the director edited his story based on the footages. When Chow moves to Singapore, there is a gap of many years in the story until 1966, when its conclusion is intentionally open and not well defined, leaving questions such as who is the boy with Li-Zhen. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): 'Amor À Flor da Pele' ('Love on the Surface of the Skin')