Orchestrating the Perfect Love Affair: In the Mood for Love
The premise of Wong Kar Wai’s 2001 film, In the Mood for Love is simple: a man and a woman bond over the fact that their respective partners are cheating on them - with each other. What proceeds is a sequence of events depicting the protagonists pretending to be their significant others, with the goal of figuring out how they fell in love with each other.
What follows is a love story in which a simple game of understanding and empathy turns into a deep connection between two individuals who grow to love each other, despite the circumstances they find each other in. They are both heartbroken, with their partners cheating on them. The premise of the film, however, is infinitely enhanced by the directing and cinematography of the film. Colors, aesthetics, and camera point of view all play to our desire to root for the two protagonists, despite their hard efforts to not be like their significant partners. They are trying to be better people, but they end up falling in love. The film acknowledges that cheating is morally wrong, however, it suggests that despite the circumstances, the protagonists are meant to be together, because they understand each other. Thus, Wong Kar Wai and cinematographer, Christopher Doyle, are able to orchestrate the perfect love affair; a tender, deep and significant relationship that is deep in connection and in feeling, whose accents of romance are heightened not by physical touch but by the lingering chemistry between both protagonists.
Watching this film is like watching two people fall in love. As a viewer, you feel almost an intruder between these two - the camera position is continually overlooking the characters’ backs, following their footsteps as they go out for dinner, or take walks through empty alleyways. Whilst watching, you keep their secret, making sure the people in their apartment complex don’t find out about their little scheme; their sensual, non-physical connection. The protagonists long with their eyes, with the way they hide from others while reading martial arts stories. They elevate each other and listen to each other, and as viewers, we get to witness that. The camera angles create a sense of intuition. We are witnessing an affair, without all the elements of a typical affair.
The symmetry of scenes are carefully constructed to create the illusive effect of scenes framed within a frame, so that it feels like we are intruding on the characters. We are watching things from afar, slowly observing the dynamics of the protagonists, Mr. Chow and Mrs. Chan, and how they interact with their partners, (whom they undoubtedly loved before their affair began). The fact that Wong Kar Wai never shows us the faces of the partners demonstrates how the narrative of the film is solely focused on Mr. Chow and Mrs. Chan’s affair. We are viewing their world and their journey.
While there is technically a sequel that explores Mr. Chow’s inner conflicts more in detail after the end of the affair, the exploration of character is only possible by the limited and isolated - sometimes constrained - space in the frame. The camera constantly shows medium or close up shots, refraining from establishing shots, creating a feeling of crowdedness, thus simultaneously inviting an element of fear and curiosity. The frames are tainted in beautiful hues of red, which intensify with the passing of time; this is indicated by the many changes of Mrs. Chan’s Cheongsams, (she wears a different one in every scene!).
The pacing of the movie is experimental, skow, and it relies on its visuals more than its actions of a sentimental, driven plot. However, In the Mood for Love contrasts the perfect love affair by focusing explicitly on the growing relationship of two individuals, rather on the controversial issues that surround having an affair. This is an affair that breaks rules, and that leaves things to be desired. If you haven’t watched this film, I highly suggest to go at it with pure curiosity. You won’t get what you expect, but surely, you will garner a view of love that is rarely depicted in cinema. Paired with striking visuals of 1960’s Hong Kong, In the Mood for Love is what the title tells you it is. A mood for romance, pure love that focuses on the emotional, masked in a little game to know where in the world their desire to be loved went wrong.