Film Redcafe Film Club, Week 3 - Chungking Express

[Ken Barlow]

Welcome to the third week!

This week our third member @Mystry has picked 4 films of their choice for you to vote on.

Please see post No. 2 for the details of the films.

The Rules:

* Only members votes will count
* If you’re not a member and want to join drop me a PM and you can be added from the following week onwards
* Voting closes Tuesday 25th at midnight
* Weds 26th the winning film will be confirmed (although voting is open so it will be apparent earlier than that)
* Once the winner is confirmed on Weds 26th, you’ll have a week to watch and post your comments/review
* I will post details of how to watch the winning film and be available by PM to help with any tricky ones
* If you do happen to watch early, please post your review/comments in spoiler tags
* Also on Wednesday 26th our fouth member @oates will submit 4 films of his choice for people to vote on

@jojojo thanks very much for putting a poll up last week bro. Could you please add a poll this week too?

 

[Ken Barlow]

Author: @Mystry

This weeks choices are based on personal preforance rather than any particular theme. Four excellent choices including 3 International films, incredible for very different reasons.

Option 1: Lady Vengence https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0451094/
Option 2: My Own Private Idaho https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0102494/
Option 3: Tokyo Sonata https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0938341/
Option 4: Chungking Express https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0109424/

Lady Vengence (2005) - 7.6/10 IMDB ratting

“Part of the vengeance trilogy along with the more well known Oldboy. Lives in its shadow but still very good in its own right”.

After being wrongfully imprisoned for thirteen years and having her child taken away from her, a woman seeks revenge through increasingly cruel and brutal means.

My Own Private Idaho (1991) - 7.1/10 IMDB Rating

“Been on my list for years and I need an excuse to finally watch it”.

Two best friends living on the streets of Portland as hustlers embark on a journey of self discovery and find their relationship stumbling along the way.

Tokyo Sonata (2008) - IMDB Rating 7.6/10

“Was highly rated when it came out and I remember really enjoying it when I first watched it. Been a while so curious if my opinion has changed”.

An ordinary Japanese family slowly disintegrates after its patriarch loses his job at a prominent company.

Chungking Express (1994) - IMDB Rating 8.1/10

“My first introduction to Wong Kar Wai and still my favourite film of his”.

Two melancholy Hong Kong policemen fall in love: one with a mysterious female underworld figure, the other with a beautiful and ethereal server at a late-night restaurant he frequents.

 

[Ubik]

Can't vote for anything else when Chungking's an option.

 

[VeevaVee]

Cool choices. Never heard of any of them, which I like. Leaning towards My Own Private Idaho from the description but Chunking Express sounds interesting too.

 

[ThierryHenry]

Chungking Express is the only one I've seen, so I'd ideally pick one of the others. Voted Lady Vengeance.

That said, CE is a masterpiece and every film lover needs to watch it.

 

[Tommy]

Voted Lady Vengeance.

 

[Amar__]

Feck sake I can't keep up with this. I will try my best this week.

 

[oates]

Choosing Lady Vengence but if I have time watch some of the others.

 

[Rooney in Paris]

Chungking Express, Nilssy's been on my case for ages to watch it so this should give me the right motivation

 

[P-Nut]

Think I'll abstain from voting this week, don't know anything about any of the films and hardly any of them capture my imagination

 

[Eckers99]

Voted Chungking Express, heard lots about it but never watched.

 

[Dr. Dwayne]

Private Idaho is a real mindfeck of a picture, or at least it was in 1991. Maybe I've seen too much at this point in life. Worth watching though, for Gus Van Sant's film-making style alone.

 

[jojojo]

Just a bump to remind you to vote.

 

[Ken Barlow]

Chungking Express (1994) - IMDB Rating 8.1/10

Directed by: Wong Kar-Wai
Top 5 rated films Directed by WKW according to IMDB
1.In The Mood For Love (8.1) 2.Chungking Expresss (8.1) 3.Happy Together (7.8) 4.Fallen Angels (7.7) 5.2046 (7.5)

Synopsis: Two melancholy Hong Kong policemen fall in love: one with a mysterious female underworld figure, the other with a beautiful and ethereal server at a late-night restaurant he frequents.

Background: Chungking Express was made in just 2 months, during a break in fillming his biggest project to date, Ashes of time. Chungking Express got significant recognition 2 years after it was released in Hong Kong when Quentin Tarantino saw it, loved it and decided to released it under his own production company.
​

You have a week to watch and post a brief review. The best and funniest comments will feature in a Redcafe Film Review video once the week is up.

If you need help finding a way to watch this, please drop me a PM. Thanks again for voting.

 

[unchanged_lineup]

Loved "In The Mood for Love", hated this.

 

[jojojo]

Spoiler: Well I watched it all the way through so that's not bad.

That's it though. A satisfactory way to spend 90 minutes, but not something that left me hungry for more - not of the story, nor the characters, the actors, the writer, the director.

Whatever it is that makes it great, or makes it special for other people, I didn't feel it. The café server was entertaining, there were some splashes of humour and some nice observational sequences. The rhythm of the crowded city, the random encounters, the near misses and the passers by who we see and don't see, all build up a striking visual backdrop to the interactions. But basically, I'm glad I didn't have to pay for it.

 

[VeevaVee]

not promising again. Will watch later this week at some point.

 

[Ubik]

Watching the second half is about as happy as I can be during a film.