Story surrounding two recently dumped cops falling for two tsunderes (women with cold appearances but cuddly hearts) .. Romantic comedy featuring amazing cinematography with a multitude of color palettes and lighting schemes , and the choppy frame editing providing either rushed, hurried, or stagnating feeling--------------------------------------------------------------------Cop 223: He splits up with his girl of 5 years on April Fool's, and believing it's a bad prank he eats her favorite meal, a can of pineapples, once a day until his birthday a month later. He vows when his birthday arrives he'll move on from his past girlfriend and fall in love with the next woman he lays eyes on ..That woman happens to be a cocaine dealer disguised in a raincoat, shades, and a blond wig. After a deal gone wrong, she's hunting for the men who set her up , when she has a fated encounter with Cop 223. It only lasts for a night, a restless night, as both want each other's company but fail to understand each other's feelings, instead spending the night tossing and turning in the bed and through t.v. channels …Cop 663: The California Dream Tale .. He visits a local coffee shop everyday in hopes he'll run into a flight hostess he had a one-night with. As he shares his stories of loneliness with the workers, the cousin of the owner - Faye - slowly begins to fall in love with the man. One night, the flight hostess goes to the coffee shop and returns the Cop's keys with a letter. The Cop doesn't want the letter (so he can keep dreaming of her return) and asks for Faye to hold on to it until he's ready. Few days later Faye runs into the Cop while he's on break and the rest is history …..She begins sneaking into his house when he's not home and redecorates. The Cop suspects someone is in his home but doesn't mind the company. Eventually she gets busted twice , but instead of admitting her affection for the cop, she escapes on a "plane" to California and leaves the cop a message to wait for her for one year …..8.5/10 …. Feels like a personal home video, a man with a camera venturing Hong Kong taking romantic shots of his friends 100/10 in the name of changing the game of cinematography

Yes! -- Kar-Wai Wong has done it again, and this time he has mixed up his style a bit. I have seen most of his work, but nothing compares to the strange and utter feeling you get whilst watching Chungking Express.This film is a two-parter: One story shows a couple-days-in-the-life of He Zhiwu aka Cop 223 (Takeshi Kaneshiro) who pathetically tries pursuing his ex-girlfriend, May, who is NOW moving on. He buys almost-expired pineapple in can's to figuratively look at how his relationship with her really is. HE IS NOT ALL THAT BAD THOUGH; we do sympathize for his loneliness. It is when he meets a blonde, mysterious drug dealing beauty with a raincoat and glasses, that his world (sort of) changes forever.The second part, and probably the more bigger story, is about another cop from the same part of China, who's name is not really said. The cast-list only refers to him as "Cop 663" (played by Wong's alter-ego, Tony Chiu Wai Leung), who patiently is waiting for love to find him; not as assertive as our first protagonist, but still carries a great story. When he finds Faye, a woman working at a stand for her cousin/uncle who is more a part of Cop 663's love-life than anyone else we see, he begins making conversation with her, unaware of her secret plan to personally mess with the belonging in his apartment; move things around, slip drugs his bottles, switch the labels for canned-food items, etc. etc.***It is so beautiful and visually unique how every time, Kar-Wai Wong takes a simple scenario and turns it into a metaphor for "broken-hearted and lonely" people. Such as a tree or a train (2046), or a legless bird (Days Of Being Wild), or keys (My Blueberry Nights), etc. In this film, we takes typical house hold items and turn them into "the dumped", such as A BAR OF SOAP, which starts out with a weight problem, but progressively get skinnier the more you (wash) use it. Or even A DRENCHED WARN OUT RAG, which needs to learn to contain its "tears" and over time will dry up and be happy once again.***ALSO, the camera-work is a show-stopper. The cinematographers of this project knew exactly how Wong likes his footage in post-production, and I believe they made great asset, especially for a film that "should be recognized worldwide" CREDITED by Quentin Tarantino).I give this film a PERFECT 10 out of 10 on IMDb, for personal reasons. I do NOT recommend this film to any *adrenaline-junkies who need fast cars and naked woman. Honestly, you will rarely find that in any of the films I review. Chungking Express is a perfect example of the typés of stories/pictures I like. And there are A LOT more where that came from.Thank you! -- Michael Mendez

Wong Kar-Wai's most acclaimed and certainly widespread film, helped by showings to film classes everywhere, Chungking Express is a meandering meditation of loneliness in urban Hong Kong. Told in two separate stories of love, life and loneliness (a third branching off into a separate film, Fallen Angel), they follow two cops dealing with a break-up and a new love interest.The first, shorter and weaker segment follows a pineapple-obsessed cop falling for a blonde-wigged heroin smuggler. The second watches a depressed cop's ignorance as a girl with a crush revitalises his life.The first segment is certainly a visual marvel, and Wong Kar-Wai (alongside cinematographers Christopher Doyle & Andrew Lau, the latter of Infernal Affairs fame) blazes through with a frenzy of action in a confined space. The blur, the colours and the contrast are impressive. It's also a poetic segment, but ultimately falls short, emotionally hollow without developed characters to anchor it. One could suppose that your reaction to this segment will depend on your appreciation of the themes and feelings of the main character.One must spend more time considering the second, which more than makes up for the first ones failings. It adds a wry wit to the -better- romantic undertones, two incredibly charismatic leads (Tony Leung and Faye Wong), and one of the best repeated uses of a single song ever. California Dreamin' will forever for me be associated with this film. More importantly, the second part has a heart, a cute, quirky romance that bubbles, and the incredulity ebbs at its sweetness.The soundtrack as a whole is full of excellent choices, though 'full' may over-exaggerate, as it's better seen as a few choice selections being repeated. Nevertheless, through the cinematography and the soundtrack, the film develops a dreamlike atmosphere, which is probably its greatest asset. The film keeps itself firmly uprooted in the clouds, and it certainly drifts.Chungking Express is a unique film, and certainly not one for all occasions. It isn't designed to blow one away. One drifts through it, then thinks about it after its over. As a technical craft, it's a masterpiece. As a poetic piece of storytelling, its a bit more hit and miss, but it hits more than it misses.

WARNING: SMALL SPOILERS MAY BE GIVEN BELOWToday being a lazy Sunday, I finally got around to watching Chungking Express. This film is something which has always been on my lengthy cinema bucket list.I am joyous that I took the the time viewing into this film as it was both uplifting and meditative amongst the chaos.The film's plot revolves around two separate narratives regarding two policemen working within Chungking,both of whom have gone through recent break ups. Their stories are told sequentially and are both running in chagrin until they encounter a new woman.For the first story, we become acquainted with He Qiwu, a man who pines over his most recent relationship with a girl called May. Whilst the May of which his relationship recently ended with has no screen time, there is plenty of monologue spoken from He Qiwu and interaction with other characters regarding her that as an audience we can feel his pain. (I mean, who hasn't been there before?) He Qiwu goes on the rebound and seeks out a girl after much self pity. It is at bar that he encounters a certain femme fatale.The femme fatale is not issued a name in this story segment however it just adds to the sense of mystery she aesthetically displays by the "costume" of which she wears: A Blonde Wig and Glasses. It becomes quickly evident within the first fifteen minutes of the film that she is a dangerous presence as we see her organizes an illegal drug smuggling operation. When He Qiwu and the woman with the blonde wig cross paths, it is not because he is after her. It is because he found himself out at a bar on the prowl and as we as viewers are sure of, the ineluctability of them meeting together is certain. They are not united together as lovers, however there is a slither of hope given to He Qiwu after their encounter and in his current position, a morale booster.In the second story, the unnamed Cop 663 is going through the motions post break up with an air stewardess. We see that the stewardess had decided to visit a snack counter which he frequents and gave a letter to the owner regarding her wishes to break up and keys to the apartment. This is all caught by the exuberant Faye, a worker at the counter. As Cop 663 does not wish to look at the envelope being fully aware of what the letter will detail, Faye falls him for and uses the keys to start rearranging the house while he is at his day-shift unaware. From there, the story builds around the meetings between of both Faye and Cop 663.Throughout both stories there are reoccurring motifs that we take in such as expiry dates, the name of May, a model airplane, California Dreamin' by The Mamas & Papas, a Garfield stuffed toy and more which have been omitted from this review. The symbolism behind these help build the strength of both stories and also slightly relate them. The setting of Chungking is a multicultural place and in being so it is interesting to hear dialog hear dialog in Mandarin, Cantonese, Japanese and Indian throughout the film. It is hard for the setting to not draw you in. However, despite the streets being as flooded with populace as they are, we are left with the contrast of the characters usually being in isolated locations. Taciturn and with a running self monologue.The soundtrack should be a key player in any film watched and in The Chungking Express it is not something which is not to be ignored. Most notably the soundtrack is dominated by California Dreamin' during the second half of the movie. The highlight song for me personally is a delightful Cantonese cover version of the song "Dreams" originally performed by the Cranberries sung by no other than Faye Wong, main actress of the second segment.In regards to the cinematography, it is hard to believe that shots being taken are not being done so under natural lighting. In a scene where the Indians are assembling clothes and toys, we get various cutaway shots and amazing editing. (In particular one shot of shoes filled with cocaine/heroin being put away is shot upside down which for unknown reasons I really love) The editing is quick and fast paced, rarely lingering.Through the use of shaky held hand camera during chase scenes and the busy streets we feel disorientated and just as lost as the characters on screen. I believe this film is an equally a comfort to those in love as to those who are out of love. Don't give up.