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In the Mood for Love - Criterion Collection
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List Price: $39.95
Our Price: $34.99
Your Save: $ 4.96 ( 12% )
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
Manufacturer: Criterion
Starring: Maggie Cheung, Tony Leung Chiu-Wai, Rebecca Pan, Lai Chin, Siu Ping-Lam
Directed By: Wong Kar-Wai
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Average Customer Rating:  
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Aspect Ratio: 1.66:1
Audience Rating: Unrated
Binding: DVD
EAN: 9781559409278
Format: Color
ISBN: 1559409274
Label: Criterion
Manufacturer: Criterion
Number Of Items: 2
Publisher: Criterion
Region Code: 1
Release Date: 2002-03-05
Running Time: 98
Studio: Criterion
Theatrical Release Date: 2000
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Editorial Reviews:
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Winner of numerous awards including Best Actor at the 2000 Cannes Film Festival, In the Mood for Love confirmed that Hong Kong director Wong Kar-wai is a major figure in world cinema. As passionate as it is politely discreet, his film takes place in 1962 Hong Kong, where neighboring apartment dwellers Mr. Chow (Tony Leung) and Mrs. Chan (Maggie Cheung) discover that their oft-absent spouses are having an affair. This realization parallels their own mutual attraction, but fidelity and decency ensure that their intimate bond remains unspoken though deeply understood. With a stealthy, eavesdropping camera style and a screenplay created through spontaneous on-set inspiration, Wong Kar-wai crafts an intricate, finely tuned platonic romance, enhancing its ambience with a kaleidoscope of color (most notably in Cheung's dazzling wardrobe of cheongsam dresses) and careful attention to character detail. Deservedly placed on many critics' top 10 lists, this elegant film should not be missed. --Jeff Shannon
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Spotlight customer reviews:
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Customer Rating: 
Summary: Worth watching just to see Tony Leung and Maggie Cheung.
Comment: It's a shame the story idea for IN THE MOOD FOR LOVE never fully develops because this film has a lot going for it: a talented director, it's nicely photographed (almost in a film noir style with lush colors and Maggie Cheung's beautiful dresses standing out against the darker backgrounds) and great performances (especially by Tony Leung who is quickly becoming one of my favorite actors), but it all goes nowhere...slowly.
Tony and his wife and Maggie and her husband both rent a room in neighboring apartments. Life is normal until Tony and Maggie both notice that their spouses are missing a lot at the same time, sometimes for weeks at a time! From this awkward revelation a doomed relationship grows. That might sound interesting and it is for awhile, but then things just go into a holding pattern until the film crawls to a slow, boring death.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Started to like it, then...
Comment: I immediately fell in love with this film. It was beautifully acted, and photographed. But that later changed. I loved the story of the 2 main characters and wanted to see their relationship develop (by either moving forward or even backward). Instead (about half way through the film), it was as if the director had run out of ideas. The plot/film just ran out of steam. The music cues (once beautiful) now became unintentioinally funny. The slow pacing became more exposed and obvious (since the story simply stopped) and the film dragged on to it's obvious conclusion. Overly self conscious. A shame really, as it started so promisingly.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Wonderfully Subtle
Comment: As many have said, the cinematography is visually stunning and really sets the mood, akin to a smoky jazz club and you're the only one there, except there are no jazz clubs in the movie and there are actually two people... neither of them you. These people are Tony Leung and Maggie Cheung.
Some detractors of the movie claim it to be too slow or boring. Yes, it is a very slow moving piece and if you have a short attention span, you have to take that into consideration. If you do find that you are afflicted with ADD, try this... absorb the two main characters' acting style, notice the details, see how much they can convey through facial expressions and postures. That alone can carry the movie, the complex desires of what is not said... or rather what is said verbally but expressed differently. I'd say Tony and Maggie put on the best performance I've ever seen in any movie.
To those who found it boring and lacking plot, I kindly disagree with you. While you can watch the movie and get blown over questioning the existence of subtext and symbols (some of which may be nonexistent), wondering what anything means, the movie DOES have a plot. At the core, it is about two neighbors discovering that their respective husband and wife are having an affair AND how they come to terms with this: the little games they act out in hypothetical confrontations with their spouses, the little scenarios they act out as they puzzle over how a relationship begins, and finally the distractions they put play to put the affair out of their minds.
In particular, you may find it quite interesting and also quite realistic watching them come together by this betrayal and over time, growing fond of each other. If you are watching this movie for the Big Breakdown or a Dramatic Fight That Clinches Everything, you won't find it here. But there are many other pieces that can move your heart. Additionally, the dialog has a poetic cleverness at precise moments, allowing for it to be taken both literally and figuratively.
Quite beautiful.
One thing I thought worked very well for this movie is how ambivalent the ending is. Unlike Chungking Express where the movie ends on a definitive note or at a definitive point for each character, this movie plays more like real life. There are no actual 'endings' and there's always the potential for great joy or missed opportunity. If you didn't like this movie the first time around, give it another go with some patience. Admittedly, the first time I watched it I wasn't 'in the mood for love' and had to set it aside. Subsequent viewings have led to a deeper appreciation. Make sure you are inclined to be receptive.
Good luck!
Customer Rating:
Summary: Perfect
Comment: In the Mood for Love has to be rated one of the best films ever made. The film is a visual feast -the art direction, lighting, sets and most of all the wardrobe are stunning. The story line of two people meeting by chance and how in someway are forced into each others company. The main highlight of their story is the complexities of relationships and loyalties - two very profound life matters which test us on a daily basis. The actors performance is mesmerizing. There's not much dialogue and much of it is left to your interpretation. The film's chemistry is focused in its visual presentation including the story and its dialogue - you pretty much feel like your looking through a visual and emotional kaleidoscope.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Wonderful release by Criterion
Comment: Hats off to Wong Kar Wai for successfully bringing to screen a brilliantly written poignant romance. Everything from the beautiful Maggie Cheung to the red wall paper in room 2046 makes this DVD worth it.
Criterion has put together lots of extras.
Special mention goes to the deleted scenes, which gives the viewer a totally different perspective to the film's ending.
Overall, its a must have for all film buffs!
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