In the Mood for Love

In the Mood for Love is probably the most breathtakingly gorgeous film of the year, dizzy with a nose-against-the-glass romantic spirit that has been missing from the cinema forever.

In the Mood for Love excites us with words not spoken, passions not played out. A mood story more than a love story, it's all about sustaining a state of exquisite melancholy in the face of desire.

If it is possible to find the erotic register of despair, or the romantic dimension of ennui, then Wong Kar-wai certainly achieves it in his new film.

It is undeniable in its poignancy, an ecstatic vision of what might have been, though as much for its story as for the fact that the whole thing dissolves like a paper fan in rain, an evanescent masterwork.

Their pain borne with grace and their rapture held in check are revealed as vividly through the two stars’ radiant stillness as from the nocturnal glow of Wong’s poised, tense images.

A picture that's about the spaces between people, the emotional connections not made, the cataclysmic effect of one hand withdrawing from another. In other words, not the most plot-driven picture ever made.

This cinematic achievement, which leaves a lasting effect on the spirit, reminds us of the tremendous depths of the human heart and the persistent appeal of what might have been.

Sumptuously shot in tight corners, cramped corridors and tiny alleyways for maximum intimacy, the unspoken longing of the star-crossed lovers is both palpable and poignant, though the rushed ending somewhat undercuts the glorious build-up.

The heterodox style collapses time on itself—prolonging the marital collapses of the two couples and expanding the potential for a union between [the two main characters].

The film's indisputable beauty radiates with a burning glow that emanates from its charismatic lead actors. 

"In The Mood For Love" was an instant classic when it premiered at Cannes in 2000. It remains Wong Kar Wai's finest cinematic achievement.