CAST
Tony Leung Chiu-Wai (梁朝偉 pinyin: Liang Chaowei) ... Mr. Yee
Lee-Hom Wang (王力宏 Wang Lihong).. Kuang Yumin
Tang Wei (湯唯 Tang Wei) ... Wang Jiazhi
Joan Chen (陳冲 Chen Chong) ... Mrs. Yee
Chu Chih-Ying ... Lai Xiuqing
Tony Wang ... Wang Lingguang
Anupam Kher ... Khallid Shayudin
Shyam Pathak ... Jewellery shopkeeper
Xu Xin ... Nurse An
Last weekend was the opening weekend for "LUST CAUTION" (色，戒; pinyin: sè，jiè) by renowned Taiwanese director Ang Lee's (李安 Li Ān)newest film that recently won best Directory at the Venice International Film Festival. This film does have a NC17 rating due to some scenese of explicit nature.
But the pure shining star is actress Tang Wei (湯唯 Tāng Wéi), who won out over 1,000 Chinese actresses for her first leading role in a motion picture. According to various sources, she graduated in the same class with Zhang Zhi Yi (who broke out to international fame with "Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon." Her multi nuanced expressions with her eyes as Wong Jia Ji /Mak Tai Tai is amazing. This film is set in both Hong Kong and Shanghai in the turbulent 1940's during WWII. With the dialogue mainly in Mandarin there is Shanghainese, Cantonese and Japanese in this film Tang Wei was put to work for 8 months to study Shanghainese, singing and playing mahjong for her role. She comes into this dark web of desire and deceit when her acting troupe leader one day wants to do something for the people and the country. Brief foray one summer in Hong Kong ends in with the loss of innocence and faith. Wong Jia Ji acts as Mak Tai Tai, the bored housewife who enters an elite group of wives headed by Mrs. Yee (Joan Chen 陳沖 Chén Chōng ) the wife of their assasination target Mr. Yee (Tony Leung 梁朝偉 Liáng Cháowěi) a powerful political figure. Before anything can happen, Mr. Yee leaves for Shanghai due to a promotion.
Fast foward three years later, Miss Wong is approached to be Mak Tai Tai again. She did what to other trained spies tried to seduce Mr. Yee but unsuccessfully. Tang Wei's character gets caught up in a savage web of lust, desire for Mr. Yee while trying to remain true to the resistance. But in the end Wong Jia Ji is swept in with her affair with Mr. Yee to a level she cannot ever go back again.
Though the film clocked over two hours and thirty eight minutes, I was not bored at all. The scenes of old Shanghai and Hong Kong were beautiful. I loved how even the simplicity of I love how Ang Lee knows how to tell a story. This is based on a short story by a famous Chinese writer Eileen Chang.
Under the amazing acting chops of Tang Wei, she carries this film to new heights! She is the shining star of this film! As usual, Hong Kong actor Tony Leung always delivers. As Mr. Yee, he matches Tang Wei with his amazing acting intensity all in his eyes.
I did not care for the extended bedroom scenes, I understood some needed to be put in to get the point across but I thought it could have been trimmed a bit more. I just read in an interview that Ang Lee had almost a mental breakdown due to those arduous scenes as they were difficult for him to direct.
With this film, Ang continues in his great tradition of making great films! It was more an erotic thriller than any spy and espioange subplot which was more on the back burner. I have read many comparisons to "BLACK BOOK" now I have to go watch it!
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