Remaining uncharacteristic of Kar-wai by way of its singular central storyline, Happy Together still prides itself on being a visually compelling, emotionally raw examination of two lovers coping with the overwhelming toxicity of their frequently unhealthy relationship. Focusing on Yiu-Fai and Po-Wing as they venture to Argentina in a somewhat earnest attempt reconnect and return to a state of normalcy, the brief holiday in question proves to do more harm than good as it only results in the re-separation of the two. Effectively stranding themselves in their now foreign setting, Yiu-Fai continually reels from the loss of his promiscuous on-again-off-again partner while trying to pay his way back to Hong Kong.
Working full-time at a local bar and elsewhere to fund his return trip, Yiu-Fai catches brief glimpses of Po-Wing in the company of others, prompting him to spiral into a deep state of romantic longing and depression, that is until Po-Wing shows up on his doorstep battered and broken with no place to go. Reluctantly nursing his former lover back to health, Po-Wing asks Yiu-Fai yet again if he’d like to start over, throwing a proverbial wrench in the works as the latter’s frustration builds endlessly thanks largely to the huge speed bump he’s just created for himself on the road to recovery. Remaining surprisingly believable as the two lovers constantly bicker and resent one another, Happy Together prides itself on its ruminations dealing with the anxieties and subsequent fears that go hand-in-hand with loneliness following the disintegration of a long-term relationship.
Realizing time and time again that starting over only results in the same thing, Yiu-Fai does his best to resist Po-Wing’s questionable advances as he drowns his sorrows with alcohol and struggles endlessly with the moral quandary he now faces. Eventually settling on ridding himself of Po-Wing’s tiresome ways, the two are soon forced to stare heartbreak dead in the eyes as the pain of love lost rears its ugly head and floods their thoughts near the film’s laboriously paced latter act. Proving that simple companionship can often aid one in mending a broken heart, Yiu-Fai soon finds solace in a coworker, of whom helps him forget Po-Wing and indirectly helps him get his priorities straight.
Often losing sight of its central theme thanks to a sometimes aimless narrative, Happy Together functions well as a commentary on the complexities of unhealthy relationships and the individuals who fear loneliness more than their dwindling overall well-being. The chemistry that exists between the two leads coupled with Kar-wai’s alternating color palettes and evocative visual aesthetic are the film’s strongest and easily noticeable attributes, however everything leading away from the couple’s demise feels somewhat bland compared to the emotionally charged bulk of the proceedings. While not Kar-wai’s strongest film to date, it still serves to illustrate how in touch the auteur is with the harsher, less desirable aspects of love itself and how one instance of heartbreak isn’t necessarily the end of the world.