Auteur Spotlight: In the Mood for Love (Wong Kar-wai, 2000)

Given its early, conservative 1960s setting, it’s assumed that Kar-wai’s go with the harsh realities of marital infidelity would, well, hit harder from an emotional standpoint. Focusing on two neighbors as their frequently absent (unfaithful) spouses lavish them with gifts and sweet talk to quell any burgeoning suspicions, In the Mood for Love follows Mr. Chow and Mrs. Chan as they struggle to come to terms with their respective predicaments. Confiding in one another as they tiptoe around to avoid a scandal of their own, the platonic relationship that exists between them is a bit of a bore despite the characters’ best intentions in helping each other confront their significant others via various instances of role-playing and merely getting to know one another.

While Kar-wai’s previous effort Happy Together has a raw, lively energy about it that mirrors the budding frustrations of the couple at its core, In the Mood seems to lack a general sense of purpose despite its straightforward agenda, sporting a surprisingly subdued tone that, frankly, left me feeling aloof and mostly cold. As the characters trudge solemnly and sometimes aimlessly through their days together, it becomes apparent that the film isn’t set on exposing any revelatory truths about the conservative nature of relationships during this particular point in history outside of a brief rumination on the complications coinciding with married life. Remaining characteristically light in terms of substance for a Kar-wai feature, the repetitive nature of this friendship as the film’s focal point becomes bothersome as a peculiar air of detachment reigns supreme over its more poignant sequences.

Considering the individuals’ conviction in simply not following in their significant others’ footsteps, said detachment is most likely intentionally implemented in an attempt to illustrate the difficulties that go hand-in-hand with resisting temptation. All things considered, the film is exceptionally well-shot and mimics Kar-wai’s now renowned visual mastery with as much finesse as you’d expect; a welcome distraction from the generally mundane proceedings, and certain techniques like keeping Mr. Chow and Mrs. Chan’s respective spouses out of frame as disembodied voices helps to effectively accentuate the loneliness the duo perpetually struggles to cope with. In sticking steadfastly to its primary objective dealing with the characters’ distaste toward giving into their presumably lustful desires, In the Mood for Love culminates rather wonderfully during its final moments yet failed to win my affection unlike the bulk of the auteur’s filmography, however it’s still a technically proficient and reasonably insightful commentary on the subject at hand.