It seems that in the world of cinema, all roads do lead to the US. Even in China, with a self-sustainable film industry and an audience base of over one billion, many of its directors immigrate. One of the best examples is Ang Lee, who after the success of Eat Drink Man Woman went on to make Sense and Sensibility, the Ice Storm, and eventually win an Oscar for Brokeback Mountain. Another example is the lesser -known but equally-talented Wong Kar Wai, who made the touching drama Chungking Express and the beautiful and atmospheric In the Mood for Love. And following suit, this week sees the release of Wong Kar Wai’s first English-language film, My Blueberry Nights.
The film attempts to embrace one of the US’s most typical genres: the road movie. Elizabeth (Norah Jones. Yes, that one) attempts to exorcise the ghosts of her last relationship by going on a journey of self discovery. Starting in New York, as she discusses her past with a lonely café-owner (Jude Law), her journeys have her encounter a cop who resorts to alcoholism to block out his ex-wife, and a gambling addict with a miserable history of her own.
If this doesn’t sound particularly interesting, that’s because it isn’t. Of course, Wong Kar-Wai’s films never sound like much on paper. Read the rest of this entry »