In the Mood for Love is a love story with no suggestion of lovemaking nor the slightest glimpse of nudity. He seemed to have worked on this film more like a very insecure sculptor than a proper director. We had four different wrap parties, Cheung recalls. What finally unreeled is a visually lush, sadly sentimental story of a star-crossed couple in 1960s Hong Kong, a fable of two apartment building neighbors who find solace in each other s arms after learning their respective spouses are having an affair. It s a movie about the spaces between events a passing glance, a wistful smile.
Fingertips sweep, brushing along the edge of a doorway.
Cheung s hips sway as she ascends a stairwell. And, in deliriously sensuous slow motion, wisps of cigarette smoke curl towards the sky. A Wong film is an adventure for both the audience and the artist. His unique working method has been called an aleatory process, in which cast and crew only gradually discover what a given film s story is about. Although Wong entered the Asian film business as a screenwriter, he rarely pre-scripts his films as a director.