In the Mood for Love is Hong Kong director Wong Kar-wai's latest meditation on the transience of amour. Mood is set in 1962. The apartments are actually no more than single rooms in other peoples' apartments, but in space-starved Hong Kong they're happy for what they can get. Though both Chow and Su are married, we conspicuously never see their spouses. Being in similar straits, Chow and Su turn to each other for companionship.
Simple chats lead to dinners which lead to walks which lead to . . .
Actually, it's never quite clear where their relationship is heading. The film focuses on the difficulty of love when you have to be discreet, and often the audience is treated like one of the prying neighbors. We catch glimpses of their conversations but never the whole thing. We see their hands brush against each other but can't tell whether it was accidental or a sign of affection. Similarly, the movie's narrative is intentionally elusive.