Cast: Tang Wei, Tony Leung

Director: Ang Lee

Screenplay: Hui Ling Wang, James Schamus

Running time: 2 hrs 39 mins

Genre: Drama/Thriller/Foreign



CRITIQUE:


If there ever was a memento given to directors with a Midas touch, one of them would have to be Ang Lee, the purveyor of short-stories turned cinematic-gold. This short and reserved Taiwanese director has got nothing short and reserved with his films whatsoever, for most of them were epics and bound for Oscar attention. See the glory of martial arts sweep CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON and the ravishing virtuosity of BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN – now he has picked up another short story, this time from his own alley, written by Eileen Chang. This is LUST, CAUTION, and in Lee’s more-than-capable elegance, he has, once again, turned a rather straightforward story of betrayal and conceit into a deeper study of the human psyche. And it’s so gorgeously preserved in screen celluloid.


Just like Lee’s films, there’s no sacrifice of mental and psychological exploration for the bigger want of spectacle (even his disastrous HULK version sees an arty character study). Here the two elements are gracefully combined: we have characters with depth, a good story to tell, and a luscious and exquisite cinematography that’s so beautiful to behold. Set in the Japanese-occupied Shanghai circa 1942, this tale sees the transformation of a local commoner Wong (newcomer Tang Wei) from a quiet university student and a theatre actress to the spy Mrs Mak, tasked to assassinate Mr Yee (Tony Leung). This is all told in a slow-burner, in no hurries to get to the end, where Lee eschews running time and concentrates of details and character arcs. Even when we behold the steamy sex scenes between Wong and Yee that might suggest Kama Sutra-like tutoring, the sex-and-spies undercurrents are overshadowed by the lies, betrayal, the power of obsession and the cruelty of lust, more than these characters could ever confess. What we see is just the strawberry on the top, but there are more burning matters beneath.


While Lee deserves a magnetic kudos, it’s the presence of Tang Wei that holds the threads of this tale together. What a central performance it is. She glows the charm of Ziyi Zhang, but more dramatic in gravitas. Witness her transformation from being her own self Wong to Mrs Mak, it’s wonderfully characterised that it is sometimes emotional betrayal at its finest. That Golden Globe nomination was deserved indeed. Tony Leung, meanwhile, brings ferocity to Mr Yee yet draws a twist to his humanity at the end, learning the boundaries between lust and love.


The main gripe at this film, however, is its overlong whole. Audience might find themselves sighing when will it ever end, for it consist of a longeur that will challenge those THERE WILL BE BLOOD’s. Nevertheless this is still a film to complexly behold.



VERDICT:

The main falter lies on the film’s protracted half but never on Ang Lee’s attention-spanning atmospheric storytelling. Patience required, LUST, CAUTION is something that will drain you out: visually and psychologically. This marvellously shot film will engross you with its characters learning about the complexity of love, the dangers of lust, and the power of obsession.



RATING: A-