Review of 2046 (2004) by Jennifer S — 22 Jul 2009

Wong Kar-wai's movies are always so sensual. 2046 is no exception. The combination of the visuals with the excellent choice of music is intoxicating. His films remind me of dreaming right before you wake up, when you're close to the surface of wakefulness, but not quite completely lucid.

2046 is the sequel to In the Mood for Love. In In the Mood for Love, Tony Leung and Maggie Cheung played lovers in 1960's Hong Kong kept apart (yet living so tantalizingly close) by the fact that she was married. 2046 starts where In the Mood for Love ends--with Chow (that's Leung's character) leaving for Singapore and starting a new life. The film chronicles his blase, if erotic, relationships with various women, including a part-time prostitute he ends up falling in love with. Despite these other relationships, Chow cannot erase the memory of Su Li-zhen, the married woman he loved years ago.

In order to make money, Chow begin writes a story for a newspaper. It takes place in the future, where everyone is trying to get to a place called 2046 (the number has special significance for Chow)--a place where nothing changes and memories live forever.

Part of the movie takes place in this futuristic world, and the scenes set there were some of my favorites. As with all Wong Kar-wai's movies, the plot is fairly slim--his movies aren't action-filled; they're mainly about love and relationships--but the plot is kind of beside the point. Wong Kar-wai captures the essence of longing and desire in his cinematography and background music, making his films more artful than expository (in other words, they show you rather than tell you). My only complaint is that 2046 drags on a little too long, trying to find an unnecessary conclusion. In the end, however, as in the end of In the Mood for Love, unrequited love proves to be the sweetest.