This film has been hailed as one of greatest films of the modern era and from the cinematography alone, I can see why. The cinematography here is OUT OF THIS WORLD and is the all star of the piece. Every single frame is like a work of photographical art. They could be displayed in museums. A lot of the shots reminded me of Edward Hopper paintings. The film is very restrained and holds onto single shots for the course of whole scenes. I particularly loved the panning in a circle shot when A-Di passes out in the bathroom. Other shots that scream out to me includes when Ting Ting goes to the hotel and is hanging in the hallway while Fatty sets up the room and the following shot when NJ is smoking alone in the dark in the sitting room. The film also really knows how to grab you. When the Grandma wakes up I audibly gasped. The moment where NJ tells Sherry that he never loved anyone else is also so heartbreaking and lovely at the same time. I also absolutely loved Kai-Li Peng’s score, especially during the somber moments where the camera just looks at a street or a building in between scenes accompanied by an appropriate piano piece. The story and its structure is a pretty interesting way to explore its themes. It reminded me of films like ME AND YOU AND EVERYONE WE KNOW and BABEL. The beginning of the film meandered a bit (like the Christmas stuff in FANNY AND ALEXANDER), but once we got deep into the three different stories it all fell into place. Yang Yang is the best. He is such a great character and it is easy to immediately fall in love with him and want him to show up his bullies. NJ’s lost romance with Sherry is also so compelling. The Ota character is great in his story, but everything hinges on the NJ/Sherry night in Tokyo. I wasn’t that interested in the Ting Ting storyline, but Kelly Lee is an AMAZING actress and stood out to me as the strongest in the cast.
