Title: Happy Together
Release Date: 30 May 1997
Director: Wong Kar-wai
Production Company: Jet Tone Production | Block 2 Pictures | Seowoo Film Company | Prénom H Co. Ltd.
Summary/Review:
Ho Po-Wing (Leslie Cheung) and Lai Yiu-Fai (Tony Leung Chiu-Wai) are an on-again/off-again couple. They travel to Argentina where they lose all their money and have to take jobs to earn money to return home. Their tempestuous relationship further erodes until it falls apart and they both hit rock bottom. I found it unsettling how the film depicts the domestic violence between Lai and Ho, so consider that a content warning if you are similarly sensitive.
As is the style of Wong Kar-wai, Happy Together uses brilliant imagery to depict images and moods rather than plot. The music in the soundtrack is also expertly matched even when used for ironic effect, like the title song (a cover of The Turtles’ “Happy Together” by Danny Chung appears at the end). For a movie from the 1990s, it feels very progressive for telling a warts and all story about a same-sex couple. But for all it’s great artistry and storytelling, I guess I’m the philistine who has to admit I found it a bit slow for my taste.
Rating: ***1/2
Panorama of the Mountains 