Saturday, December 30, 2017

A Little TLC(w): Flowers of Shanghai (1998)

This is definitely an intriguing film, and there are elements of it that are really interesting and impressive, but I’ll admit that, on the whole, it was a little slow for me.  My attention waned here and there, despite a lot of technical proficiency.

The film centers around several flower houses (elegant brothels) in Shanghai in the late 1800s.  There’s less of a specific narrative and more wanderings through the stories of several flower girls (courtesans) working there.  We jump back and forth between different flower girls and their patrons in mostly unconnected plots, although each thread follows its own loose throughline.  There’s Crimson, who’s become a one-patron woman but starts to worry when her client begins visiting another flower girl.  Pearl, older and more experienced than many in her house, mediates disputes between younger women and tells it like it is.  And clever Emerald is ready to move on, so she begins bargaining with her auntie (the madam) about buying her freedom.

The plot is quite slow and very meandering.  Also, notably, it’s a movie about brothels that contains zero sex scenes – zero kissing scenes, in fact.  (To be fair, I understand that flower girls were equal parts courtesans, companions, and entertainers, so much of their work isn’t strictly sex, but it’s interesting that we never see any of the sex that is going on, or even the preamble to it.)  Instead, it’s a lot of “in-between” moments – flower girls dining with patrons, discussing personal or business matters behind the scenes, sitting by while the patrons play endless drinking games, etc. 

So, there’s not much attention paid to the actual plot.  Focus is then placed on the formation of the film itself.  The production design is predictably exquisite – a period piece about beautiful women in gorgeous costumes?  Come on.  And the structure of the film is also noteworthy.  Each scene is filmed with one continuous take, sometimes lasting upwards of ten minutes.  This is a credit to the smooth flow of the camera work as well as the endurance of the actors.  Speaking of which, it’s definitely the actors that carry the film.  All of the main courtesans are excellent and keep you interested in what happens to them even when the onscreen story isn’t all that gripping.  Wong Kar-wai alum Michelle Reis (Fallen Angels) and Carina Lau (Days of Being Wild) are especially good as Emerald and Pearl.  (Side note:  the film also features Rebecca Pan, Mrs. Suen from In the Mood for Love.)

Tony Leung Chiu-wai plays Master Wang, Crimson’s possibly-wandering patron.  The situation between them is somewhat tricky.  As her patron, Wang isn’t precisely obligated to stick with Crimson, but he’s a high-class client, and when he started devoting his attention to her, a lot of her other customers backed off – an arrangement he was perfectly fine with.  However, now that he’s dividing his time between Crimson and another flower girl named Jasmin, that puts Crimson in a tough spot, because those other customers aren’t returning to make up for the fewer bookings with Wang.

This is a very absent sort of character.  I bet he’s onscreen for a good 15 minutes before he utters a single word, and that’s not for lack of focus – other people are talking about him and speaking for him, but he doesn’t say anything for himself.  Even though he’s the one making issues with Crimson by seeing Jasmin, he feels very passive.  Things happen to him, and he reacts.  You get the sense that Crimson frustrates him – he seems to love her more than she loves him (understandably,) and he feels she strings him along with promises of commitment to get more money out of him – and he starts spending nights with Jasmin, not to “punish” Crimson or to make her jealous, but just because he thinks, “Well, that’s not working out.  Guess I’ll do this then.”  His response to nearly everything is muted, but he’s not as indifferent as he seems.  When his veneer cracks, it does so pretty significantly.

Recommend?

In General – I don’t think so.  It’s a nice film, and well-made, but I don’t feel there’s enough interest to really recommend it.

Tony Leung Chiu-wai – Not necessary.  There’s nothing too special about this character.

Warnings

Sensuality, brief violence, lots of drinking/smoking (opium,) and thematic elements.

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