Amazon.com video review:
Chungking Express tells two stories loosely connected by a Hong
Kong snack bar. In one story, a cop who's been recently dumped by his
girlfriend becomes obsessed with the expiration dates on cans of
pineapple; he's constantly distracted as he tries to track down a drug
dealer in a blond wig (played by Brigitte Lin, best known from
Swordsman II and The Bride with White Hair). Meanwhile,
another cop who's recently been dumped by his girlfriend (Tony Leung
Chiu-Wai, from John Woo's Hard-Boiled and A Bullet in the
Head) mopes around his apartment, talking to his sponge and other
domestic objects. He catches the eye of a shop girl (Hong Kong pop star
Faye Wang) who secretly breaks in and cleans his apartment. If you're
beginning to suspect that neither of these stories has a conventional
plot, you're correct. What Chungking Express does have is loads of
energy and a gorgeous visual style that never gets in the way of engaging
with the charming characters. The movie was shot on the fly by hip
director Wong Kar-Wai (Happy Together, Ashes of Time), using
only available lighting and found locations. The movie's loose,
improvisational feel is closer to Jean-Luc Godard's Breathless than
any recent film--and that's high praise. Quirky, funny, and extremely
engaging, Chungking Express manages to be experimental and
completely accessible at the same time. --Bret Fetzer
