“Wong Kar-Wai is the grandmaster behind the vibrant, dreamy, sensuous aesthetic of Asian cinema. His penchant for a moody, high-contrast mesh of colors translates so well on film, it steals the narrative’s spotlight.”
He’s one of those creators who go to the set, and writes their materials as they shoot. His style of work portrays Hong-Kong in way it has never been shown to the world. The play with the colors, the glitches in the camera, the light leaks, the frame-jump motion of scenes, all binds together to create an aesthetic that became a style in its own, with creators all over the world trying to imitate.
When Naseeruddin Shah was asked what a good movie is, he answered - “if the cinema is able to capture the time, if you can watch that film and understand how people used to live, what was the fashion, what slangs were in use, the small elements that define the time is being expressed, then I believe it is a good movie, and a successful one.”
Wong Kar Wai does exactly the same, if not better. His movies tell unimportant stories of unimportant subjects and characters, but keeps you engaged, makes you relate and affects your mind in a strange manner. The utter honesty in reflecting the times and the subjects is what sets him apart from his peers.
If you haven’t watched any of his works yet, here’s a good sequence to follow -
1) As Tears Go By
2)Days of Being Wild
3)Chungking Express
4)Fallen angels
His movies are filled with soundtracks that immediately sets up the mood of the scene, and the film overall.
A Few songs that define his aesthetics -
1)California Dreamin’ - The Mamas & The Papas
2)Dreams - The Cranberries
3)Things in Life - Dennis Brown
4) I Have Been in You- Frank Zappa
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