CHINESE BOX
A Film Review by James Berardinelli
RATING: **1/2 OUT OF ****
France/USA, 1997 U.S. Release Date: 4/17/98 (limited) Running Length: 1:49 MPAA Classification: R (Mature themes, profanity) Theatrical Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
Cast: Jeremy Irons, Gong Li, Maggie Cheung, Michael Hui, Ruben Blades Director: Wayne Wang Producers: Lydia Dean Pilcher, Jean-Louis Piel Screenplay: Jean-Claude Carriere and Larry Gross Cinematography: Vilko Filac Music: Graeme Revell U.S. Distributor: Trimark Pictures In English and Chinese with subtitles
An educated concubine in feudal China (RAISE THE RED LANTERN). A prostitute caught between two childhood friends during the 1940s (FAREWELL MY CONCUBINE). A wife and mother facing tragedy in the aftermath of the Cultural Revolution (TO LIVE). A sultry temptress in the heart of the '30s Shanghai gangland (SHANGHAI TRIAD). These are some of the roles essayed by Chinese actress Gong Li, and they have one thing in common – all of them take place decades or even centuries ago. Even in THE STORY OF QUI JU, a contemporary tale, Gong's character comes from a remote village where the technology and customs are those of the past. Not until CHINESE BOX has any director given Gong the role of a modern woman. Considering how good she is as Vivian, a Hong Kong nightclub owner, one wonders why it has taken so long. The actress is luminous in jeans and sunglasses, and, although she has trouble forming the unfamiliar English words that comprise much of her dialogue, she proves that she has the screen presence to play a character in any era. Sadly, CHINESE BOX is not the best forum for a display of her talent.
This is the latest feature from Wayne Wang, the film maker who was behind the small, Brooklyn-based dramas, SMOKE and BLUE IN THE FACE. Instead of adapting the quirky tone that suffused those films, Wang has taken a 180-degree turn into melodrama for this examination of Hong Kong during the months and days preceding its transition from British to Chinese rule. Given all of the tension and cultural upheaval generated by the events of July 1, 1997, this would seem to be an event capable of inspiring a great motion picture. Unfortunately, Wang chooses to plunge viewers into a soap opera, a decision which robs CHINESE BOX of much of its potential power.
Jeremy Irons, looking gaunt and unhappy, plays John, a British photojournalist who lives and works in Hong Kong, and who is suffering from unrequited love for Vivian. With the approaching political changeover, John is feeling a deep sense of melancholy that is deepened when his doctor gives him some bad news. The bulk of the film follows him as he makes one last, desperate play for Vivian. However, his attempt to win her over is thwarted not only by the changing political tides, but by a series of dark secrets that emerge from both of their pasts. A subplot of greater interest centers on John's endeavor to record the life story of Jean, a street hustler (Maggie Cheung).
This is one of those films where the background elements are far more interesting than those in the foreground. I didn't care much about what happened between John and Vivian, primarily because I never felt much for his character. Irons is lifeless in this role, and his uninspired performance does little to draw us into John's world. Perhaps this individual is supposed to be a living metaphor for the rapidly-diminishing worldwide influence of the once-mighty British Empire, but symbols rarely make for interesting protagonists. The most intriguing aspects of the movie are the political and economic implications of the changeover, but those are relegated to the background and shown primarily through CNN news clips. Businessmen are nervous, but the only way we know this is through snatches of conversations that Wang allows us to overhear.
Even though Gong is wonderful, I wish a lion's share of the time given to the sketchily-developed Vivian had been granted to Jean. Played by the wonderful Hong Kong actress Maggie Cheung, who starred in IRMA VEP, Jean is lively and energetic – a welcome contrast to Irons. Her story, which we learn in bits and pieces, might have made for a better motion picture than the one Wang assembled. Instead of getting the full narrative, however, we are fed the short version in a series of interludes sandwiched between the cliched development of the tortured romance between John and Vivian.
It's doubtful that CHINESE BOX will be the last fictional effort to be fashioned from the events surrounding July 1, 1997 in Hong Kong. However, it's questionable whether any other motion picture will have such a top-notch level of talent in front of and behind the cameras. CHINESE BOX is not a terrible film – it offers a series of semi- satisfying moments for those who crave a sudsy romantic tragedy – but it is a disappointment. The real puzzle of this CHINESE BOX is how so much dramatic potential could result in a film of so little consequence.
Copyright 1998 James Berardinelli
- James Berardinelli e-mail: berardin@mail.cybernex.net
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