Was at the frontline today for the Tokyo premiere of the latest blueberries from Wong KarWai in "My Blueberry Nights": with altogether 3 Wong KarWai aficionados including myself. Verdict -- the film was nice but not as good as perhaps hoped. There was a generalised happy-smiley feel at the exit, but we all felt that the scenes were too close to In The Mood for Love, and his other well-known pieces.
The shot with Jude Law staring blankly as time flew by or the shots through the shop window glass as lovers slowly got to know each other under overexposed neon lights were plucked straight out of Chungking Express. What was spot-on in 1994 with the nihilistic urban environments of pre-millenial Hong Kong's stories of fast-paced life and people passing by each other, rings slightly hollow in 2008. A mediocre treacly performance by Jude Law was compensated by a breathtakingly depressive/end-of-the-road David Strathairn. Norah Jones was the innocent young woman in search of herself and love; played admirably, but we got no character depth.
Altogether recommended viewing, but this is not the cutting edge, more an artistic rehash of past influences.
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