I hadn’t seen Wong Kar-Wai’s Fallen Angels (1995), I don’t think, since seeing it on SBS as a teenager. I loved it then, but only seemed to remember the opening section with the cool hitman (Leon Lai) wielding two hand guns, like an arty version of a Hong Kong action movie, and his handler (Michelle Reis) with the fringe and the stockings pining for him. Riding the neo-noir vibe recently, I was in the mood to rewatch, and from the epic scrawl of the title card, the Massive Attack sampling soundtrack and night-time cinematography, this is an extremely cool movie. To call something “cool” always feels cringey to me, but there’s no two ways about it: this is a very cool movie. As I was watching it, I was thinking about why Chungking Express seems to be more remembered and celebrated: is it because it had that sense of goofy romance and lovelorn comedy that Fallen Angels doesn’t have? A silly question as I’d completely forgotten about the mute character, He Zhiwu (Takeshi Kaneshiro) and the comedy and heart he gives to his scenes, blowing that pontificating theory of mine out of the water. Kaneshiro’s character is almost a silent movie comic creation as he breaks into places when they are closed and pretends to work in them, usually accosting strangers with his services until they pay up. Then there is the over the top Blondie (Karen Mok), who catches the hitman’s eye as he starts contemplating retirement and doing something else with his life. Similar to Chungking Express, which Wong Kar-Wai has said that Fallen Angels is the night time extension of, there is a similar structure conceit of four main characters, and a divide between the reserved and serious, and those who are extroverted and foolish. All in all, it was a wonderful experience to reenter this neo-noir “lonely hearts” nocturnal world and vibe, particularly with the genius cinematography of Christopher Doyle and director Wong Kar-Wai’s aesthetic fondness for late night bars, fast food joints, hotel rooms, jukeboxes and motorcycles. Recommended.
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