Fresh Lime & Fine Wine!

Bought 2 DVDs from HMV! That too on discount, thanks to the tenth(?) anniv celebrations of HK HMV!

Have been thinking of building up a collection of good movies, so went ahead and bought 'Amelie from Montmartre' & 'In the Mood for Love'. In fact want to have a few of Wong Kar Wai's movies - Chung King Express (next time!). Was pleased with myself at the end of it :) money well spent.

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Amelie From Montmartre

This is one of my favourites. Its fresh, romantic, breezy, quirky....won awards for Best Cinematographer, Best Director, Best Film at the 2001 European Film Awards....just love watching this movie...

Amelie is this sweet, queer, imaginative do-gooder. She is a dreamer, shy and curious. And while she is not amusing herself with silly questions like how many couples had an orgasm on a particular day (and she counts 15!), she manages to play match maker to loney hearts, teaches the shop owner a lesson for being such a bully, devices ways to make her father step out of his cooped-up world!! But she is also looking for love and the meaning of life and then she comes across this mysterious Photomation-image collector, and her life changes forever.

This movie is a must watch! Its original, funny, leaves you with a light and nice feeling aftwewards. Love the story-telling...everything flows with ease...fluid at times, breezy and enrgetic at times...beautiful cinematography!!

Audrey Tautou essays Amelie's character, while Mathieu Kassovitz plays the Photomation-image collector (btw he had a small role in the movie - 5th Element - was the goofy young apprentice to the priest! - he looks so much better in this movie, quite handsome indeed!)

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In the Mood for Love


Won the Best actor and the Grand Prix Technique awards at Cannes 2000. A beautiful, stylish movie. Like all Wong Kar Wai movies, its extremely moody. Everything adds to the mood - the way the camera moves, the way the shots are framed, lighting, colour, silence, raindrops...its a visual treat!

It's the 1960s HongKong. Chow Mo Wan (Tony Leung) moves into a building with his wife at around the same time Su Li Zhen (Maggie Cheung) moves in with her husband. They have a cordial relationship (the usual neighbourly politeness), but soon discover the love affair between their spouses. Needless to say this shatters them, but what is more perplexing is the growing passion between themselves. Maggie Cheung looks amazing with her figure hugging cheongsams, graceful, svelte, with a beautiful face and acting to match! Toney Leung is superb - understated, yet brings forth the complexities of his feeling towards maggie's character...

There is so much romance and underlying passion between these two characters whenever they share the screen, yet there are no intimate scenes! Its about abridged relationships and regrets...does she regret not leaving her husband when Chow Mo Wan asks her to come with him to Singapore...and what secrets does he whisper into the walls of the temple?...

When the movie ends you can't help feeling sad for the two protagonists, it's not a happy ending. But then it woudn't be the same with a happy ending (lovers end up being together for life - living a mundane life fighting over mundane things). This way they have carved their own place in each others lives... for life!

Personally i wud have liked them to reunite, get married and have a bunch of kids! :P