Lust, Caution

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Lust, Caution - 1/1/2008 7:38:27 PM

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You'll not forget - 1/1/2008 7:38:27 PM

mrpeterbeech

Posts: 2
Joined: 11/9/2006

My first instinct having seeing this beautiful film in New York was that I wanted to go straight back in and watch it again. It is far beyond what I could have expected from Ang Lee, being that I didn't enjoy Brokeback beyond the excellent cinematography. This is no porno - it's a truly painful love story - one of sacrifice to the highest level.

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You'll not forget - 1/1/2008 7:46:45 PM

mrpeterbeech

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RE: You'll not forget - 5/1/2008 1:30:01 PM

mackey

Posts: 337
Joined: 15/7/2007

Having sat through the monumentally overrated snorefest that was 'Brokeback Mountain' I wasn't overly enthusiastic about going to see another Ang Lee love story which is again based on a short story. Seeing as I'd enjoyed Lee's earlier films I decided to give it a go and I have to say I was pleasantly surprised. This was my first cinema trip of 2008 and I hope it bodes well for the rest of the year. Superbly acted and elegantly crafted the film plays like something from the forties or fifties without the restrictions of that era. The much talked about sex scenes are certainly graphic but truly are integral to the plot, each scene gradually revealing the innermost feelings of the two leads. The performances are all excellent and, although Wei Tang is outstanding, the film belongs to Tony Leung who gives a mesmerising display from start to finish. The film does drag in the middle but that is the only (minor) complaint. Overall, a thoroughly rewarding cinema experience and a great start to the new year.

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Post #: 4

over too quickly! - 5/1/2008 6:24:10 PM

kimratcliffe

Posts: 2
Joined: 5/1/2008

like other reviewers i was not a fan of Brokeback Mountain but this is head and shoulders above it- the only similarlity is the quality of the cinematography which is breathtaking & authentic. Beautifully crafted & acted this is the best subtitled film i;ve seen - my partner would have refused to go if he had realised it was subtitled but even he said that it didn't matter & it was one of the best films he has ever seen. It must get oscar nominations surely- except it might be a bit to clever & the sex scenes too explicit for the puritanical americans
full marks all round- and leaving you wondering- What if????

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Post #: 5

RE: over too quickly! - 5/1/2008 8:24:10 PM

Rumble Jack

Posts: 98
Joined: 29/6/2007

quote:

ORIGINAL: kimratcliffe

full marks all round- and leaving you wondering- What if????

Yeah, what if? What if you made your own porn movie and got loads of money for it?

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Post #: 6

RE: over too quickly! - 6/1/2008 11:26:44 AM

Lightfoot

Posts: 350
Joined: 17/12/2007

Ang Lee's latest effort, a sorta political thriller set in WWII Japanese-occupied Shanghai. A bunch of Chinese students have formed a dramatic theatre group and are wowing native audiences with pro-Chinese propoganda plays. Inspired by the success, they decide to go the next step and assassinate a high-ranking Chinese official, who deals with the Japanese invaders and is therefore a traitor. Their leading actress must infiltrate the official's circle, seduce him, and bring him to where the others can kill him.

I have to admit, I spent the first half of the film just wondering exactly why a bunch of young students would go to such lengths to kill someone who's never directly done them any harm. The assassination plot is hatched on a whim, literally, and yet the students spend years carrying out their plans. Eventually, the reason why is resolved (to my satisfaction, though you may feel differently) but I do feel that there's always a delicate setup/payoff balance in films like these, and if you tip the balance too far one way or the other your audience feels underdone or frustrated.

And Lee is certainly more interested in the setup over the payoff here. The film is nearly three hours long, which is no problem in itself, but you do feel the full three hours. It's very well acted, and the photography is as good as Lee ever does, but it's hardly a cracking narrative, though there are infrequent punctuated moments of tension and action. Myself, I never saw much of the point in the near-porn sex scenes.

A bit of an exhausting watch, I think it's territory that The Lives of Others covered better. Worth catching on DVD for a Saturday afternoon.

3.5/5

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Post #: 7

- 18/1/2008 1:14:22 PM

Spookygeek101

Posts: 18
Joined: 26/10/2007

I thought this was a good film, but it dodn't blow me away. The sex scenes are suprisingly shocking and act as a good counterpoint the the rest of the movie which tells it's story in quite a subdued way.

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Post #: 8

Even better that Brokeback Mountain - 22/2/2008 12:11:47 AM

nc_jj

Posts: 662
Joined: 20/2/2008
From: Manchester.

Ang Lee's Lust, Caution is wonderfull, erotic and brutal. A beautiful love story. I think Lust, Caution is Wong Kar-Wai's masterpiece 2046.
Brilliant performances, cinematography and directio

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Post #: 9

RE: Even better that Brokeback Mountain - 14/5/2008 10:36:27 AM

MOTH

Posts: 3172
Joined: 3/10/2005
From: Sittin' on the dock of the bay

A sumptuous period piece, beautiful to look at and elegantly put together. The gorgeous Tang Wei anchors the entire film with a courageous and ambiguous performance, not least in the explicit (but crucially not gratuitous) sex scenes with Leung. It�s a little overlong and the deliberate pacing renders the espionage aspect of the plot less gripping, but this is still superior, intelligent film-making by a versatile and passionate director.

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RE: Even better that Brokeback Mountain - 15/5/2008 4:35:43 PM

Diggler

Posts: 1257
Joined: 30/9/2005

Loved this film. I was a little unsure I'd like it when I got it but I was hooked by about 20 minutes in and it kept my attention all the way to the end. I even watched the 'making of' on the extras which I never normally do just to get a better understanding of the characters.

I rented it at the same time as Enchanted so watched one after the other. Talk about 2 completely different films!

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RE: Even better that Brokeback Mountain - 20/5/2008 11:14:51 AM

skouliki

Posts: 1
Joined: 20/5/2008
From: Athens, GREECE

Totally better than Brokeback. I also loved this film and was more than I xpected from Lee.
What's next please??

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Post #: 12

Lust, Caution - 3/7/2008 12:52:51 AM

lynnshep

Posts: 428
Joined: 17/1/2007
From: USA

Good but not great. The first half is too long and could have been shortened without losing the plot. The second half is bold and daring with a great ending. But, the first half drags the film down,

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Post #: 13

Hmm, Not Sure Yet. - 18/12/2008 6:03:41 PM

joanna likes films

Posts: 987
Joined: 27/10/2007
From: Bexhill

I just finished it and I'm still undecieded about this. The first half of the movie seems long and taking it's damn time to get on with things which can be really annoying. But when the second half comes, it's shocking and leaves you with a bitter taste ending. The sex is very erotic, only twice it appears but when it does it can put you off but you have to carry on to see what happens next. I had to fast-foward some of it as it got too drawn-out and very slow but I managed to hold on to find a ending that didn't make a lot of sense. Sure, the pefomances from the leads were good and where they set it was nice to look at but I'm not over the moon with it. Director Ang Lee made a beautiful and haunting Brokeback Moutain which I deeply enjoyed, this one not so much. Okay but could've been cut down the running time to maybe under two hours.

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Post #: 14

Bonk Lee - 2/2/2009 12:14:42 PM

Fluke Skywalker

Posts: 9540
Joined: 23/4/2006
From: the dark side of the sun

I know I should be talking about the the brilliant central performance by Wei Tang as the talented student/ actress who falls into the resistance movenment, the sumptuous period look or the tension filled story but there's no getting away from the banging sex scenes!

They really go at it and get into some good positions - I can't remember the last movie outside of a porno I saw with such explicit shagging. Hats off to the two main protagonists for have the guts to do that onscreen, although you kinda have to ask yourself was it all really that neccessary or has Ang Lee turned into a dirty old man??

Apart from that the way Wei Tang falls for Tony Leung is completely believable as she's slowly sucked into his world of wealth, glamour and icy power. Her performance is top drawer and surely a new star is born into Asian cinema - then again she might have been around for a while unbeknownst to western film fans.

Overall - Ang Lee does it again

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Post #: 15

Ang Lee - One of the best directors out there! - 3/6/2009 2:01:16 AM

MartyW

Posts: 204
Joined: 3/1/2006
From: Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, United Kingdom

I find it really irritating that people see this as Ang Lee's porno movie. Yes ok there are a lot of sex scenes in it and yes they do get quite erotic and explicit, but theres so much more to the film than it's very own sexual element/content. It was a riveting movie filled with suspense and gripping moments while set against the second world war in 1940s china. Both central performances were magnifient and the ending really got to me in a very sad way. Bravo Mr. Lee!

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Post #: 16