Shanghai Triad

Furlough Film # 7
(Every furlough day Dublin and Robert Fong get together to view a film and have a discussion about it. This time Bob Fong's neighbor Paul joined them as well. The following is a transcript of that discussion.)

P: This is Chinese?
R: Duh!
D: This was the same guy who did Raise The Red Lantern right?
R: Yep. Zhang Yimou. He's good.
D: Great.

(They watch the movie)

D: Wow.
R: You guys like it?
D: Loved it.
P: I don't know, I was expecting more of a gangster movie.
R: I was too. But then the end came and it was all good.
D: What do you mean?
R: Well, you got this kid that works as the servant to the mob boss's mistress. She's a straight bitch. Then a gang war breaks out and they all have to hide out on an island with a farmer woman and her daughter and what the f__k. Straight art movie s__t.
D: And then?
R: Right, and then there's a betrayal and next thing you know eighteen guys are getting massacred and thrown in a mass grave along with their boss who gets buried alive. Real motherf__king gangsta!
P: But it threw me for a loop!
D: How?
P: Well, it was art house for a long time. All those big dance numbers at the club in Shanghai. Even the violence was arty up to a point.
D: Right, when the kid's uncle is killed and all that?
P: I thought it was a dream.
D: Me too, because of lighting and the sounds and the slo mo and all that.
P: Then they go out to the island and I think "okay, now we're going to have a funny little sequence where the boy and the mistress bond and it'll be filmed nicely and be light hearted." But no, the stupid mistress gets the farmer woman's lover killed and it's all bad. It was.......I don't know.....
D: Devastating.
P: Yes, exactly.
D: That's why it was good, no?
R: Exactly, s__t was tough. I liked it because it seemed like it was going to go soft and then it just got rugged. The farmer lady even got wacked.
D: That's right. And her daughter is off to be sculpted into the next high end gangster moll of Shanghai. Not a happy ending.
P: The main actress was really pretty.
R: You kidding? Gong Li is hot as hell.
D: That was Gong Li?
R: Yeah, she was in Miami Vice.
D: She looks so different.
R: No she didn't.
D: She was in Farewell My Concubine. And Curse of The Golden Flower.
R: That's right. Curse of The Golden Flower was Zhang Yimou too. They were actually married or something in the 90's
D: I don't think I recognized her because of the eye brows. They are usually so expressive and in this one she had them shaved off so she would look more like the 30's era.
P: You know, I haven't watched a lot of movies from China. The ones I have seen are usually way over the top emotionally, you know what I mean? But this one was a lot more, kind of, laid back?
D: Subtle?
P: Yes.
D: You can actually find a lot that are subtle. What are the one's that you have seen that are all over the top?
P: I'm not sure. I saw them all at Bob's house.
R: Well s__t, those were all John Woo. He doesn't have a subtle bone in his body.
D: That's true. One of my favorite movies of all time is Chinese and is all subtlety.
P: Really? What?
D: Lust Caution.
R: Subtle? What?! That movie's a f__king porno! And it was made in Taiwan!
D: It is not a porno. And are you sure it was made in Taiwan?
R: No, I'm not sure. But it is a f__king porno.
P: What is this movie?
D: It's amazing. I've never seen anything like it. Ang Lee did it.
R: Yep, Mr. Brokeback Mountain himself.
P: Brokeback Mountain is a good movie.
D: Yes. Ang Lee brings the same touch to Lust Caution.
P: We should watch it!
R: Hell no. I'm not sitting here with you guys watching Brokeback Mountain.
P: No, Lust Caution.
R: But we have both seen it.
D: But Paul hasn't. He can be the tie breaker.
R: But I never said it wasn't a good movie.
D: Well do you or don't you?
R: I guess I don't know. All I remember is the sex.
D: Okay, well throw it on your Netflix queue and let's do this thing.
P: What about this one, Shanghai Triad? Final thoughts?
D: Very good. Thought it was great.
P: Much better than other Chinese films Bob has shown me.
R: Gong Li is hot.

Taken from a transcription by Peggy Menchstone on 01/20/12