A Fei zheng chuan (1991)

Director:

Kar Wai Wong

Writer:

Kar Wai Wong (writer)

Release Date:

15 December 1990 (Hong Kong)

Genre:

Drama

Plot:

Set in 1960, the film centres on the young, boyishly handsome Yuddy, who learns from the drunken ex-prostitute...

Plot Keywords:

Teenage Boy | Adopted Son | 1960s | Mother Son Relationship | Philippines

Awards:

6 wins & 5 nominations

Cast

Leslie Cheung	...	Yuddy
Maggie Cheung	...	Su Li-zhen
Andy Lau	...	Tide
Carina Lau	...	Leung Fung-ying
Rebecca Pan	...	Rebecca (as Tik-Wa Poon)
Jacky Cheung	...	Zeb
Danilo Antunes	...	Rebecca's Lover
Mei-Mei Hung	...	The Amah
Ling-Hung Ling	...	Nurse
Tita Muñoz	...	Yuddy's Mother
Alicia Alonzo	...	Housekeeper
Elena Lim So	...	Hotel Manageress
Maritoni Fernandez	...	Hotel Maid
Angela Ponos	...	Prostitute
Nonong Talbo	...	Train Conductor

Also Known As:

Days of Being Wild (Hong Kong: English title) (USA)
Ah Fei ching chuen (Hong Kong: Cantonese title)
Ah Fei's Story
The True Story of Ah Fei (literal English title)

Runtime:

UK:94 min

Country:

Hong Kong

Language:

Cantonese | Tagalog | English | Mandarin | Filipino

Color:

Color (Agfacolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Finland:K-11 (2006) | South Korea:15 | Sweden:11 | Singapore:M18 (DVD rating) | Singapore:PG (original rating) | Finland:K-18 (2002) (self applied) | UK:12 | Brazil:18 | USA:Unrated | Australia:M

Filming Locations:

Hong Kong, China

Company:

In-Gear Film

Trivia:

This gets its name from the title given to Rebel Without a Cause (1955) when it was released in China.

Goofs:

Incorrectly regarded as goofs: When Tide checks into the hotel, the hotel manageress hands him the key to Room 206. However, in the next scene, Tide uses the key to enter Room 204. This, however, may not be so much a 'goof' as another recurrence of the number '2046' seen so often in Wong Kar-Wai's films.

Quotes:

Su Lizhen: I always thought one minute flies by. But sometimes it really lingers on. Once, a person pointed at his watch and said to me, that because of that minute, he'd always remember me. It was so charming listening to that. But now I look at my watch and tell myself that I have to forget this man starting this very minute.

Movie Connections:

References Taxi Driver (1976)

A tragic, supreme meditation on youth, with an impressionable cast

The only other film of Wong Kar-Wai's I have seen is Chungking Express, which asks a second viewing on account of not, like with a Godard film, being able to really soak up everything that he was putting forth with his characters. On the other hand, his second film I have seen, Days of Being Wild, kept me in tune from start to finish. His film is one of what I completely understand, and find emotionally fulfilling, as it deals with people and themes that are universal. At the core is the basic premise that in youth we don't know where we're going, we may feel like we're 'not all there', and being on our own scrambles us up. With his principals, Kar-Wai delivers a love story about what it means to be in love, or not, and how it affects the people around us.

The late Leslie Cheung is our main protagonist, who at the start of the film woos a worker in a stadium, played by Maggie Cheung, and they start up a relationship that seems to go nowhere. Leslie Cheung's Yuddy is the usual kind of angry young man of the late 50's, early 60's, with violent tendencies and a level of detached mood from his counterparts. But he also has a sense of longing, for his parents he's never known (his 'aunt' is rather selfish) and perhaps for something he never says outright. There is also a supporting story involving, and soon co-coinciding with Yuddy's, with a cop wanting to be a sailor (Andy Lau as Tide), who has a sense of quiet longing after becoming interested in one of Yuddy's frustrated girlfriends (Carina Lau as Leung Fung-Ying). By the time the last half hour kicks in, the main focus of the story comes in, at least for our two main heroes, and for the women in the story.

Cheung and Cheung give many of the more powerful scenes in the picture, with dramatic tension and the kind of fun youth posses. But also, Lau is rather remarkable in his supporting role even when we are basically following him around, himself in his own thoughts we only hear occasionally in voice-over (as with a couple of the other characters). More often than not, Kar-Wai wisely chooses to bring more mood to the story than actual plot contrivances or twists like in a common teen love story. While some passages are rather blunt in this respect (i.e. the quote about the bird with no legs, a fitting, stark image), they seem to work. That there is not much violence as could be expected from a title like this is also a pleasant surprise.

Adding to all of this, there is Christopher Doyle behind a camera that moves much like is was guided by a next-generation Raul Coutard. Some shots are impressive just by being elaborate (like when we glide from the street up the stairs to a lunch-hall where Yuddy is at in the Philippines). Other are more subtle, with the emphasis of darkness and light a voracious method to bring out the kinds of moods in these characters. Early on in the film, as in midway as well, some of the close-ups (like with two lovers in an intimate moment) are of the highest quality in artistry. Doyle, who ended up working on Kar-Wai on most of his films, displays foremost a wandering, intuitive approach that bring Days of Being Wild somewhere special, if not perfect.

Simply put, this film may be more directed to a specific kind of audience (art-house/Hong-Kong film buffs) than a mainstream romance/youth picture, but it doesn't compromise any of its integrity.