Room for fantasy

>> Maggie Cheung discusses the unbeatable Wong Kar-Wai and In the Mood for Love

by MATTHEW HAYS

Maggie Cheung bounces about her hotel room as we sit down to discuss her latest film, In the Mood for Love, at the Toronto International Film Festival. She's a bit wired on both caffeine and nicotine and vicious jet lag is getting her down.

Thus she's in the odd position of seeming to be energetic, while apologizing for being too lethargic. "Prepare yourself," she tells me. "I feel like I'm on drugs or something. I really don't know how to respond."

The response might seem simple, actually. Since its premiere at Cannes (where it hit the screens a mere four days after its final cut was completed), In the Mood for Love, the latest collaboration from Cheung and director Wong Kar-Wai has received universal raves. And that's not just critical hyperbole. The film netted two coveted awards at Cannes--Best Technique and Best Actor for Tony Leung--while simultaneously packing its every screening with enthused audiences. The hype spilled over to Toronto in September, when near-riots ensued because of the insufficient seating space provided inside various screening rooms.

Shanghai surprise

"Yes, it has surprised me," admits Cheung. "Nobody has told me that they don't like it. I haven't heard anyone say anything bad about it, which is weird. Usually, there are at least some complaints."

In the Mood for Love is set in the early '60s. Leung plays a newspaper editor who moves into a Hong Kong apartment block with his wife. He's soon made eyes with a neighbour, played by Cheung, who lives with her husband, who works for a Japanese company and is often away on business. Leung and Cheung form a rather bizarre friendship; though they aren't romantically linked, they realize their respective spouses are having an affair behind their backs.

It's an exquisitely captured feeling, with all of the remorse, misplaced guilt and sadness captured by Wong's expressive camera. It's also an emotionally raw, yet aesthetically beautiful film. Leung and Cheung are remarkable in their respective roles, illustrating their talents at controlled restraint while always maintaining an aura of spontaneity.

Scriptless wonder

Cheung says the sense of spontaneity is understandable, in light of Wong's technique. "There's no script," she says, bluntly, describing a free style that makes Mike Leigh sound downright conventional. "[Wong] tells us today what we'll be doing. Tomorrow he'll be inspired by today's work. He'll look at the rushes and then move from there.

"In a sense, there wasn't much preparation to do with a film like this. I didn't really know what my part was until the end of the shoot. At the end of the day, he will just chuck everything away completely if he doesn't like it and start again." (And that process continued throughout post-production, with Wong tossing entire scenes out just shortly before the film premiered at Cannes; the press kit released there is now considered something of a collector's item, seeing as the stills featured inside it are from scenes no longer in the film.)

What preparation Cheung did do dealt with the period setting of the film. Trying to capture the essence of the early '60s, she studied photos of her mother from that time. But at the same time, Cheung didn't worry too much about authenticity or realism. "This film doesn't tell you something you have to believe," she points out. "It leaves lots of room for fantasy."

Yes, Cheung confirms, Wong is "totally unique as a director. The reason I work with him continually is that I feel like he was the first person to allow me to be an actress. I wouldn't be where I am today, wherever that is, without Wong Kar-Wai. What would it be like if I hadn't had the chance to work with him? I'd probably have had more chances to play someone's girlfriend or somebody with no brains. He's the one who really opened things up for me, who really allowed me that range." :

In the Mood for Love screens at the New Film & Media Festival. Info: 847-1242