Ashes+of+Time

- long shot of the setting at the beginning and the ending of the film - music (jazz, blues) - symbols (clocks, phones) 1. For this assignment, think about some of the **thematic**, and **stylistic** motifs that you've seen in the four previous films by the director that you've watched. What do you notice in this film that fits in with this director's body of work?

//This answer should be about 200-300 words.//

Wong Kai Wai's films always consist the theme of loneliness.From Happy Together, Chungking Express, Ashes of Time, Days of Being Wild to In the Mood for Love, all of these films contain the characters getting lost and reaching out for helps. Wong Kar Wai wants to express the idea of no matter where you are or who are you with, that sense of loneliness doesn't go away easily, it always sticks around and chases you. In order to show this theme, Wong Kar Wai uses different unique techniques to present the story in his own style. The use of long shot of the setting at the beginning and the ending of the film gives the audience a sense of distant, which refers to the theme. The music choice also contributes to the theme, since jazz and blues are always in use. These types of music make the audience feel empty which connects to the aloofness. Also the symbols (clocks, phones) play a huge roles in his films. These symbols always represent the time shifting.

2. What are some of the most iconic director's choices that you've seen in any of the five films you've watched? What directors choices stood out the most to you? These examples don't necessarily need to be repeated in multiple films, but have helped define the director's image. For example, Kubrick might be known for the iconic scene of Danny riding his bike in one continuous steady-cam shot, or the most famous match cut of all time in //2001: A Space Odyssey// (which we will talk about later). Both of these examples are inherently 'Kubrick' moments, even though they don't have 'echoes' in his other films. //Please list 2-3 examples for each film. This can be a bulleted list but should incorporate complete sentences and explanations of what the choices were and why they were so effective. Screenshots would be appropriate but not required.//

Chungking Express: - sound: the director uses the song called California Dreaming. This song choice stood out to me because it relates to the theme directly (a person's loneliness and desire to be free) Wong Kar Wai always uses songs that are relate to the theme in order to develop the movie.

- editing: There are scenes which the characters are in slow motion and the rest of the people are in fast motion. This is a classic Wong Kar Wai scene. It makes the characters become outliers which express the idea of loneliness.

In the Mood of Love: - camera use: Wong Kar Wai always uses different sorts of camera angles to portray the theme. He likes to place the camera in front of some sort of furniture so it gives the audience the feeling of hiding. There are also a lot of reflections from the mirror which also give the audience a sense of loneliness.

- lighting: the whole film consists a really dark color. The low key lighting reflects the characters' solitary. Even in other Wong Kar Wai's films, low key lighting contributes to the theme of gloom.

Days of Being Wild: - long shot of the setting at the beginning and the ending of the film: This director's choice also appears in Ashes of Time. This choice tells the audience the setting and hints them how the nature can play a role in his film. The gloomy weather shows characters' feelings.

- symbol uses: For both Days of Being Wild and In the Mood of Love, the director uses clock as a symbol to show that time flies. It also tells the audience how people can fight against time, because if things happen at the wrong timing then it just cant be changed.

Happy Together: - close ups : The frequent close ups use is a significant Wong Kai Wai choice. It exposes characters' inner feelings by showing their facial expressions explicitly. - one continuous steady-cam shot: The director uses a continuous steady-cam shot to show the ending for this film.

Ashes of Time -Theme (unrequited love) - The director loves to portray this theme in his films. In this film, all of the characters didn't get their love at the end which also happened In the Mood of Love. - blue, dark color - the whole movie consists a blue and dark color. The director chose to use these low key lighting in order to express a sense of loneliness and separation.