Chungking+Express

=__Mise-En-Scene in Chungking Express__= Wong Kar Wai's film Chungking Express details two stories about two different police officers struggling to get over past lovers. In the first story, police officer He Qiwu gets dumped by his girlfriend May on April Fool's Day. Qiwu decides he is going to wait for one month before getting over the break up. The set date is May 1st, which also happens to be his birthday. Everyday until this day he goes to the store and buys a can of pineapples that expire on May 1st. Much like the expiration date on the cans, he believes his love may expire. If May does not show interest by his birthday he will let their love be, and find someone else. Hung up on his ex, He Qiwu meets a mysterious blond woman in a blonde wig who is trying to get away from a drug deal gone wrong. Similarly, in the second story police officer No.663 is having a hard time getting over a break up with his former flight attendant girlfriend. Struggling to regain happiness in his life, he meets Faye at the Midnight Express who falls in love with him.

In both cases, He Qiwu and Police Officer No. 663 want to get over their recent break ups with their girlfriends. They need to get rid of this overriding feeling of sadness in their lives, and regain happiness somewhere else. However, in the chaotic and busy city streets of Hong Kong, this seems like a difficult task. In a city this big with so much going on around them, it seems as if loneliness is hard to escape.



1. **Setting** - Setting plays a key role throughout the entire film, especially when establishing the tone. Continuously throughout the film Wong Kar Wai does not fall short from making it clear that both stories take place in the busy streets of Hong Kong. We are reminded of this in almost every scene when we see the characters making their way down busy alleyways, markets or trafficated streets. The constant reminder makes the viewer feel how hectic it is so deal with living there. It is made clear that it is a big city, and with everyone going about their own business, it seems difficult to not feel alone.



2. **Midnight Express** - In particular, the Midnight Express restaurant plays an even larger role in establishing the tone in the movie. For He Qiwu, the Midnight Express is where he either waits around for calls from his ex-girlfriend, or makes calls to try and escape the loneliness he is feeling. For police officer No. 663, the Midnight Express is where he and Faye first meet. His frequent visits to the restaurant is what catches Faye's attention. In some ways, one could view the counter that is always present between Faye and the police officer as a barrier that is in the middle of their love. One will notice that as the movie progresses, this barrier either divides them, or disappears and brings them more together. Both characters seem to be clinging on a place that hinders them from getting over their break ups. This aspect of the mis-en-scene not simply establishes one of the main settings, but makes the viewer see how all the characters need to get away from the things that in reality are just holding them back.



3. **Sped up/blurred motion** - Already in the start of the film, the fast pace chaos is clearly shown. As He Qiwu is chasing someone down the busy alleyways of Hong Kong, our vision goes wild with the fast past motions, crazy colors, and crowds of people. Wong Kar Wai makes it feel as if we too are running down the alleyways with Qiwu. Not only does this establish the big city setting further, but it also introduces the general "busy city" feel. This happens a couple of other times throughout the movie, like when the mysterious blonde woman is being chased.



4. **Vibrant Colors** - The vibrant colors are yet another thing that contributes to the setting of the film. The colors are bright, obvious and chaotic, dragging your attention to them. They are sometimes overpowering, and in the occasions where the characters are feeling most overwhelmed by their surroundings or events in their lives, is when they are most prevalent. The heavily saturated colors could perhaps directly translate the overwhelming feelings that they are feeling in that particular moment. With that being said, that may only apply in some instances. In other instances they are simply there to further contribute to the setting in the city.



5. **Exaggerated Blue Tones** - Although the use of vibrant colors is abundant throughout the film, an exaggerated blue tone can very often be seen within most of the scenes. The color blue is often associated with sadness. In the context of this movie, the color blue contributes greatly to the melancholia or lonely feel of the movie. Due to the fact that it is so exaggerated and obvious, this feeling is what causes the us to sympathize for the characters and pay attention to the loneliness and sadness they are feeling within.





6. **Props -** Props are used as a way to comfort the characters in their feeling of sadness and loneliness. For He Qiwu both food and the phone become important things in his life after his break up. In this film, food is used as a way to comfort Qiwu and distract him from his troubles. In many instances he can be seen eating alone (or in the case of the hotel room scene, alone but with the blonde wigged woman sleeping). When all else fails, he seems to turn to food as a way to compensate for his feelings. The phone, as well, becomes significant in both distracting him from the break up and causing him to think about it more. As he waits around at the Midnight Express, he calls up family members in hopes of catching May's attention. He also waits around, hoping for a page with a message from his ex. In the moments where he is feeling particular sad about her, he desperately calls up other woman he hasn't spoken to in a long time-hoping they would be willing to meet up. For police officer No.663, props such as household items and stuffed toys become his way in dealing with his break up. He begins talking to them in a way that almost indirectly makes it seem as if he is talking to himself. He talks about his troubles, and gets comfort from talking to them. The characters dependance on these props makes it clear to the viewer that they need to get over their break ups and find happiness elsewhere.



7. **Framing -** Often many of the characters are framed in such a way that isolates them from their surroundings. Most shots are medium shots with the character placed in the middle. The focus is on them and most often it is either dark around them, or other things block the space beside them. This way of framing not only singles out the characters, but can be symbolic of how alone they feel. When the viewer sees shots like this, it forces use to focus on solely them as they stand out. As a result, we pay more attention to their actions or facial expressions, allowing us to try and comprehend how they are feeling in that moment.



8. **Space and Lighting** - In the moments where the characters are feeling particularly alone or sad, the lighting helps contribute to project their inner feelings. The scenes are often dark and dramatically lit, drawing your focus onto the character and how they are both feeling, and reacting to the situation. When the characters are feeling particularly down is when the lighting is greatly exaggerated forming a silhouette of their body, or casting heavy shadows. The exaggerated blue tone is also present in the scenes lit in this manner, further contributing to the melancholia feel.

9. **Stopped Time/Fast Motion** - A technique that is used twice throughout this film is one that displays two speeds of time within a scene. In both examples above, the actions of the police officer are occurring at slow speed whilst everything in the background or foreground is occurring at fast or normal speed. The effect of this technique is to exaggerate the time, putting a focus on how everything around the character is happening so fast whilst for him, it seems to be happening so slowly.



10. **Costume -** Characters like the mysterious wigged woman and Faye are exactly the type of change that the police officers need in their lives to distract them from their break-ups. The wigged woman is dressed in her raincoat and sunglasses to add a sense of mystery to her that attracts He Qiwu to be curious about her. Although she is stern and serious, she is interesting and He Qiwu is interested by the type of person she is. Similarly, the quirky and vibrant Faye is exactly what police officer No. 663 needs in his life. Having lost all the happiness with in his life, Faye, with her short hair, funky sunglasses, and bright colored clothing, is a refreshing character that reintroduces happiness into his life.

The mis-en-scene in Chungking Express is vital in establishing the setting, the mood and the overall behavior and feelings of the characters. All the characters in the film need to find happiness away from what has been making them sad. The sadness and loneliness that the characters are feeling is portrayed in the tones, colors, light and framing. In addition, the busy city that is shown further contributes to this feeling of loneliness, as it makes the viewer feel as if it's impossible for the characters to regain happiness in a city so big and with so much constantly going on. The props are used as a way to distract the characters from their troubles, <range type="comment" id="404366240_9">whilst</range id="404366240_9"> motion and time are used to further contribute to the chaos within Hong Kong. All things together make the viewer sympathize for the characters, <range type="comment" id="404366240_10">wanting them to stray away from the sadness that has consumed them for so long and find it in things that are very obviously infront of them.</range id="404366240_10">