“Lust, Caution,” the new film by Ang Lee, tells a tale of espionage, seduction and emotional turmoil in World War II-era China.
Wong Chia Chi (Tang Wei, in her film debut) is a drama student in occupied Shanghai who becomes involved in the Chinese resistance. She is sent undercover to seduce and assassinate Mr. Yee (Tony Leung of “Time Enough For Love” and “Hero”), a collaborator with the colonial Japanese government. She plays her part well but becomes conflicted by her feelings for him.
The plot of “Lust, Caution” is heavily reminiscent of both “Black Book,” Paul Verhoven’s adventure movie from earlier this year, and Hitchcock’s 1946 classic “Notorious” (which this film winkingly references, if you keep an eye out), but “Lust, Caution” is a darker and more serious film than either.
Lee’s film is slow and rarely revels in the adventure at hand.
More than an espionage thriller, this is a moody psychological drama.
Ang Lee is the director of a wide scope of films including “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon,” “Hulk” and “Brokeback Mountain.” As different as these films might seem, they all share the common theme of repressed passion. The characters in Lee’s films often suffer from their need to hide their feelings, and it’s the cathartic release of this tension that punctures the otherwise calm exterior of Lee’s cinematic style.
Whereas the Hulk released his tension through turning green and smashing things, the characters in “Lust, Caution” release theirs through sex. Very intense sex.
“Lust, Caution” received an NC-17 rating in the U.S., and Ang Lee refused to cut the film for an R.
It’s easy to see why the MPAA rated this film NC-17. The sex scenes are unflinchingly graphic and even violent at times.
But it’s also easy to see why Lee refused to cut the film. It’s during their sexual release that the characters reveal their fundamental vulnerability, and the whole film hangs on these essential moments of revelation.
The film’s script says a lot by not saying much at all. Mr. Yee is cold and distant, troubled by the choices he has had to make and living with constant fear of assassination.Wong Chia Chi, on the other hand, uses her role as seductress to escape the doldrums of her normal life, and she involves herself in the resistance more out of loneliness than political will. Even as the spy-versus-spy plotline plays itself out in the background, the main characters seem lost in a sense of subdued isolation, never telling anyone what’s really on their mind.
And then, in a few brief moments of passion, the protagonists emotionally unravel and copulate with wild abandon. Leung and Tang pull off the unprecedented feat of delivering top-notch acting performances during the film’s steamiest moments.
For most films, sex scenes serve little purpose other than providing visceral thrills for the audience. They are fun but superfluous.
In “Lust, Caution,” however, Ang Lee shows how sex can be an effective storytelling device; he breaks all sorts of rules with this film but has the vision and finesse to pull it off.
Kevin Corcoran can be reached at [email protected].
