2046

Last night I watched Wong Kar-wai’s 2046. It’s gorgeous to look at, with beautiful actors and actresses, exquisite cinematography and stylishly designed. If Hero was movie-making by way of textile, 2046 is a movie held up by figure-fitting chiongsams. Unfortunately for those with ADD this movie is stately paced. Most movies are like plot-based novels; Wong Kar-wai’s are like poems. The theme is revisited again and again, obliquely stated and never pounded on your head. It took me more than an hour before I realized the full implications of a statement said at the opening credits.

Warning: this movie is not for everybody. It may test the patience of those weaned on blink-and-you’ll-miss-it editing. Many things are communicated in between pauses, stares and silences. While most movies go on a straight line, this one spirals around its central theme, expounding and adding on to it scene by scene.

Watch it only if you’re in the mood to pay full attention to this demanding movie.