Ang Lee's Style in Lust, Caution
Taiwan Director Sets Individual against Society in his Films
Movies Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, Sense & Sensibility, Brokeback Mountain and Eat Drink Man Woman share similarities with 19th century literature
A look at Ang Lee’s movie titles will reveal his greatest preoccupation in film: clear and present conflict. Man versus woman, tiger versus dragon, lust versus caution …spot a theme? A study of English literature in the turn of the century shows an oddly similar pattern: ‘Pride & Prejudice’, ‘Sons & Lovers’, ‘Sense & Sensibility’, which describes Ang Lee’s style aptly, as he directed the last of the three aforementioned titles. In fact, Ang Lee says in an interview about ‘Brokeback Mountain’ that he cast the late Heath Ledger because he “has that energetic power about him that carries the western literature, particularly at the turn of the last century” (Interview: Ang Lee "Brokeback Mountain" by Garth Franklin, December 7 2005).
Ang Lee and Turn of the Century Drama
And what fascination does the turn of the century hold for Ang Lee, director of several award-winning films. What, if any, similarity do his films share with such literature? In ‘Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon’, the hidden surprise, the real dragon is Ziyi Zhang’s character, a quiet but seething presence. In ‘Sense & Sensibility’ as well as ‘Brokeback Mountain’, the character that endures, that survives and possibly triumphs, is also the character who shows restraint right from the beginning. And that restraint is what defines Ang Lee’s best work, ‘Lust, Caution’ being possibly his greatest work.
This restraint is intrinsic to Ang’s work, as his protagonist is not embroiled in just a human-to-human conflict, but something greater: the conflict of self-expression against social convention. Again, one is reminded of turn-of-the-century authors such as Jane Austen, where strong-minded characters can hardly escape social convention. It is with this larger conflict in mind when Ang sets his films against sweeping landscapes: his characters set against such vastness cannot possibly triumph. His characters are not fluid because they constantly practise restraint, and indeed there lies the tragedy in his films: that society does afterall, break the individual down.
Suspense in Lust, Caution
In ‘Lust, Caution’, Ang takes his time to tell his story because the suspense is that powerful. Tang Wei plays Wong Chia Chi, a student living in Hong Kong, who is roped in by her patriotic friends to trap Mr. Yee, a Chinese traitor, by using her charms and seduction. What holds the suspense is not merely a question of ‘will she be caught’, but something else struggling within, a realisation that to be true to herself, she cannot belong either to the enemy or even to her own country – society is the very trap that the individual struggles with.
Ang’s subject for his films and his characters may seem sentimental, but he rarely shows sentimentalism itself. In ‘Lust, Caution’ there is never an argument between Mr. Yee and his wife, no jealousy fits or crying. There are no wartime torture scenes either; in fact the real torture begins in the bedroom, where lust and caution co-mingle beautifully. Tang Wei and Tony Leung (who plays Mr. Yee) are resplendent in their performances, supported beautifully by a subtle performance by Joan Chen. Tony Leung who is versatile in comedy and drama, is unusually restrained in this film, which makes for even better acting. Tang Wei though new to the silver screen, immediately stands out, as she battles between hollow patriotism and her intense and engaging passion for the traitor Yee. Her elfin innocence slowly takes on the shadow of knowledge. One of the best scenes in the film takes place in the Japanese quarters, when Wong (as Mrs. Mak) sings the heart-wrenching Chinese song ‘A Singing Girl at the Edge of the World’ to Mr. Yee, unabashedly showing her devotion to him as a Chinese lover, above all political differences. All through the film Wong is made ‘westernised’, whether in costume, hair, even the café when she orders a very Western coffee. The very moment she sings this song however, the audience is in touch with her very soul – a Chinese one.
Fan of Ang Lee or not, one has to agree he brings out the best in his performers: Ziyi Zhang, Heath Ledger, Kate Winslet, Tang Wei…it is the beautiful restraint in his films that gives the performer substance for a great performance, and his panoramic film sets that define the real individual against an ever-greedy, usurping society.
Source:
1 Interview: Ang Lee “Brokeback Mountain” by Garth Franklin, Dec 7 2005.
