"TMM" is also known as "Comrades: Almost a Love Story." The Chinese title comes from a famous song by Teresa Tang, a Taiwanese singer who is important to the movie. In terms of plot, this movie is essentially a very focused/HK version of Forrest Gump, so the two major characters keep bumping into each other at very particular moments (more on that in a moment). Basically, there is an HK bias against those who come from the Mainland, and Mainlanders like Teresa Tang, so the characters' love(s) for the song is emblematic of how various characters deal with the transition from the Mainland to HK: picture a very nuanced version of city mouse/country mouse, complete with a different language. The movie basically will give some indication of when a scene is taking place, then segue to another scene. So, the fact that one character is making a killing means that this is a time when the HK stock market was booming, or people were worried about the handover, or the stockmarket crashed. Knowing that these characters are about to go through something that everyone in HK experienced adds a new level of meaning to the very, very good dialogue. There is a great twist at the end that places every scene in perspective, but spoilers are evil. Backstory: Leon Lai plays the male lead; he is essentially a one man Chinese Backstreet Boy. The gangster is played by a mainstay of HK movies. Maggie Cheung is one of the most beautiful and talented actresses in the world, so seeing her portraying a McDonald's clerk is amazing. An English instructor is played by Christopher Doyle, the cinematographer for "Days of Being Wild," "Happy Together," and "Hero,"
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