Fallen Angels (1995)

This Hong Kong-set crime drama follows the lives of a hitman, hoping to get out of the business, and his elusive female partner.

Director:

Kar-Wai Wong (as Kar Wai Wong)

Writer:

Kar-Wai Wong (as Kar Wai Wong)

Stars:

Leon Lai, Michelle Reis, Takeshi Kaneshiro

8 wins & 15 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Leon Lai	...	Wong Chi-Ming / Killer
Michelle Reis	...	The Killer's Agent (as Michele Reis)
Takeshi Kaneshiro	...	He Zhiwu
Charlie Yeung	...	Charlie / Cherry
Karen Mok	...	Punkie / Blondie / Baby
Fai-Hung Chan	...	The Man Forced to Eat Icecream
Man-Lei Chan	...	He Zhiwu's father (as Chen Man Lei)
Toru Saito	...	Sato
To-Hoi Kong	...	Ah-hoi
Lee-Na Kwan	...	Woman Pressed to Buy Vegetables
Yuhao Wu	...	Man forced to have his clothes washed

Storyline

A disillusioned killer embarks on his last hit but first he has to overcome his affections for his cool, detached partner. Thinking it's dangerous and improper to become involved with a colleague he sets out to find a surrogate for his affections. Against the sordid and surreal urban nightscape of contemporary Hong Kong, he crosses path with a strange drifter looking for her mysterious ex-boyfriend and an amusing mute trying to get the world's attention in his own unconventional ways.

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Plot Keywords:

female masturbation | slow motion scene | urban setting | pineapple | heartbreak | 

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Genres:

Comedy | Crime | Drama | Romance

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

Hong Kong

Language:

Cantonese Mandarin

Release Date:

30 January 1998 (USA)

Also Known As:

Fallen Angels

Company Credits

Production Co:

Block 2 Pictures, Chan Ye-Cheng, Jet Tone Production

Technical Specs

Runtime:

99 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Black and White Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The film was originally intended to be the third segment in Wong's previous film Chungking Express (1994) before he eventually decided that the film was complete without it. The third segment was expanded into a feature length film which became this one.

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Quotes

[first lines]
The Killer's Agent: Are we still partners?
Wong Chi-Ming: [voiceover] We've been business partners for nearly three years. This is the first time we've ever sat together. We hardly ever see each other. I know how hard it is for a man to control his passion. Partners shouldn't get emotionally involved with each other.

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Connections

Referenced in Sepet (2004)

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Soundtracks

Simu de Ren
Written by Hong Yifeng and Ye Junlin
Performed by Chyi Chin

User Reviews

Romantically Detached

Wong Kar-wai's Fallen Angels dives headfirst into the cultural alienation and milennial dread of modern-day Hong Kong. The film has a distinctly detached feeling about it that is certainly close to what its characters must feel. Some scenes are hypnotic and dreamlike, while others seem brutally real. The film's characters always seem to be wandering, or, perhaps, simply going through the motions of life. The voice-overs - which Wong uses as effectively as any director since the heyday of Terrence Malick - effectively add an extra dimension to the characters. The ending of Fallen Angels is one of the most beautiful, poetic, and true ever filmed.

While this film's predecessor, Wong's Chungking Express is a wonderful, exceptional movie, Fallen Angels is ultimately superior - a masterpiece that Wong only surpassed with his last film, the astonishing In the Mood for Love. Still, while In the Mood for Love may be Wong's best film to date, Fallen Angels remains (as it probably always will) the quintessential Wong Kar-wai picture in that it perfectly embodies the bold, Godardian, recklessness that the name Wong Kar-wai immediately brings to mind. 10/10