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IMDbPro

Lust, Caution

Original title: Se, jie
  • 20072007
  • NC-17NC-17
  • 2h 37m
IMDb RATING
7.5/10
41K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
2,937
262
Tony Chiu-Wai Leung and Tang Wei in Lust, Caution (2007)
Theatrical Trailer from Focus Features
Play trailer1:45
3 Videos
99+ Photos
  • Drama
  • History
  • Romance
During World War II era, a young woman, Wang Jiazhi, gets swept up in a dangerous game of emotional intrigue with a powerful political figure, Mr. Yee.During World War II era, a young woman, Wang Jiazhi, gets swept up in a dangerous game of emotional intrigue with a powerful political figure, Mr. Yee.During World War II era, a young woman, Wang Jiazhi, gets swept up in a dangerous game of emotional intrigue with a powerful political figure, Mr. Yee.
IMDb RATING
7.5/10
41K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
2,937
262
  • Director
    • Ang Lee
  • Writers
    • Eileen Chang(story)
    • James Schamus(screenplay)
    • Hui-Ling Wang(screenplay)
  • Stars
    • Tony Chiu-Wai Leung
    • Tang Wei
    • Joan Chen
Top credits
  • Director
    • Ang Lee
  • Writers
    • Eileen Chang(story)
    • James Schamus(screenplay)
    • Hui-Ling Wang(screenplay)
  • Stars
    • Tony Chiu-Wai Leung
    • Tang Wei
    • Joan Chen
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 175User reviews
    • 192Critic reviews
    • 61Metascore
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Nominated for 2 BAFTA Awards
      • 29 wins & 56 nominations total

    Videos3

    Lust, Caution
    Trailer 1:45
    Lust, Caution
    Lust, Caution
    Interview 0:35
    Lust, Caution
    Lust, Caution
    Interview 0:45
    Lust, Caution

    Photos592

    Tony Chiu-Wai Leung and Tang Wei in Lust, Caution (2007)
    Leehom Wang in Lust, Caution (2007)
    Tony Chiu-Wai Leung in Lust, Caution (2007)
    Tony Chiu-Wai Leung and Tang Wei in Lust, Caution (2007)
    Joan Chen, Leehom Wang, and Tang Wei in Lust, Caution (2007)
    Tony Chiu-Wai Leung and Tang Wei in Lust, Caution (2007)
    Tang Wei in Lust, Caution (2007)
    Tang Wei in Lust, Caution (2007)
    Tang Wei in Lust, Caution (2007)
    Leehom Wang in Lust, Caution (2007)
    Joan Chen in Lust, Caution (2007)
    Joan Chen, Tony Chiu-Wai Leung, and Tang Wei in Lust, Caution (2007)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Tony Chiu-Wai Leung
    Tony Chiu-Wai Leung
    • Mr. Yeeas Mr. Yee
    • (as Tony Chiu Wai Leung)
    Tang Wei
    Tang Wei
    • Wong Chia Chias Wong Chia Chi…
    Joan Chen
    Joan Chen
    • Mrs. Yeeas Mrs. Yee
    Leehom Wang
    Leehom Wang
    • Kuang Yu Minas Kuang Yu Min
    Tsung-Hua Tou
    Tsung-Hua Tou
    • Old Wuas Old Wu
    • (as Tsung-Hua Tuo)
    Zhi-Ying Zhu
    Zhi-Ying Zhu
    • Lai Shu Jinas Lai Shu Jin
    • (as Chih-ying Chu)
    Ying-Hsuan Kao
    Ying-Hsuan Kao
    • Huang Leias Huang Lei
    Lawrence Ko
    Lawrence Ko
    • Liang Jun Shengas Liang Jun Sheng
    • (as Ko Yu-Luen)
    Johnson Yuen
    • Auyang Ling Wenas Auyang Ling Wen…
    Kar Lok Chin
    Kar Lok Chin
    • Tsaoas Tsao
    Yan Su
    Yan Su
    • Mrs. Maas Mrs. Ma
    Saifei He
    Saifei He
    • Mrs. Hsiaoas Mrs. Hsiao
    Ruhui Song
    • Wang's Auntas Wang's Aunt
    Hui-Ling Wang
    • Mrs. Liaoas Mrs. Liao
    Jie Liu
    Jie Liu
    • Mrs. Leungas Mrs. Leung
    Anupam Kher
    Anupam Kher
    • Khalid Saiduddinas Khalid Saiduddin
    Akiko Takeshita
    • Japanese Tavern Boss Ladyas Japanese Tavern Boss Lady
    Hayato Fujiki
    • Japanese Colonel Satoas Japanese Colonel Sato
    • Director
      • Ang Lee
    • Writers
      • Eileen Chang(story)
      • James Schamus(screenplay)
      • Hui-Ling Wang(screenplay)
    • All cast & crew
    • See more cast details at IMDbPro

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    Lust Caution

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Ang Lee said that directing the explicit sex scenes in this film was more difficult than directing the complicated fighting scenes in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000).
    • Goofs
      When the jeweler, Khalid Saiduddin, presents the finished ring to Mak Tai Tai and Mr. Yee, he shows it to them in a distinctive trademark octagonal red Cartier box. When he opens it, the shot attempts to hide the Cartier name inside the box, but the edge of it can be seen.
    • Quotes

      Mr. Yee: The people I associate with are those with high reputations.

    • Alternate versions
      An R-Rated version was made for the home video market for sale in places that doesn't carry NC-17 films (e.g. supermarkets). The run-time of the R-rated version is only ~30 seconds less but features ~70 seconds of alternative footage to soften the rating.
    • Connections
      Featured in At the Movies: The Kingdom/Trade/The Game Plan/Feast of Love/The Darjeeling Limited/Lust, Caution (2007)
    • Soundtracks
      Intermezzo In a Opus 118 No.2: Andante Teneramente
      Composed by Johannes Brahms

      Performed by Alain Planes

      (p) 2007 Decca Label Group

    User reviews175

    Review
    Top review
    8/10
    A Nutshell Review: Lust, Caution
    Early in the movie, Wong Chia Chi (Tang Wei) gets asked to act in a patriotic play, in a time when China was threatened by the Japanese Invasion during the late 30s/early 40s. Little does she know that she's got to carry on acting the rest of her life, together with her group of idealistic young dramatists, as stage feelings stirred up real emotions that calls for the sacrificial of self for the greater good, for the country. What they lack in experience, they make up with their youthful passion and exuberance. And their rawness shows in the way they clumsily set up their traps for the coming of the prey, and fumbling even with their first blood.

    Welcome to Lee Ang's world of espionage. It's not glam, and gets draped in many real world sense and sensibilities. We enter a world where Trust and Loyalty are difficult to come by, and with shadows lurking in every corner, waiting to pounce at the slightest of mistakes. But the darkness is beautifully captured, and like its endless rounds of mahjong, you're waiting for that perfect tile to come your way, for the opportune to present itself, for the East Wind to come about. That's how this movie's espionage theme is played out, with plenty of waiting. Instant results and instant gratification do not come easy, and even the finale I found to be less than satisfying, though it provided subtle avenues to keep your imagination running as to how the turn of events have greatly affected the usually cautious Mr Yee (Tony Leung).

    Like the movie, Leung's Mr Yee remains an enigma we are trying to have a crack at, trying to, like the rest, understand his secret life. He sneaks around from fort to fort, always with protection, and has this solid wall build around his personal life, that even his wife (Joan Chen) finds hard to break, and letting it be anyway, enjoying luxurious life as a tai-tai. All we know about Yee, is that he's a Chinese traitor in the employment of the Japanese, while enjoying immense power under the protection of his master, readily bolts like a running dog that he is in the first signs of trouble.

    Enter Tang Wei's Chia Chi, in a strategy hundreds of years old, and that is to use the lure of the beauty to provide the downfall of powerful generals. As a fresh faced ingénue, she enters the dangerous cat and mouse game at great personal sacrifice, probing cautiously (that's the word again) into the life of Mr Yee, and casting those come hither eyes as bait to lure her prey, relying on others to provide the finishing blow and save her from his evil roaming clutches. In order to enter his circle of trust, she has to play to the sadistic sexual fantasies (you see, I don't think he gets any from Mrs Yee anyway) of a repressed man using her as an avenue to release those pent up rage and frustrations from work, where his job as we know is to interrogate fellow countrymen. It's not a glam job, especially when you're casting your lot with the underdogs.

    Lust, Caution is a tale of two lonely people, forced by circumstances to do what they have to. One, to fulfill her ideology and get rid of possibly one of the most dangerous man to the Chinese, while the other, looking for honest companionship. It's falling for and sleeping with the enemy both ways, and in a time where trust is hard pressed, this makes everything more complex, especially when it comes to irrational emotions that overrule logic and guard. It's layered with plenty of betrayals whichever way you look at it, and the narrative kept pace by unfolding each

    layer intricately. Which makes it ultimately a very sad love that couldn't be story, the perennial fib to reality.

    Tony being Tony, I can't help but think that with his hair slicked back, and his stoic demeanor in well pressed suits, look the more vengeful version of his Mr Chow from In the Mood for Love, though this time round he really gets it on with another married woman Mrs Mak, Chia Chi's alter-ego. He might be sleepwalking through his role here, as he speaks very little and does even less, but comes alive in his scenes toward the end. LeeHom is rather wooden though as the de-factor youth leader, and his romantic moments with Tang Wei just falls flat given that it's not fully developed here, if not for the focus of love between Mr Yee and Mrs Mak.

    Like how Lee Ang shot Zhang Ziyi to prominence with her role in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon as a headstrong young woman who comes of age, Tang Wei snags a role as such and it wouldn't be much of a surprise should she gain acclaim and recognition for her role here. She switches between the greenhorn student and one who's living a lie quite easily, and she exhibits linguistic skills (English, Cantonese, Mandarin and even Shanghainese) and even talent for song. Watch those eyes of hers, and her rant during breaking point, excellent stuff.

    Lust, Caution is an espionage story that works, and being set in a tumultuous era helped loads in the eagerness and sense of urgency required, and how patience in getting everything set up for that one shot one kill opportunity makes it a constant tussle, both for the characters, and how events get played out.
    helpful•97
    29
    • DICK STEEL
    • Oct 3, 2007

    FAQ3

    • What are the differences between the R-rated version and the NC-17 version?
    • How much is ten taels of gold?
    • Is the character Wong Chia Chi based on a real-life person?

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • October 26, 2007 (United States)
    • Countries of origin
      • Taiwan
      • United States
      • Hong Kong
      • China
    • Official site
      • Focus Features (United States)
    • Languages
      • Mandarin
      • Japanese
      • English
      • Shanghainese
      • Hindi
      • Cantonese
    • Also known as
      • Sắc, Giới
    • Filming locations
      • Ipoh, Perak, Malaysia
    • Production companies
      • Haishang Films
      • Focus Features
      • River Road Entertainment
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • $15,000,000 (estimated)
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $4,604,982
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $63,918
      • Sep 30, 2007
    • Gross worldwide
      • $67,091,915
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      2 hours 37 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • DTS
      • Dolby Digital
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.85 : 1

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