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Lust, Caution

More taboo-shattering drama from 'Brokeback Mountain' director Ang Lee

By Geoff Berkshire

September 28, 2007

Critic's Rating:

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Set in a Japanese-occupied China during WWII, this Chinese-language drama of deception, sex and repressed emotions follows Wong Chia Chi (newcomer Tang Wei), a young actress tasked with seducing Japanese collaborator Mr. Yee (Tony Leung, “In the Mood for Love”) in order to set him up for assassination. Based on a short story by celebrated Chinese writer Eileen Chang.

Big questions: Is Ang Lee’s follow-up to the controversial and acclaimed “Brokeback Mountain” anywhere near as good as that modern classic? And are its sex scenes explicit enough to truly merit a NC-17 rating?

Skip it: It’s disappointing to see a director as talented and unpredictable as Lee stumble, but “Lust, Caution” is arguably his least absorbing film to date. With a running time that exceeds two and a half hours, a shortage of dramatic incident and only a few characters to explore, the movie never develops any sort of cumulative power. Tang Wei does her best to carry the film in a difficult role and Leung makes a startling departure from his standard romantic hero, but Lee’s reserved approach makes his protagonists more elusive than compelling.

Catch it: To ponder the hypocrisy of standards for sex and violence in the movie ratings system. The brief but intense sex scenes in “Lust, Caution” do feature full frontal nudity and a variety of positions, but it hardly seems justified that the film received a more restrictive rating than, say, “Hostel: Part II.”

Bottom line: Anyone lured in by the sex is going to leave feeling very unsatisfied. Unfortunately, the same is true for anyone enticed by Lee’s sterling reputation as a filmmaker.

Bonus: There’s probably more screen time devoted to the classic Chinese strategy game mah-jong than to the sex scenes in “Lust, Caution,” and Chinese-American actress Joan Chen (“Twin Peaks”)—who has a small role as Yee’s wife—had to learn to play for the film.

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