Wong Kar Wei’s latest effort arrives in the form of 2046. The posters, the press, the screen captures all point to a romantic yarn set in the future. Five years of anticipation have drummed up the hype machine, so what do we actually have?

What’s really disappointed me about this film is the way it has been portrayed if you look at the images from the poster, to the screen captures, they demonstrate an illusion about the film, that many have come to accept: 2046 is a film set in the future. Although there are elements of futurism within the film, this is by no means an indication 2046 is any shape or form a Sci-Fi film. If this is the sole reason for watching the film, you will be sorely disappointed.

The film is set in the 1960’s over a set period, with the main plot being that of love found, lost, denied, and betrayed. It’s about an attainable love, at least for the core characters played by Tony Leung, Gong Li and Zhang Ziyi. The main film revolves around the womanising antics of Leung, who, as a successful journalist, is able to spend excessively and sleep with women till the cows come home. The subtext for the film are the events that took place in China during that period, which is important to understand and is a reference to the 2046 title.

2046 is a journey with Tony Leung’s character, on his quest to find something that he has lost in his life, and not only his inability to find it, but to achieve it. It’s a tragic story, told in the setting of the 1960s, but also metaphorically in the form of the futuristic setting. The tale is essentially the same, and provides an interesting dichotomy for Leung at one interesting point in the film.

Ziyi provides a brilliant performance as the flippant but lonely character

The story is neither original, nor new, and has been done by Wei previously in his other works, just as it has been done to death by other directors and films. This, however, is not your offensive Four Weddings and a Funeral or Love Actually-esque nonsense. It’s very much a human drama, and about the fragility of individuals in their own personal journey to find what their soul mates. As they say in the film, feelings creep up on you, and they do so for several characters in 2046 and it is fascinating to watch the reaction and handling of those feelings.

Direction and cinematography is mixed. It’s stylishly shot, but the locations are all in all the same. We see the same rooms, the same locales, the same corridor. Some may find this a touch claustrophobic or monotonous, and at some points it can be, but not enough to detract from the film itself. The creativity with the future setting is a little more adventurous, but again, it’s all about style and technique rather than actual substance or originality. There’s nothing wrong with it, but it’s not very inspiring.

I did enjoy the fact that were several stories being told all through the experiences of one man, and his attempt at happiness if not for himself, then others. The stories are cleverly interwoven within the actual film itself, with the title itself have a referential meaning. The whole thing works as a clever metaphor for several things, about life in the location where the film takes place.

Still, the story and characters are really very engaging. Ziyi provides a brilliant performance as the flippant but lonely character, ready to give herself away, but really looking for comfort and security. She plays footloose, but she wears her heart on her sleeve.

Li’s appearance is short, and I had to wait until the very end until she appeared. It’s a little disappointing, as someone of her caliber can be really quite effective in a film. She is a stalwart of art house and drama. She plays her part well, but I felt she wasn’t used as much as perhaps she should have been. The script felt like a let down at this point. Even Maggie Cheung makes the briefest of appearances playing the character that Leung fell in love with, who she also played in the film In The Mood for Love, which was another Wong Kar Wei’s production.

Tony Leung’s character is not hard to like, and although he is a womaniser, you can’t despise his good and straightforward nature. You do feel empathy for him during his experience, and his dealings with both his feelings and the reality of the situations he places himself in. He can have anything he wants, yet there is one thing he wants which he continues to search for, and it’s a rather ironic tale in many respects.

It’s a tragic story, told in the setting of the 1960s, but also metaphorically in the form of the futuristic setting

The music very deserves a mention, as it was really well used throughout, ranging from South American to Opera to an American Christmas number. Arrangements are carefully, and sensibly, used throughout adding a sorrowful bitterness to the proceedings that take place on screen.

2046 is not the best film I have seen by Wong kar Wei, nor is it the best example of romantic drama-cum-tragedy, but what it does do, it does well with a strong story, engaging characters and some clever direction. I both enjoyed the film immensely and was drawn into it, and yet I felt a touch underwhelmed, and I can’t really place my finger on why.

It misses the mark on occasions for me, and the style over substance issue will rear its head now and again, and you can argue this till you’re blue in the face. However, it is quite a beautiful, if flawed, film in many respects and definitely warrants viewing if you prefer your films to be a little heavier on the drama. It is, however, highly anticipated and the film will no doubt get great reviews regardless of the reality. For me, it’s good, but definitely not great.

Verdict: Beautiful and engaging drama about the tragedy of love.