Wong Kar-wai: Days of Being Wild

Text examined

• Days of Being Wild ［阿飞正传］(1990)
  Full Movie with English Subtitles: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RXQfxyED7mA 

The concept of time is one worth exploring in Wong Kar-wai’s breakthrough film, Days of Being Wild. The film, which falls under art-house cinema for its experimentation in such concepts, was one of the first of its kind in that period of 1980s and 90s Hong Kong cinema. It is the first part of Wong Kar-wai’s art-house trilogy, which includes In the Mood for Love (2000) and 2046 (2004).

The title (DAYS of Being Wild) and the film poster both draw references to time – a clock being the central image. The very first scene is explicitly related to time and memory, as the main character Yuddy (Leslie Cheung) spends a minute with Su Li Zhen (Maggie Cheung). This moment becomes significant later on in the film, when Yuddy is asked what he was doing at that exact moment of the first scene. A recurring image in the film is one of a clock ticking, which can be read in many different ways. In light of the discussion on a post-colonial Hong Kong identity, the clock ticking represents the imminence of Hong Kong’s handover to Chinese Communist rule in 1997. Yuddy can encompass the problems that Hong Kong experiences regarding post-colonialism. He is fluid and malleable, moving from one woman to another without establishing any emotional connection with. Similarly, Hong Kong has that same fluidity, it moves between East and West without ever establishing its own position.  Yuddy, who has been living under his adopted mother, is searching for the identity of his birth mother – a parallel to Hong Kong’s search for its own culture.

I enjoyed the scenes where the policeman Tide (Andy Lau) and Li Zhen casually wander the streets of Hong Kong at nighttime. Tide uses this moment to share his dreams about becoming a sailor, while Li Zhen is able to find a source of comfort by having someone there for her. These types of moments are so simple and yet so beautiful. You get that sense of timelessness at that particular moment. In the scheme of things, both characters go off in separate directions after that night. A very tragic scene is when Li Zhen rings the payphone to speak to Tide but she doesn’t get answer.  Tide would used to wait outside the payphone kiosk for her call, but he ends up leaving Hong Kong before she calls him. Tide ends up pursuing a career in sailing and bumps into Yuddy in the Philippines.  

Tide (Andy Lau) and Li Zhen (Maggie Cheung)

The film relies on its characters to motivate a plot that is never clear-cut to begin with, which is similar to In the Mood for Love. I’ve noticed that apprehensiveness is a destructive trait in some characters of the film, working nicely with Wong Kar-wai’s emphasis on time since apprehensiveness leads to delay.  Tide is unwilling to act on his hidden love for Li Zhen, but in the end, runs out of time. This also applies to Yuddy's best friend Zeb, who falls in love with another one of Yuddy's women, Mimi. However, the film is primarily focused on the theme of rejection and how people deal with it. 

Here's an excerpt from a film review which I found very insightful as it provides some social critique. It's about how the film displays ideas of a lack of self worth and self pity throughout the film. 

"The two female leads are young and naïve and not able to be see through Yuddy’s deception. They cling to a man who mistreats them and rejects them. Instead of accepting his true personality the women chase after him, and attempt to fight for his affection. The women’s lack of self confidence makes them yearn for an individual that berates and mistreats them. This aspect of the film is a direct reference to the mindset of many young Chinese women of that time, and it is a mindset that still holds true today."

Through watching different types of Asian films, I’ve become more appreciative of these experimental types of films - ones that are very ambiguous in nature and leave you pondering the events of the film. Days of Being Wild is best watched as part of the trilogy; things make more sense after you watch In the Mood for Love and you find many parallels between the two films.

Anyway, I’ve only touched on bits and pieces of Days of Being Wild in this post – there’s a lot more to appreciate about the film.

It's been called one of the best Hong Kong films produced, so it is definitely worth watching if you have the time!