Rating of
3/4
Too Long for Its Own Good
Franz Patrick - wrote on 08/01/08
Yes, there is no excuse for this movie to be more than two hours long. It dragged on and on but I must admit that I was glued to the screen. I don’t see a lot of Asian cinema so I was automatically interested. Ang Lee made a beautiful picture but I’m afraid it lacks a big emotional wallop. For a thriller about spies, it lacks tension. In fact, this is more an observant picture than anything else. It takes its time to get to the point. And when it finally did, it’s kind of disappointing most of the time. Nonethless, I think all the actors did a great job because I actually believed their characters to exist in the given time period. Not only that, it made me want to learn more about what was going on in that particular era. The infamous sex scenes are the most memorable part of the film because that’s when things get complex. Many emotions are revealed and it shows that the characters are always playing a game that resembles chess. One wrong move and it’s over. With a little bit more time on the cutting room floor and adding more tension-filled scenes, I think this could’ve turned out to be a totally different picture–a movie that the mainstream would enjoy and love. Unfortunately, Lee decided to take more risks. And for that, I’m giving him kudos. I saw a lot of potential in this film… but only a few of them were realized.
