Chungking Express (1994) - The Criterion Collection

Synopsis

The whiplash, double-pronged Chungking Express is one of the defining works of nineties cinema and the film that made Hong Kong filmmaker Wong Kar-wai an instant icon. Two heartsick Hong Kong cops (Takeshi Kaneshiro and Tony Leung), both jilted by ex-lovers, cross paths at the Midnight Express take-out restaurant stand, where the ethereal pixie waitress Faye (Faye Wong) works. Anything goes in Wong’s gloriously shot and utterly unexpected charmer, which cemented the sex appeal of its gorgeous stars and forever turned canned pineapple and the Mamas and the Papas’ “California Dreamin’” into tokens of romantic longing.

Cast

Woman in blonde wig	Brigitte Lin Ching-Hsia
Cop 663	Tony Leung Chiu Wai
Faye	Faye Wong
Cop 223	Takeshi Kaneshiro
Stewardess	Valerie Chow
Midnight Express manager	Piggy Chan Kam-chuen

Credits

Director	Wong Kar-wai
Screenplay	Wong Kar-wai
Producer	Yi-kan Chan
Cinematography	Christopher Doyle and Wai-keung Lau
Executive producer	Chan Pui-wah
Art direction	William Chang Suk-ping
Editing	William Chang Suk-ping, Hai Kit-wai and Kwong Chi-leung
Music	Frankie Chan, Roel A. Garcia and Michael Galasso

Disc Features

New, restored high-definition digital transfer
Remastered Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack supervised by director Wong Kar-wai
Audio commentary by noted Asian cinema critic Tony Rayns
U.S. theatrical trailer
Episode excerpt from the BBC Television series Moving Pictures, featuring Wong and cinematographer Christopher Doyle
New and improved English subtitle translation
PLUS: A booklet featuring a new essay by critic Amy Taubin

From the Current

The Criterion Collection
Goes High Definition!

Dec 15, 2008

Critics have had our debut Blu-ray releases for weeks, and the word is out, coast to coast: http://somecamerunning.typepad.com/some_came_running/2008/11/criterions...

PRESS NOTES: SEEING BLU

Dec 11, 2008

Criterion Blu-ray editions debut next week—with Chungking Express, The Man Who Fell to Earth, Bottle Rocket, and The Third Man—and the reviews are already coming in. “Chungking Express, Criterion’s first Blu-ray release, is nothing short of magnificent,” say the folks at the...

Fast Food for Thought

Dec 10, 2008

Renowned author, film scholar, and Wong Kar-wai well-wisher David Bordwell takes a peek at the new Criterion edition of Chungking Express on his personal blog. Bordwell, who’s written about the artistry of this dynamic auteur...

Chungking Express: Electric Youth

by Amy Taubin Nov 16, 2008

Chungking Express (1994) was the Masculin féminin of the 1990s, a pop art movie about cool twentysomethings looking for love in the city...

New York Times Holiday DVD Picks

Oct 30, 2008

This week, the New York Times compiled its special annual holiday movie preview, and judging by Charles Taylor and Stephanie Zacharek’s enthusiasm for a slew of upcoming DVD...

Wong, Doyle, and Leigh Visit Leonard Lopate

Oct 16, 2008

While in New York for the premiere of Ashes of Time Redux, Hong Kong auteur Wong Kar-wai and his long-time cinematographer, Christopher Doyle, sat down with Leonard Lopate for the radio host’s daily show. In the course of discussing the restored and re-edited theatrical release of their...

Cop 223 Gets Lucky

by Curtis Tsui Oct 14, 2008

Okay, quiz time.What does the music video for Justin Timberlake’s “SexyBack” have to do with the Criterion Collection?Give up?Well, it was shot by none other than...