Tempting Heart (1999)


	Tempting Heart		Return to Review Archive - T
	\| review \| awards \| availability \|		Gigi Leung and Takeshi Kaneshiro
	Year:	1999
	Director:	Sylvia Chang
	Producer:	Jackie Chan
	Cast:	Takeshi Kaneshiro, Gigi Leung Wing-Kei, Karen Mok Man-Wai, Sylvia Chang, William So Wing-Hong, Elaine Kam Yin-Ling, Cher Yeung Suet-Yi, Jo Koo
	The Skinny:	Intelligent romantic drama that has fine acting but a pretentious edge that makes it less affecting than it could be.
	Review by Kozo:	One of 1999’s only high-profile films, this well-pedigreed romantic drama features photogenic stars, an interesting story, and a lauded director. And yet it still feels somewhat lacking. Sylvia Chang plays Cheryl, a film director who enlists the aid of a screenwriter (William So) to write a story about young love. It’s actually an autobiographical tale about young Sheo-Rou (Gigi Leung) and her love with Ho-Jun (Takeshi). The two meet when she’s in high school and he’s in that high school/college netherworld where you sit around and strum your guitar while not thinking about the future. The two hit it off but the whole thing gets shafted when Sheo-Rou’s possessive mother (Elaine Kam) discovers that the two spent a night in a hotel. Their starry-eyed romance comes crashing down and they must part. Complicating matters is Karen Mok as Chan Yi, who’s the official third point of the love triangle - in more ways than one. See the film to understand what I’m talking about. There are some really wonderful scenes in this movie, as well as a fascinating exploration of each particular character’s role in this star-crossed love triangle. As the film progresses, we see more than just Cheryl’s point of view and the results prove to be logical and affecting. However, the effect is also a bit calculated. The framing sequence of the present versus the past is done in an overly self-conscious style. Having Sylvia Chang and William So discuss the film as we watch it is a bit distancing. It’s hard to be drawn into something when you’re always being told exactly what happened. On the plus side, the actors are well-cast. The suddenly hot-in-Asia Takeshi Kaneshiro has all the natural charisma necessary for his role, and Gigi Leung surprises in her first truly adult role. Karen Mok is effective as well, but has less to do than her co-stars. This is a well-produced, insightful drama that only fails in its ability to create any lasting resonance. The story is such a microcosm of youth that it doesn’t feel like it means all that much. Perhaps the closest comparison to Tempting Heart would be last year’s City of Glass. Both are well-mounted, affecting, but ultimately somewhat distant. (Kozo 1999)
	Awards:	19th Annual Hong Kong Film Awards • Winner - Best Screenplay (Sylvia Chang, Cat Kwan Ho-Ming) • Winner - Best Art Direction (Man Lim-Chung) • Nomination - Best Director (Sylvia Chang) • Nomination - Best Actress (Gigi Leung Wing-Kei) • Nomination - Best Supporting Actress (Elaine Kam Yin-Ling) • Nomination - Best Costume Design (Yee Chung-Man) 6th Annual Hong Kong Film Critics Society Awards • Recommended Film
	Availability:	DVD (Hong Kong) Region 0 NTSC Universe Laser Widescreen Cantonese and Mandarin Language Tracks Dolby Digital 5.1 Removable English and Chinese Subtitles

		image courtesy of Universe Laser & Video Co., Ltd.
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