HAPPY TOGETHER
I still remember the chills I had the first time I watched HAPPY TOGETHER 春光乍泄 (trailer here). In this emotionally raw, gorgeously stylized Wong Kar-wai film, a couple (portrayed by Hong Kong icons Tony Leung Chiu Wai and Leslie Chueng Kwok Wing) travels through Argentina as they go through a turbulent cycle of falling more deeply in love, breaking up, making up, infatuation and doubt. Set against the cusp of the 1997 handover of Hong Kong, this heart-wrenching, feverish story captures the angst of an LGBTQ couple unsure of what their future holds. You may remember this film as one of Wong Kar-wai’s most influential work, or part of the New Queer Cinema movement in the 90s. Both are true, but I mostly love it for its pioneering style of visual storytelling, the powerful performances by two legendary actors, and the complexity and intensity of its portrayal of the LGBTQ community (at a time when Hollywood’s representation was minimal and problematic—at best). So, go watch already!
—Mimi Li, Development Assistant
