Chinese Cinema

A Movie So Silent , It Screams (Aiqing wansui / Vive L`amour

Emotions do not have to be wordy or loud , and human feelings are most obvious and affecting in the silence of their dwelling place . This seems to be the message being delivered by Vive L`amour

Vive L ‘amour intertwines the lives of three very different city people who were unaware that they share the same apartment . They are : Mei , a beautiful real estate person who is undoubtedly attractive and sexually active Ah-jung , Mei ‘s casual lover and Hsiao-ang , the gay guy who [banner_entry_middle]

holds so much pain and fear in his heart . They did not know that there were three of them finding solace in that empty apartment . The apartment is furnished only with a bed , as if the room itself has dictated its visitors on how to use the place . The three characters , as if they knew the message of the bed , use the room to engage in silly daydreaming , as well as making plans about or fantasizing about sex or actually having sex

Mei ‘s regular day is about displaying signs , engaging potential clients to an open house , and waiting for the potential clients to show up . She spends a lot of hours on the phone with potential buyers . She desperately wants to show potential buyers the empty apartment Hsiao-kang ‘s day is about selling wall space for burials . Ah-jung meanwhile , is a street vendor . She sells women ‘s clothes from Hong Kong For all of them , the room is a retreat , a place for letting crap out , a hideaway or a place for casual , self-serving , non-committal sex . The bottom line is the room is empty , just like them . How Vive L ‘amour have become so dramatically tragic and yet fairly comedic , while also being highly erotic will never cease to amaze generations of movie viewers

The film starts with Hsiao-kang , a timid gay , stealing the key that would be the three characters ‘ apartment retreat . Hsiao-kang makes himself comfortable in the empty apartment , and he even takes a bath there . When Hsiao-kang slits his wrist in a suicide attempt , it became very clear just how much his loneliness has been bugging him

May meets Ah-jung , and had sex with him soon after . For May , the apartment becomes a place for casual sex . May and Ah-jung never really talk to each other in the movie and they do not less express emotions either . Ah-jung , although he is seen as cocky and cold , gets the fascination of Hsiao-kang . May never meets Hsiao-kang , only Ah-jung does . Ah-jung just cannot love anyone . At the same time , he does not long for love . He is the symbol of what the other two characters might become in the end – numb and hard . Hsiao-kang is scared of life , more than he is scared of death . One of the most striking and poignant scenes is delivered by the character of Hsiao-Kang , who is seen hugging and kissing a watermelon . Hsiao-Kang seems to play with his imagination that… [banner_entry_footer]