Chungking Mansions

重慶大廈

Recommendation by Lemi

Wong Kar-wai’s next film, “Chungking Express,” became a cult classic, claiming half its title from a monolithic apartment complex on neon-lit Nathan Road, Tsim Sha Tsui called the Chungking Mansions (the other half was from the long-gone Midnight Express diner in Lan Kwai Fong). The complex hosts a wide range of restaurants, apartments, and shops. The façade of Chungking Mansions has been renovated, but the same frenetic energy flows through the labyrinth of stalls within. Chungking Mansions appears prominently in the film, which features the relationships between two couples, tied together. One of these relationships features a lovelorn policeman (Cop 223) who encounters a mysterious Woman in a Blonde Wig. She weaves gracefully in and out of Chungking Mansions, conducting drug-smuggling operations among the many rooms. It’s easy to imagine a Woman in the Blonde Wig walking through the busy halls, disappearing into a nondescript corner of the elusive building.

Wong Kar-wai’s Hong Kong

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