My opinions on "Happy Together"

[Zen]

I wish I could obtain a transcript of an interview Leslie Cheung did when he talked about this film. It talked about Tony's unhappiness of Wong Kar-wai's decision to do a graphic sex scene in the beginning; it was originally supposed to be kissing scenes between the two characters.

I'll see if I saved it somewhere in my files and I will be sure to post it up - it's very interesting and insightful.
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"There is no path to peace. Peace is the path."

--Thich Nhat Han

[Gathoni]

Yes Zen, please do so, it will be most helpful. Thnx

[Zen as Guest]

This is the best I can find regarding that article. I found it on http://www.brns.com/hkactors/pages/page23.html. Credits to the web site owner. It only alludes to this quote:

“now you know how I have felt all these years”! - Leslie on Tony Leung's complaint about having to make love to Leslie in take after take.

[Gathoni]

ouch! Zen, the page couldn't load on my end!

Zen wrote:
“now you know how I have felt all these years”! - Leslie on Tony Leung's complaint about having to make love to Leslie in take after take.

He actually felt terrible.... he never wanted to be the way he was, poor him!

thanx Zen!
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The strengthening of faith comes through staying with it in the hour of trial.

[Zen]

I actually found another article through an archive Times article dated 7 May 2001.

Here's the paragraph that was written about Leslie's response to writer Richard Corliss from Time magazine:

The film opens with a stark scene of the two main characters having sex. "When we tried to shoot the love scene it really shocked Tony," Cheung recalls. "He refused to do it. For two days he was miserable, lying on his bed. So I went up to him and said, 'Look at me, Tony, I've gone through so many scenes kissing, touching girls, grabbing breasts, do you think I really enjoyed it? Just treat it as a job, a normal love scene. I'm not going to fall in love with you, and I don't want you to really have sex with me. You're not my type.' So he agreed to do the scene." In other words: Tony, dear boy, why not try acting?

If anyone wants to read the whole article, the link is: http://www.time.com/time/asia/arts/magazine/0,9754,108021,00.html

Time really has some good articles...
_________________
"There is no path to peace. Peace is the path."

--Thich Nhat Han

[Gathoni]

thanks Zen.... while reading this I felt the turmoil and struggle that both of them were going through.... and that they managed to work it out... its the biggest challenge of all. I guess it happened when Tony focused on 'acting', it was the big shove that pulled him through.

Zen, thanks once again.
_________________
The strengthening of faith comes through staying with it in the hour of trial.

[sanfrancisconewyork]

happy together moved me incredibly. I LOVE THIS MOVIE.
i don't actually know much about tony leung (as a person--i only know his characters in films) but it almost surprises me that he was hesitant to do the love scene. he seems to commit 100% and then some to his characters, so if he is playing a gay man in a relationship, i would think he would have been okay with it. but then again, i can only imagine it difficult to commit to one of wkw's characters that are spontaneously developed.
i was personally not at all disturbed by the opening love scene and feel i've seen far more gratuitous depictions in other films. certainly, though, i understand the transgressive content of the film. but the way i saw it was that this film was a love film (and desolation and exile, etc.) before it was a gay film. a gay friend of mine actually said that he hated happy together--his words were "it's just another straight director trying to make a gay film." so from (at least one) gay perspective, the film was unsuccessful as a "gay" film. but viewed otherwise and before--as a film about forlorn love and friendship and loneliness and even self-loathing, i think this film is quite the masterpiece.
and that's all just thematically speaking.
don't even get me started on the cinematography--one of my favorites of chris doyle's works. wondrous, bewitching, awe-inspiring. yes! all of the above!

[Gathoni]

Thanks sanfrancisconewyork for sharing!

You wrote: so from (at least one) gay perspective, the film was unsuccessful as a "gay" film.

It just confirms what has been discussed, it could be as it is because one of the characters was not gay!

Do share on chris doyle's works! It will make interesting reading!

Cheers
_________________
The strengthening of faith comes through staying with it in the hour of trial.