Topic > Sympathy for Inanimate Objects in Chungking Express

Chungking Express (Hong Kong, 1994) is a film directed by Wong Kar-Wai, with a narrative divided into two different stories. The first part of the film follows the life of “Officer 223 (Takeshi Kaneshiro)” while the second part follows the life of “Officer 633 (Tony Chiu Wai Leung)”. Although the two stories are separate and consist of distinct characters and events, there are some elements in the film that show their similarities and differences. In the film, both officers are distraught as they are heartbroken due to recent breakups. This short essay compares and analyzes two specific scenes - one for each story - to underline how the two stories are "the same but different". In both scenes the two protagonists exploit their loneliness to sympathize with inanimate objects. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay In the first story, about thirteen minutes into the film, Agent 223 explains how he buys a can of pineapples every day, especially the ones that expire on May 1st. The reason he buys a can of pineapple every day is because his ex-girlfriend, May, loves pineapples and May 1st is her birthday. On the night of April 30, Agent 223 becomes frustrated when he can't find any cans of pineapple that expired on May 1 on the shelves. When the cashier explains to him that the pineapples are practically already expired, Agent 223 defends the pineapple species by replying irritably: "With you people it's always 'out with the old, in with the new!' Do you realize what goes into preparing a can of pineapple? The fruit is grown, harvested, sliced ​​and you throw it away! How do you think pineapple feels? (18:47-18:51) In the second story, Agent 633 broadcasts his nightly routine of comforting the “sad” inanimate objects in his apartment. “Since she left, everything in the apartment is sad. I must console them all before I go to sleep” (57:27). The film continues with Agent 633 talking to a bar of soap with low self-esteem, a crying wet towel, angry stuffed dolls, and a lonely polo shirt. These two scenes are similar because they both show heartbroken officers taking their sadness out on lifeless people. objects after being dumped by their friends. Throughout the film, both characters generally don't have much of a support system to help them deal with their unhappiness. Since they are both very lonely all the time, it makes sense to me that they end up talking to inanimate objects. Not only are the two scenes similar in plot and theme, but they are also comparable in a visual sense. Both scenes occur on quiet nights. Since the scenes take place at night, the lighting in both scenes is very dark and dull in color. The dark lighting and absence of background noise in both scenes emphasizes the loneliness that the two protagonists feel in their stories. While the two scenes have very obvious similarities, they are also very different. The two scenes are different in three main ways: the focus of the characters, their communication towards inanimate objects, and the way the scenes are presented. In the first scene, Agent 223 emphasizes expiration dates and lack of time when referring to pineapple cans. His main emotions are frustration and desperation because he was hoping that his ex-girlfriend, May, would try to contact him before the pineapple cans expired, but time is running out and he hasn't received any word from her. On the other hand, in the second scene, it is obvious that Agent 633's attention is on all the repressed negative emotions he feels towards his ex-girlfriend. He accuses a bar of soap of having.