Above is an alternative ending for In the Mood for Love, in which the two protagonists have their last encounter in Cambodia.
Watch the clip and consider which ending you feel like working better in contributing and developing the overall atmosphere or narrative for In the Mood for Love. If you like, you're always super welcome to share another ending created by you, which you feel like working better according to your understanding of the film.
PS. It's natural that different people have different perspectives and understanding of the same film, so don't worry about arguing for the alternative ending which wasn't selected as the official ending for In the Mood for Love by the filmmaker.
I like the ending in the film more than this alternate ending. I don't feel like the last dialogue between Chow and So adds much, and in fact I think it takes away from the overall atmosphere. The entire film gives the impression that these two people would be great together under a different circumstance, that's well established by the end of the film, this last dialogue is unnecessary. I think that after the near reconnection when Chow comes back to his old apartment while So is living with her son right next door effectively sets up the solemn ending of Chow wandering the ruins alone. With the dialogue in between these two scenes it throws off the atmosphere.
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ReplyDeleteI agree with Logan, it completely takes away from the mood of the film. It's almost as if it's a fan-fiction of what should have happened. Besides, it's completely out of character for a WKW ending. No broken hearts? The ruins scene is also much more beautiful, and it wraps up the whole package. The other ending would have just created a lack of interest for the viewer. If there's no mystery at the end of a film, then there's no lasting interest.
ReplyDeleteIf I were to do an ending, I would've at least left it ambiguous. Left the possibility for another meet, but without certainty. WKW's original ending works just fine in my mind though.
-A.Nowak
I agree with the post above by Alex Nowak. The entire ruins scenes is quite stunning in terms of cinematography and the overall mood it contributes to the end of the film. Ruins are innately desolate and the open ending of despair in the original ending really works for the whole film. The audience doesnt need spoon fed a "happy ending". The whispering into the hole was especially powerful as well and without you lose the sense of intrigue.
ReplyDeleteThe final cut of the film is the right one. I feel WKW may be trying to do too much with the alternate scene and it ultimately takes away from the beauty of the rest of the film. I think it ruins the openness of his films and is uncharacteristic of his usual style.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the above opinions. I feel as though this ending was trying to be more "Hollywood" and allow the two some closure. The whispering in the hole becomes less powerful because he was able to get a few things off his chest before hand with the last encounter. Also, it shows Mrs. Chan's final choice to pick her husband and leave him, which allows the audience to understand a goodbye.
ReplyDeleteWith the original ending, one can assume they are both alone, with the potential to meet one day or not. I assumed from the film that Mrs. Chan left her husband to live with her son in a place that changed her life. Chow is left as a wanderer (no wife) and has a whole life open to possibilities. When he whispers into the hole it creates the dramatic effect that he can be whispering about anything, his wife or Mrs. Chan, we'll never know, which is more powerful and able to let the audience think what they want.
The open ended final for the original cut of the film work far better than this one. I agree with the Hollywoodification of this alternate ending, and it simply adds another scene on in which they do not end up together, it's really quite pointless, and takes away from the beautiful Cambodian ending from the original. Wong Kar Wai established a theme of the beauty and elegance of a deep emotional connection between two people without any form of physical expressions of appreciation. When Chow whispers his secret in to the wall of the temple in Cambodia, it seals a part of his life, and allows him to begin a new one. Ending it Cambodia with Chow by himself establishes that final resting place of his forbidden love, regardless of its beautiful nature, it had to come to an end. The tranquil seclusion established in the final scene of the original cut far outmatches this wishy-washy alternate ending, in my opinion.
ReplyDeleteIn the process of watching "In The Mood For Love". Will have this post completed by Friday at 5 PM.
ReplyDeleteAfter watching "In The Mood For Love" as well as this alternate ending, I honestly can't decide which one I believe fits better. In a way, it seems that the actual ending is better, but I believe that I might think this simply because the actual ending is more refined. I had a few problems with the audio track especially in the alternate ending, but believe it could have been more flowing with the rest of the movie had it been cleaned up. I especially did not like the way they edited the echoing voices towards the beginning of the clip and the fade to black the fade in in the middle of the scene. These things being said, I do believe that the music track juxtaposed with an utter lack of sound during the dialogue stays true to the rest of the film, and true to Wong Kar-Wai's usual style in general. Though the two lovers do not have the best parting, I feel that there is greater closure in this ending, as her apparent apathy towards him says it all. If she wanted him, if she wanted to love him, then she would have told him whether or not she remembered calling. On a side note, the last two minutes of this ending reminded me a lot of the ending of "Happy Together". Though "Happy Together" is set in Brazil, this ending seems a lot like it to me in that it shows cultural scenery (i.e. the shines and the large waterfall).
ReplyDeleteI believe that the original ending works much better in the context of the film. The beauty and restraint are captured perfectly, and the desolate exploration of the Angkor Wat perfectly matches the loneliness of rejection. The original is also characteristically ambiguous, the viewer at first unaware of the scene's purpose and no final word is had.
ReplyDeleteThe alternate ending seems to be contrived to wrap up the story in an uncharacteristic fashion. The "chance" meeting of the two seems forced, and I agree with the above comment that it takes from the scene in which he whispers the secret into the hole. Also detrimental to the power of this scene is its seeming to be an after-thought. The original ending was powerful in that he seems to go only for this purpose, deepening the emotional connection he must have felt in the eyes of the viewer. The alternate ending, however, has him there already, perhaps doing it in response to seeing her. Also the mention of the upcoming marriage is downright cheesy. Miss Singapore?