My Blueberry Nights (Wong Kar Wai, 2007): USA/China

Reviewed by Kevin Tran

Despite hearing negative reviews about Wong Kar Wai’s newest feature film, I decided to spend the $9.50 and watch My Blueberry Nights anyway, solely because the Hong Kong auteur has made enough great films (such as Chungking Express (1994), Happy Together (1997), and In The Mood For Love (2000)) to make me want to see just what he is up to nowadays. After all, Wong only makes a feature film every two or three years.

The film stars Norah Jones in her film debut, as Elizabeth, a woman whose love life is in shambles, before hitting the road to discover herself and leave New York City, she befriends the owner of a local café restaurant played by Jude Law. The two begin to share a close bond but before they get too close, Elizabeth takes off and leaves. She gets two jobs as a waitress and bartender in Memphis and then later Nevada, she is trying to save enough money to get a car, where she meets some very interesting, offbeat characters brilliantly played by David Strathairn, Rachel Weisz, and Natalie Portman.

After the movie was over and credits finished rolling, I walked out of the theater feeling that the film was pretty good, yet I was disappointed with some decisions that the director chose. Mainly making such a boring central character and having that central character played by someone who shouldn’t have anything to do with acting. Luckily, the supporting characters really do support the film and allow Wong to pull off a decent American film (his first one in English). Jude Law’s energy and charisma balances Jones’ bland and dry acting, while David Strathairn and Rachel Weisz scenes are simply stunning to watch. Natalie Portman felt a bit out of place in this film, both she and her character.

Wong Kar Wai’s films are unique because they are less about story and more about characters and attitude. He ultimately achieves this using vibrant colors that mesh beautifully together, making an atmosphere that reflect ironically with his unhappy characters. His narrative in this film seems more rushed and less detailed than his Asian films, which is what the opposite of what he is most famous for. Perhaps all the bad stuff gets lost in translation when watching artful Hong Kong films or maybe Wong just looses his charm when working with an English script and American actors.

As a reviewer, I’d tell you to wait for this one to come out on DVD, but please check out Wong Kar Wai’s other film while you wait. I promise you won’t be disappointed.