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The film sweeps through Hong Kong with fondness and apathy alike, and it is evident the film wants us to understand the psychological effect of the city on its people. Characters remain unnamed and anonymous, even to the audience. People crowd in the public spaces, noise and movement never stop. As our woman in blonde flickers through alleyways and cramped immigrant rooms, the nighttime shots become blurry and brightly-colored. The second story deals more in the daytime, but still floats through buildings, marketplaces, public walkways, and other city architecture\u2014especially the famous escalator. An apartment becomes central to the love story of the second couple: Cop 663 displaces his hurt feelings about his break-up onto objects in his apartment, and Faye routinely breaks into the place to play around and clean the apartment up. This serves a touching metaphor: that those we are able to let in brighten up our lives in ways we sometimes don\u2019t notice until later. The movie reflects the city\u2013it is large, expansive, and sometimes overwhelming, but the little details shine above everything else.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When He Qiwi first speaks with the blonde woman, he asks, \u201cDo you like pineapple?\u201d first in Cantonese, tries another time in English, and then succeeds when he asks in Mandarin. The question as it relates to his character is equally funny and heartbreaking. But the question shows us what life and love and Chungking Express<\/em> is about: trying to connect with other people, even if it takes chance and persistence and a little luck. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2014Peyton<\/p>\n\n\n\n