Kung Fu

Introducing

Whenever Wong Kar-wai makes a martial arts film, it requires considerable resources and extended production time. Filming for Ashes of Time took nearly two years, and for The Grandmaster, it took almost ten years to complete the planning. Reflecting the iconic line from The Grandmaster: “ Never give up the faith, keep the light burning ”. Wong Kar-wai has never given up on his dream of martial arts cinema.

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Introducing

It’s clear that Wong Kar-wai has been heavily influenced by the martial arts novels of famous authors like Jin Yong ( 金庸 ) and Gu Long ( 古龍 ). However, even though his films are full of spectacular fighting scenes, their significance goes far beyond the physical aspect. These fight scenes carry a deeper and purer cultural meaning, closely tied to Chinese tradition.

In his films, Wong Kar-wai often incorporates quotes from ancient Chinese poems, whose beauty and subtlety are hard to preserve when translated into other languages. For example, the phrase “ Never lose faith ” in Chinese translates to “ If you don’t forget, it will return to you ” ( 念念不忘，必有迴響 ). This proverb, which combines two idioms (成語, chengyu), concisely expresses the idea that when one remains deeply attached to a person or an idea and never abandons it, a response will eventually come.

This message is not only at the heart of The Grandmaster, but it also reflects Wong Kar-wai’s obsession with martial arts cinema, which transcends mere entertainment to explore spiritual and timeless dimensions.

**Gong Er in The Grandmaster : How boring life would be without regrets**

人生無悔該多無趣

As a woman of her time, Gong Er faced many constraints: she could not inherit her father’s title because, in traditional Chinese culture, women became the responsibility of their husbands after marriage. Yet Gong Er’s strength lies in her determination and the sadness she feels in having to give up so much to restore her family’s dignity.

After the death of her father and the betrayal by Ma San (one of her father’s students), she chooses to renounce marriage and follow «The Way.» In Chinese, «following The Way» (Feng Dao) means not marrying, not having children, and never passing on her kung fu for the rest of her days. At that time, in the world of martial arts in Northeast China, choosing this path required unshakable conviction and brought great respect, but the price was immense.

Gong Er’s decision to follow this path meant giving up any future. For her, this choice represented a form of «death»: from now on, she could only follow this road; there was no turning back (從此我只有眼前路，沒有身後身). Gong Er, a woman of noble heart, fights alone against the world, seeking revenge and redemption. Throughout the film, Gong Er emerges as the purest and strongest character. But despite her martial arts skills, she is unable to pass down her family’s martial legacy because of her commitment to The Way. Even though those around her urge her to share her knowledge, she remains faithful to her choice until her death, alone. Gong Er, nostalgic throughout the film, remains trapped by the constraints of her time.

The end of The Grandmaster takes place at the end of the 1950s, forming a closed loop with Wong Kar-wai’s 1960s trilogy. The Grandmaster follows the rules of Wong Kar-wai’s universe, where time is a recurring theme. Gong Er remains frozen in the past, in the years that belong to her. While the 1960s and 1990s trilogies offer modern and postmodern representations of Hong Kong, The Grandmaster goes back even further, to the origins of Hong Kong, to its historical roots, revisiting the world of martial arts and a bygone era.

The poetic harmony of the titles

成語

The importance of Chinese literature in the titles of Wong Kar-wai’s films is an essential component of his artistic universe. Each of his films bears a Chinese title composed of four characters, a structure deeply rooted in Chinese literary and poetic tradition. This concise form, known as chengyu (成語), stems from the ancient wisdom of Chinese classics and embodies notions of harmony, symmetry, and symbolic depth. This choice reflects not only Wong Kar-wai’s attachment to his cultural heritage but also his desire to embed his works in an aesthetic continuity where every element, from the title to the image, carries meaning.

The structure of his film titles is not merely a formal convention but reflects a creative philosophy steeped in this pursuit of balance. The use of four-character expressions establishes a direct connection to classical Chinese poetry and prose, where every word is chosen with precision to evoke multiple meanings. This economy of language, unique to Chinese literary culture, aligns with Wong Kar-wai’s visual aesthetic, where each shot, gesture, and silence can evoke complex and subtle emotions.

Thus, the titles of his films, while serving as entry points to the themes he explores, contribute to this symbiosis between tradition and modernity that defines the director’s universe. In In the Mood for Love (Faa Yeung Nin Wa, 花樣年華), the four characters evoke both the blossoming of fleeting beauty and the nostalgia for the past, a central theme of the film. Similarly, Happy Together (Chun gwong cha sit, 春光乍洩), which can be translated as «The Sudden Splendor of Spring,» evokes both the transience of relationships and the intensity of the emotions at the heart of the film.

Wong Kar-wai’s aesthetic is therefore not limited to the audiovisual dimension alone; it permeates every aspect of his work, from the choice of titles to narrative construction. The care he takes with the symmetry and harmony of his Chinese titles enriches the cinematic experience, constantly reminding the viewer that his work is grounded in Chinese literary and cultural tradition while reimagining that tradition in a contemporary framework. The titles are not merely trademarks but poetic condensations that reflect the thematic and emotional richness of his films and reveal a unique sensitivity where every element carries deep cultural resonance.