- Hsiao-Hsien Hou’s Flowers of Shanghai is an adaptation of an 1892 novel. It is set in the “pleasure quarters in Shanghai”-a brothel- and the girls have names like “Crimson”, “Jasmin”, “Jade”, “Emerald” and “Pearl”
- The film consists of 38 long takes with no closeups or cuts within a scene (with one exception).
- HHH’s camera hovers, it observes- and the period production design and décor are simply sublime. There are emerald lanterns, elegant costumes and an ever-present haze of opium smoke. Aside from just the long take, HHH’s primary tool is the camera pan- and this is a purposeful pan and scan.
- Tony Leung plays Wang Lingsheng. Leung also worked with HHH on A City of Sadness (1989). Leung is a phenomenal actor- a star’s charisma without being a primadonna, even in a crowded room he shines like a beacon. Like Montgomery Clift, he has an instant undertone and nuance- he is an actor that looks like he always has a secret. This is such a key role for Leung’s resume. He does not ask for the camera’s attention (he is often facing the opposite direction in a large gathering)- but it comes his way anyways as he goes through the meticulous ritual of preparing his pipe. He is often inebriated- but a sullen drunk.
- Flowers of Shanghai opens with an eight-minute shot. The camera oscillates drinking in the gambling at the brothel. HHH fades to black—then the simple opening credits.

There is no story- the film’s running time just captures the internal drama at the brothel-often power plays between the girls- the domestic politics, the gossip. This is realism. Part of HHH’s point is that things have not really change in over a hundred years. HHH’s interest is in form- and the precision in every detail.
- The second shot is six minutes long—another fade to black- elliptical like Dead Man or Stranger Than Paradise from Jim Jarmusch. McCabe & Mrs. Miller feels similar (or maybe it is just the mournful opium smoking). Like Jarmusch’s film with Neil Young (this also is a single strand of music) or Altman’s with Leonard Cohen this is melodic—hypnotic- the hum of a minimal score.
- Titles of the names of the different characters and girls.

Natural lighting from the lanterns—so handsomely curated- hookahs, tea, hairpins.
- Heads staged in the frame behind the lantern- often doggedly obstructed by HHH as his camera pans float back and forth.
- At the 43-minute mark- a shot through three doors. It is a towering shot in a film filled with them. The camera slowly pushes forward- a quarter of the left frame is obstructed.

At the 49-minute mark HHH goes back to the gambling table from the opening shot

Green, red and yellow stained-glass windows- Flowers of Shanghai is a triumph of color- every frame is swimming in the lantern glow.
- When the scenes transition (every cut is a new scene like the Stranger Than Paradise or the work of Roy Andersson) the lanterns come to life before the rest of the of the scene and they linger for a split second after the scene ends.
- There is one unfortunate scene where HHH breaks form and Leung’s character spies on a lover- the cut is to his character’s point of view (the first and only time). This is poor form in an otherwise flawless film.

At the 74-minute mark Leung is background left facing right and the lantern. One of the flower girls is foreground right facing left.
- A masterpiece – a major work of cinema, one of the more beautiful films of the 1990s- not to mention one of the most rigorously composed.
How does top 4 of 1998 changes becouse of this re-grading? Something like this:
1. The Thin Red Line
2. Flowers of Shanghai
3. The Big Lebowski
4. Rushmore
?
@RujK- Not entirely sure yet on this
I guess it safe to say HHH will move up alot on your next directors list update.
Do you think Tony Leung will move up with both this, and Hero being MPs?
@Big chungus – lots of improvements to both the director and actor lists coming as these lists are years old now
@Drake
Is Tony Leung getting a mention as one of the year’s best in 1998? I hope he does.
@M*A*S*H- Yes- good call here- thank you