'Chungking Express' completely captures the highs and lows of a breakup while closely examining the eventual recovery awaiting the lovesick.
Breakups are hard. There’s a reason why they’re such a prevalent subject in art: heartbreak is universal, and it’s often tremendously painful. Going through a romantic breakup is an emotionally complicated experience, which is made apparent in any of the songs, novels, or films dedicated to the subject. It’s true, there’s no shortage of iconic films about heartbreak— Days of Summer, Annie Hall, and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind are just a few of many.
Cop 223, whose quirky monologues were inspired by the lovestruck protagonists found in Haruki Murakami novels, puts a timer on his grief. His mourning, just like his failed relationship, has an expiration date. It can’t last forever. When he gorges himself on Big Macs and canned pineapple and sprints across empty baseball fields to stop himself from crying, he’s finding his own method of recovery.
From here, the story is over. The film suddenly shifts to a different tale of heartbreak and love. Upon first viewing, the sudden pivot to a different story can feel jarring. Cop 223 crosses paths with Faye once the two brush shoulders , and from here the film turns its attention to the Midnight Express food stall. This time, Faye falls in love with Cop 663 after the police officer is dumped discreetly by his stewardess girlfriend .
At the center of this half of the film lies one of the greatest shots in 90s cinema: Faye watches as her crush drinks a cup of coffee. Around them, the world is abuzz with people moving about in fast motion. For Faye, though, time nearly stands still. No matter how fast everything moves around her, she can only watch him. It’s a shot that captures the feeling of falling in love and succumbing to a deep infatuation with somebody.
Chungking Express is the ultimate breakup film primarily because of its infectiously upbeat outlook. Sure, each cop at the center of the respective stories is heartbroken. They even feel desperate and hopeless in the game of romance. For each of them, however, things get better. One finds solace in simple things: a long jog, a gluttonous meal, two movies watched in a hotel room late at night, an evening spent in silence with a near stranger.