With My Blueberry Nights, Wong has effectively made an English-language Asian film. Keeping in step with his previous efforts, My Blueberry Nights is a movie that cares not about its plot or its characters. The characters are simple, stock figures; the plot similarly routine. Stories about heartbreak, abandoning wives, dying fathers, and other such tales have been well represented by the film and television medium over the years, rendering them irrelevant long ago. Even the main premise of a lonely soul going on a cross-country road trip to re-discover herself has been done many times before. But Wong isn't interested in such things: the plot and his characters are secondary to him. Wong purpose, as with his previous efforts, in particular In The Mood for Love and 2046, is to create a film that visually represents human emotions: feelings such as loneliness, heartbreak, longing, melancholy love. As with Wong's previous films, My Blueberry Nights does not aim to recreate reality or exist in any sort of realistic, naturalistic setting whatsoever. Wong's films take place in a fantasy world; an alternate reality in which characters talk in riddles and rhymes, moping for lost love and missed opportunities. Such is the world of In The Mood for Love, 2046, and now My Blueberry Nights as well.
Wong employs various elements in order to portray these feelings. First and foremost, his dreamy, floating-camera filming style, helmed by visionary cinematographer Darius Khondji, with Wong temporarily abandoning his equally talented regular cinematographer, Christopher Doyle. Kondji does an excellent job at emulating Doyle and Wong's unique mutual visual style, filling the frame with vivid colours reds, oranges, greens, blues; using coloured in-frame natural lighting emulating from neons, fluorescents and other strong light sources; filming through objects such as panes of glass; and quite exquisite framing and composition. The floating, shallow-focus cinematography, colourful but muted, superbly evokes the melancholy longing that the characters feel. Other techniques Wong has used in previous films and uses again this time around are repeated use of mood-evoking songs on the soundtrack, for example.
For his English-language debut, Wong, who already has quite an air of prestige around him, managed to assemble a very strong cast. The weakest link and indeed what I felt was the film's biggest flaw is the casting of Norah Jones as the main character. I love her music but in her acting debut she is all right at best. Her wide-eyed innocence is felt but the performance as a whole is not nearly strong enough, especially as the lead performance, which is supposed to carry the film. A more experienced actress could have done wonders with the role, and indeed Wong's talented and experienced supporting cast members totally steal the show from Jones in their scenes with her together. First in line is Jude Law, whom I believe is unfairly criticized and who is actually quite a talented actor, plays his enigmatic character with charm and energy even though he, like everyone else, is suffering from loneliness, a broken heart and longing for the opportunities and dreams he missed out on. Next up are David Strathairn and Rachel Weisz, both of whom play a bitter couple caught in an endless loop of drama and sport strong Southern drawls. Both actors are in total command of their scenes; Strathairn playing melancholy and self-destructive while Weisz plays fiery and viciously angry. Finally we have Natalie Portman, who seems to be getting better and better at this as she goes along. Like the others she is in total control of her character, commanding all of her scenes and stealing the show from Jones. If Jones' performance is slightly lacking in personality, these four veteran cast members more than deliver the goods and make up for it with powerful, lively performances that provide the film with another level of interest beyond the sublime cinematography and direction.
