rick mcginnis/metro toronto
Director Ang Lee juggles controversy and adapting a short story to the screen in making his latest film Lust, Caution.
When Academy Award-winning director Ang Lee (Brokeback Mountain) set out to turn famed Chinese author Eileen Chang’s short story Lust, Caution into a feature film, he knew his take on the story would prove controversial.
Lee understood that graphic sex scenes would be needed to portray the conflicted relationship between Mr. Yee (Hero’s Tony Leung Chiu Wai), a government official and Japanese collaborator in Second World War-era Shanghai, and Wang Jiazhi (newcomer Tang Wei), a member of a Chinese student group plotting to kill Yee.
Hong Kong film star Leung had long discussions with Lee over love scenes between his character and Wei’s — scenes which would earn Lust, Caution an NC-17 rating in the United States and which would force Lee to edit the film for Chinese audiences.
“I knew they would come out like this, the love scenes,” Leung says. “They aren’t just love scenes. It’s necessary in this movie and we’re not doing love scenes for love scenes’ sake. We’re just trying to express the inner accents of the characters, so no big deal.”
No big deal for audiences, in Leung’s view, but the admittedly shy actor had a different take on acting in the scenes which required his and Wei’s full-frontal nudity.
“It was very difficult at the very beginning because I’m a very shy person and Ang Lee, too,” Leung recalls. “But we did a lot of discussions and rehearsals before shooting and tried to build up a relationship with Tang Wei to make her feel comfortable and make myself feel comfortable, but it doesn’t help. You still feel very uncomfortable.”
First-time feature film actress Wei took the scenes in stride, but says she hopes Chinese audiences eventually see the film in its entirety.
With no rating system on the mainland, Chinese censors insisted Lee recut the film before they would permit its screening.
Understanding author Chang’s importance to Chinese audiences, as well as the historical significance of the subject matter, Lee relented.
“There’s some regret about cutting very important shots because it’s good to express emotion between the two (main characters), but I think it will still be a very good film for the Chinese (people),” Wei says with the aid of an interpreter.
“I hope they can one day see the completed film because I gave my heart to those love scenes, we both put in a lot of work.”
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Lust, Caution is in theatres today.
