The dreaded R rating precluded wide distribution of this deliciously dark period piece from Ang Lee (Brokeback Mountain, Crouching Tiger). It was shown at only one theater in Las Vegas when it opened, twenty miles from my home, so I had been anxiously awaiting the DVD release.

I was not disappointed. The sexual scenes are violent and erotic, but artistic. The knife murder scene is horrifyingly realistic, and necessary. Lust is only one of many themes. Lee masterfully recreates WWII Shanghai and Hong Kong and the tension between Nationalist and Communist factions under Japanese occupation. He also probes the rift between tradition and creeping modernity, youth and age, East and West, and the individual vs. society.

Look for tremendous, powerful acting by Tony Leung Chu Wei as the heartless Mr. Yee. Newcomer Tang Wei portrays the radical student Wong Chia Chi with incredible maturity. In the story, her fellow college acting students want to assassinate Yee, but they can’t get close to him. Pretending to be Mrs. Mak, she becomes Yee’s mistress, falling deeper and deeper into his dark life, the lines between her hatred and passion blurring. Keep both eyes open. The subtitles move quickly, so you need to pay close attention, especially during the mahjongg scenes. The accompanying short about the making of the film is very insightful, so don’t miss it either.