Twenty-five years after its release, Wong Kar-wai’s cinematic masterpiece In the Mood for Love (2000) is returning to the big screen with a special director’s cut.
This exclusive version, featuring nearly ten minutes of never-before-seen footage, offers audiences a fresh perspective on the beloved film. Unlike modern re-releases that often appear on streaming platforms, this edition is available only in theaters, restoring the immersive experience of watching Wong’s visual poetry in its intended format.
Upon its original release, In the Mood for Love quickly became a classic, lauded for its melancholic beauty, intricate storytelling, and Wong Kar-wai’s signature cinematic style.
The film follows Chow Mo-wan (Tony Leung), a journalist, and Su Li-zhen (Maggie Cheung), a secretary, who live in adjacent apartments in 1960s British Hong Kong. When they discover their spouses are having an affair, they form a delicate and restrained bond, attempting to understand how the affair may have begun. Through slow-burning tension, vivid colors, and haunting cinematography, the film captures unspoken emotions, heartbreak, and longing like no other.
As the “longest version in history,” this 25th-anniversary cut explores new possibilities within the film’s world. The unseen footage offers an intriguing departure from the film’s original setting, featuring Maggie Cheung’s character in a contemporary environment, clad not in her iconic cheongsam but a stylish trench coat inside a modern convenience store. This raises questions about how In the Mood for Love might have unfolded in a different era, sparking curiosity among fans.
Beyond the new visuals, audiences will also witness extended intimate moments between Chow and Su, additional character interactions, and scenes that hint at alternative plot directions. Some speculate that these additions may tie into Wong’s 2024 series Blossoms Shanghai, which explores themes of nostalgia and reunion.
Wong Kar-wai is renowned for his meticulous editing process, often withholding large amounts of footage from his final cuts. In 2021, a 92-second unseen clip from In the Mood for Love was auctioned in Hong Kong for 4.28 million HKD (about $550,000 USD), showcasing the immense value of his lost scenes.
The new director’s cut of In the Mood for Love includes over nine minutes of recovered footage, promising a deeper dive into the film’s intricate emotions.
One of the most memorable lines in the film — “If there were an extra ticket… would you go with me?” — has resonated with fans for decades. In honor of this iconic moment, film lovers have redesigned movie tickets to resemble vintage ferry passes, further emphasizing the film’s lingering sense of longing.
Whether this question will finally be answered in the director’s cut remains a mystery, adding to the excitement surrounding its release.
In the Mood for Love’s 25th-anniversary directors cut will stream in cities across China on Valentine’s Day, February 14. An international release is not yet scheduled.
