All about Days of Being Wild: A Dialogue with Wong Kar-wai
From City Entertainment (Hong Kong). No. 305 (pp. 38–40). Interview conducted in Cantonese in 1990. Translated by Silver Wai-ming Lee from Chinese. Reprinted by permission of the publisher.
Jimmy Ngai: We are all interested in the ins and outs of the project.
Wong Kar-wai: It is a bother if I have to talk about the project from the beginning to the end. It could take two to three hours.
JN: Let’s try to begin with the story.
WKW: It was simple. The starting point was that I had to make a set of films—each having two installments. Conventional films focus on causal events. An experienced audience is able to predict the development of the story. A sophisticated audience can even go faster than the storyteller—they are used to this kind of storytelling. My thought was this: since people are aware of the structure of storytelling, I should make changes in the structure so that they cannot speculate what the next event will be. I think surprise is very important. After deciding on the length, I needed enough characters to support the film: A set of two films does not mean making a longer film but condensing three films into two. The structure is thus larger. It is either a large cross-section or the key element is time. You know, a two-part film is actually one film. It just lets me use more time to change the audience’s habit of understanding storytelling.
JN: But eventually, the finalized work will be divided into two parts and shown separately.
WKW: It is just the theatrical release. I have many choices afterwards: I can re-edit it into a new version. It could be three or four hours long on VHS. VHS actually dominates the film market now. The VHS version of Days of Being Wild that will be released in the future is what I want to do the most.
JN: You mean we have to watch Days of Being Wild on VHS?
WKW: I think some theaters are still willing to show it.
JN: I heard that at the beginning you wanted to construct a story on a larger scale of time and space.
WKW: Originally the background was to be segmented into three parts: a fishing village, urban Kowloon, and the Philippines with the corresponding periods of the 1930s, 1960, and 1966. But at the end I gave up the parts that take place in the fishing village.
JN: And 1960 and ’66?
WKW: I came to Hong Kong from Shanghai in 1963. In my memory, Hong Kong was … memorable, as if even the sun was brighter. Also the radio was in the air …
JN: It was probably the infrastructure of the city.
WKW: Indeed, but everything becomes better in memory. At that time everything was slow. Of course, I absolutely could not precisely represent the ’60s; I only tried to portray the pictures in my subjective memory.
JN: Now we know about the time. What about the characters?
WKW: What is interesting is that originally in the ’60s, the “lovers” suffer repercussions after many years: romance is a dreadful illness that inflicts long-lasting damage. In contemporary society everything is so fast that we don’t have time to remember anyone. But after experiencing many changes, I realize that the things happening in the film can still happen in our daily life today. It only makes you feel distant because it was set in the ’60s.
JN: Then the film is about lovers and their affairs?
WKW: Romance is the kind of relationship that most easily engages people. But what motivates the tangled affairs? For someone? For oneself? For a demand? Or in search of a suitable partner? It is fine if we do not analyze, but once we analyze, the hidden purposes can be discovered.
JN: This sounds dramatic.
WKW: The story is dramatic, but the details/techniques are not dramatic at all. It is most important to grasp the audience’s curiosity so that they keep watching.
JN: The audience’s curiosity … I am full of curiosity about the crazily big cast.
WKW: Those four men and two women?
JN: I would appreciate further details.
WKW: I started casting at the end of last year. I wanted those performers at the very beginning, so I met with them and tried to negotiate and schedule with them one by one. It started smoothly. It felt like everyone wanted to get it done.
JN: What is it? I suppose you didn’t even have the outline of the story?
WKW: When talking about Days of Being Wild, everyone had his/her own imagination.
JN: With only your name and the title Days of Being Wild? Awesome!
WKW: It went smoothly after the actors and actresses were committed. I developed the story gradually based on their personalities and images. I kept revising once the shooting started.
JN: Till now?
WKW: Yes. I don’t think a scriptwriter/director knows how the performers should act in the beginning. Every performer has his/her unique personalities. Getting along with each other and then developing the character based on his/her personality is the best way.
JN: How about the investors? Were they shocked after knowing the cast?
WKW: Not really. There is no free lunch. The bigger cast you use, the more money you can get by selling distribution rights overseas. It’s just business.
JN: How long had you prepared before shooting?
WKW: Around three months. My original concept was much more complicated than the present one, but timing did not allow it to happen, nor did the budget. Our preparation was passive. As the actors and actresses had scheduled with us, we had to work against time. We had to start as scheduled; after the booked period, the actors were not available anymore. It is also exhausting to write and direct all by yourself.
JN: You don’t need to be both the scriptwriter and director, right?
WKW: No scriptwriter would like to be stuck with a director for such a long time. They have to make a living!
JN: This is from your experience?
WKW: Correct.
JN: I am interested in the investors again. What about them?
WKW: They are very supportive. Of course, it is after all a business. They have pressures. Like the screening schedule, there aren’t many peak seasons in a year. So we wanted to screen Days of Being Wild at Christmas. It would be better if I had more time. On the other hand, I have been working with them for a few years, and we have a mutual understanding. The drawback of this understanding is that I know their hardship all too well. I would compromise rather than be too persistent. Besides, there is too much noise from the public which has also affected filming.
JN: Such as?
WKW: For my filmmaking habit, I am used to doing adjustments after the filming starts. I need to have a look first, think about it, and then decide the next step. But there would be noise from the public: “Oh? Shooting has stopped? There must be problems!” This naturally caused panic when the investors heard that. Actually it is just like taking a short break for a few days. Nothing unusual.
JN: Speaking of noise, let’s talk about the pressure from As Tears Go By on Days of Being Wild.
WKW: Actually I was also under great pressure for the first film. It is about my expectations for myself. This time the biggest pressure came from the noise that started before filming; but I do not think it was because of As Tears Go By. Rather, it was about the cast of Days of Being Wild—it is undoubtedly a big cast. People cannot help whispering to each other. Once the buzz started, it snowballed until people saw the film as a big thing. The result was that I not only felt the pressure, but the crew felt it too. I don’t like that feeling.
JN: But you expected that the public would be alerted by the big cast, hadn’t you?
WKW: When it happened, the pressure was much greater than I expected.
JN: You just mentioned the entire crew felt the pressure …
WKW: Like the actors and actresses. They all wanted to perform well; or what’s more, wanted to do better than others. Other crew members had no choice but to do it perfectly.
JN: But shouldn’t it be perfect every time?
WKW: I prefer leaving some space. But I couldn’t do it this time. I hope to have some space in the future.
JN: To be honest, what’s your expectation for Days of Being, Wild? Perhaps you might say you don’t have one—that it’s just another exercise.
WKW: I won’t say something like “another exercise.” This is too easy for the future. Only I would know what I can get from Days of Being Wild—for example, a better understanding of myself. On the contrary, the public’s reaction can never be controlled and is thus unimportant. I would be lying if I told you the good reception of As Tears Go By had no effect on me. At least, I feel people start to take you seriously. I do not feel I have changed. It is like I used to regard thirty as an old age before I reached it. I have passed thirty, but I feel no change.
JN: You are only aware of the world in films?
WKW: When I watched films at a younger age, the attraction was that I could immediately immerse myself in that world. I was happy about that. Speaking of being a master or the critics’ comments, I really don’t think they are important. If I make a film and the audience likes it, it will be fine—it is best when I can share with others what I have experienced.