Take Scorsese's Mean Streets,I read somewhere on a Wong Kar-Wai website that he received the inspiration from Scorese's but I don't know if it's legit, and you've the basis of the film: Triad Brother Wah (Andy Lau) has to consecutively lookout for his little brother Fly (Jackie Cheung) who causes trouble whenever he's around. Wah's cousin Ngor (Maggie Cheung) just recently arrived and is staying in his flat so that she can continue receiving treatment at the hospital for her illness. The two unexpectedly fall in love but before Wah furthers his relationship with her he must help Fly one last time.
From the start I'll just straight up admit that I enjoyed this film immensely though troubled by the blatant fact that Andy Lau and Maggie Cheung's characters are related yet form a romantic relationship. Since this is Wong Kar Wai's first film that he wrote and directed, the talent, skill, and visage that shows in his later films is oh so ever apparent. Nowhere in this review will I write how this film shows Wong Kar-Wai's promise to the cinema or how he later polished/fine-tuned his skills with his later projects because in all honesty that's just plain BS. The extent of his work is at the very least put excellent. If I were to nitpick than I might complain how that Christopher Doyle isn't his cinematographer but Wong Kar-Wai doesn't need him to make a film (On the other hand I'm definitely not blasting Doyle's work besides J.D. has praised and covered his work better than I could write.)
Andy Lau, convincingly played a triad brother, reminds me of the epitome of a Wong Kar-Wai character: An aimless youth yearning for a love to help him/her move forward in life. Maggie Cheung (quite the versatile actress and very attractive) uses great skill to communicate her character's vulnerability that provides Wah with what he lacks in his life. Jackie Cheung, played the brash, arrogant, and respect seeking Fly, took a completely different direction than I expected by allowing his character grow/evolve and realize his great flaw which in turn allows us, the audience, understand the nature of his actions.
What I really love about Wong Kar Wai's films, and As Tears Go By is no exception, is how the romance seems real or believable unlike much of the BS romance loaded into most formulaic Hollywood movies that, in my opinion, actually perverts and distorts love (I'm not talking about the "lewdness" of say love but more of how it seems forced just so that it pleases the audience or furthers a hackneyed plot). Of course though the representation of romance in this film occurs not only because of Andy Lau and Maggie Cheung's performances but also thanks to the director and his crew for conveying it effectively by using music, lighting, and editing. Yet what would a film dealing with Triads be without the violence. It isn't exactly off the wall violent yet when it occurs in the form of beatings, stabbings or shootings it creates a level of suspense which results with the audience actually giving a damn about the characters.
Media Asia did an impressive job with the DVD transfer(A few white spots here and there popped up but that's it) yet they screwed up the English subtitles. How bad you might wonder? Well I had to pause the film once or twice to understand the exchanged dialogue what with Media Asia's spelling and grammar mistakes. Despite this and it cannot destroy the film for As Tears Go By is a well-executed debut that consists of powerful romantic and dramatic elements. The DVD from Media Asia is region less and presented in anamorphic widescreen. As per usual it contains 1 audio track (Cantonese) along with nine different subtitled languages.