Alternate Best Actor 2004: Tony Leung in 2046

Tony Leung Chiu-wai did not receive an Oscar nomination for portraying Mr. Chow in 2046.

2046 is the sequel to In The Mood For Love as we follow Mr. Chow after that “not quite” love affair. 

2046 honestly went beyond my expectations for a sequel to the seemingly perfect self-enclosed effort of In the Mood For Love. As that film seems like it should never have a sequel but if there’s a story to tell one can always make a sequel even when it seems like there shouldn’t have been one. In this instance it doesn’t at all touch what happened so beautifully in that previous film, that is wisely guarded as the perfection that it is, what 2046 posits is how does a man continue on after that perfect romance that he never happened. Focusing on Leung’s Mr. Chow, a character who exists within the potential alternative romantic arrangements, is frequently found in the small apartments he inhabits. Leung’s performance, which in the previous film was all about this specific state of being and realizing the moments of quiet vulnerability, is a much more varied and open performance, befitting a man who in his way lost it all but needs to continue regardless. Within each potential alternative Leung’s performance then becomes a reflection of this attempt to deal with essentially missing out on what seemed like his ideal happiness with Mrs. Su (Maggie Cheung). What we see in the film is different forms of how he expresses himself through each new woman in his life, some romantic some not, but all in reaction to the unconsummated relationship that will forever define his life. 

The first ironically played by Carina Lau, Leung’s eventual actual wife, is the first and seemingly most obvious messy rebound attempt at a relationship. Leung’s great in this relatively brief attempted rekindling of a love affair where there’s kind of the innate sense of failure behind his attempted romantic overtures. There’s an immediate sense of defeat in every moment of Leung’s reactions where he potently suggests Chow as someone looking essentially for some reassuring romance but also already preemptively seeing it as something that will work out. Leung presents someone very lost within himself without an obvious avenue for escape through another. So naturally this one does not work out particularly well particularly when she doesn’t seem overly interested in Chow to begin with and disappears soon afterwards, possibly due to violent circumstances. So Mr. Chow returns as his apartment dweller but also initially for financial need becomes a fiction writer again, something that had been sparked by his relationship with Mrs. Su, and in a way the moments of speaking on the writing, there's a bit more a spark Leung himself brings suggesting that old romance when there’s this optimism in the man he speaks of in his writing. 

That aspect of his writing is something the film returns to and is an aspect to yet another set of relationships for Mr. Chow, however these are largely platonic and often observational. As Mr. Chow also observes and occasionally interacts with the landlord’s daughters, at two separate times in his life. Leung is great in fashioning in these interactions the attempt at some kind of wisdom of relationships in these moments even when it involves rejecting one of the daughter’s advances. Leung brings a more reflective quality in his way of watching the lives of these women play out in their own ways, where there is an ease, even a gentle humor about him at these times. Leung excelling particularly when he gets to speak what he can say he’s learned in any way, of course still in his own way, such as when speaking about his relationship with Mrs. Su and what they wrote together. Leung again delivers a combination of a maturity and pathos in these moments, where you do see the undercurrent of the weight of that memory that very much defines the man, while also having the wistful distance of someone showing just how much appreciation Mr. Chow has for that time even if those thoughts are both a burden and a relief. A very specific emotion that Leung not only makes so naturally observed, but also pulls you into this mind frame so potently. 

An aspect that we see when Mr. Chow finds a literal different Ms. Su (Gong Li) who is a gambler he comes across after he has lost much money outside of Hong Kong. This is not a recreation of any sort with the other Su, rather Leung finds a new path in his portrayal of this situation as he presents a kind of fascination with her that isn’t typical lust nor real affection, rather just almost her as a figure beyond his normal conception of reality. She is an enigma and Leung is excellent in the way his performance creates that mystery particularly in terms of the emotional impact it has on Mr. Chow. Leung brings such a depth within the emotions of being captured by this new woman but this one is not an equal understanding of romance even as they become lovers. Rather this Su very much has all the power with Mr. Chow followed along in his way. Leung articulates the imperfectness of this relationship, even as the allure of it is always as obvious each time he looks at the unique woman. All the way till their relationship is based on only a gambling bet where Chow has already lost in a way, and Leung’s performance is absolutely pitch perfect in his raise of the losing hand. As there is the awareness even if there is also the hope about the action, something where Leung creates the sense of the man understanding the reason for the failure of this relationship set in a single hand, but also still that dreamers wish to delude himself still. 

For me the most captivating of all the relationships featured however is the one with his neighbor Bai Ling (Zhang Ziyi). Leung has maybe the most sparks here but what’s fascinating is it is a completely different spark than the ones we saw with Cheung. A completely different relationship as the two begin at the point of open flirtation that is more joking than anything else. Real in the sense of attractive but humorous in the approach of each making it a bit of a game. Leung is amazing in the way he shows a different side of Chow here who is going into this relationship with purposefully a fun loving but also blithe attitude of someone just wanting to essentially have some fun. And the two are so much fun together as they just trade each other off in terms of their pseudo insults, and their pseudo lusty overtures. They are magnificent in every sly smile and more open glance. This relationship isn’t about the unsaid, it is about the very openly said and the two are great in playing into romance that very much isn’t about any kind of pure love, where the lust is very much a given. Every one of their scenes together is a little gem that does build, where the complication comes as Bai Ling wants something more from it, and Chow does not. I love the hope of it as Chow’s drunken state he more genuinely reaches out probably thinking of Mrs. Su, but when somber seems to avoid any meaning with Bai beyond sexual desire. Leung’s performance shows that even in this very much consummated relationship a man is still defined by the one that got away from him. As the moments of his rejections of Bai Ling’s want to have more, Leung’s subtle unease beneath the flirty smile presents the honest emotion that the man still wants to reveal to anything other than in his stories or to a tree. Leung delivers a great follow-up performance because he successfully expands the role but also powerfully never loses the strength of his original work, by presenting a man still ever haunted however has to continue to live on.