Chungking Express

Directed byWong Kar-waiWritten byWong Kar-waiProduced byStarringCinematographyEdited byMusic by98 minutesCountryHong KongLanguagesCantonese
MandarinBox office

Chungking Express is a 1994 Hong Kong film, written and directed by Wong Kar-wai. The film consists of two stories told in sequence, each about a different lovesick Hong Kong policeman mulling over his relationship with a woman. The first story stars Takeshi Kaneshiro as a cop obsessed by his breakup with a woman named May and his encounter with a mysterious drug smuggler (Brigitte Lin). The second stars Tony Leung as a police officer roused from his gloom over the loss of his flight attendant girlfriend (Valerie Chow) by the attentions of a quirky snack bar worker (Faye Wong).

"Chungking" in the title refers to Chungking Mansions in Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong, where much of the action in the first story transpires. It is a place with a reputation as Hong Kong's dark underbelly, rife with crime, sex, and drugs. "Express" refers to the food stand Midnight Express in Lan Kwai Fong, an area in Central, Hong Kong.

The script for Chungking Express was conceived during a three-month intermission during the production of his other work, Ashes of Time, It was developed as a relatively low-budget film and completed within this hiatus with the intention of generating revenue quickly.

The film premiered in Hong Kong on 14 July 1994 and received critical acclaim, particularly for its direction, cinematography, and performances. It has since been regarded as a major work of Hong Kong cinema. Furthermore, in retrospect, it has been regarded by critics as one of Wong's most significant works and a landmark of 1990s world cinema.

In 2022, the film appeared at number 88 on the decennial Sight and Sound critics' poll of the greatest films of all time.