My Blueberry Nights in theaters today

Earlier this year, Wong Kar-Wai became the first Chinese filmmaker to open the Cannes Film Festival, with the premiere of My Blueberry Nights. Before sitting down for an exclusive interview with the director (see below), we had a chance to see an advance screening of the film (before its official mainland release on December 22.) Although the film was enjoyable on certain levels, it simply can’t match Wong’s previous art-house efforts, which are landmarks in the art-house genre.

Blueberry Nights begins with shots of cream melting on a blueberry pie, as Elizabeth (Norah Jones) storms into a café run by Jeremy (Jude Law). From then on we drift along with Elizabeth as she travels through America to find an answer to her broken heart (she’s just been dumped). Along the way, Elizabeth meets a troubled couple (Rachel Weisz and David Strathairn), and a gambler (Natalie Portman) with her own emotional hang-ups. Norah Jones’ sultry and in Wong’s words, “magnetic,” voice wafts in the background throughout the film, and yes – it is sickeningly sweet.

My Blueberry Nights touches on a variety of themes worthy of coverage - luckless love, alcoholism, gambling - but fails to explore them to any depth, altogether making for a shallow and unoriginal plot. The only actor who truly stands out is Rachel Weisz, whose sassy performance as a heartbreaker is more convincing than Norah’s as a heartbroken white chick. Jude Law plays another of his homogeneous roles, one that doesn’t do any favors for his CV. Even when he shares a blueberry pie with Elizabeth, his unnatural gorging on dessert is anything but bona fide.

Of course, this is Wong’s first experiment with English-language film, as well as his first time exploring the physical space of American roads, cafés and bars. We're inclined to give the maker of In the Mood for Love, Days of Being Wild, Chungking Express and 2046 a break.

After watching the film, we sat down with Wong to talk road trips, music, Zhang Yimou and, of course, Beijing’s ever-changing landscape …

that's Beijing: Some people have described My Blueberry Nights as a new beginning. Is it?

Wong Kar-Wai: Did I say that this was a new beginning? [Laughs] Yes, you can say that it is a kind of new beginning. A new attempt. I have made films in the West, but that was from the perspective of a Chinese person. This time we are telling the story of an American, not a Chinese. I am trying something new with a different language and culture.

that’s: Can you describe some of the difficulties of making your first English-language film?

WKW: I have written all my other films, but the scriptwriter for this movie [crime novelist Lawrence Block] is American, as I needed someone to help with expressions in English. In many cases, I also ask my actors to participate in the process of filmmaking. The actors this time helped me with the language in the film. Because you know that every language has its own culture, so I asked the actors how something would be expressed in their culture. I needed them all to get involved.

that’s: What was your experience of working with actors you haven’t worked with before, like Jude Law, Norah Jones, Rachel Weisz, Natalie Portman and David Strathairn?

WKW: At the beginning I thought there would be some difference. To put it simply, actors are … instruments. Perhaps the process of making the film is different in America compared to China, but the content of the film always stays the same. How the actors act, and how they participate in the making of the film, stays the same.

that’s: You’ve dubbed the film for the Chinese mainland. Tell us more about this decision.

WKW: Norah Jones is dubbed by Dong Jie, Jude Law by Cheng Chen, and David Strathairn is done by Jiang Wen. I thought at first that this could be a bit strange, but after making this version I don't think so anymore. I think this version helps the Chinese viewer get into the film. Now I feel it can be shared. The dubbing methods here still belong to the ’60s, like when they dubbed Russian or Yugoslavian films. There isn't a creative process – it's a strict translation. But I believe dubbing should be a creative process. It should be like this the world over. This isn’t just a traditional dubbed version; it's more.

that’s: If you could describe My Blueberry Nights in one word or sentence ...

WKW: I haven't thought about one word [or sentence], but if I could use music I think it's like Norah Jones' song, The Story, which she wrote after the whole process of filming. Her voice is why I asked her to act in the movie, because I think it has a kind of … straightforwardness and cixing [magnetic] feel to it. Some films are high-pitched, but this one is low-pitched.

that’s: Sure, but compared to In the Mood for Love and 2046, My Blueberry Nights ends on a pretty upbeat note.

WKW: The film is about the beginning of love – what happens afterwards is left up to the viewer. 2046 is about the houyi zheng [aftereffects] of love. The love has finished and the film is about how Chow recovers from it.

that’s: Do you think these sorts of stories really happen to people?

WKW: Aiya! Lots of men have said that it's their story, that they are the man in the film! And I say to them: Aren’t you lucky! [Chuckles]

that’s: Music plays an important role in My Blueberry Nights, as with your other films. How did you choose it?

WKW: For My Blueberry Nights we drove from New York to the West Coast. We drove for five hours a day and didn't do much apart from listen to the radio, which played songs particular to the region we were driving through. So we followed that pattern. This film describes the journey of one girl during one year, going to different regions in the US. And in each region the feeling is different based on the records of that region. So in the South, whose music do you look for? Someone gave us Otis Redding's music – it plays as you walk into the bar in Memphis. In New York it was Cat Power.

For the full interview, see the January issue of that's Beijing, out on December 27.