(Wong Kar Wai, 1990, Hong Kong, 95 minutes) 

Days of Being Wild, Wong Kar Wai’s second film as director, is widely considered the first of his to exude the “Wong Kar Wai style.” But what is that? Romantic longing, here embodied by some of Hong Kong’s biggest stars and Wong’s best collaborators, including As Tears Go By’s Maggie Cheung and Andy Lau as well as Wong’s first collaborations with Leslie Cheung and a barely-there Tony Leung. Gorgeous visuals and use of color in a 1960s setting, courtesy of DP Christopher Doyle, here also collaborating with Wong for the first time. Impeccably curated, multi-cultural music cues, including Cantopop superstars Leslie Cheung and Anita Mui, not to mention the Catalan-Cuban-American icon Xavier Cugat. But what’s it about? Everything! Lost family, found family, love triangles, everything you could ever hope for.

In Cantonese with English subtitles.