Days of Being Wild

"You can hold me, but not my heart."

1990 1h 34m CN

👍

7.3

SOLID

★7.3TMDB · 621

CrimeDramaRomance

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Yuddy, a Hong Kong playboy known for breaking girls' hearts, tries to find solace and truth after discovering the woman who raised him isn't his mother.

“You can hold me, but not my heart.”

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Where to watch · US

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Cast

Leslie Cheung
Yuddy
Maggie Cheung
Su Li-zhen
Andy Lau
Tide
Carina Lau
Leung Fung-ying
Jacky Cheung Hok-Yau
Zeb
Rebecca Pan
Rebecca
Tony Leung Chiu-wai
Chow Mo-wan
Hung Ling-Ling
Nurse

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Wong Kar-Wai
Writers: Wong Kar-Wai, Jeffrey Lau Chun-Wai
Languages: English, Cantonese, Mandarin, Tagalog
Countries: Hong Kong

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

ERA

Did you know

36 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

Dialogue crosses 4 languages: English, Cantonese, Mandarin, Tagalog.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

RUNTIME

Did you know

Part of the "Love Trilogy" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

AWARDS

Did you know

Directed by Wong Kar-Wai, shot by Christopher Doyle. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Terry Chan. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Hai Kit-Wai shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Leslie Cheung and Maggie Cheung and Andy Lau carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "You can hold me, but not my heart.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Wong Kar-Wai directs. Christopher Doyle behind the camera. Terry Chan scores. Hai Kit-Wai cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in Hong Kong. Dialogue in English, Cantonese, Mandarin, Tagalog.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

136 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
2Dialogue crosses 4 languages: English, Cantonese, Mandarin, Tagalog.
3Part of the "Love Trilogy" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.
4Directed by Wong Kar-Wai, shot by Christopher Doyle. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
5Original score by Terry Chan. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
6Editor Hai Kit-Wai shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
7Leslie Cheung and Maggie Cheung and Andy Lau carry the top of the cast.
8Marketing tagline: "You can hold me, but not my heart.".
9IMDB entry: tt0101258 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
10Classified under 10 themes, including "fight", "underwear", "rain", "radio".
11Released under 12 different titles around the world.

The technical file

Cinematography: Christopher Doyle
Original score: Terry Chan
Editing: Hai Kit-Wai
Production design: William Chang Suk-Ping
Runtime: 94 min · 1h 34m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Box office: $3,255,404
Original language: CN
Certification (US): NR
IMDB: Days of Being Wild (1990)

Awards

Hong Kong Film Award for Best Film

Individual records documented via Wikidata; the summary above may count more.

Part of

Love Trilogy

Also by

Wong Kar-Wai

Stills · wallpapers

Selected frames

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Wallpaper

Trailers & featurettes

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Community reviews

What people are saying

CinemaSerf2023-02-12
★ 7/10
I suppose you might call the dashingly handsome "Yuddy" (Leslie Cheung) a bit of a Lothario. He has good looks and charm, and he sails through life thinking only of himself. His ideal existence comes to a bit of an abrupt halt, though, when his alcoholic courtesan of a mother "Rebecca" (Rebecca Pan) reveals to him in a drunken stupor that she isn't actually his mother at all. The rug has now been pulled from under his cocky feet and he now embarks on a rather self destructive journey to find out just who the real woman is. After an initial relationship with "Su Li-zhen" (Maggie Cheung) he finds himself hooked up with dancer "Mimi" (Carina Lau) but no nearer his ultimate goal. It's only when "Rebecca" decides to set off with her newest beau for a new life that she dispatches "Yuddy" to the Philippines where his answer lies. Meantime, "Su Li-zhen" has again found herself alone after her boyfriend decides to leave his police job and become a sailor. Is it all possible that the two might reconcile? Now, there is definitely something of the episodic - even soap opera - about this film. An unlikable and frankly selfish character seeking his own truth for his own reasons, but to be fair to the director and the writers, they manage to elevate it from the more tabloid and gradually develop the characters into creatures with whom we can, to an extent, empathise. There are façades all over the place, truth and honesty and trust are near, but in shadows - and the use of the dark, rainy, Hong Kong scenarios provides ample locations for all of those to hide - and from which to be discovered. Not my favourite of Wong Kar-wai's films - it is just a little predicable - but still, he packs lots into ninety minutes and the cast deliver well - especially Maggie Cheung - and I did enjoy it.

Production companies