Happy Together

"Lonely people are all the same."

1997 1h 36m CN

🙌

7.6

BANGER

★7.6TMDB · 830

DramaRomance

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

A couple travels from Hong Kong to Argentina to revive their relationship but experience turbulence when both men's lives drift in separate directions.

“Lonely people are all the same.”

WhatsApp X Facebook Telegram

Where to watch · US

HBO Max Amazon ChannelSubscription

HBO MaxSubscription

Amazon VideoRent

Apple TV StoreRent

Google Play MoviesRent

Google Play MoviesBuy

YouTubeBuy

Fandango At HomeBuy

Cast

Leslie Cheung
Ho Po-wing
Tony Leung Chiu-wai
Lai Yiu-fai
Chang Chen
Chang
Gregory Dayton
Lover

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Wong Kar-Wai
Writers: Wong Kar-Wai
Languages: English, Cantonese, Spanish
Countries: Hong Kong, South Korea, Japan

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

MONEY

Did you know

Shot for just $0.1M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Grossed $5M — a 40.0× return. The kind of profit studios chase for a decade.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

ERA

Did you know

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

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

Dialogue crosses 3 languages: English, Cantonese, Spanish.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

International production across 3 countries: Hong Kong, South Korea, Japan.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 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#06

7 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Danny Chung Ting-Yat. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

AWARDS

Did you know

Editor Wong Ming-Lam shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Wong Kar-Wai directs. Christopher Doyle behind the camera. Danny Chung Ting-Yat scores. Wong Ming-Lam cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Made its budget back several times over at the box office. Produced in Hong Kong, South Korea, Japan. Dialogue in English, Cantonese, Spanish.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Shot for just $0.1M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.
2Grossed $5M — a 40.0× return. The kind of profit studios chase for a decade.
329 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
4Dialogue crosses 3 languages: English, Cantonese, Spanish.
5International production across 3 countries: Hong Kong, South Korea, Japan.
6Directed by Wong Kar-Wai, shot by Christopher Doyle. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
7Original score by Danny Chung Ting-Yat. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
8Editor Wong Ming-Lam shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
9Leslie Cheung and Tony Leung Chiu-wai and Chang Chen carry the top of the cast.
10Marketing tagline: "Lonely people are all the same.".
11IMDB entry: tt0118845 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
12Classified under 8 themes, including "relationship problems", "male homosexuality", "argentina", "lgbt".
13Released under 12 different titles around the world.

The technical file

Cinematography: Christopher Doyle
Original score: Danny Chung Ting-Yat
Editing: Wong Ming-Lam
Production design: William Chang Suk-Ping
Makeup / hair: Kwan Lee-Na
Sound: Terry Tu
Runtime: 96 min · 1h 36m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $125,000
Box office: $5,000,000
Return: 4000% of budget
Original language: CN
Certification (US): NR
IMDB: Happy Together (1997)

Also by

Wong Kar-Wai

Stills · wallpapers

Selected frames

Full-resolution frames — open one to save it as a wallpaper.

Wallpaper

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

CinemaSerf2022-03-28
★ 6/10
I felt the opening few scenes offered great promise, they are gritty and illustrative not just of a sexuality, but also of the physical nature of a relationship. When the two men travel to Argentina however, on an holiday, it is quickly clear to all that the relationship is on it's last legs. They separate and both find themselves leading lives that neither would have sought or really want - but yet they cannot go back; don't want to go back - even though one life takes on new positive meaning, whilst the other hits the skids. It's beautifully shot with director Wong Kar-Wai making full use of the grand scenery offered by the Argentine, but somehow I think that grandeur subsumed the story. The characters are strong, and both lead actors deliver well and consistently, but I couldn't help feeling a certain element of ennui as I watched it. It would be unfair to describe it as melodrama, but somehow the characters didn't engage me. Whilst I felt sympathy for "Po-wing" (Leslie Cheung) I found him rather irritating; his introspection grated on me after a while. "Yiu-fai' (Tony Leung) offered more by way of validation - of optimism, but again it just didn't quite get my engagement genes firing. Maybe it is because European cinema has largely long since lost the ability to truly shock, that this has much less impact than I had anticipated - but though thoroughly watchable, it still left me underwhelmed.

Production companies