Wong doesn't tell stories so much as he explores the irrational, unexplainable ebb and flow of human behaviour. This film is the peak of his fractured, oblique filmmaking.

Watch the way Mrs. Chan slides away from Mr. Chow, or later turns her body toward him, feel the cold smack of the rain, the steam of the noodle shop, the warmth of an embrace.

Despite the faceless presence of the two leads' respective partners, this is a film without antagonists; the…