We live in an age of instant gratification, of dating apps, of "situationships" and ghosting. We are told that love is something you do —you swipe, you meet, you hook up, you define the relationship. In the Mood for Love offers a radical counterpoint: perhaps love is not an action, but an ache. Perhaps the most profound connections are the ones that exist only in the space between what could have been and what is allowed.
In the Mood for Love is a film built on repetition, and repetition creates ritual. Nearly every day, Mrs. Chan goes to the street-corner noodle stand. She descends the staircase in slow motion, her dress whispering against the walls, buys a container of noodles in a wicker basket, and returns to her lonely room. Chow does the same, but at different hours, so they will not be seen together. In The Mood For Love