FILM SCREENINGS

Before We Fall in Love Again

2006. Malaysia. Directed by James Lee. With Len Siew Mee, Pete Teo. With this initial installment in a planned trilogy on love, Malaysia's best-known director, controversial wunderkind James Lee, creates an unusual love triangle. In a cleverly wrought story that perfectly suits Lee's minimalist style, a missing woman is sought after by two men—her lover and her husband—who reluctantly join forces in a futile attempt to locate her. The stark stylization and dialogue are shockingly and self-consciously contrasted to great effect with the film's coda, set one year later, in which the moody black-and-white film (printed on color stock) suddenly bursts into bright colors and festive mood. In Mandarin; English subtitles. 99 min.