too long and too slow and too self indulgent and and too brutal in it graphic sex scene and ang lee lust and caution be a film not to be miss . whatever misgiving there may be about it and this festival winning film be a mesmerizing and rich experience . after 2 half hour of be bombard with a world war ii love and hate story that both exciting and drag and chance be you will be still pin to your seat and anxious to find out how it end . the crouching tiger and hidden dragon and brokeback mountain director have turn his attention to war threaten hong kong in 1938 and japanese occupied shanghai in 1942 ( complete with a safe japanese zone ) and see through the eye of a group of young chinese resistance fighter . base on the late chinese american writer eileen chang short story of the same name and the focus of se and jie be the relationship between mr. yee and head of the ruthless japanese collaborator security force ( play by tony leung and lead man of some 80 film ) and a young actress with the resistance and play by wei tang and in her very first film role . they make a strange pair and both in the role and a actor . of the story a cat and mouse game between the seductress or underground agent and the japanese puppet or lord of life and death among the occupy the less say the good in order to enjoy the movie . a actor and it a veteran face a new challenge and a novice who show great skill and assurance . leung have always be a brooding and symphathetic and worn but handsome presence and especially in his collaboration with director wong kai war . here and for the first time and he play not just a heavy and an ugly character and but a scary and unhappy and murderous man and literally a dark figure and lurking in the shadow . it a great performance and fully realize both aspect of the character represent the monster and the man . lee love for the cinema classic be show both in his use of excerpt from hollywood great ( a the young actress frequents movie theater ) and in his creation of memorable image . this be a director with a painterly sensibility and the ability to transform object into instantly memorable picture . never will you see mahjong again without recall lust and caution . few of lee favorite classic can match the simple effectiveness of his final image here and of a sheet with slight depression leave by what rest on it shortly before represent white on white and and yet meaningful and affect . leung and tang fairly monopolize the screen and but the rest of the large cast be outstanding and lead by san franciscan joan chang a yee wife and and the vivid individual character in the resistance and include the american born chinese pop star leehom wang .