My mother and I disagree on what he was saying with his expression. She says he is staring at her in hatred for her betrayal, while I think he is apologetic....What did you guys think?
share"My mother and I disagree on what he was saying with his expression. She says he is staring at her in hatred for her betrayal, while I think he is apologetic....What did you guys think?"
Obviously hatred. Because of her weakness and failings, he was severely tortured, and about to get his head blown off as well as all of his patriotic comrades. Close your eyes and put yourself in those same circumstances. Lost love would not be going through your mind. I side with mom on this one.
mea-12
[deleted]
i dont think it was hatred.
shareIt was fear, hatred, guilt and sympathy rolled into one. Good acting.
share"It was fear, hatred, guilt and sympathy rolled into one. Good acting."
Great interpretation antoni109, you've caused me to change my mind because as I try to imagine it being me, I realize you are right on. Each one of these emotions, (fear, hatred, guilt and sympathy) would be experienced. And yes he acted it out superbly. Nice job...
mea-12
yes I agree. I don't think its purely hatred.
sharesistershrew, I agree with you. I think the look is apologetic. This is probably my favorite scene in the whole film. Here's a summary of what I said about it in an earlier thread:
The look that Kuang gave Wong during the execution scene at the end is directly related to the theater scene earlier in the film, when the student actors staged their patriotic play.
When Wong took her position on stage just before the curtain went up on opening night of the play, Kuang came up to her in his soldier costume with a smudge of fake blood on his cheek, he smiled at her, and told her, "It will be fine once we start." Then a scared-looking Wong turned to look at Kuang, she smiled at him, and then seemed to look less scared, and Kuang then gave her a confident smile in return.
During the execution scene Wong was looking at Kuang, who now has a smudge of real blood on the exact same spot on his cheek. But in this scene it was Kuang who smiled first, just the barest hint of a smile, and definitely not the confident kind. Wong returned the fleeting smile, and turned away from him, and looked even more scared. It was the earlier theater scene in reverse! Except this time Kuang said nothing, as if he wished he could take back the words he said earlier because they had proved so tragically wrong. That's why I think his look was apologetic.
In the first scene he's only pretending to be a soldier. The blood and the uniform are fake, but still he feels he's doing something to help his country. In the final scene he really is a soldier. The blood is real, and though he's not dressed in a soldier's uniform he is in fact dressed like Yee, and that's the uniform of their particular battle. However, he has not accomplished anything for his country. It's a beautifully scripted bit of irony.
I think the correlation you draw between the opening night of the play and the final execution scene is brilliant. However, I interpret the exchange a bit differently than you do. Could he not really be saying the same thing to her albeit silently - "once we start you'll be fine". I am not familiar with Ang Lee's movies, this is my first, but could he be making some sort of transcendental statement here? I think the exchange of smiles is complex to be sure, and it's so interesting how people have interpreted differently.
One thing I haven't seen on this board is any mention of the cyanide capsule or whatever it was she was given to use if she were found out. When she takes the capsule from under her collar when stopped at the blockade in the taxi, the scene immediately following is her reflection of the scene in the theater when her comrades first called her to join them. Because she obviously didn't choose to take the capsule at this point, and instead chose to share her fate with the others, tells me she was still with them in heart even tho she obviously helped to seal everyone's fate. This too could be part of what his last smile was expressing, the acknowledgment of her ultimate solidarity with them in spite of her tragic love for Yee.
Could he not really be saying the same thing to her albeit silently - "once we start you'll be fine".You could be right on that, but I tend to think that because the scene played out in reverse, the unvoiced statement would be the reverse of what Kuang said in the theater scene. It's hard to say with certainty, however, since the exchange of looks and expressions between Wong and Kuang are so subtle and fleeting during the execution scene. In fact, if it weren't for the smear of blood on Kuang's cheek I doubt I ever would have made the connection between these scenes.
One thing I haven't seen on this board is any mention of the cyanide capsule or whatever it was she was given to use if she were found out.There was quite a discussion about that a year ago, though it seems a lot of the threads on this board have mysteriously disappeared since then. But I don't think anyone came close to summing it up as nicely as you've done.
Male perspective: Hatred ("How could you?)
Female perspective: Apology ("I'm sorry.)
There ya go in a nutshell.
Male perspective: Hatred ("How could you?)
Female perspective: Apology ("I'm sorry.)
There ya go in a nutshell.
Besides the expression, do guys saw how his face and physic was not very much roughed up? I think he folded up too much quickly under interrogation, and that doesn't make him better than Wong who tipped off Yee under her feeling of love(or desire).
In fact if your mother would take further review, how come could Kuang would ever know what really happen in the jewellery store? Maybe your mother got it all the way wrong. I would say his final expression is desperation and regret terribly.
I didn't get hatred at all. I think it was rueful, embarrassment (at the naive failure), and also a sort of encouraging smile signaling both the fact that it will be over quickly and that at least they tried to do something. From Kuang's perspective, even the struggle is some sort of achievement.
shareI felt he was regretful and was saying I'm sorry with his face. He probably felt he could have done more, and perhaps Yee could have been killed earlier, etc.
shareI feel that the expression is of regret and apology for ever getting her involved with the resistance.
When Kuang first mentions the opportunity to the rest of the group, everyone agrees to join before Wong. Kuang then says something to the effect of "I am not forcing anyone to join." I feel that he is torn between wanting her to join because he has strong feelings for her, and not wanting her to join because he does not want to spoil her innocence.
The expression really kind of sums up the entire film.
As the self-appointed leader of the group, he was something of a zealot. Which means, one who doesn't thinnk of others except as accessories to his cause.
He was, in other words, selfish and self-centered. It didn't bother him too much that the delay in killing Yee were destroying Mai Tai Tai.
So at the end he's pissed at her -- instead of facing what he himself was: a fool, and something of a coward who was all for urging others than himself to take the risks.