Since I haven't seen this in the discussion, and is rather curious what other people thinks.
She knew he is ruthless, but she also knew he have real feelings for her.
I think she expected him to spare her because:
She didn't take the poison capsule as she believe he will spare her.
I'm not sure if she was expected to be spared, but perhaps she felt that as she had so elaborately deceived someone who clearly had deep feelings for her, she deserved to die.
It seems to me that she knew he was a man who would do his job, as heartless and ruthless as it may have been, regardless of circumstances.
I think a small part of it was that she went to die with her friends... she did, after all, get them into that mess (although they were probably heading there anyway). And probably a large part of it was that she felt she owed it to him; not to just disappear with an obscure death. That would make all of it less real. And then she was owning up as a spy. She wasn't taking the easy way out.
And that's a round-about way of saying, no, I don't think she believed he'd spare her.
Her main concern was not for her own life, but for his. She was cought up in her undercover-role so deep she betrayed the others. Hence the title of this movie.
Somewhere along the way she felt she was losing control. That's why she insisted he should be assasinated earlier on.
In the end she could not kill herself and when the other guy from the resistance looked her in the eyes he was saying "you killed us all, you dumb brat".
not a very happy ending.
I think she wanted to believe he wouldn't be ruthless with her because she was falling in love with him. But he had the sense(for want of a better word) to enjoy probably the best sex of his life without getting emotionally attached. Also, maybe he feared being seen as a weak link by the Japanese if he didn't follow through on the executions.
shareI dont think she thought she would be spared at all, perhaps she hoped for a chance to see him once more, perhaps to apologise, but i dont think for a minute she thought he wouldnt order her death however much it would hurt him. her face on the cab and in the last scene were the same, resigned, not fearful or upset just resigned and perhaps peaceful. she had made her decision and i think she thought it was best to see it through to the end rather than take the easy way out. i think she also felt she owed it to her comrades to die with them since she had betrayed them, though i think it was they that got her into the mess not vice versa as one of the other posters stated.
shareConsider this:
Complete conjecture on my part: The "pill" was only meant to provide a sense of security to incoming resistance volunteers. I believe she may have tried taking the pill only to come to the realization that it was not poison at all. This perspective brings home the point that the resistance leadership was just as ruthless (with far fewer resources) than the collaborationist government . . .
Further support of the idea:
+ All other resistance team-members were caught; not one of them is mentioned to have succumbed to "the pill"
+ Her handling of the pill toward the very end of the story serves to show us that SHE knew the game was up.
+ How much abuse could the pill have taken in the year she acted as his lover? He was quite rough with her during their first physically intimate encounter.
+ Did she always have the pill sewn into whatever she was wearing that day?
Again, just a different perspective.
Then again, maybe they were all too scared to kill themselves, or were captured so quickly that they didn't have the opportunity (though she obviously had time). I don't doubt that the ring leaders knew full well that their lives depended on their identities remaining a secret. What would a placebo pill do other than ensure that your cohorts would rat you out once they realize you've deceptively abandoned them to a tortuous death?
shareIt's all of the above. But mainly I think she accepts her fate. She wrote the letter to her father (upon accepting the 2nd attempt to assassinate Yee) because she does not expect to live. Her father and brother abandoned her and the other citizens to their horrible fates of torture and starvation; she does not have a real reason to live. She could have found some comfort through watching cinema but the Japanese occupiers even ruined that enjoyment by inserting propaganda into the films. She accepted the 2nd assignment because it's a way for her to commit suicide.
Whereas her thespian friends were the amateurs who did not expect to actually die or get caught. Notice that Yee's interrogators say that they all gave the same stories (no one lies) & Yee concurs that they don't need to interrogate Mak Tai Tai because the stories match each other. Her friends knew ahead of time that since she had the most exposure, she would probably have to die (whether by their hands or by using the pill) in order to keep their identities secret. I think if she had stepped outside the jewelry store with Yee, she would have been killed with him. This whole film is about multiple betrayals, and like most film noirs, the main character is betrayed by everyone, including her family, lover, and friends. Yet Yee loves her. He does not go in to torture her one last time but quickly orders her execution. That's the only mercy he can give her. So Yee does spare her in a certain sense.
I think she wanted to die and be with her friends. She was totally cut off from her real life and in way to deep in her cover. And also, I think she had fallen in love with him and beleived that he had real feelings for her too.
shareIt was unrealistic because the film never convinces us of any deep feelings. He abuses her, they have intercourse a few dozen times. He pays little attention to her except physically..then buys her a ring and suddenly they have deep feelings. I can see what the film was attempting, but it just didn't develop the characters properly.
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satec, scarborough, toronto, ontario, canada, the world
I think she knew she betrayed him and took the death as her punishment.
I was born when she kissed me. I died when she left me. I lived a few weeks while she loved me.
But what about the whole scene in the teahouse, when she sings? I think there was a lot of development going on there (and other places).
shareI'm going to agree with Theowne here. How are we to know what her true feelings were? The movie well established that she was a great actress. The play she put on really motivated the audience. That's our first clue to how well this girl can act. So as a viewer of this film, what are our cues to know that she's falling for him? And of course, why would she fall for him? He's a ruthless pig, he's against everything she stands for. He rapes her, makes her bleed, etc. Was it really the ring that tipper her over the age? But why the ring? He's basically a mob boss who can afford that type of luxury. It really doesn't have much meaning because Yee didn't work hard for it.
And of course the movie falls at the end. What was the setup? Her friends were caught at the cinema. So it was all supposed to go down there. Why was she freaking out at the jewelery store? Nobody was there! Yee was not in danger! Why the tension?
By telling Yee to go, she killed herself and her friends. Does she think this man's life is more important than theirs? I don't think the character would have really done that. To me, that's bad writing. She broke character.
It was a really great movie until the end. Bummer.
Exactly.
Both characters needed to have been developed. We needed to see Yee softening or showing some sense of humanity. Every single interaction between them is very cold and distant (except for the intercourse). He abuses her first and shows her no respect, even later on, such as when they are in the backseat of the car.
The singing scene is simply not enough. Having one scene which seems like a developing relationship in the midst of a film which does the opposite is bad writing and nothing more.
We're supposed to believe that she honestly felt so deeply for the man that she gave up her friends and herself for him, which is simply unrealistic. When she finally said that at the end, I was in utter disbelief and wondering if it had actually just happened.
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satec, scarborough, toronto, ontario, canada, the world
It was more than just that one scene. The teahouse is a major turning point, but there are other places where the development occurs.
You have to pay attention more to the scenes about her background: how every mention of her father is pointing out how he rejected her (and favored her brother), how her aunt sees her as a burden, how the resistance leader seems to like her but keeps her at arm's length, and how it becomes clear the resistance is using her (she tells them she can't hold out and they ignore her; they burn the letter to her father).
Mr Yee is the only person who seems to come to care for her. (*Before* the ring.) She was emotionally a mess, and if she'd had someone else who'd cared for her earlier she might've been able to pull things off (this assumes that the students knew what they were doing, which I don't think was the case at all) but she didn't. And that's why she fell so hard for Mr. Yee. (There are elements of Stockholm Syndrome to this, yes. Maybe Ang Lee was telling the story of what would make someone betray a cause.)
As far as he's concerned: we have less information about him (and it's been almost a good year since I've seen the movie, I'd have to go back and check for specifics). But he did come to care for her - remember, he'd already killed two other women who'd tried to do the same thing, why didn't he just eliminate her? - and he saw that he'd had an effect on her. If there was something he could have done to save her, maybe he would have - but what could he have done? He was already under suspicion, and not executing her would have just mean his own death. He was also very much a survivalist, and I don't think he'd have died for her (or anybody). But there's quite a bit of development in their conversations, and he also speaks of the Japanese eventually losing - and how he doesn't really like them.
It's in words, more than actions, and maybe it's too subtle in spots; but the characters do grow over time.
I also don't know if you're completely relying on the subtitles. There were some threads here months ago which stated that quite a bit was lost if you didn't know the linguistic / cultural context.
No, I am not completely relying on subtitles. Your point about needing someone to care for her is valid. Yet where exactly is any scene which shows that he did actually care for her? I saw absolutely none. I saw many examples of the opposite.
And it isn't even a matter of "did he care for her". It's more like, "did their relationship have enough depth that she would willingly put herself and her friends before death and destroy a plan that would have work for him". I simply do not see it.
I like the story idea. I think it could have been good. I just don't see that it was.
hooo she wish
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