Charlie Yeung, Fai-hung Chan, Karen Mok

The ever-so-smooth Killer, a gun-for-hire, resigns from his job when he starts feeling the growing pressure from his beautiful boss, Agent, about his whereabouts. The real problem at-hand, however, is...( read more  read more... ) that both parties are falling in love with each other; and neither the cunning Killer, nor the ruthless Agent can deal with the reality of their situation.

Flixster Users

87% liked it

8,758 ratings

Critics

95% liked it

20 critics

Unrated, 1 hr. 35 min.

Directed by: Kar Wai Wong

Release Date: September 6, 1995

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DVD Release Date: October 12, 1999

Stats: 565 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (565)


  • October 13, 2008
    Netflix somni-bomb. All style, mood and colors. It literally took me three months to get through this frickin' movie because it kept putting me to sleep. So cool it's dead.
  • June 25, 2008
    One of many Wong Kar Wai masterpieces, think about what what Martin Scorsese would have made and imagine it on steroids and that is what Fallen Angels is as a film.
    Brilliantly shot, strong performance from the entire cast and a scene involving an ice cream truck that should be s...( read more)tudied in film classes. Wong Kar-Wai can do no wrong.
  • May 30, 2008
    Bleh, Wong Kar Wai...at least he had the decency to show Michelle Reis touching herself.
  • December 7, 2007
    UPDATE: Just discovered that Fallen Angels is out on DVD and I can watch it. Will buy it soon and re-watch it and then re-review it........soon

    Fallen Angels is the story of a professional killer in Hong Kong. It follows the in's and out's of his job and his partner in ...( read more)crime who he rarely sees. After 3 years of working together, he wants out. Another sub-plot is about a mute (caused by eating expired cans of pineapples for a month, after he was heart broken) who breaks into restaurants, cafés and ice-cream trucks at night and forces people to buy his goods!

    Wong Kar Wai?s fifth directorial film in 1995 and which was originally meant to be part of Chung King Express was a good film but not great. For me it seems incoherent and the characters just don?t seem to be able to hold the narrative well as I thought. There great parts of the movie are as follows; the stunning cinematography done by frequent collaborator, Christopher Doyle really captures the mood of Hong Kong well and the themes brought up in the film. Such as alienation from others, which I believed that was shown well.

    Once again, Wai leaves hints of trademarks around the mise-en-scne. For instance during the film, there are constant references to the weather, and how it?s raining. Which has been featured in Chungking, In The Mood For Love, Happy Together amongst his work. There are also subtle hints in the background, through radio and TV, which reflects Hong Kong?s news, which is currently going on. What is done well is the usage of language, we see the news in English, French and Mandarin of course- that reflects well the era in which it was done in. The camerawork is something, which I haven?t seen in his work before. The close-up camera work is effective and does make the audience understand the characters well and their thoughts and feelings. However, what also this creates is a colastrophic atmosphere that these alienated characters are finding themselves in most of the time and you do feel like you are intruding in their lives at times.

    The narrative, as I stated before, is a little confusing. However the narrative with He Zhiwu I was able to understand. Once amusing scene was when he was massaging a pig, which probably fitted well with his character?s personality. He was a mute, but I felt more sympathy for him that the other characters within Fallen Angels. Perhaps the camera-work made the film, for me, seem a little slow-paced and out of sorts.

    Overall, Fallen Angels is worth the watch but is not of of his better movies. For me Chungking, its predecessor is far superior and has that quirkiness about it, which you cannot not like. This, perhaps, is a darker versions of that and delves deeper into what really is going on in these disillusioned people. If you haven?t watch Wai?s excellent work, start with his most recent work as it?s far better. Fallen Angels is superior to Days of Being Wild and As Tears Go By
  • August 11, 2007
    Life, maybe, turns on coincidence or is directed by fate -- your choice -- or maybe not : ) Sometimes it seems as if we do live in a very small world, although sometimes it is so huge and impersonal that we don't even recognize our former lovers. This elastic size of the world ...( read more)can make love hard to find, and it can make it easy. If you find love, however, will it last? Love of family is the most stable kind of love, but even that cannot, in the world of the living, last forever. Another very bittersweet experience from Wong.
  • August 2, 2009
    I am seriously dying to see this film!!!!!!!!
  • July 23, 2009
    I haven't seen too many Asian movies, so their style is still a little bit strange to me. All in all, this was an artsy movie (don't know if it is the director's style or not).

    There was narrative from the three main characters. Filled with irony, dark humor, and witty remarks, ...( read more)it was interesting to follow them go through their often chaotic lives and dilemmas.

    Takeshi Kaneshiro was crazy and totally out of it. Leon Lain was interesting with his life based on so many lies and eventually the wish to get out of the job as a hired killer. His relationship with his "partner" was also rather bizarre and complicated.

    The plot was rather shady and shaky. There were two stories, actually, that come together in the end. Both were dark, angsty, and filled with silent tragedy that seemed to cover the entire movie.

    Some gorgeous songs were played in this movie.
  • June 25, 2009
    Takeshi Kaneshiro plays the most adorable lunatic you can possibly imagine.
  • June 23, 2009
    Thank you for the DVD darling. Enjoyed it!
  • April 1, 2009
    MI FAVORITA ENTRE LAS FAVORITAS,TIENE TODO LO QUE ME GUSTA,LA MUSICA, EL AMBIENTE, LOS PERSONAJES,LA HISTORIA, MIRENLA.

Critic Reviews


January 1, 2000
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

I felt transported back to the 1960s films of Jean-Luc Godard. I was watching a film that was not afraid of its audience. full review

View more Fallen Angels reviews at RottenTomatoes.com

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Fallen Angels Trivia


  • Which of these businesses does Takeshi Kaneshiro's character in Wong Kar Wai's Fallen Angels NOT break into after hours to run as his own?  Answer »
  • what movie would you find two fallen angels plotting to get back into heaven?  Answer »
  • name the actress that played the fallen angel in charlie's angels   Answer »
  • This movie has 2 fallen angels, the 13th apostle, the last scion, and one guy who doesnt talk.  Answer »

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