Thought it'd be as good a time as any, with both Tony Leung and Chang Chen being introduced to a new wave of audiences with their work in blockbuster films Shang-Chi and Dune this year, to look at their first of multiple collaborations together in Wong Kar-wai's brilliant queer romance Happy Together. Leung and Chen aren't the emotionally volatile couple who travel to Argentina to try to resolve their problems, at the films centre - that dynamic belongs to Leung and the late great Leslie Cheung - but rather, a secondary storyline that blossoms in the second half of the film, where Leung's Yiu-fai is befriended by Chen's Chang while working together in a Chinese restaurant. It is in many ways its secret weapon: a friendship that speaks volumes more than what it may seem on the surface.
It's funny to watch Chen as the sage, tortured Dr Yueh in Dune this year giving advice to Timothée Chalamet's youthful Paul Atreides, when the early years of his career were defined by a kind of youthful eagerness and boistreousness more befitting a mentee than a mentor. His Chang in Happy Together is a warm glow of light coming into the film at the perfect moment as Yiu-fai and Cheung's Po-wing's implosive cycles of their relationship have come to a temporary standstill. Leung's performance here is his finest, building quietly his character's demons and heartbreaks throughout the course of the film, and here he gets a little respite - though, being a rather introverted sort from the outset, Yiu-fai has retreated even more inwards after yet another 'separation' from Po-wing.
Subsequently, the way in which Leung and Chen's performances balance each other as they interact is utterly beautiful. Leung's restrained, internalised performance, hesitant to reach out and accept even the smallest bit of kindness or friendliness from anyone, is perfectly matched by Chen's utterly beguiling eagerness. The way they warm up to each other is both perfectly organic - as two foreigners in Argentina, it makes sense, and yet not a single false note is played either. The way Leung poignantly, gradually opens up Yiu-fai is convincing by virtue of Chen's charm and wholesome energy. The way Chen shows him being enraptured by his new friend makes complete sense with Leung's quietly dynamic presence. The Chang gently teases Yiu-fai by talking about girls in his presence, the way Yiu-fai amicably teases Chang for his youthful naivety, gives you so much insight into each individual. One is so reserved and one is so open, and together they create this fascinating combination. Oh, and did I mention how glowing the cinematography is between those two is, especially in those football sequences?
This of course, all builds up to some truly heartrending scenes, and the thing is that it's not all devastating. Sure, the scene where they have a final drink together before Chang leaves is crushing, whether it's how Chang describes Yiu-fai as his 'only friend' or the incredible sequence of Tony Leung crying into a voice recorder; as is their low-key but no less powerful farewell. As they go on their solitary travels, the pain of the separation is palatably felt; alongside Leslie Cheung breaking down on his lonesome back in Argentina, there's so much heartbreak to go around. Yet for me, Happy Together ends on a somewhat hopeful, if not necessarily happy, note with Yiu-fai, en route back to Hong Kong, visiting Chang's family and their noodle stall in Taiwan. He thinks back to the good times, the warmth Chang shared that seems to have been infused to him by his family, and takes a photo of his friend as a token of remembrance. I often think about what happens next, but in a way we've already gotten complete closure. Yiu-fai's future remains uncertain but there's a piece of the past he can always return to.
