I was watching this Thai copy of the Chinese Box while wearing headphones, so that I could catch every word of the dialogue and was struck by the background noise of the place. How did John get a wink of sleep with the pile-driver going all the time? In fact, why didn't he live further up the hill in one of the better districts. He was obviously making good money as a photo-journalist? Instead, he chose to work in the heart of the Colony amongst the peasants. And what was that fellow up to slowly cutting a chicken's throat and allowing the blood drip off his hands. Was he making some kind of cocktail? Yes, we see Hong Kong in the raw all right.
By the way, the Thaiwanese copy was of excellent quality with good colour rendering and sound reproduction.
The prices in hong kong are incredibly steep, even when being a journalist, one cannot afford a good apartament. Also we didn't know if John was a good journalist, in few first scenes he is seen talking to someone on the telephone about an article, and that he's late with it. The scene suggest that he's not that passionate about his job(maybe because of his distaste for everything/cancer) so maybe they pay him not too much.
Also he's a journalist in a big, colorful, lively city, he needs to be in the center of it, the action.
Also it's this contrast, he hates all the noise, he needs something here, something now, something constant, but everything around him is moving, changing.
The chicken scene was simply a good scene, John probably told the guy to do that to get a nice picture for his "documentary".
Can you tell me details about this copy? Is it dvd, what is the resolution?
Hi diesoon - John has been a journalist in HK for fifteen years, we are told. This suggests that he was very good at his job. I think he draws inspiration and vitality from his chosen surroundings. This is why he lives where he does. The purpose of the scene where the chicken has its throat cut slowly was probably to demonstrate the cheapness of life in that part of the Colony which includes fish, fowl and human life. The fact that John discovers he is dying of leukaemia eventually resigns him to staying in Hong Kong, rather than returning to his wife and children in the UK (you remember the overheard recorded 'phone message?). I found the quality of the DVD from Taiwan to be very good. The sound track is all right too, but because the background noise of the colony with its pile driver and Chinese chatter is there much of the time for effect, I chose to listen on headphones and catch the entire dialogue. But may I say that Jeremy Irons is one of my favourite actors (and have you seen him in the movie DAMAGE? - go on, live dangerously!).
Hi!!! I've seen that movie, it's very good. Jeremy is one of few actors who is picky about filmmaking and choses rather unknown artistic projects, love that guy. Casting him in Chinese Box was a bullseye, he naturally looks like a sick, dying man. Also watch that video of him talking about world hunger, a reference to Howard Beale's speech in Network(outstanding piece of filmmaking). Look it up on youtube.