Things We Do

Love hardly needs further dissecting, one would think. If not, certainly a trilogy of films dedicated to its examination would be overkill. But no one told that to James Lee, because the ties that bind lovers together have never been more intricate than when examined through the lens of arguably Malaysia's most celebrated indie filmmaker. After his film noir Before We Fall in Love Again, he turns to cinema verite, finding a less stylised but more organic platform for his second film inspired from Harold Pinter's Betrayal, Things We Do When We Fall in Love.

The film tells the story of Lai (Loh Bok Lai) and Amy (Amy Len), two lovers who cannot come to terms with their relationship. They leave on a road trip in an attempt to escape their troubles, but despite the many miles travelled, find little respite. Still they strive on, managing only to stretch each other to breaking point. On sun-scorched fields off the highway, she walks away from him; in the orange cast of streetlights, he drives away from her. Yet after each tiff, they find their way back to one another.

But it is not the triumph of love over personal differences; it simply wouldn't be like James Lee to resort to such cliches. The lovers don't run back into each other's arms in tearful embrace; they wander back listlessly, as if unable to break free of their interdependency--a situation epitomised by their car on its last legs, in constant need of repair. In their poverty, they pay heavy prices to keep the wheels from falling off.

Instead, Things We Do is a simplistic story of romantic ennui, with little dialogue and plot development to speak of. And Lee's spartan camerawork means there is visually little to admire as the scenes unfold in their decidedly slow pace. The burden of imbuing scenes with intensity is left almost entirely to the lovers, Loh and Len, who perform their jaded, subdued roles adequately for most of the movie, but are found slightly wanting when required to blow their fuses. Loh's tantrum against a TV set, in particular, is unintentionally comic.

Still, it is difficult to find fault with a film that employs such unconventional sensibilities, yet finds resonance in the most familiar areas of our live--areas we prefer to keep left within the illusions of happily-ever-after films that end with happily-ever-after marriages. Against the adrenaline thrills of the other trilogies hitting our screens this month, Things We Do will not stand a snowflake's chance in hell in terms of box office returns. But its very screening suggests that local audiences might be warming up to such works. To which Lee's final instalment of this series, Waiting For Love, may arrive just in time for.

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