------- By Gemrain

I agree with your review.

In the movie, Lust Caution, she lost her virginity for the mission to serve her country. In Chinese culture that's a big sacrifice for a virgin considering virginity is still valued a lot today in China and probably it was more back then. She obviously chose her mission for her country over her own personal loss. However, in the end she had to choose between either her life or his life between either fail the mission she it supposed to accomplish or let him go, she chose to let him go only because she thought he loves her. for him or we can say for his love, she chose to lose everything.

I believe the director wanted to show that he has feeling for her. One is she sang for him in the Japanese restaurant, he had tears. Another may sound materialistic, but hey sometimes it doesn’t admit it or not that's the way we look at things-- he bought the diamond that he would not buy for his own wife.

I believe she probably didn't plan to fall in love with him. Her task is just to have him killed. but in order to gain his trust she had to play this dangerous game not only with her body but also with her heart. She opened her not only her but also her heart to him. She must made herself venerable in order to complete this task, but this venerability is fatal to successfully carry out this task when she falls too deeply emotionally, so she fell and failed.

The movie also depicts that she lost her mom early and doesn't get much love from her father and family. She was on her own there, but the love she received from Mr. Yi is actually something she probably, actually every woman or man yearns to have-- to have someone deeply love you, value you, and care you. for a person like her who doesn't get so much love from any place else, the lack of emotional care makes her more venerable to sacrifice for love or heartfelt emotions she receives.

In Zhang Ai Lin's novel, it says it's hard to love for a girl like her because she is strongly immune to be moved by love. I agree that good-looking girls normally are difficult to fall in love and trust men.

So for her, on one hand she longs for love and care because it’s lack in her life, but on the other hand she cautions against men, however, even the most strong-minded girl/woman, she will give in to someone if the right person moves her and opens her heart. Once she does, she gives all she has. So when choose between her life or his life, she chose to die for him.

This is a woman's tragic love story.

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关于《色戒》的影评贴出来后，Gemrain 有一篇很长的跟贴。我认为这是一部西方人很难懂的电影，处在西方文化，特别是好莱坞电影文化中的Gemrain能对《色戒》有如此细腻精致的领会，实属难得。非常感谢 Gemrain！

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Ms. MANOHLA DARGIS wrote a movie critic on Lust Caution and expressed her negative opinion about this movie. The media reported her reivew as the representive of the attitude of the Western world.

http://movies.nytimes.com/2007/09/28/movies/28lust.html

Gemrain wrote the following article to New York Time in response to Ms. Dargis' negative review. Thank Gemrain for providing her opinion on this movie!

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Dear Editor:

I saw the movie lust caution this past weekend then I read the new york times review of the movie today.  My first response is that Ms. Manohla Dargis must have seen a different lust caution from the one I saw.  The one I saw is electrifying, intense and emotional.  It’s a woman’s tragic love story.  The heroine’s persona development is fully shown and displayed in the movie.  The essence of the movie is the complicated relationship between men and women, in this movie, a particular woman and a man.  The movie is well made and full of meaningful details that would escape you if you don’t pay attention or are observant.  It also requires reviewer to be familiar with some Chinese history and culture in order to fully appreciate the beauty and implied meanings in this movie.

I think it’s very sad that New York Time, such a reputable newspaper, has a review written by someone like Manohla Dargis whose brain is too small to understand the movie and whose knowledge and sophistication is too limited to see any complicated meanings below the surface.  The bottom line is that she is just not intelligent, intellectual and cultured enough to appreciate a fine movie like lust caution.  I am surprised to see she is a movie critic writing for NYT, a newspaper that I respect and thought is for intellect.  She complains the movie is boring.  I think she should begin to write the trashy gossip of Britney and Paris Hilton for national enquirer which has all the excitement she looks for and lacks real intellectuality which she can’t handle anyway.  That would a much better fit for her talent.   It’s an insult to New York Times to let someone like her to write reviews for well made movies such as lust caution.  I feel disappointed and sorry for New York Times that she writes for the paper and I feel sorry for her that she has a wrong job to write reviews for good movies.   

I have something I want to say to dear Ms. Manohla Dargis.  Please, dear Ms. Manohla Dargis, I beg to do us and yourself a favor, quit your job at New York Times to have more fun to write some gossip trash that fits your born talent and taste perfectly at National Enquirer.  Thank you.

Best Regards,

A big fan of New York Times