On foreshadowing:
This is a movie laced with foreshadowing. To demonstrate with an example, at the beginning of the movie, we see Tang Ning engaging in a threesome with the Tuan brothers. She is seen touching a necklace hanging from one of the men's neck. The necklace consists of a bullet and a tag. The bullet is a foreshadowing of the wearer's eventual death. Apart from being an efficient tool in conveying the alleged military status of the Tuan brothers, the dog tag also makes an effective symbol of slavery. To the Tang family, the Tuan brothers are like dogs whose lives are lesser.
Next, the following scene alone foreshadows two tragedies. Madame Tang hands a box containing the Guanyin (which is meant to be a gift to her guest) to Tang Chen who subsequently drops it by accident. Later, when Madame Tang opens the box, an arm falls off. Tang Chen had accidentally caused the Guanyin to lose an arm and in return she will lose a leg after a failed suicide attempt. After the awkward situation of having the Guanyin’s arm break off in front of the director’s wife, Madame Tang takes a shot at appeasing her guest by claiming that the Guanyin has defended her guest from an incoming disaster. Though appearing to be at all smiles, the Tang family’s guest questions what sort of disaster she will be facing. To her question, Madame Tang only manages an awkward smile. True enough, the director and his wife soon find themselves in hot soup.
The story is told by a blind duo. Purple dominates the entire movie (e.g. purple sky, purple background), particularly whenever the blind pair begins story-telling. Purple is a symbol of power. The imagery used during the "story-telling" scenes usually take the form of reflections, be it in water or mirrors. The use of reflections instead of the usual "flashbacks" (that is often marked by a change of filter) is a crucial aspect. Perhaps it foreshadows that this isn't "fictional" (unlike the act of story-telling) but a reflection of society. Some scenes are told through the help of televisions. However, the scenes described via TV are hinted to be lies. For instance, Tang Chen was described by the news (on TV) to be desperate to save Madame Tang. This is far from the truth as she denies her the elderly of salvation.
Magazine "Politically Weekly" discusses the election. They have the two men, Wang and Feng, on the front page. The magazine serves as foreshadowing of the ultimate winner as the crown is on Feng's head, not Wang, despite the latter displaying seemingly higher likelihood of success. In addition, if we think of this in Machiavellian terms, we can predict Feng's success. Madame Tang seems to be employing Machiavellian tactics when she urges her guests (The Lin couple) to place their bets on the clearly weaker Feng. While others are busy currying favor with the Wangs, Madame Tang is bold enough to bet on the less favored choice. After all, Niccolo Machiavelli says to choose the weaker side. There is no glory in taking the side of a clear winner and the said winner is inclined to feel your stance is more for your own personal good rather than a genuine bias towards him. On the other hand, if one were to take the side of a weaker party and aid him in his quest to victory, he will be indebted to you when he emerges as victor. True enough, Feng won and he does appear grateful to Madame Tang at the end of the movie.
On irony:
There have been interesting instances where irony is perfectly displayed. For example, from 23:00 onwards, when Tang Ning is about to execute her seduction, she tells Tang Chen to get a cleaner cloth (placing multiple emphases on the word “cleaner”) in an attempt to get the latter to leave. This is rather ironic, considering that she’s about to execute what can be reasonably considered as dirty deeds: bribery and—what is essentially—prostitution.
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