Pale Flower (1964)
A Japanese noir that may take place in the crime underworld, but feels more like a romantic tragedy. My association went to some Wong Kar-wai with this sort of mix of noir gangster elements and two broken people finding a connection within the gambling underworld. The romance here being much more detached than the warmth of Wong Kar-wai. The whole gambling aspect was what drew me in the most, with the game itself feeling inscrutable to me, yet undeniably addictive. The rhythm and ritual of the game are just as essentials as the high stakes gambling. I was drawn to that at first but lost grip of the narrative and was immersing myself in the beautiful noir aesthetics.
Rating: 3