In the ruthless, neon-lit underworld of Hong Kong, Wah (Andy Lau) works as a debt collector for the mafia and spends his time in nightclubs. One day, his cousin from the countryside shows up at his door. The beautiful Ah Ngor (Maggie Cheung) has a lung condition and needs to stay at a nearby hospital for a few days. Soon, Wah finds himself torn between his budding romance with Ngor and his loyalty to his unpredictable, ruthless partner in crime. It’s somehow clear from the start that the story can’t end well.

Wong Kar-wai’s remarkable debut combines two stories into one: Beneath the surface of a genre film, we catch a glimpse of that poetic signature style that continues to evolve in Days of Being Wild (1990) and his subsequent films. This is far more than just an early study—it marks the beginning of a cinematic universe in which loneliness, desire, and time are transformed into floating images.