By: Zobia Khalid
With its mesmerizing cinematography, Happy Together (1997) artfully emphasizes societal issues that 2SLGBTQIA+ people still deal with today. It unravels the feelings of loneliness, desperation, and identity through its underlying theme of searching for a place to belong. The film follows a gay couple from Hong Kong, Lai Yiu-Fai (Tony Leung) and Ho Po-Wing (Leslie Cheung), as they travel to Argentina. Lai works diligently as a doorman, while Ho lives carefreely and takes multiple romantic partners.Their relationship shows the emotional and mental aspect of loneliness despite being physically together.
The film captures Lai’s complex burdens — the struggle of making a living, coming home to nothing, and grappling with feelings of intense loneliness. Through intimate shots of their lives, such as Fai taking care of Po-Wing when he’s injured, a light shines on the couple’s struggles. The film questions whether having the presence of someone else who understands the other is the only reason why they are together. This dependence on one-another is also shown in their breakup, when Ho is crying in Lai’s apartment. Instead of the camera zooming in on his facial expressions, the scene is shot from far away, emphasizing the fact he is alone. The physical absence of someone else being there is all that we can see.
Happy Together also explores the intersection of being an immigrant and 2SLGBTQIA+ couple in a foreign area. Most shots in Argentina are taken from far away and watch the protagonists from above, focused on their relation to the environment more than the people themselves.
Happy Together reminds us that finding a safe place to express oneself is an ongoing struggle to many people today. Despite current progressions towards 2SLGBTQIA+ people, there are still individuals who can be protecting parts of themselves to fit in — like Fai at his job. The desperation of holding onto a toxic relationship for the sake of having someone to quench the loneliness is a complicated and emotional struggle, masterfully portrayed in the film.
