Wong Kar-wai
ウォン・カーウァイ(王家衛)

Profile | プロフィール

Born / 生年月日
July 17, 1958 | Shanghai, China

Age / 年齢
66 years old (as of 2025)

Occupation / 職業
Film Director, Screenwriter, Producer

映画監督、脚本家、プロデューサー

Nationality / 国籍
Hong Kong (香港)

Biography | 経歴

[English] Wong Kar-wai is a defining visionary of contemporary cinema—a poet of time, memory, and unspoken desire. His formally innovative and emotionally saturated films have permanently expanded the boundaries of the medium. Born in Shanghai and raised in Hong Kong, Wong crafted a cinematic language that transcends national traditions. His masterpiece, In the Mood for Love (2000), is now widely regarded as one of the greatest films of the 21st century, articulating universal experiences of love, loss, and longing through his unparalleled, signature aesthetic. Through his legendary creative partnerships with cinematographer Christopher Doyle and production designer William Chang, he established a visual legacy that continues to influence global fashion, photography, and film. As the first Hong Kong filmmaker to win the Best Director prize at Cannes, Wong Kar-wai remains an essential architect of world cinema.

[日本語] ウォン・カーウァイは、現代映画を象徴する幻視者であり、時間・記憶・そして「言葉にされない欲望」を司る詩人です。形式的な革新性と、飽和するほどの情念を湛えた彼の作品群は、映画という表現の可能性を永遠に拡張しました。上海に生まれ香港で育った彼は、特定の国家的枠組みを超越した独自の映画言語を構築。21世紀最高峰の傑作と称される『花様年華』(2000年)を筆頭に、愛、喪失、そして切望という普遍的な人間経験を、彼独自の比類なき美学によって描き続けています。撮影監督クリストファー・ドイル、美術・編集のウィリアム・チャンとの伝説的なパートナーシップから生まれた視覚言語は、世界のファッションや写真、映像文化に多大な影響を与えました。カンヌ国際映画祭で香港人初の最優秀監督賞を受賞した彼は、現代世界映画において最も本質的な芸術家の一人であり続けています。

Filmography | 主な作品

Feature Films (長編映画)

Year

Title (English / Japanese / Original)

Awards/Note

1988

As Tears Go By / いますぐ抱きしめたい / 旺角卡門

HKFA Best New Director 🏆 / Feature debut / Triad gangster film

1990

Days of Being Wild / 欲望の翼 / 阿飛正傳

HKFA Best Film 🏆 Best Director 🏆 Best Actor (Leslie Cheung) 🏆 / Career-defining work

1994

Chungking Express / 恋する惑星 / 重慶森林

International breakthrough / Distributed by Tarantino’s Rolling Thunder / Tony Leung, Faye Wong

1994

Ashes of Time / 楽園の瑕 / 東邪西毒

HKFA Best Cinematography 🏆 / Anti-conventional wuxia / Restored 2008

1995

Fallen Angels / 堕落天使 / 墮落天使

Christopher Doyle wide-angle extreme style / Nocturnal neon Hong Kong

1997

Happy Together / ブエノスアイレス / 春光乍洩

Cannes Best Director 🏆 First Hong Kong director to win / Shot in Buenos Aires / Handover metaphor

2000

In the Mood for Love / 花様年華 / 花樣年華

Cannes Best Actor (Tony Leung) 🏆 Cannes Technical Grand Prize 🏆 / BBC 21st Century #1 Film (2022) 🏆 / HKFA Best Film, Director, Actor, Actress 🏆

2004

2046

HKFA Best Director 🏆 / Companion piece to In the Mood for Love / Multi-star cast

2007

My Blueberry Nights

First English-language film / Norah Jones, Jude Law, Natalie Portman

2013

The Grandmaster / グランド・マスター / 一代宗師

HKFA 12 awards including Best Film, Director, Actor, Actress 🏆 / Ip Man biopic / Yuen Woo-ping choreography

Television (テレビ・ストリーミング)

Year

Title

Episodes

Platform

Awards/Note

2023

Blossoms Shanghai / 繁花

30

Tencent Video

Massive Chinese success / 1990s Shanghai economic boom / Hu Ge


Awards & Recognition | 受賞歴

Cannes Film Festival

Winner (受賞): 2 🏆

  • Best DirectorHappy Together (1997) 🏆 First Hong Kong director to win
  • Best Actor – Tony Leung Chiu-wai in In the Mood for Love (2000) 🏆 (awarded to the actor; film directed by WKW)

In Competition (コンペティション部門):

  • Days of Being Wild (1991)
  • Chungking Express (1994)
  • Happy Together (1997) → Winner
  • In the Mood for Love (2000)
  • 2046 (2004)
  • The Grandmaster (2013)

Hong Kong Film Awards (香港電影金像奨)

Winner (受賞): multiple 🏆

  • Best FilmDays of Being Wild (1991) 🏆
  • Best DirectorDays of Being Wild (1991) 🏆
  • Best Film, Director, Screenplay, Actor, Actress and 7 other awards – The Grandmaster (2014) 🏆 (12 total)
  • Best DirectorIn the Mood for Love (2001) 🏆
  • Best Director2046 (2005) 🏆
  • Best New DirectorAs Tears Go By (1989) 🏆

International Critical Recognition

  • In the Mood for Love – BBC Greatest Films of the 21st Century (2022): #1 🏆
  • In the Mood for Love – BBC Greatest Films of the 21st Century (2016): #2 🏆
  • In the Mood for Love – Sight & Sound Greatest Films poll (2022): #5 🏆
  • Chungking Express – Multiple international “best of decade” lists
  • Berlin International Film Festival Jury President (2016) 🏆 First Asian director

Other Honours

  • Golden Lion (Venice)2046 (2004): In Competition
  • Honorary Doctorate – Hong Kong Baptist University 🏆
  • MoMA, Centre Pompidou, Cinemateca Portuguesa retrospectives 🏆
  • Time Magazine – Included in lists of most influential Asian cultural figures

Box Office Achievements | 興行成績

Film

Worldwide Box Office

The Grandmaster (2013)

~$40 million (international)

In the Mood for Love (2000)

~$12 million (international arthouse)

Chungking Express (1994)

Wide international distribution; defining arthouse success

External Links | 外部リンク