Confusing....but hypnotic

I was so looking forward to seeing Wong Kar Wai's unofficial follow-up to In the Mood for Love. Well, it begins with a standard-issue sci-fi setting, uh-oh I thought, but soon it settles into what is essentially an elaboration of some of the themes of the earlier film: the mysterious and elusive woman, (Gong Li) the charming but uncommitted man, (Tony Leung), who pursues the one he can't have and uses the ones he can. It lacks the coherence of In the Mood for Love, but the direction and performances create an intensity which almost convinces. It works best as a dreamlike exploration of the psychological undercurrents which make relationships so difficult.