Overview
A tale of seduction and deception unfolds in the shadows of wartime Shanghai.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Moderate
- sensual
- tense
- melancholic
- serious film night
- arthouse movie night
What critics said
Critics broadly regard it as a tense, sensual, beautifully shot espionage drama, while finding its emotional and adaptation choices somewhat uneven.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Wong Chia Chi is assigned to seduce and entrap Mr. Yee, making sexual and emotional closeness central to the resistance plot.
The film juxtaposes meticulously staged erotic encounters with occupied Shanghai, resistance activity, and collaborationist power.
Wong's resistance mission becomes entangled with her feelings for Yee, the enemy official she is meant to destroy.
The central operation unfolds among Japanese-ruled Shanghai officials, wealthy households, jewelers, and covert resistance networks.
Films like Lust, Caution, and why
The Lives of Others
shares erotic espionage, moral ambiguity, wartime occupation, and a psychologically intense relationship between enemies
The English Patient
shares period espionage, political betrayal, forbidden intimacy, and a tense atmosphere of surveillance
The Handmaiden
shares sensual romantic obsession, divided loyalties, and elegant historical melodrama under political pressure
Casablanca
shares wartime intrigue, doomed desire, and emotionally conflicted characters navigating occupation and betrayal
Movie Details
- Director
- Ang Lee
- Release Date
- 2007-09-24
- Runtime
- 158 min
- Rating
- 7.3 / 10 (845)
Cast
- Tang Wei
- Tony Leung Chiu-wai
- Leehom Wang
- Joan Chen
- Tou Tsung-hua
- Jacqueline Zhu
- Ven Kao
- Lawrence Ko
- Johnson Yuen Tak-Cheung
- Chin Ka-Lok
Where to watch in United States
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Lust, Caution about?
- An idealistic resistance actress becomes dangerously entangled with the collaborator she is recruited to seduce and assassinate.
- What is Lust, Caution like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Lust, Caution as measured, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is Lust, Caution violent?
- Somewhat. Ember rates the violence in Lust, Caution as moderate.
- What did critics think of Lust, Caution?
- Critics broadly regard it as a tense, sensual, beautifully shot espionage drama, while finding its emotional and adaptation choices somewhat uneven.
- Which films are like Lust, Caution?
- Films with a similar feel include The Lives of Others, The English Patient, The Handmaiden, and Casablanca.
- How long is Lust, Caution?
- Lust, Caution runs 158 minutes.
- Where can I watch Lust, Caution?
- In United States, Lust, Caution is available to rent or buy from Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home.
