SummaryShanghai, 1942. Japan's World War II occupation of this Chinese city continues in force. Mrs. Mak, a woman of sophistication and means, walks into a café, places a phone call, and then sits and waits. She remembers how her story began several years earlier, in China in 1938. She is not in fact Mrs. Mak, but shy Wong Chia Chi. With WWII underway, ... Read More
Directed By:Ang Lee
Written By:Eileen Chang, James Schamus, Hui-Ling Wang
Lust, Caution
Metascore
Generally Favorable
61
User score
Generally Favorable
7.7
My Score
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Top Cast
Metascore
Generally Favorable
61
60% Positive
21 Reviews
21 Reviews
34% Mixed
12 Reviews
12 Reviews
6% Negative
2 Reviews
2 Reviews
100
Lee has perfectly captured the details, textures, sights and sounds of a China caught between East and West, occupied by an ancient enemy and quaking on the eve of an earth-shaking revolution.
80
Though Lust, Caution resounds with these disconcerting themes, it operates on the same principle that distinguishes all lasting romances, be they "Wuthering Heights," "Casablanca" or "When Harry Met Sally."
User score
Generally Favorable
7.7
79% Positive
45 Ratings
45 Ratings
18% Mixed
10 Ratings
10 Ratings
4% Negative
2 Ratings
2 Ratings
Dec 10, 2019
10
I saw this movie a few years ago, and for some reason it stuck with me. A period movie is incredibly hard to do well, this one covered a moment in history very rarely recognized and incredibly well recreated. An amazing romance, with S&M that would make 50 shades blush 50 shades of red.
Jan 31, 2026
8
Lust, Caution joins the ranks of Ang Lee's (Life of Pi, Brokeback Mountain, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon) remarkable films. It's a spy thriller set in Shanghai and Hong Kong during World War II. The characters are convincingly brought to life by the outstanding ensemble cast. Ang Lee, along with his cinematographer Rodrigo Prieto, masterfully stays close to the characters, authentically portraying their emotional turmoil. The film's power also lies in Ang Lee's uncompromising and straightforward approach to telling his story. He deviates from this consistency only in the final scene. It's a tale of evil being fought with evil, and ultimately, evil triumphs.
75
I didn't feel the love between the flowering idealist and the ruthless killer. If I did, I would have given the movie four stars. Everything else is wonderful.
67
Set in Japanese-occupied Shanghai during World War II, Ang Lee's uneven new film is a bit like a Chinese variant on Paul Verhoeven's "The Black Book." The sex scenes in this otherwise overly prim period piece are extremely graphic.
58
Lust, Caution wants us to feel the erotic ping of buttoned-up people ripping open those buttons, but too often it's the film's drama that's under wraps.
50
Too much caution and too little lust squeeze much of the dramatic juice out of Ang Lee's Lust, Caution, a 2½--hour period drama that's a long haul for relatively few returns.
30
The sex scenes -- intense, affecting and emotionally raw -- are the best thing about this frustratingly limp movie.
Feb 6, 2013
8
-tension builds in Leung's silences, Tang's glances, spy angst, and Japanese occupation, then explosive in sex and murder -title themes reflect emotions of the time, possibly Japanese regional ambition and international diplomacy (?) -good substories of acting, mahjong, and women's roles -big historical events not detailed or tightly tied to plot development
Production Company:
- Haishang Films
- Focus Features
- River Road Entertainment
- Sil-Metropole Organisation
- Shanghai Film Group
Release Date:Sep 28, 2007
Duration:2 h 37 m
Rating:NC-17
Tagline:The Trap is Set.
Awards
Golden Globes, USA
• 1 Nomination
Golden Horse Film Festival
• 7 Wins & 11 Nominations
Golden Kite Awards (China)
• 3 Wins & 7 Nominations
