ABSTRACT
Duplicitous characters abound in the works of Ang Lee, giving a multilayered texture to the narrative and enriching the storytelling in his films. Some of these deceptions are begun with kindly or positive intent, such as the furtive actions of the sheep-herding lovers in Brokeback Mountain (2005), who hide their feelings to protect themselves and uphold the social mores of the time for the sake of their families. Later on, the moral ground becomes murkier as Jack and Ennis unwittingly – though inevitably – cause pain to their wives and daughters. Others are deceptive with malicious intent, as in Lust/Caution (2007). Yet Wang Jiazhi’s murderous deception is also made murky when it is tempered by her unexpected love for her victim. In his foreword to the short story and screenplay of Lust/Caution, producer James Schamus compares the unveiling of Wang Jiazhi’s character to a game of mirrors: “Wang Jiazhi … is a woman caught up in a game of cinematic and literary mirrors, a game that has now ensnared Ang Lee as he reflects his own cinematic mirror onto [Eileen Chang’s] remarkable work” (Schamus, 2007a, p. xv). The confusion is caused by an actress playing a role within a film of an actress playing a role: can her motivations and psychology be entirely understood?
