Four stories intertwine across the streets of Los Angeles, drawn from an ancient Chinese proverb that breaks life down into four emotions: happiness, pleasure, sorrow and love. A bank employee gets pulled into a gambling debt that pushes him toward a desperate choice. An enforcer for a crime boss has an unsettling ability to sense what lies ahead for the people around him. A rising pop singer tries to break free of a contract tied to a shady business, while a doctor finds his personal life crossing paths with all of them. The crime boss, known as Fingers, acts as the thread that links the four characters' fates.

How it was made

The film grows out of an ancient Chinese proverb that gives the script its structure, written by Jieho Lee with Bob DeRosa. It marks the directing debut of Lee, a Korean-American filmmaker. Financing came from NALA Investments through its production company, NALA Films. The cast includes Forest Whitaker, Brendan Fraser, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Kevin Bacon, Julie Delpy and Andy Garcia. Walt Lloyd handled cinematography and Marcelo Zarvos composed the score. None of the four main characters is given an actual name in the film, although Gellar's stage name, Trista, is spoken several times.

Reception and legacy

Critics received the film mostly negatively, though the performances of Gellar, Garcia and Whitaker drew praise. Rotten Tomatoes recorded 14 percent positive reviews from 22 critics, and Metacritic gave it 37 out of 100 based on 9 reviews. The sources consulted do not mention major awards or a notable influence on later films, so its place in film history is modest. Release dates differ between sources, which is worth keeping in mind when placing it chronologically.

Stills

Trivia

Unnamed characters

None of the four main characters is called by a real name in the film. Only Gellar's stage name, Trista, is mentioned several times.

Based on a proverb

The film's structure is based on an ancient Chinese proverb that divides life into four emotions, with each protagonist representing one of them.

Original Cinematopedia text based on Wikipedia (es) and Wikipedia (en) and Wikidata.