so many things can be pulled from this film. the effervescent angst of youth, the folly of blind loyalty, societal pressures and expectations, truly a phenomenal piece of kino. the feverish atmosphere of 90s chinese cinema that ive come to love was on full display here, and i was jonesing for every scene. i can see how hou hsiao hsien producing this movie had such tremendous influence over it, i see his signatures in nearly every frame. it almost reminded me of ‘sonatine’ by takeshi kitano with its plot, still beauty, and cinematography. when it comes to directorial debuts, this is about as good as it gets. criminally slept on, and absolutely exceptional.
so many things can be pulled from this film. the effervescent angst of youth, the folly of blind loyalty, societal pressures and expectations, truly a phenomenal piece of kino. the feverish atmosphere of 90s chinese cinema that ive come to love was on full display here, and i was jonesing for every scene. i can see how hou hsiao hsien producing this movie had such tremendous influence over it, i see his signatures in nearly every frame. it almost reminded me of ‘sonatine’ by takeshi kitano with its plot, still beauty, and cinematography. when it comes to directorial debuts, this is about as good as it gets. criminally slept on, and absolutely exceptional.
