Dear Legal Dept at Criterion, please work on getting this film. Nice review and analysis. Ii really enjoy the way Hou tells you a story. He’s like “just watch”. Not cut, cut, cut. Side note it was cool watching Dune this weekend and leaning over to my film buddy and telling him,’see Dr Yueh, remember when I turned you on to A Brighter Summer Day…?’.
As I know Criterion always want to getting this film. However, due to the copyright and legal problem from Taiwan they can’t do anything to this film. So they only able to release a 4K rotation in theater but not release any Blu-ray or 4K Disc
Really enjoyed the discussion on framing, and thanks to who requested it. That idea of sticking to a particular visual framework to get an idea across, even if that means foregoing certain visual styles of storytelling that may provide more “exciting” or “beautiful” imagery. Inspiring.
One hundred percent I think as a filmmaking tactic it takes a lot of guts because it definitely has the potential to alienate a portion of the audience
Thanks for the video. I think it helped me understand the film better. I have trouble with his films because I can’t understand Minnan and even the Mandarin can be tough at times in this film. Are you guys based in Taipei? Would love to talk to you guys about Taiwan cinema. I’m into the film, history, and politics of Taiwan. I am trying to get back into cinema here, but it’s actually kind of difficult to get a hold of the films sometimes. They don’t keep physical media in stock here and many things weren’t released on Blu Ray. Fortunately City of Sadness is available on Prime for a decent price.
Thank you so much for covering this! I managed to get a DVD of this a couple years ago. I found it incredible, but also very saddening and unsettling, as a reflection of a very troubled period and place with which I was not very familiar. Every formal element works, and every story beat builds until you're left with this enormous sense of loss at the end. I agree that the film didn't necessarily need to be more political, since the point seemed to be emphasizing the cost of the White Terror on a very personal level. The family's story, by itself, is condemnation enough. Luke also made a good point about how this makes the movie more resonant over time - the people in power change, but the inhumanities do not, sadly. I also loved Tony Leung Chiu-Wai in his role - he might be one of my favorite actors of all time. It was a nice surprise seeing him in a Marvel blockbuster, I never expected that to happen. Thanks again for a great video!
It was just rereleased in Taiwan for the 228 anniversary. I saw it in a small theater. I wasn’t expecting much, but it had its moments. Hou’s films are always slow and lack action. I thought we didn’t get to see enough of the 228 events that took place in Taipei, Keelung, and Chiayi. We just heard about it and the politics of the times was summarized nicely but the story just didn’t interest me much. I mostly liked the set design, costume design, and the cultural aspects. Placing the film in Jiufen made the film kind of slow because that is not where the action took place for 228, but that’s the story.
I pretty much agree with you, for films set in Jiufen I actually much prefer “the hill of no return” although it is about a different subject - ruclips.net/video/S-9v0C9DKRA/видео.html
Very good movie, it had a lasting impact with me. I think it's the only movie that me cry after watching it. Someone should restore this movie because it's really good and underrated.
Completely agree! I think Taiwan cinema as a whole is also underrated and is seldom talked about in discussions of the worlds great films especially in the United States
unfortunately 228 as a tragic incident wasn't part of white terror. As the director explained some years later the white terror actually started in 1950, not from 1947. back then when the movie was produced, historic research wasn't profound at all, so the director and the team needed to do some their own research to understand what was going on.
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Dear Legal Dept at Criterion, please work on getting this film. Nice review and analysis. Ii really enjoy the way Hou tells you a story. He’s like “just watch”. Not cut, cut, cut.
Side note it was cool watching Dune this weekend and leaning over to my film buddy and telling him,’see Dr Yueh, remember when I turned you on to A Brighter Summer Day…?’.
Thanks for the comment! New Taiwanese cinema is definitely an antidote for the overly aggressive cutting of most modern movies :)
As I know Criterion always want to getting this film. However, due to the copyright and legal problem from Taiwan they can’t do anything to this film. So they only able to release a 4K rotation in theater but not release any Blu-ray or 4K Disc
Thanks God that I found this channel. Exactly what I needed! Salutes from Brazil!
Thanks for the nice comment 😊
Really enjoyed the discussion on framing, and thanks to who requested it. That idea of sticking to a particular visual framework to get an idea across, even if that means foregoing certain visual styles of storytelling that may provide more “exciting” or “beautiful” imagery. Inspiring.
One hundred percent I think as a filmmaking tactic it takes a lot of guts because it definitely has the potential to alienate a portion of the audience
Thanks for the video. I think it helped me understand the film better. I have trouble with his films because I can’t understand Minnan and even the Mandarin can be tough at times in this film.
Are you guys based in Taipei? Would love to talk to you guys about Taiwan cinema. I’m into the film, history, and politics of Taiwan. I am trying to get back into cinema here, but it’s actually kind of difficult to get a hold of the films sometimes. They don’t keep physical media in stock here and many things weren’t released on Blu Ray. Fortunately City of Sadness is available on Prime for a decent price.
Thank you so much for covering this! I managed to get a DVD of this a couple years ago. I found it incredible, but also very saddening and unsettling, as a reflection of a very troubled period and place with which I was not very familiar. Every formal element works, and every story beat builds until you're left with this enormous sense of loss at the end.
I agree that the film didn't necessarily need to be more political, since the point seemed to be emphasizing the cost of the White Terror on a very personal level. The family's story, by itself, is condemnation enough. Luke also made a good point about how this makes the movie more resonant over time - the people in power change, but the inhumanities do not, sadly.
I also loved Tony Leung Chiu-Wai in his role - he might be one of my favorite actors of all time. It was a nice surprise seeing him in a Marvel blockbuster, I never expected that to happen.
Thanks again for a great video!
Thanks you for the thoughtful comment! Glad you enjoyed the review and the movie :)
It was just rereleased in Taiwan for the 228 anniversary. I saw it in a small theater. I wasn’t expecting much, but it had its moments. Hou’s films are always slow and lack action. I thought we didn’t get to see enough of the 228 events that took place in Taipei, Keelung, and Chiayi. We just heard about it and the politics of the times was summarized nicely but the story just didn’t interest me much. I mostly liked the set design, costume design, and the cultural aspects.
Placing the film in Jiufen made the film kind of slow because that is not where the action took place for 228, but that’s the story.
I pretty much agree with you, for films set in Jiufen I actually much prefer “the hill of no return” although it is about a different subject - ruclips.net/video/S-9v0C9DKRA/видео.html
@@MintVolcano You guys definitely need more subscribers and viewers. I will check out more of your videos.
Very good movie, it had a lasting impact with me. I think it's the only movie that me cry after watching it.
Someone should restore this movie because it's really good and underrated.
Completely agree! I think Taiwan cinema as a whole is also underrated and is seldom talked about in discussions of the worlds great films especially in the United States
Please Review “Soulmate” from the director of better days. Thanks .
Watching from Ghana,Africa.
unfortunately 228 as a tragic incident wasn't part of white terror. As the director explained some years later the white terror actually started in 1950, not from 1947.
back then when the movie was produced, historic research wasn't profound at all, so the director and the team needed to do some their own research to understand what was going on.
Yeah, the martial law exhibit at at Taipei Main Station lists out the victims starting in 1950.