Taipei Story

An eye-catching, sedating tale of unwillingness. The movie's pace may seem alternating, with very slow sections followed by turns of events which, at the end of the day, does not leave concrete space for the viewer to give up throughout the story. The characters have been worked up quite ok, and whose backgrounds may help the viewer find the root for the characters' fitting in the scenarios, specially in the second part (as Chin and her adventures with her sister's teenager-friends whose carefree existence she seems to admire). The fantastic camerawork and use of lights in a bright Taipei at night makes the perception of the movie visually impacting and quite catchy. Ultimately, the development of the characters' inner fragility, making them crumble into an invisible limbo, frames their hopelessness to silently bear the consequences of their own (in)decision in a calmly realistic and visually appealing piece of work.

Taipei is just a backdrop for this slow-moving tale of people trying to survive difficult economic circumstances. The fact that those circumstances are of their own making does not make it any more interesting. Neither does throwing in a few romantic entanglements.

Taipei Story with a reference to Yasujiro Ozu's Tokyo Story in the title translated in English credited as one of the first films of Taiwanese New Wave cinema. The original title is literally translated as "green plumbs and a bamboo horse" and used as idiom related to the metaphor of game when children ride sticks pretending this is a horse. This title is a better fit for the film, as the connection between Ozu's film and Taipei Story is nothing but irony. Though, the final film of Yang Yi Yi resembles the family dramas Ozu did. In Taipei Story, Yang casts another prominent Taiwanese New Wave cinema director Hou Hsiao-Hsien as a former baseball player Lung and Yang's future wife Tsai Chin as Chin. Chin used to be quite a successful corporate office worker before she lost her last job. She always stays independently not relying upon her father who is the lazy troubled businessman. Taipei Story shows Chin's weakness in an affair with Lung who is seeking himself. Lung lives in the past dealing with the old memories from times when he was a player and had another affair with a Japanese woman. He is not able to get over the middle age crisis and keeps making irrelevant decisions in business and private life. Lung helps his friends and troubled Chin's father lending him money to pay back to loan sharks, yet he doesn't do much for his own life or happiness of his girlfriend. Lung and Chin frequently think and talk about a possible move to the United States which might let them start a new life. They really want it, but remain unable to make a step towards it due to Lang inability to look into the future and act. After some time, Lung starts seeking excuses saying neither any move nor marriage will solve their problems and change anything. Lung's life becomes more and more aimless, while Chin loses the hopes for living a better life and professional advance. The situation puts a test on the characters' relationships they cannot pass. The disaster and tragedy in their story become inevitable. The most impressive aspect of the story is its visual style. The usage of unfurnished apartments, offices and alienated urban landscapes is a great illustration of emptiness embedding the protagonists. In his second feature, Edward Yang also appears to be a solid visual master showing great work with lights. The clarity of visual style, emotionally charged close-up and stylish looks and cuts are really impressive. The film might be not so moving, but the story is brilliant in its poignancy and bleakness. Casting other famous directors from Taiwan in his films becomes a common thing for Yang with Taipei Story. Apart from Hou who produced a great performance, in Taipei Stroy, we also see Wu Nien-jen who would later appear in Yang's Mahjong and magnum opus Yi Yi.

Every character's input serves to feed the past that Chin and Lung cannot let go of, inspiring a void with one veiled atrocity at a time.

Filled with stunning compositions loaded with symbolism and meaning, this film is much richer than what it appears on the surface. Performances are okay (Tsai Chin is surprisingly good), but it's really the shots, editing, and visual yet elliptical storytelling that do the heavy lifting.

20s Taiwanese want to go back to 1985 after watching...

The leading actor's picture posted here is a wrong person. Tsai Chin is not Zhou Tsai chin.

yang's elegy for lost youth. wonderful storytelling and a touching performance by fellow director hou hsiao-hsien in the lead role

Phantasms of the past invading the present realm with its armies of melancholy, solitude, even metaphysical elements disturbing inner peacefulness, all of this presented in broken relationships, untied emotional bonds of a reality that is no more, against a urbanized backdrop of technological and microeconomic changes. I can't ask for anything more: my introduction to the well-respected Edward Yang was a complete emotional experience. 97/100

A bit rough around the edges and with a rather typical 'new wave' stylistic approach (elliptical storytelling, silences with 'meaning', focusing on boring everyday-life activities etc.). It anticipates the beautiful 'A One and a Two' in which this style of filmmaking has matured to a considerable degree. The thematic core of the two films seem to be the same also; the unfulfilled dreams in a life that covers everything under its dust of boredom and routine, and the failure of human contact in the modern city landscape.