A Brighter Summer Day (Gu ling jie shao nian sha ren shi jian) (NR)
synopsis
A Brighter Summer Day is an empathic epic of Taipei in the early 1960s. Four hours long, it is a finely detailed portrait of the families who fled China for Taiwan after the Communist Revolution, unsure if they would ever see their homeland again. It is how Edward Yang grew up, and he felt a responsibility to honor the memory of his friends and family who lived and endured this dislocated life, all under the martial law of the Kuomintang government, who stifled dissent in what became known as the “White Terror”. Freedoms were circumscribed and national loyalties scrambled, so in order to establish an identity many children joined street gangs and imbibed Western pop culture, especially Elvis Presley and rock n' roll. The film is a succession of atmospheric reveries punctuated by spasmodic violence, boredom and confusion breeding obscure hatreds.
details
Drama, Romance
3 hr. 57 min.
MovieGoer Review
Warning: This review contains spoilers.
The word "epic" is thrown around carelessly when discussing motion pictures. With its sprawling tapestry and mini-series length, Edward Yang's obscure (at least in the West) 1991 gangster d... MORE
To get the full Quicklook Films experience, uncheck "Enable on this Site" from Adblock Plus
synopsis
A Brighter Summer Day is an empathic epic of Taipei in the early 1960s. Four hours long, it is a finely detailed portrait of the families who fled China for Taiwan after the Communist Revolution, unsure if they would ever see their homeland again. It is how Edward Yang grew up, and he felt a responsibility to honor the memory of his friends and family who lived and endured this dislocated life, all under the martial law of the Kuomintang government, who stifled dissent in what became known as the “White Terror”. Freedoms were circumscribed and national loyalties scrambled, so in order to establish an identity many children joined street gangs and imbibed Western pop culture, especially Elvis Presley and rock n' roll. The film is a succession of atmospheric reveries punctuated by spasmodic violence, boredom and confusion breeding obscure hatreds.
details
Drama, Romance
3 hr. 57 min.
MovieGoer Review
Warning: This review contains spoilers.
The word "epic" is thrown around carelessly when discussing motion pictures. With its sprawling tapestry and mini-series length, Edward Yang's obscure (at least in the West) 1991 gangster d... MORE
