Abstract:

Hou Hsiao-hsien turns his eye on Taiwan's sprawling suburbs in the story of would-be entrepreneurs and their desperate attempts to keep up with an ever-changing economy while living within an increasingly aimless society. Gao, a small-time criminal in present-day Taiwan, and his pals want to be rich and happy. A succession of get-rich-quick schemes, however, leads them only to the brink of disaster. In the course of the film the unsavory alliance between the underworld and the political elite emerges. Stylistically, this is quite different from most of the director's films, departing from stationary camera work and opting for a more mobile, restless visual approach. With Jack Kao, Hsu Kuei-Ying, Lim Giong, Annie Shizuka Inoh. "An altogether beautiful film. A sad poem of motion, a lament for souls in the process of getting lost" (Kent Jones, Film Society of Lincoln Center).