Asian Cinema Challenge 2023 | 34/52 | Directed by Tsai Ming-liang
Hsiao-kang finds a key to an apartment still in the lock. He drops off the package he came to deliver, and while waiting for the elevator, he takes the key from the lock. Later, dressed in street clothes, he rides his moped back to the apartment, listening to the door, ringing the bell, and checking around before entering. He surveys the space, finding it empty save for some staging furniture. He takes a bath, letting himself slip under the water.
Ah-jung has a cigarette and coffee at a food court, alone but surrounded by crowded tables. May Lin slips through and sits at the empty table next to him. Ah-jung notices her while she smokes. She gets up to use the restroom, reapplies her lipstick, and heads out. Ah-jung follows, meeting her gaze but pretending to be busy doing other things. He jumps into a phone booth, and May Lin hovers around, waiting for him.
Back at the apartment, Hsiao-kang sits on the bare mattress in his underwear. He holds a knife to his wrists, scared to pull down but trying to find the will. He turns off the light and makes a cut, the blood pouring. May Lin leads Ah-jung to an elevator and up to the same apartment where Hsiao-kang is. Hsiao-kang hears the noise of the door opening. Ah-jung and May Lin find an empty bedroom and undress. May Lin and Ah-jung have sex while Hsiao-kang sneaks around, trying to stop his wrist from bleeding.
The film follows these three characters as their lives intersect around this apartment.
The film has a minimalist style — no non-diegetic music, little dialogue, middle-distance cinematography, and natural lighting. The sparse approach allows the film to observe the characters in space, their vulnerabilities, and isolation on full display. While we see people all around them, their interactions are formal and transactional — buying a coffee, selling a house, dropping off a package. Even sex feels like a trade-off, the only cure for loneliness they can conceive of, exploiting another, whether they realize it or not.
Though the film is somber, it’s also humorous in its absurd way of observing people’s longing for connection. For example, Hsiao-kang watches some coworkers play these “get-to-know-you” games that lower their barriers and get them laughing, but Hsiao-kang can’t find a way in. Or the scene with the watermelon, which I will leave for you to discover, should you choose to watch this. I feel like Lost in Translation was chasing the vibe of this movie.
The slow cinema style isn’t for everyone, and I imagine some folks will lose interest in this movie’s quieter moments. But the film rewards patience, and perhaps those who have experienced this sort of depression will see something of themselves, as uncomfortable as that may be.
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