Sun, Feb 10, 2002 - Page 24 News List

Taiwan film screens at Berlin Film Fest

Ho Ping's new film about the insecurities of Taiwanese people is one of only a few Asian films at Berlin this year

By Yu Sen-lun  /  STAFF REPORTER , IN BERLIN

Chang and Hsia as Chewy and Turtle are the film's greatest assets. They are like a two-man Taiwanese version of Reservoir Dogs, with all the filthy language in Mandarin and Taiwanese.

"My part is basically a man with a screwed-up mind. He is a Taiwanese businessman who failed in China. The second generation of mainlanders, he considers neither [Taiwan nor China] home and feels lonely a lot," said Chang at the film's question-and-answer session. "Chewy is the least greedy guy in the film, but with the most serious problems. He is not pursuing money, sex, or a better future. He's lost all hope and desire." said Chang.

Chang, who also starred in Wolves Cry Under the Moon said he has worked with Ho so often in film and television that they had a tacit understanding of one another. "Acting in this film is a special a thrill because I can improvise a lot with the dialogue," he said.

Indeed, underneath the surface of a comedy about killing and gangs, there is a subtext Ho is wanting to express about cheating, wandering and losing one's sense of belonging.

"This movie is also about destiny and the irony of my generation of Taiwanese. When the hole is filled, it becomes a grave. Perhaps Chewy should dig a hole for himself, a well-planed hole where he could lie down and rest with comfort and dignity," said Ho.

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