Which director is capable of making a record-breaking blockbuster out of a tale about a balding, middle-aged man’s search for true love? The answer is Feng Xiaogang (馮小剛). After his lavish period saga The Banquet (夜宴) and war drama Assembly (集結號), the genre-crossing wizard has made a confident return to what he was originally known for — ironic comedies set in contemporary China — with If You Are the One (非誠勿擾).
Co-starring Feng’s long-time collaborator, Chinese actor Ge You (葛優), with Taiwanese actress Shu Qi (舒淇), the romantic comedy revolves around an unlikely couple whose relationship begins with a blind date, endures much sparring and ultimately leads to deeply felt affections. Its huge box-office success — the movie earned roughly US$50 million — cements Feng’s reputation as China’s foremost purveyor of popular comedies.
In the opening scene, which delivers a good laugh at the expense of China’s nouveau riche, onetime inventor Qin Fen (Ge) sells his Conflict Resolution Terminal, basically a plastic tube, to a foolish venture capitalist (played by Chinese comic Fan Wei (范偉)). With his newfound wealth, Qin focuses his attention on finding a wife to make his life complete.
As he goes from one blind date to another, Qin encounters plenty of unsuitable matches who include a gay man, an erotic-phobic widow and a woman who tries to sell graveyard plots during the date. Eventually, he meets Liang Xiaoxiao (Shu), a flight attendant languishing in a love affair with a married man (played by Hong Kong’s Alex Fong (方中信)).
Qin immediately realizes the beautiful Xiaoxiao is out of his league. Nevertheless, the two end up having a drink and confiding painful pasts to each other, assuming they will never see each other again.
But fate draws them back together and Qin tries to win Xiaoxiao’s heart with tactics he takes care to stage in an effortless fashion. It seems to work and Xiaoxiao, softened by his persistence, invites Qin on a trip to Japan’s picturesque Hokkaido.
Director Feng once again proves his mastery of satire and humor when it comes to observing Chinese society in the midst of changing times. The script is smartly written, filled with snappy dialogue, enjoyable sarcasm and dry wit. Though the blind dates provide much comedy in the first half of the film, Feng pokes fun at modern-day notions of dating, romance and marriage. A few caricatures that stand out include a pregnant young woman (played by Taiwan’s Vivian Hsu (徐若瑄)) desperately seeking a husband and a businesswoman who habitually compares men to stocks.
The narrative becomes a bit too discursive in the second half of the film when the two leads build on their mutual affections during their trip to Hokkaido. It feels disappointing, at times, to see that Ge’s charming antics alone are not enough to produce the emotional weight the journey demands. An offbeat coda, which makes meta-references to the global economic crisis, feels at odds with the rest of the movie.
The film wouldn’t be as successful if the main roles had been played by lesser actors. A charismatic leading man, Ge is admirably adept at mixing sincerity with cynicism, conceit with self-disapproval. Shu proves herself an able match for her veteran costar, and the two share a terrific chemistry that is delivered throughout the film.
June 23 to June 29 After capturing the walled city of Hsinchu on June 22, 1895, the Japanese hoped to quickly push south and seize control of Taiwan’s entire west coast — but their advance was stalled for more than a month. Not only did local Hakka fighters continue to cause them headaches, resistance forces even attempted to retake the city three times. “We had planned to occupy Anping (Tainan) and Takao (Kaohsiung) as soon as possible, but ever since we took Hsinchu, nearby bandits proclaiming to be ‘righteous people’ (義民) have been destroying train tracks and electrical cables, and gathering in villages
Dr. Y. Tony Yang, Associate Dean of Health Policy and Population Science at George Washington University, argued last week in a piece for the Taipei Times about former president Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) leading a student delegation to the People’s Republic of China (PRC) that, “The real question is not whether Ma’s visit helps or hurts Taiwan — it is why Taiwan lacks a sophisticated, multi-track approach to one of the most complex geopolitical relationships in the world” (“Ma’s Visit, DPP’s Blind Spot,” June 18, page 8). Yang contends that the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) has a blind spot: “By treating any
Swooping low over the banks of a Nile River tributary, an aid flight run by retired American military officers released a stream of food-stuffed sacks over a town emptied by fighting in South Sudan, a country wracked by conflict. Last week’s air drop was the latest in a controversial development — private contracting firms led by former US intelligence officers and military veterans delivering aid to some of the world’s deadliest conflict zones, in operations organized with governments that are combatants in the conflicts. The moves are roiling the global aid community, which warns of a more militarized, politicized and profit-seeking trend
This year will go down in the history books. Taiwan faces enormous turmoil and uncertainty in the coming months. Which political parties are in a good position to handle big changes? All of the main parties are beset with challenges. Taking stock, this column examined the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) (“Huang Kuo-chang’s choking the life out of the TPP,” May 28, page 12), the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) (“Challenges amid choppy waters for the DPP,” June 14, page 12) and the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) (“KMT struggles to seize opportunities as ‘interesting times’ loom,” June 20, page 11). Times like these can
RSS