The new Taiwanese cinema, which developed in the 1980s, is known among many for introdcuing a new style in Chinese-language filmmaking, for it diverted from the fantasy, fiction-based martial arts dramas and romances and used a realistic style. Directors like Edward Yang (
So in this celluloid history of Taiwanese society, what are the views of women and what struggles did they face when Taiwan morphed from an agriculture society into a modern one? These are the questions asked by Jane Yu (
"Jane had this question: Why were women's films all made by men?" Peng said. "This was the main reason we wanted to re-examine the old films." Many of the nine films selected here are adapted from successful literary works, written by female novelists, such as Woman of Wrath (
Female novelists at that time were aware of women's plight in a changing society. Most of them had a Western education. They observed their mother's generation and compared it to their own, putting the reflections of those different women's lives into their works. However, it was the directors who got all the credit for these films, and little attention was paid to the meaning and impact of the stories.
Women's desires, women's fate in traditional society and women's changing roles in society are the subjects of the festival's nine films. The first is Jade Love (
Ah Fei and A Flower in the Rainy Night (
A Flower is an ode to a woman's strength and perseverance from being a prostitute since her teenage days to escaping the brothels, being deserted by her family and becoming a determined mother.
Hou Hsiao-hsien's nostalgic movie The Time to Live and the Time to Die (
The most urban and dramatic among the films is Woman of Wrath, about the vengeance of women. A butcher husband, a repressed woman, an exploitive sexual relationship between the couple and a peeping widow who spreads gossip and superstition all around town all lead to a brutal murder by an insane woman, who chops the husband's body to pieces and throws it into the river. The film is an extreme protest against male chauvinism.
What: Re-discovering Women: Women in New Taiwan Cinema
When: July 19 to July 21, 10:30am to
8:30pm
Where: School of Continuing Education, B1, 231 Chienkuo S. Rd., Sec. 2 (
Tickets: NT$100 tickets can be purchased at the School of Continuing Education.
Tel: (02) 2700-5858 ext 1, (02) 0800-008-918 or visit http://www.cec.pccu.edu.tw/movie/women for more information
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