With Seediq Bale (賽德克．巴萊), Wei Te-sheng (魏德聖) advances an interest in history that can be retraced to Cape No. 7 (海角七號), which examined the complex relationship between Taiwan and Japan through parallel stories that spanned 60 years. His new film is a battle epic centering on a series of deadly events in 1930, when tribal chief Mouna Rudo led warriors of the Sediq (spelled Seediq in the movie title) tribes in a violent uprising against their Japanese oppressors.
Wei recounts the incident in a two-part format that together runs more than four hours. Despite the length, he admirably eschews a convoluted narrative and shows strength with a strongly functional script and tight pacing.
The first part of the saga opens with young Mouna Rudo, played by Yu Da-ching (游大慶) — an Atayal (泰雅族) truck driver in real life — hunting a wild boar in a scene tarnished by poor CGI effects that recur from time to time, interrupting the film’s otherwise authentic feel. Rather than a heroic figure that readily draws sympathy from viewers, Yu’s character is portrayed as an unyielding tribesman who honors tradition by warring with neighboring clans, practicing head-hunting, and receiving facial tattoos that mark a boy’s initiation into manhood and the rank of warrior known as the Sediq Bale.
Photo Courtesy of ARS Film Production
Meanwhile, Japanese troops reach Taiwan’s coast after the land is ceded to Japan in 1895 under the Treaty of Shimonoseki. History is described at a swift pace, with a succession of episodes showing failed anti-Japanese revolts by both Han Chinese and Aborigines, as well as young Mouna Rudo’s strife with a rivaling clan, hinting at future conflict. The segment works well as a preamble to the epic battle that follows, but Wei appears to rely too much on Ricky Ho’s (何國杰) overwrought score, which quickly becomes intrusive instead of setting the mood.
Fast-forward to 1930. The film zooms in on the now mature Mouna Rudo, played by the imposing Lin Ching-tai (林慶台), a real-life Atayal pastor, and his family. Lin’s commendable rendition of the Sediq legend depicts a fierce traditionalist who strongly believes in the need to become a Sediq Bale — a true man — and patiently wait for a chance to rise up against the Japanese rulers who force his tribespeople into wage slavery.
The opportunity comes in the form of a school sports event that sees important Japanese officials assembling in Wushe, part of present-day Renai Township (仁愛), Nantou County. Around 300 rebel warriors from the Sediq tribes answer Mouna Rudo’s call for the “blood sacrifice to our ancestors (血祭祖靈),” and on Oct. 27, 1930, the gathered tribesmen stage an attack on police stations in the region and slaughter the Japanese at the school in a bloodbath.
Admittedly, Wei’s saga is scattered with flaws: the second-rate CGI; a distracting score; and a range of characters not fully explained. Yet if the fact that the director is attempting an epic of unprecedented scale by local industry standards is taken into account, Seediq Bale is worth praise as a more than competent effort that brings to life Taiwan’s Aboriginal history and traditions.
Wei is very clear about what he wants to do. He uses the perspective of a tribal warrior to tell the story of a group of people who strive to guard their culture and beliefs. An extreme example can be found in the gory battle scenes that spare no one, including women and children. Accompanied by the chanting of ancient verses in the Sediq language and defined with a much-needed emotional restraint, Wei sensibly acknowledges the tribesmen’s sense of honor without hurriedly passing judgment.
The second part of the film is scheduled for release on Sept. 30.
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