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FTM Representation in Taiwan Takes One Step Forward and Two Steps Back with Chang Yi-ching’s “Be Myself”

·July 1, 2023·9 min read

Director Chang Yi-ching's (張伊青) new documentary, 《做自己的條件》Be Myself, made its world premiere last night at the 25th annual Taipei Film Festival. Be Myself documents video editor Hsin-yu’s (欣嶼) journey through gender affirming surgeries and changing his legal gender from female to male. Chang’s new full-length documentary, running at 138 minutes, is the first of its kind, providing viewers with a detailed portrayal of female-to-male (FTM) transition and achieving new heights in FTM transgender representation in Taiwan. However, Be Myself suffers from a severe lack of sensitivity and accountability on the part of the director, as well as a narrative arc that ultimately centers Hsin-yu’s family members rather than himself and inadvertently perpetuates subtle forms of transphobia Read More

bitters WEED Examines Taiwan’s Cannabis Decriminalization Movement

English Film

·May 31, 2023·1 min read

bitters WEED (麻罪犯), a documentary focusing on the issue of cannabis criminalization in Taiwan, is an effective look at the issue Read More

Wave Makers Depicts the Vibrancy, Drama of Taiwanese Elections

English Film

·May 6, 2023·4 min read

Wave Makers, currently available on Netflix, continues the trend of hit television series often drawing from Taiwan’s recent history in subject matter. Wave Makers, however, focuses on the grassroots-level political workers that work in contemporary campaigns. This is to be contrasted to Island Nation’s depiction of the Lee Teng-hui presidency, for example, but aligns the show closer alongside Days of the Sun II, which is set during the Sunflower Movement Read More

“Bad Education” Proves A Capable Directorial Debut for Kai Ko

English Film

·April 3, 2023·3 min read

Actor Kai Ko's directorial debut, Bad Education, is a capable film with many merits. Though still entertainment fare at the end of the day, much is to be praised about the movie, which like many hit Taiwanese movies in past years has a script penned by novelist Giddens Ko Read More

“Day Off” Depicts the Relation Between a Mother and Her Children During a Time of Transition

English Film

·March 31, 2023·3 min read

Day Off, which has won accolades for lead actress Lu Hsiao-fen, proves a heartfelt depiction of the relationship between a mother and her children during a time of transition Read More

The World is Your Oyster: Walking Down The Memory Lane Of Hong Kong’s Social Movements

English Film

·March 25, 2023·9 min read

Starting from the Umbrella Movement in 2014, the outpouring of political creativity in fields ranging from independent documentaries, films, animations, comic books, performing art, and novels has brought Hong Kong to the spotlight, especially in Taiwan Read More

“A Camp Unknown” Sheds Light on a Forgotten Period in Taiwan’s History

English Film

·March 18, 2023·3 min read

The PTS documentary "A Camp Unknown" (彼岸他方), directed by Awei Liu, proves an insightful look at a forgotten period in Taiwanese history. The documentary examines refugee camps for Chinese Vietnamese refugees that existed in Taiwan from 1977 to 1988 Read More

“Goddamned Asura” Aims for Humanistic Social Commentary

English Film

·March 15, 2023·3 min read

Taiwanese film in the last decade seems to have been fixated on depicting random acts of violence committed by troubled youth. This is due to the impact of real-world events such as the “Little Lightbulb Murder” in 2016 and the Cheng Chieh subway stabbing in 2014–but also due to the in-depth media reporting on these incidents that followed Read More

“Marry My Dead Body” Proves A Well-Intended and Capably Shot if Problematic LGBTQ Crime Caper

English Film

·March 11, 2023·4 min read

Marry My Dead Body is an entertaining and capably executed, if a bit breezy, buddy cop comedy with LGBTQ themes. The outlandish premise–featuring a straight, initially homophobic police officer whose attitudes gradually change through interactions with a gay ghost that he becomes haunted by–certainly proves memorable Read More

“If We Burn” Recollects Hong Kong’s 2019 Protests in a Slow Burn Manner

English Film

·February 22, 2023·3 min read

Lianain Films’ four hour-long documentary “If We Burn” offers one of the most exhaustive retrospectives on Hong Kong’s pro-democracy protest movement Read More

“One Hundred Years and Hope” Profiles the Japanese Communist Party Whilst Avoiding High Drama Or Emotionality

English Film

·February 18, 2023·3 min read

Documentary "One Hundred Years and Hope" offers a capable peek into candidates and campaigns of the Japanese Communist Party Read More

“Convenience Story” Paints Surreal Picture of the Creative Process Using Japanese Convenience Stores

English Film

·February 14, 2023·3 min read

Director Miki Satoshi’s latest movie “Convenience Story” explores a scriptwriter and actress’ journey through a series of increasingly surreal situations Read More