Bored

Watched City of Sadness (1989) by Hou Hsiao Hsien today. It's a 2 hr 38 min film about the life in Taiwan after the Japanese Occupation and the influx of migrants from Mainland China. The story revolves around a family who has triad connections with gangsters and the repercussions that follow after the government reform. This movie is incredibly slow-moving and the people all around me were complaining how boring it is. I dozed off several times for a few seconds as well. It was actually quite torturous to endure this full length movie and i had to rotate my head, shift sitting posture, drink water, occasionally talk to Daryl beside me and stretch my legs to keep myself awake.

The socio-political film discusses the post war syndrome, the transnational relations and the sufferings that the citizens in that period of time had to go through. It was too serious for mainstream audiences to appreciate the movie and i believe 99% of the two hundred plus students who watched this movie did not like it, including me.

Hou Hsiao Hsien is actually quite acclaimed in the chinese film industry, although this is the first film that i watched coming from the director. The movie can rightfully claim its throne as the most boring film i've ever watched.