Vive l'Amour (1994)

Vive l'Amour (1994)
Member Rating:  
This second film by prominent Taiwanese director Tsai Ming-liang is a brilliant portrayal of isolation and urban disillusionment in modern Taipei. The movie focuses on three lonely souls: Hsiao-kang, a gay salesman of crematorium niches who wanders the city on his scooter; Ah-jung, a handsome street hawker of counterfeit designer goods; and May Lin, a struggling real estate agent. Hsiao-kang sneaks into a vacant apartment with a stolen key, takes a bath, and tries to slash his wrists. Meanwhile, May picks up Ah-jung and enters the same flat for a late-night tryst. As the film progresses, each character goes through the tedium of their lives: May waits in empty houses for prospective clients; Ah-jung hawks his wares while avoiding the police, and Hsiao-kang places fliers in anonymous mailboxes. All three use the unoccupied apartment at various times for their own needs without realizing the presence of the others, until Hsiao-kang and Ah-jung run into each other. After they both flee the place when May arrives, they develop an odd sort of friendship. ~ Jonathan Crow, Rovi

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Starring:
Yang Kuei-MeiLee Kang-Sheng, (more)
Director(s):
Tsai Ming-Liang
Format(s):
DVD
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Synopsis of Vive l'Amour

This second film by prominent Taiwanese director Tsai Ming-liang is a brilliant portrayal of isolation and urban disillusionment in modern Taipei. The movie focuses on three lonely souls: Hsiao-kang, a gay salesman of crematorium niches who wanders the city on his scooter; Ah-jung, a handsome street hawker of counterfeit designer goods; and May Lin, a struggling real estate agent. Hsiao-kang sneaks into a vacant apartment with a stolen key, takes a bath, and tries to slash his wrists. Meanwhile, May picks up Ah-jung and enters the same flat for a late-night tryst. As the film progresses, each character goes through the tedium of their lives: May waits in empty houses for prospective clients; Ah-jung hawks his wares while avoiding the police, and Hsiao-kang places fliers in anonymous mailboxes. All three use the unoccupied apartment at various times for their own needs without realizing the presence of the others, until Hsiao-kang and Ah-jung run into each other. After they both flee the place when May arrives, they develop an odd sort of friendship. ~ Jonathan Crow, Rovi

Theatrical Feature Running Time:
118 mins

Complete Cast of Vive l'Amour


Director(s):
Tsai Ming-Liang
Writer(s):
Yang Pi-YingTsai Ming-LiangTsai Yi-Chun
Producer(s):
Tzon Wei-HuaChung Hu-Ping
Vive l'Amour Awards:
  • 1994 - Venice International Film Festival - Golden Lion
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Member Reviews
 
L G.

I like arthouse flicks, but this is a lazy one that believes that it can tell it's dull stories through actions with little dialogue. It might have worked had it not felt like I was watching paint dry. The trouble is that there wasn't much tension in it to keep me interested. I went through much of this movie before I decided that it was wasting my time and bailed.

Yes   |   No

 
Robin C.

Extremely slow moving. Very little dialogue--very different from most American movies. Although it had a potentially interesting plot concerning social interactions in modern Japanese culture, it put me to sleep twice. I never made it all the way through the movies despite the 2 attempts.

Yes   |   No

 
Keith M.

I'm thinking they must have shot this in Super8 over a weekend once.

Yes   |   No

 
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