Ein Sommer zum Verlieben

Edward Yang's "A Brighter Summer Day" is an enormous film, not only in length but in its ambitious attempt, through homing in on a particular group of people in a specific time and place, to define the attitudes of a nation undergoing an identity crisis. The time is the early '60's, the place a suburb of Taipei, the characters mostly groups of adolescents. Like his great fellow compatriot Hou Xiaoxian, Yang hurls happenings at you without explaining who is who. He makes an enormous demand on his audience in forcing us to make all the connections. As his cast here runs into dozens and many scenes take place in semi-darkness, it is far from easy, particularly for a Western viewer to whom so many Orientals look alike, to make these connections on a first viewing. Indeed I would say that after four viewings I am still working out who is who. That I have not given up and am still in the process of unravelling can only be ascribed to a gut reaction from the first that this is a work of tremendous integrity and skill. The film deals mainly with gang warfare between rival groups of youngsters, which, it is suggested, reflects their search for identity at a time when their parents have lost theirs after years of Japanese occupation followed by the post-revolutionary separation from their Chinese mainland roots. As a diversion from gang warfare some of the youngsters find an outlet in American music, particularly the songs of Elvis. The film mainly follows the course of one boy, S'ir, as he moves from early to late adolescence. There are others who are presented as having a stronger sense of character; Ma, the "General's son" for instance who lives in a household a cut above the rest and Honey, a young man in a sailor suit, who exudes a sense of honesty and authority that holds the others in thrall. But it is S'ir whom the film doggedly follows, S'ir who seems to possess nothing much more than a bad temper and a developing desire, perhaps mainly through peer pressure, to have a young girl who will be faithful to him. It is his frustration in trying to achieve this that leads the film towards a climax that is as ugly as it is tragic. However, not before we have lived through a number of scenes that are wholly remarkable, none more so that a savage attack between rival gangs, some resorting to samurai swords - a reaction perhaps to their parents' detestation of all thing Japanese - which takes place in semi-darkness in a powercut during a tropical storm; the very stuff of late Goya, merciless and unblinking.

Edward Yang's massive four hour epic "A Brighter Summer Day" is one of the true masterpieces of the 1990s and of the "New Taiwan cinema." It's ostensibly the story of a few rival street gangs in '60s Taiwan, but the film is about a single young man's rites of passage in an era in which his country was experiencing a major upheaval. The film is so meticulous in its construction and its feeling of community (its preparation, filming and post-production took several years) that at the same time its length automatically gives it an epic quality it is a remarkably intimate film that is about as far from an epic in the traditional (Hollywood) sense as possible. There are over a hundred speaking parts in the film and it is necessary to stay focused in order to keep track of what's going on and to whom, which is a good trick to make sure your audience is always paying attention. "A Brighter Summer Day" is a very personal vision that recalls both Yang's own childhood and an actual street murder that shook the nation.

The film itself slowly builds towards this singular act of violence that, when it finally arrives, is both shocking and inevitable. "A Brighter Summer Day" keeps with the trend among the finest films to emerge from Taiwan in that it is very pared down - the cast are all nonactors and there is no non-diagetic music. It is beautifully shot, moving from the interiors of houses, schools, and cheap dance clubs to the open fields of the countryside in summertime. Alternating between violence and serenity, the film is a rhythmic and poetic evocation of a particular era. Its ironic title (in that there is no "brighter summer day" for these characters) is taken from an Elvis song that one of the kids sings at a nightclub. It is a truly exemplary modern masterpiece that got no distribution in the West but deserves to be hunted out at all costs by those who love and cherish the film art.

This movie is a Taiwan movie,I am a Chinese college student living in mainland.I think I should take response to write a review,because I see all the reviewers are not Chinese who cant know the background of this movie.there are something followed about Chines cultures and background.

Fist,in the movie period,china had two governments,one is communist party in mainland,the other is GuoMin party in Taiwan.Korean War made Communist part cant have enough power to invade Taiwan,but Guomin party still wanted to return to mainland by getting help from America.But as we all know,Guomin party just stays in Taiwan to now. And they were just in a fear of communist party military coming into Taiwan.At that special period,another fears were among all ordinary people in Taiwan. The president of Guomin party began to arrest communist spy in Guomin party.in fact,the secret arrest was a terrible horrible to people in Taiwan. This special period is called as 'white fear period',and so many innocent persons dead at that time.

So,you can see tanks were running in road，and dad were arrested for suspects communist spy.At all,the fears were among whole society.

what's more, in 1949 there were million people fleeing to Taiwan for following the Guomin Party. And many knowledge persons and military officers also in the process.this led government couldn'却 have enough money to pay and enough food to feed . many people lose their jobs.This is a hard time for many families. And it was not a peace time. it is a hungry time, Ming's family is a example.

Although,the director want to tell a lesson , don'却 try to change the bad world.but we can know he still have a soft and ideal heart but getting hurt too much.

Arthouse movies are so underrated on imdb and I don't even know why. I guess this site is for popular movies only and top 250 is ridicilous. Letterboxd is much better site for movie lovers.

4 hours flew by and this is epic movie. It is pretty good but it ain't Raise the Red Lantern.

I saw this film on screen in 2005. The place I saw it was an old-fashioned theater in the middle of Seoul, South Korea. The film print was one of the last surviving print of this film, which is now worn out too much for another screening. It was about three years ago, and I frankly do not much about the plot. Two things, however, were still in my mind. First of all, it was much more a film with tranquility. Think about Edward Yang's last film 'Yi Yi.' Do you remember the scene where there were two teenagers walking on the street and there were scarcely any sound effect but someone's monologue? The whole film was like that. The other thing is that, despite of it deals with serious subject matters such as Taiwan's cruel anti-communist regime, it still has a sense of humor: in fact, a plenty of it. For me, now this film is like a lost summer love: passionate but vague. If complicated copyright issues be solved and clean prints of this film to be found, I'd really like to recommend this film; it is a long four-hour movie, but every minute is worth it.