User reviews

The cinematography and colours were excellent. Acting was top notch.

Yet there was something lacking. The character of the wife felt very...one dimensional and overly consumed by her grief. Although understandable I wish we saw her get some closure in the end regarding the entire situation. The best character for me was Jay. He was beautifully fleshed out & made me shed a tear or two.

I wonder why there is a "Dear" in the film's English title. A confession to the protagonists' past relationships, or a revenge? Or, maybe both.

Hovering in my head for hours and hours after the emotionally powerful film-viewing experience is the main theme named Bali Song, unpretentious background music for a stage drama considered to be the Ex's brainchild in the film. The song is a ballad mixed with a bit folk and some dreamy, laidback and even sexy retro pop, with its arousing opening whistle notes sentimentally visualizing a pleasant and romantic vacation, an ideal escape and an Utopia...for anyone longing for true freedom in his/her same-sex romantic relationships against the so-called social convention. The use of music here is such a gentle and subtle move within the film's melodramatic context and a breath of fresh air out of the "traditional" conventions in the still relatively conservative Chinese culture, or even in most Asian cultures. To my surprise, though, the music and lyrics of Bali Song also work as a nice replacement (instead of a compliment) to the mediocre stage drama that it's echoing in the film.

At times, this film quietly reminds me of works from Taiwan New Cinema spearhead Edward Yang, while its music, its character-driven plot, and somewhat overacting with surely a purpose breaks my illusions immediately. It is a sharp reflection as well as honest observation of life in Taipei, for the first decade of the 21st Century or so, not of life more than 25 years ago, when Ang Lee's Wedding Banquet came out.

The film is never comfortable to watch. Literally, it is a love confession (-starting with Dear) to whoever has once been either an annoying adolescent or adult ( a.k.a. the most stupid creature on earth ). So, get your tissues ready if you wouldn't mind taking a HOME-bound emotional roller-coaster with the family drama, and then...getting bombarded by that song!

The cinematography is so beautiful in this film and the journey of the main characters is a subtle learning experience so well crafted. But the most amazing part of this film is Roy Chiu who settles into every scene so perfectly. Truly a stellar performance.

This was my first Taiwanese movie which i watched on Netflix just now. I thought it would be a comedy ,however the first flashback in the movie made me cry and it felt like i was watching "P.S I love you" or "Brokeback mountain".. I had no expectations from it at the beginning,however was so impressed with the movie after i finished it.. Loved the Bali Whistle song as well :)

The theme is interesting and very often exploited but that's about it. The characters are not likable, the pace is slow and there's way too much yelling. Bad.

This movies is seriously difficult to translate. After reading some of the reviews, I can see how the subtitles cannot hurdle past the culture gap. Yes, there're a lot of yelling. Yes, the screenplay seems messy. But the story is told through the eyes of a young teenager, coming to term with his father's death and is confused by the surrounding mess and emotions. You really have to read between the lines in order to understand how each of the characters is coping with the trauma. I really enjoyed the film despite the yelling. It's worth the watch.

Dear Ex must be best film produced in 2018 in Taiwan. Both actor and actress showed incredible performance in the movie. Yhe plot really makes you think over and over again after coming out of the movie theater. it's one of those movies that will make you want to see at least 3 more times and collect its DVD

I don't have a problem with how the film presented a mess this Sanlian Liu was facing after her husband left her for a young man, however the film after all is tapping on a very sensitive topic where all the members of this family was involved. There are two guys in love with each other, there is a son, there is a wife. The film spent a lot of time shaping the female character and didn't go into the romantic relationship of the two men. It somehow stays somewhere like a relative of brotherhood level. As an audience, i need a strong justification convincing me to forgive the husband cheating his wife into a marrage and leaving her after 14 years. Yes you got sick and you were dying. And you wanna be yourself in your ramaining days, but it's just not good enough for me that you did what you did to the poor woman just because of your selfish reasons.

if the film strech further into the gay couples' romance and present a fact that this husband had no chiece but to choose him after an internal struggle, the film would have been a lot better.

I would not give this film more than 5 out of 10. The film is after all talking about an unfortunate marrige and it should balance all the characters evenly so that the gay guys presented won't look like dicks or at list one of them did.

Superb acting, especially by the female lead. Her portrayal of emotions and tone are done excellently, while other two leading actors were performing well too. The plot and editing are slightly slow-paced but very intriguing.

Unlike some other recent taiwanese films which tend to be cringey in their dialogues or acting, Dear Ex is rather an enjoyable movie with some zest. The jokes are funny! It's refreshing to watch as it showcases another perspective of a gay's life. If queer films aren't your cup of tea, fret not as the film focused more on how one's life/family is affected by one's bisexuality and doesn't really try to promote LGBT or anything.

As an asian I can said that many moments in the film were very relatable. This is actually my first time reviewing on IMDb. Highly recommend this film!

I wasn't expecting anything when I decided to watch this movie Bcz I have never watched any Taiwanese movie before. Right from the starting I found the animations really cute and it added so much more sense as the movie went along. I understand that lost of dialouge meaning are lot in translations Bcz of the subtitles still I found the dialogues very touching. The actors did a great job. One of the most remarkable scene has to be the bathroom scene when he starts starts cutting his hair as his lover who is suffering from cancer refuses to shave his. Also the drama scene in the ending got me bawling my eyes out. The soundtrack of the movie is amazing.

This movie isn't for people who don't enjoy slow paced movies dialouge heavy movies!

But I would recommend this movie for ppl who do enjoy good lgbt dramas which are realistic and emotional.

The movie plot premise is not entirely a fictional entertainment piece. Imagine this happens, or is already happening around the world, how would the first family (spouse, parents, children.. Etc) deal with such a twist. Perhaps if those affected could dig deeper to understand the motivation of such a shocker, why one would do what one would normally do. Then the world would be a more harmonious and peaceful existence. Top rated performances from both the male and female leafs. Brilliant?!

The story is very well written, while the actors and actresses act very excellent. The combination between beautiful story and incredible actors/actresses create this movie have a strong emotional relation with the viewer.

This movie make me to create an IMDB account to review them!

My expectation was pretty low and I liked it after the movie progressed a bit. It's a successful movie, though its ends are as expected. The acting, the characters, the story and the emotions made me love the film. It was one of the best Netflix productions I've watched.

Its setting and shooting style is like Wong Ka Wai. At first I think it is another boring film like that produced by Wong.

To my surprise, it is not. I love the animation added in the movie. The atmosphere for most part is blue and dull, with the death of a father and a fight for his insurance compensation. The animation makes the whole story lighter and happier. And I like its happy ending. It is like a funny version of Wong Ka Wai's movie.

The acting of the female lead is superb and impressive. No doubt she won a Best actress. The other two male leads are equally good.

The plot twist to reveal the story of the male lover is really surprising. His appearance is not really like a good guy. But he is.

A story with a very special theme. Good cinematography. Lively animation. Superb actors. A story very worth immediate watching.

It is a good Taiwan movie. The story is about gender diversity. They did the narration for the movie. when you watch the movie, you will guess why the actor do this; like you are a detective. And then I think you will cry in the end, you will realize there are not right and wrong in love, only timing.

This movie was so heart felt and emotional. It's plot was unique, detailed and executed perfectly. I'll be listening and crying to the beautiful soundtrack from this movie for days.

The screenplay is thin and unconvincing. The plot lacks credibility and the dialogues/monologues are ill-written. The direction and editing are pretty showy and pretentious. The ensemble cast, Hsieh Ying-Shiuan excluded, give awkward performances overall. The music score is pretty much disturbing and noisy.

The movie moves at the slowest pace imaginable. The acting is poor and the use of constant flashbacks are annoying. The story never goes anywhere other than just being a chaotic mess of constant whining and shouting. It's really, really bad!

Taiwanese senior teleplay writer Mag Hsu's feature film debut, co-directed with Hsu Chih-Yen, an indigenous winner in the 55th Golden Horse Awards (winning 3 awards: BEST LEADING ACTRESS, BEST EDITING and BEST ORIGINAL SONG out of 8 nominations), DEAR EX uncharacteristically employs a comical tone to grapple with the harsh aftermath of bereavement, a closeted gay man Song Zhengyuan (Chen, lead vocalist of the local rock band Quarterback) dies of cancer, but to his ex-wife Liu Sanlian's (Hsieh) astonishment, instead of leaving his insurance payout to their teenage son Chengxi (Huang), the beneficiary turns out to be Song's male lover Ah Jie (Chiu), a nasty fight over pecuniary compensation apparently bubbles on the horizon, but DEAR EX has a much larger heart in its nexus....

continue reading my review on my blog: cinema omnivore, thanks!

Its a beautiful portrayal of a love affair and the impact of it on the family. It shows a changing society where lgbt love is more accepted and is still getting accepted. But that it is a gay affair is not the center of the story, the mourning of his ex wife and son and how to deal with those emotions. How to deal with the boyfriend of her ex husband and of his dad, and how to overcome the challenges that they need to work together for. Because of its slow pace you can really get to know the characters and feel their pain and joy, which can come as a surprise at times. The music and lighting really makes this film come to life, it sucks you even more into the story and into Taiwanese society. You really miss something if you don't watch it.