Hou Hsiao-Hsien's Classics: From 1983 to 1986

aka: The Boys From Fengkuei; A Summer at Grandpa's; A Time to Live, A Time to Die; Dust in the Wind
Taiwan 2003,
Dir. Hou Hsiao-Hsien
In Mandarin, Taiwanese with English subtitles
Rating: [PG]
Genres: Foreign Cinema, Drama / Youth

Aroview: A collection of four of the early films from director Hou Hsiao-Hsien, who is a leading figure in the Taiwanese New Wave.

The Boys From Fengkuei (1983, 98 mins):

Three delinquent youths who grew up on an island fishing village decide to move to the city, but struggle with urban life. Hou's fourth feature film, in which the characteristics of his style were determined, including a focus on young people navigating the urban/rural divide. Starring Doze Niu, Hsiu-Ling Lin, Tou Chung-hua.

A Summer at Grandpa's (1084, 98 mins):

Part one of Hou's loose "Coming of Age" trilogy is a semi-autobiographical story of a young boy who moves to his grandparents with his younger sister when his mother falls ill. Set in the countryside in summer, the two children play on the farm as the harsh realities of adulthood begin to encroach on their existence. A sublime, meditative portrait of childhood which provided the inspiration for Miyazaki's MY NEIGHBOUR TOTORO.

A Time to Live, A Time to Die (1985, 136 mins):

Part two of Hou's loose "Coming of Age" trilogy was his first film to receive significant international recognition. Like part one, it also draws on the director's own youth, following a young man caught between joining a local street gang and completing his college entrance exam, after his family relocates from Mainland China to Taiwan. Set between 1947 and 1965, this is an unhurried and humanistic family drama exploring the cultural divides between three generations. Starring Yu An-shun, Tien Feng, and Xin Shufen.

Dust in the Wind (1986, 170 mins):

The final part of Hou's loose "Coming of Age" trilogy is a love story following a couple in the 1980's who move from from a small Taiwanese mining village to Taipei. There they work hard to earn enough money to marry, but their relationship is cruelly interrupted when the Republic of China Army recruits the young man. Another masterpiece of cinematic minimalism, which eschews sentimentality and even dramatisation in favour of a distinct naturalism. Starring Wang Chien-wen, Xin Shufen and Li Tian-lu.