In this portrait of small-time hoods rendered in rhythm-of-life anecdotal detail, Gao is the leader of a circle of layabouts including his sidekick, Flathead, and their girlfriends, Pretzel and Ling. He is also the originator of petty crime schemes, which promise to get the gang nowhere fast.
Direction
Long takes that make inertia feel hypnotic.
Cinematography
Neon-soaked Taipei nights, noirish without the noir.
Acting
Jack Kao's slouch is a whole performance.
Director
Hou Hsiao-hsien
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Shot during Taiwan's economic boom, the film captures working-class youth left behind by prosperity.
Lim Giong, who plays Flatty, is actually a pioneering Taiwanese electronic musician; his score for Hou's later Millennium Mambo became iconic.
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