The River 河流

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Feature Film

Hsiao-Kang is suddenly struck by debilitating neck pain in director Tsai Ming-Liang's subversive family drama.

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Programme History

Part of Queer East Festival 2024

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Supported by the Taiwan Film & Audiovisual Institute.

Runtime: 115 Mins
Year: 1997
Country: Taiwan

In director Tsai Ming-Liang’s shockingly subversive family drama, Hsiao-Kang gets roped into participating in a film shoot, in which he plays a dead body floating in the Tam-sui River in Taipei. But the polluted, dirty water provokes a health crisis, as Hsiao-Kang is suddenly struck by debilitating neck pain. His concerned parents attempt various ways of alleviating his discomfort, but to no avail and soon, the son’s misery causes the troubled family unit to further disintegrate. Unveiling domestic secrets and repressed emotions, this uncomfortable work of slow cinema offers a sly, queer critique of the nuclear family and the values it represents. Shot in Tsai’s signature minimalist style
and starring his muse Lee Kang-Sheng, this controversial work repelled some audiences and confirmed the director’s place as a uniquely rebellious voice in queer cinema.

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Director Profile

Tsai Ming-liang

Tsai Ming-liang is a Malaysian-Taiwanese filmmaker. He has written and directed 10 feature films as well as many short films and television films. Tsai is one of the most celebrated Second New Wave film directors of Taiwanese cinema.

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The River 河流

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