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IMDb > Tian bian yi duo yun (2005)

Tian bian yi duo yun (2005) More at IMDbPro »


Overview

User Rating:
6.8/10   1,814 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
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Director:
Ming-liang Tsai
Writer:
Ming-liang Tsai (writer)
Contact:
View company contact information for The Wayward Cloud on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
18 March 2005 (Taiwan) more
Genre:
Musical | Comedy | Drama more
Plot:
Hsiao-Kang, now working as an adult movie actor, meets Shiang-chyi once again. Meanwhile, the city of Taipei faces a water shortage that makes the sales of watermelons skyrocket. | add synopsis
Awards:
3 wins & 3 nominations more
User Comments:
The Wayward Cloud more

Cast

  (Credited cast)
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Additional Details

Also Known As:
La saveur de la pastèque (France)
The Wayward Cloud (International: English title)
Un nuage au bord du ciel (France)
more
Runtime:
Hong Kong:114 min | USA:112 min | Argentina:114 min
Country:
France | Taiwan
Language:
Mandarin
Color:
Color
Aspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Dolby Digital
Filming Locations:
Kaohsiung, Taiwan more
Company:
Arena Films more

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
Many audience members left the theater during the final scene at the Berlin International Film Festival's screening. more
Movie Connections:
References Annie Hall (1977) more
Soundtrack:
Jing xin deng more

FAQ

This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.
50 out of 60 people found the following comment useful:-
The Wayward Cloud, 20 March 2005
9/10
Author: Erick-12 from Taipei

The English title is given as "The Wayward Cloud". I saw this film in Taipei where the director, Tsai Ming-liang, stopped in for a surprise speech before the show. (Wouldn't it be great to meet the director before every film instead of sitting through the assault of those damned previews, previews evidently aimed at folks who are deaf and dumb?)

He spoke informally for a few minutes just to assure the audience that he intends the film to have _redeeming social values_ -- as US lawmakers used to say. This seems necessary because the government in Taiwan spent 2 weeks meeting with consultants to decide whether or not to censor the film. They let it show uncut.

That is to say, don't bring your kids to see this -- but adults will be able to see that it is not porn, but rather a critique of porn. This is a simplification, since the main theme of the film is general alienation. The wayward cloud and the drought in the film are shown to be symbolic of the emotional and interpersonal "drifting" and "dryness" that each scene highlights. The film shows how porn is merely one symptom of people's awkward attempt to connect with each other on a deeper level.

The film is unusual in style, (see previous user comment) so don't expect it to imitate Hollywood conventions. It is recognizably in Tsai Ming-liang's previous grim and dim style (i.e., "The Hole" and "The River" and "What Time Is It There?") but here he adds a lighter note of wit to that.

Personally I don't enjoy musicals, but the handful of musical interludes in this film are delightfully surreal and humorous, and while they address heterosexuality, the aesthetic is gay in both senses of the term. I especially liked one of these, where a smiling state statue of historical dictator Chiang Kai-shek is the central prop for a tongue-in-cheek erotic song & dance troupe of lovely ladies. Also the music in itself is attractive since we don't usually get to hear those old songs from Shanghai in the '30s and Hong Kong in the '60s.

The final scene officially raises the bar for the visionary use of a sex scene to reflect on alienation. Those who remember the historic shock of "Last Tango in Paris" (Bertolucci's "Ultimo tango a Parigi") so many years ago will see what I mean by raising the bar. It will make its own peculiar mark in underground film histories.

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Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for Tian bian yi duo yun (2005)
Recent Posts (updated daily)User
What were the noodles they were eating? james_g_w
a disgrace to Tsai's REBELS, THE RIVER, WHAT TIME the_crystal-image
Where is the 'mother' (aka. Yi-Ching Lu) davidevoid
Inferior to THE BROWN BUNNY PiranianRose
was the japanese girl dead? cocoacontent
Trilogy? matcheaven
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