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Early Films by Hou Hsiao-hsien

Early Films by Hou Hsiao-hsien

3 Episodes

The roots of Taiwanese-cinema titan Hou Hsiao-hsien’s celebrated artistry are on display in this selection of early films that traces the evolution of his storytelling approach. While the charming romantic comedies CUTE GIRL (his feature debut) and THE GREEN, GREEN GRASS OF HOME show tantalizing glimpses of his personal touch couched in a more commercial mode, his fourth feature THE BOYS FROM FENGKUEI—with its arresting long takes and naturalistic look at lost youth navigating the headwinds of early adulthood—finds the director coming fully into his own.

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Early Films by Hou Hsiao-hsien

3 Episodes

  • Cute Girl
    1:29:45
    Cute Girl
    Episode 1

    Cute Girl

    Episode 1

    Directed by Hou Hsiao-hsien • 1980 • Taiwan
    Starring Kenny Bee, Anthony Chan Yau, Chang Ping-Yu

    One of the great poets of modern cinema, Hou Hsiao-hsien, made his feature debut with this sweet and lighthearted romantic comedy. Pop star Kenny Bee plays the poor city boy who, while working as an e...

  • The Green, Green Grass of Home
    1:31:05
    The Green, Green Grass of Home
    Episode 2

    The Green, Green Grass of Home

    Episode 2

    Directed by Hou Hsiao-hsien • 1982 • Taiwan
    Starring Kenny Bee, Meifeng Chen, Jing-kuo Yen

    Hou Hsiao-hsien’s third feature finds him on the cusp of developing his mature style, sharpening his powers of human observation in a charming look at rural-urban culture clash.Kenny Bee plays a schoolteac...

  • The Boys from Fengkuei
    1:39:57
    The Boys from Fengkuei
    Episode 3

    The Boys from Fengkuei

    Episode 3

    Directed by Hou Hsiao-hsien • 1983 • Taiwan
    Starring Doze Niu Cheng-Tse, Zhang Shi, Lin Hsiu-Ling

    THE BOYS FROM FENGKUEI was Hou Hsiao-hsien’s fourth film as director, but in many ways it can be viewed as his first mature work—the one in which he moved away from commercial comedies toward a more...

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