The Best of Times (2002)
Genre : Thriller, Crime, Drama
Runtime : 1H 49M
Director : Chang Tso-chi
Synopsis
Although their characters and temperaments couldn't be less alike, 19-year olds Wei and Jie are best friends. They're also neighbours, living with widower fathers and problem siblings in the suburbs of Taipei. When Wei is promoted from the rank of nightclub parking valet to the rank of debt-collector in Brother Gu's gang, he persuades his boss to hire Jie to work alongside him. Things begin to go wrong when they are given a handgun to reward their success in the new job. Always excitable and volatile, Jie becomes reckless and dangerous when he has the gun in his hand. When they try to collect a debt from the boss of a rival gang, a fight erupts and Jie shoots the gang-boss. The boys find themselves on the run. But fate and their youthful dreams still have tricks to play.
A retired and widowed Chinese master chef Chu and his family live in modern day Taipei, Taiwan. He lives with his three attractive daughters, all of whom are unattached. Soon, each of the daughters encounter new men in their lives. When these new relationships blossom, stereotypes are broken and the living situation within the family changes. Since the family has difficulty expressing their love for each other, the intricate preparation of banquet quality dishes for their Sunday dinners is the surrogate for their familial feelings.
A boy experiences first love, friendships and injustices growing up in 1960s Taiwan.
A Taiwanese-American man is happily settled in New York with his American boyfriend. He plans a marriage of convenience to a Chinese woman in order to keep his parents off his back and to get the woman a green card. Chaos follows when his parents arrive in New York for the wedding.
The beautiful Vicky drifts through her empty life in the neon-lit Taipei, maintaining a pointless relationship with her loser DJ boyfriend, Hao-Hao, and an unsatisfying career as a nightclub hostess. As her romance becomes increasingly strained, she decides to take up with Jack, a caring but criminally connected businessman. But this new relationship can't change Vicky's aimless nature, and her future remains as doubtful as ever.
The semi-autobiographical film on director Hou Hsiao-Hsien's childhood and adolescence, when he was growing up in Taiwan.
A force of loners and fighters is put together to try and rescue the generals and save the war effort with the promise of gold and pardons of past crimes.
An FBI Agent pairs with a troubled Taiwan cop to hunt for a serial killer who's embedding a mysterious fungus in the brains of victims.
An ambitious journalist who witnessed a hit-and-run years ago reboots his investigation led by newly emerged clues. As he beats the clock to save the only survivor after her sudden disappearance, layers of unimaginable dark truths around a corrupted system start peeling.
With Taiwan remaining in the grip of martial law in 1982, a group of filmmakers from that country set out to establish a cultural identity through cinema and to share it with the world. This engaging documentary looks at the movement's legacy.
Set in the island Kinmen, often seen as the most dangerous military base because it’s geographically close to China, "Paradise in Service" follows the adventure of a boy who serves his military service in Unit 831 from 1969 to 1972, in preparation for a war that could erupt anytime. Through an unlucky lottery draw result, Pao, a twenty-something young man from Southern Taiwan has to serve the military in the remote and perilous Kinmen. Moreover, he is assigned to the Sea Dragon (ARB), a unit noted for the toughest physical training. It never occurs to Pao, however, that the greatest challenge in his military service lies not in the Sea Dragon but in Unit 831, a special task he is later appointed to… In this peculiar assignment, Pao vows to keep his virginity against all odds.
The first and only Taiwanese player for the New York Yankees, Chien-Ming Wang held many titles: American League Wins Leader, World Series Champion, Olympian, Time 100 Most Influential, and The Pride of Taiwan. He had it all - until a 2008 injury forever altered the course of his career. Late Life: The Chien-Ming Wang Story - named after the late sinking action on his signature pitch - follows the rise and fall of the international icon as he fights his way back into the Major Leagues through endless rehab programs and lengthy stints away from home, carrying the weight of the world on his battered shoulder. A poignant and intimate account of Wang’s steadfast quest, Late Life tells the story of a man who is unwilling to give up and unable to let go.
An adaptation of an 18th century Chinese classic remixed for an honest depiction of gay life in Taipei in the 21st century.
Four vignettes, each set in different decades from the 1950s through the 1980s, deal with protagonists at different stages of life between childhood and young adulthood.
A commercial airliner on a routine flight between Taipei and Seoul is hijacked and taken to mainland China by the Taiwan Revolutionary Army Front. Chinese authorities cannot seize the plane because of the presence of an important business figure on board, but agree to cooperate with Taiwanese authorities to defuse the tense situation.
A group of camouflaged ninjas stealing a small case of plutonium from a transport vehicle in broad daylight in California. Back in his office in Sanzhi, Taiwan, The Colonel (Bo Svenson) receives word of the heist and the top suspect is the Sakura family. Selected for the job of locating this stolen nuke material is Mai Lin (Page Leong), an informant/dancer. Willi (Jay Roberts, Jr.), a drunken American playboy who is prone to playing the harmonica teams up with Mai Lin. Willi also just happens to be a white ninja.
Through a famous painting "South Street Festival", a Taiwanese college boy unexpectedly travels 100 years back in time, back to the 1920's, when Taiwan was under Japanese rule. He is stuck, he panics, he wants to return to 2014 but soon changes his mind, not just because of the prettiest geisha girl in town...
Tang goes on a trip to Taitung to record the sounds of nature, hoping the tape may save his relationship with his girlfriend who is leaving him. What he does not know, is that she has already moved away and another girl, Yun, has moved into that apartment. Yun is trapped in a hopeless love triangle, and troubled by all the issues she faces in life. After listening to the tape that Tang sent, she feels as if the kindness of nature is calling her, and travels to Taitung to find the mysterious man who sends her the tape.
Robert Wallace travels to Hong Kong to bust a gang of drug trafficker's. There he finds help from Tang and Suzy, as well as his fellow Supermen Max & Jerry.
Although their characters and temperaments couldn't be less alike, 19-year olds Wei and Jie are best friends. They're also neighbours, living with widower fathers and problem siblings in the suburbs of Taipei. When Wei is promoted from the rank of nightclub parking valet to the rank of debt-collector in Brother Gu's gang, he persuades his boss to hire Jie to work alongside him. Things begin to go wrong when they are given a handgun to reward their success in the new job. Always excitable and volatile, Jie becomes reckless and dangerous when he has the gun in his hand. When they try to collect a debt from the boss of a rival gang, a fight erupts and Jie shoots the gang-boss. The boys find themselves on the run. But fate and their youthful dreams still have tricks to play.
In this one-of-a-kind fantasy comedy, Didi is an aspiring actress trying to prove herself to her superstar sister. She keeps having the same dream about love affairs of a woman named Xu Chunmei, who owns a spaceship restaurant known for a noodle soup with ancestral secret recipe. After overcoming countless hardships, Didi finally gets her long expected career breakthrough, but life takes unexpected turns at the same time and the truths about her dreams start to unveil. A hilarious and tearful ode to the golden age of local variety entertainment, reputed TV host and best-selling author Kevin Tsai's directorial debut stars his longtime partner Dee Hsu(Little S) in the most influential TV show in the Chinese speaking world, Kangsi Coming.
