05/29/2002 Entry:
"What Time Is It There? - Tsai Ming-Liang (2001)"

This is the second Tsai Ming-Liang film I've seen (I saw The River at Facets a couple years ago.) One nice thing about What Time Is It There? is that it contains a sense of humor I don't remember from The River, at least in the first half or so. The scenes where Hsiao is whacking his watch against the pole are totally great. That actor was perfect for this part, he wore the same poker face throughout the film. He goes around completing his weird tasks with a kind of stonefaced determinism that was spot on. The obsessive mother was excellent as well, the scene where he confronts her in the kitchen as she covers up her walls was quite moving and powerful, wonderfully played by both parties. Its interesting how he rages against her obsession while completely forgetting his own, which affects far more people. In fact, his obsession fueled hers since it was his resetting of their living room clock which kind of triggered her slide off the deep end (although I got the feeling that it would have managed to happen regardless.)

Somewhere in the last third the film lost it for me though, I'm not quite sure why or where. It seems to be heading for a conclusion that I didn't see. I couldn't put it all together. There is obviously a significance and meaning to the film's ending but it eludes me. Yet, I still find myself thinking about the film days later, trying to piece it together in my mind. Like for instance, the peeing in various receptacles. Many critics have mentioned Tsai Ming-Liang's fascination/obsession with water, is this related? Certainly there are many water-related plot turns in this film (the final scene, the water on the shelf, the fish.) At the very least, the film was engrossing and beautiful to look at.

Tsai Ming-Liang shoots in a style that can only be described as minimalistic - the camera is always locked down on a tripod and never moves. The only camera movement in the whole film is Truffaut's through scenes from The 400 Blows. Yet every scene is perfectly framed and composed. The frame always seems to be either cut into thirds, or composed pefectly symmetrically (or in some cases both.) One thing he seems to do quite a bit is shoot from the next room, with a wall covering a third of the frame and the action taking place in the other two thirds giving us the impression of peeking around a corner. Even when he's not doing that, he often shoots from the next room. This kind of distances us from the players, yet their emotions always seem to come through. The confrontation between mother and son in the kitchen is an example of this, we watch them from the living room as they argue in the kitchen. The scene is very emotional and affecting, yet we're also somewhat distanced and removed from it.

The shots all appear to be very naturally and minimally lit, although I don't think they really are. I think they're skillfully lit to appear unlit, which requires infinitely more skill. Despite my reservations over the ending, the final shot is gorgeous.