Archive - 9th Five Flavours Film Festival

Thanatos, Drunk

Zui sheng meng si
Taiwan 2015, 107’
subtitles: Polish and English
director: Chang Tso-chi
screenplay: Chang Tso-chi
cinematography: Hsu Chih-chun, Chang Chih-teng
editing: Chang Tso-chi
music: Lin Shang-te, Tseng Yun-fang
cast: Lee Hong-chi, Chen Jen-shuo, Huang Shang-ho, Lu Hsueh-feng, Wang Ching-ting, Chang Ning
producer: Chan Zheng-Yun
production: SimpleView Production, Chang Tso-chi Film Studio
language: Mandarin, Min Nan
colouration: colour

Awards and festivals

Berlin IFF 2015 – Reader Jury of the "Siegessäule" Award; Taipei FF 2015 – nagroda główna, najlepszy film fabularny, nagroda dziennikarzy, najlepszy aktor, aktor drugoplanowy, aktorka drugoplanowa / Taipei Grand Award, Best Narrative Feature, Press Award, Best Narrative Feature, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor, Best Supporting Actress

Film description

A powerful, darkly lyrical story of two brothers from the outskirts of Taipei. The younger has random off and on jobs, which fuels endless arguments with his constantly drunk mother. The older has just returned from the States, where his boyfriend dumped him. One seeks closeness in a friendship with a young prostitute, who may not talk, but still has the craziest ideas for spending their free time. The other wants to get to show business and dreams about licking his wounds in the arms of a handsome dancer.

In the hands of Chang Tso-chi, this seemingly conventional story about the lives of people from the social margin, grows remarkably strong. The dynamic, non-linear throws us straight into the middle of the city' microcosm. The camera follows the protagonists, watching them during dramatic escalations of feelings, banal, every-day activities, and in the moments of solitude. The intensive, pulsing cinematography takes us through Taipei's nightclubs, small rooms of the plain suburban apartments, the clear air at the city's scraps of nature. The story moves between darkness and light, from hopelessness to the intensive, greedy grasp on life. The film starts with a quote form Li Bai's poem "Bring me the wine" from the 7th century – it's a praise for hedonism and pleasure, but in this context it gains a dark, ironic meaning.

Jagoda Murczyńska

Chang Tso-chi

Born in 1961. Before entering the film school, he became an engineer. Worked as an assistant for Yu Kan-ping, Yim Ho, Tsui Hark,a and Hou Hsiao-hsien. His films were awarded at many festivals, including Busan, Tokyo, and Singapore. "Thanatos, Drunk" received several awards at the Taipei festival and ten nominations for Taiwan's most prestigious film awards, the Golden Horses.

Filmography:

1996 Zhong Zi / Ah Chung
1999 Hei An Zhi Guang / Darkness and Light
2002 Cudowne chwile / Mei Li Shi Guang / The Best of Times
2007 Dusza demona / Hu-tieh / Soul of a Demon
2008 Ba... Ni Hao Ma / Dad, how are you?
2010 Dang Ai Lai De Shi Hou / When Love Comes
2011 10+10 ("Sparkles")
2013 Shu Jia Zuo Ye / A Time in Quchi
2015 Tanatos pijany / Zui Sheng Meng Si / Thanatos, Drunk

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