Featuring pop idol Ella Chen (陳嘉樺) as a betel nut beauty (檳榔西施) falling for a younger man, The Missing Piece (缺角一族) is fortunately more than the usual soap opera schlock. For his second feature, veteran TV director Chiang Fong-hung (江豐宏) produces a romantic, light-hearted comedy which balances the youthful love story with a look into the characters’ self-seeking quests. The movie boasts a finely tuned cast, comprising veteran thespian Tsai Chen-nan (蔡振南), young talent Austin Lin (林柏宏) and Chen.
At the center of the lively drama is Daofeng (Lin), a bashful college student who breaks from his humdrum city life and plans to hitchhike to a tropical town called Sunshine Village.
Along his trek, Daofeng meets Shasha (Chen), a jovial betel nut girl who wears flamboyant costumes in her transparent booth surrounded by vast, sun-baked grassland.
Photo courtesy of Three Giant Production
Another daily commuter is Uncle Tin Can (Tsai), who lives alone in a big house by the sea and spends his time recycling abandoned things. Uncle Tin Can and Daofeng become friends. Yet another encounter brings Daofeng to local villager Auntie Haichu (played by Lin Mei-chao, 林美照), who likes to eat her lunchbox in front of a tall chimney of a defunct sugar factory.
Daofeng’s new friends make him feel right at home. But the more he comes to know them, the more he realizes that underneath their blithe appearances, they are hurt and lost inside, longing for reconciliation with themselves and others. Meanwhile, Daofeng’s affection toward Shasha gradually grows.
Despite a fair amount of narrative untidiness, Chiang’s second feature is a feel-good movie that strikes a chord with the audience through universal themes of love, regret and reconciliation. Known for his life-long collaboration with film maestro Tsai Ming-liang (蔡明亮), cinematographer Liao Pen-jung (廖本榕) injects buoyant exuberance. Bathed in vibrant hues, even the roadside betel-nut stand brings to mind a quaint cottage from a fairy tale.
Chiang’s decades-long career as a TV drama director gives him a keen eye for choosing the right actor for the role. Lin and Chen complement each other well as a couple with contrasting personalities. But the most noticeable performance is delivered by Tsai who effortlessly brings to life the many facets of his character, swinging from idiosyncrasy to graciousness.
July 1 to July 7 Huang Ching-an (黃慶安) couldn’t help but notice Imelita Masongsong during a company party in the Philippines. With paler skin and more East Asian features, she did not look like the other locals. On top of his job duties, Huang had another mission in the country, given by his mother: to track down his cousin, who was deployed to the Philippines by the Japanese during World War II and never returned. Although it had been more than three decades, the family was still hoping to find him. Perhaps Imelita could provide some clues. Huang never found the cousin;
On Friday last week, China’s state-run Xinhua news agency very excitedly proclaimed “a set of judicial guidelines targeting die-hard ‘Taiwan independence’ separatists” had been issued “as a refinement and supplement to the country’s ‘Anti-Secession’ law” from 2005, with sentencing guidelines that included the death penalty as an option. At the same time, 77 People’s Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) aircraft were flown into Taiwan’s air defense identification zones (ADIZ) in just 48 hours, a high enough number to indicate the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) was peeved about something and wanted it known. What was puzzling is that the CCP always
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David is a psychologist and has been taking part in drug-fueled gay orgies for the past 15 years. “The sex is crazy — utterly unbridled — which of course is partly down to the drugs but also because you can act out all your fantasies,” said the 54-year-old, who has been in a relationship for two years. Chemsex — taking drugs to enhance sexual pleasure and performance — “has opened a whole world of possibilities to me,” David added. “Sex doesn’t have to be limited to two people... There is a whole fantasy and transgressive side to it that turns me on. It