A Tribute to Edward Yang: A Brighter Summer Day (Guling Jie Shaonian Sharen Shijan) Director’s cut

Part of the Jack H. Skirball Screening Series - New Chinese Cinema: The Unofficial Stories of Tang Tang, Fourth Child, Little Moth and Others

Taiwan, 1991
35mm, Mandarin w/ English s/t, 237 min

Introduced by John Anderson, film critic and author of Edward Yang (2005)
Edward Yang (Yang Dechang, 1947-2007), one of the pillars of the New Taiwan Cinema, died this past June, seven years after receiving the Best Director Award at Cannes for Yi Yi (2000). Tonight’s Tribute screening pays homage to his exceptional talent. In 1960s Taipei, kids listen to Elvis Presley and join street gangs. Between their and their parents' generations lies a tragic gap that only emotional excess and violence can fill. Young Xiao Si’er falls hard for Ming, a lovely and complex teenage girl who “belongs” to the leader of a rival gang. Edward Yang based this film’s story on an actual event, a murder committed by one of his schoolmates.