Classmates Minus (2021)

Classmates Minus (2021)

A bizarre, little black comedy with an original view of Taiwan

7.1

Movie

Taiwan
Mandarin
Comedy, Drama
2020
HUANG HSIN-YAO
Ada Pan, Chen Yi-wen, Chen Yiwen
122 min

What it's about

A group of former high school pals see their friendship put to test amid their struggles with love, marriage and careers.

The take

It's slower and stranger than most comedies you may be used to, but there's still lots of heart to be found in the way Classmates Minus follows the lapsed hopes and wishes of its core characters. Beneath all its stereotypically male yearnings for control and romantic wish fulfillment, there are potent ideas here about how a tired economy and jaded political culture can turn those in their middle age into completely different people. Writer/director Huang Hsin-yao provides narration for his own film, but rather than being distracting or conceited, his words add a level of needed sympathy to everything we see on screen.

Comments

Add a comment

Your name

Your comment

UP NEXT 

UP NEXT 

UP NEXT 

The Trial of the Chicago 7 (2020)

A star-studded and riveting legal drama with a blockbuster feel.

8.1

Secret Sunshine (2007)

A grieving woman deals with the worst of fates in this challenging, disquieting riverside drama

7.6

Dogleg (2023)

An offbeat, unusual debut feature that’s as uncontrollable as its medium

7.0

The Guilty (2018)

A minimalist, razor-sharp thriller that will have you gasping for air.

9.0

Forgotten Love (2023)

The stunning third take of the classic Polish pre-war melodrama

7.7

La Belle Noiseuse (1991)

A sensual, spellbinding masterpiece depicting the creative process and its muse

8.1

Housekeeping for Beginners (2024)

At once understated and powerful, this Macedonian drama shines a necessary light on the complexity of found families

7.8

System Crasher (2019)

A tale of trauma and one of the most talked about movies on Netflix in 2020.

9.0

Infamous (2006)

A slightly embellished, often compared, retelling that depicts the classic novelist’s larger-than-life spirit

7.0

Leave the World Behind (2023)

Shyamalan meets Black Mirror in this hugely entertaining, visually inventive apocalyptic thriller with a killer ending

8.2

Curated by humans, not algorithms.

agmtw logo

© 2024 agoodmovietowatch, all rights reserved.