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Ah Chung (1995)
Director: Chang Tso-Chi
Movie review
From Time Out Film Guide
Fresh out of school, Ah Chung is forced by his mother to join a 'Pa-Chia-Jang' troupe, performing self-flagellating rituals to please the gods at various public ceremonies. Since the troupes are run by triads and there are frequent bloody fights between rival troupes, this is tantamount to pushing Ah Chung into a life of crime. But his mother sees it as a way of warding off the family's seemingly endemic bad luck. Entirely shot on location with a non-pro cast, Chang's near plotless film offers (a) a realist picture of its characters and their milieu so intense it's almost hallucinatory; and (b) an account of fucked-up adolescence as piercing as any ever made. Too modest to be a 'masterpiece' - and all the better for that.Author: TR
Cast & crew
Director: Chang Tso-Chi
Producer: Lin Tianrong, Zhang Huafu, Lin Wanyu
Cast: Liu Sheng-Chung, Chiao Shio-Min, Tsai Chieh-Der, Lu Ying full cast
Duration: 98 mins
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