Dust in the Wind

Faintly disappointing by Hou's own very high standards, this story of teenage love and betrayal (framed by a move from village to city) is notable for its sociological precision and its oblique criticism of Taiwanese militarism. As often in Hou's movies, mainland China is a huge off-screen presence, here briefly stumbling on-screen in the person of a terrified fisherman whose boat has sailed off-course. Performances and technical standards are both superb, but there's a nagging sense that the director is marking time rather than moving forward.