First of all, I'm really appreciated for the filmmaker's effort and his ambition to describe a story of a Taiwanese immigrant, and I am surprised that this film came to Taiwan trying to depict a full picture to audience. However, as a Taiwanese, especially a Taiwanese from mid area of Taiwan (just exactly like the ex-wife that followed her man to the United States), I need to point out some, or let's say, a lot of ridiculous mistakes that a Taiwanese would feel uneasy when seeing this film.
1. In mid and south part of Taiwan, we use Taiwanese as a family language, not Mandarin. So when I saw the main character replying his mother with Mandarin, it feels awkward. Not to mention that his wife! How come a girl growing up in Wunlin speaks Mandarin with a perfect Beijing accent? It is really insulting for a Taiwanese audience.
2. This is not a story for a traditional Taiwanese. It is a story more suitable for a Wuai-Shen man or mainlander (means people followed KMT government to Taiwan after 1945). My family is a traditional Taiwanese family. My father had never went to pub in his 20s, nor had he lived in such a Mainlander style house.
3. The town Tigertail is in Wunlin. If you ask any Taiwanese from Wunlin, they would never tell you that Wunlin is in mid area in Taiwan. But the director's family moved to the United States many years ago. It is an allowable mistake.
Overall, I am thankful that the director is willing to tell a story of Taiwanese. However, as a Taiwanese studying Taiwanese films, I strongly suggest the director pay much more attention not only on Hou Hsiao-Hsien or Edward Yang, but also those brilliant Taiwanese filmmakers like Hsu Pu-Liao, our comic icon in Taiwan.
1. In mid and south part of Taiwan, we use Taiwanese as a family language, not Mandarin. So when I saw the main character replying his mother with Mandarin, it feels awkward. Not to mention that his wife! How come a girl growing up in Wunlin speaks Mandarin with a perfect Beijing accent? It is really insulting for a Taiwanese audience.
2. This is not a story for a traditional Taiwanese. It is a story more suitable for a Wuai-Shen man or mainlander (means people followed KMT government to Taiwan after 1945). My family is a traditional Taiwanese family. My father had never went to pub in his 20s, nor had he lived in such a Mainlander style house.
3. The town Tigertail is in Wunlin. If you ask any Taiwanese from Wunlin, they would never tell you that Wunlin is in mid area in Taiwan. But the director's family moved to the United States many years ago. It is an allowable mistake.
Overall, I am thankful that the director is willing to tell a story of Taiwanese. However, as a Taiwanese studying Taiwanese films, I strongly suggest the director pay much more attention not only on Hou Hsiao-Hsien or Edward Yang, but also those brilliant Taiwanese filmmakers like Hsu Pu-Liao, our comic icon in Taiwan.