The River Poster
MOVIEmeter
SEE RANK
Down 67 this week

The River (1997)
He liu (original title)

115 min  -  Drama | Romance  -   27 August 1997 (France)
7.3
Your rating:
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 -/10 X  
Ratings: 7.3/10 from 1,258 users   Metascore: 55/100 
Reviews: 20 user | 22 critic | 8 from Metacritic.com

In Taiwan, Xiao-kang, a young man in his early 20s, lives with his parents in near silence. He is plagued by severe neck pain... See full summary »

Director:

Ming-liang Tsai

Writers:

Ming-liang Tsai, Yi-chun Tsai, and 1 more credit »

Stars:

Tien Miao, Kang-sheng Lee and Yi-Ching Lu
Watch Trailer
 Loading+Watchlist
View Watchlist »
New List »
3 photos | 1 video | full cast and crew »

Watch it

Buy it from Amazon »

Quick Links:

Create a list  »

Related Lists

image of title
Top 100 of Each Decade
a list of 919 titles by JohnnyGray created 09 Oct 2010
 
image of title
My Film Collection
a list of 120 titles by Buxfilms created 9 months ago
 
image of title
Gems of Asian Cinema
a list of 185 titles by KemeticScience created 12 Apr 2011
 
image of title
TSPDT & DTC
a list of 2,014 titles by DaveHedgehog created 7 months ago
 
image of title
past cup films
a list of 808 titles by Risselada created 4 months ago
 
See all 57 related lists »

Connect with IMDb

Pre-Order the Kindle Fire
5 wins & 5 nominations See more awards »
Edit

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Tien Miao Tien Miao ...
Father
Kang-sheng Lee Kang-sheng Lee ...
Kang-Sheng, Xiao-Kang
Yi-Ching Lu Yi-Ching Lu ...
Mother (as Hsiao-Ling Lu)
Ann Hui Ann Hui ...
Director (as Anne Hui)
Shiang-chyi Chen Shiang-chyi Chen ...
Girl
Chao-jung Chen Chao-jung Chen ...
Anonymous Man
Shiao-Lin Lu Shiao-Lin Lu ...
Mother's lover (as Long Chang)
Kuei-Mei Yang Kuei-Mei Yang ...
Girl in Hotel
Full cast and crew »
Edit

Storyline

In Taiwan, Xiao-kang, a young man in his early 20s, lives with his parents in near silence. He is plagued by severe neck pain. His father is bedeviled by water first leaking into his bedroom and then flooding the apartment; rain is incessant. Xiao-kang's mother is overcome by sexual longing for her son, sometimes making seemingly incestuous overtures. They try virtually every intervention for Xiao-kang's neck: Western medicine, a chiropractor, acupuncture, an herbal doctor, and a faith healer, Master Liu. Are the family's silent dynamics and Xiao-kang's neck pain connected? And what about the body floating in the Tamsui River: is everything dead? Written by <jhailey@hotmail.com>  

Plot Summary | Add Synopsis

Plot Keywords:

Neck | Neck Pain | Pain | Floating | Flooding  | See more »

Genres:

Drama | Romance

Parents Guide:

Add content advisory for parents »
Edit

Details

Country:

Taiwan

Language:

Mandarin

Release Date:

(France) See more »

Also Known As:

A folyó See more »

Filming Locations:

Taipei City, Taiwan

Company Credits

Show detailed company contact information on IMDbPro »

Technical Specs

Runtime:

 | Germany:

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1
See full technical specs »
Edit

Did You Know?

Trivia

The director of the movie in which Xiao-Keng floats in the river is played by real-life Hong Kong director Ann Hui. See more »

Quotes

Girl: Hsiao-kang, I want to go pee. Could you turn off the lights?
[Hsiao-kang turns off the lights]
Girl: The curtains, too.
See more »

Connections

Follows Vive L'Amour (1994) See more »