Yi yi (2000)

Director:

Edward Yang

Writer:

Edward Yang (written by)

Release Date:

20 September 2000 (France)

Genre:

Drama | Music | Romance

Plot:

Each member of a family in Taipei asks hard questions about life's meaning as they live through everyday quandaries...

Plot Keywords:

Love | Neighbor | Money | Coma | First Love

Awards:

9 wins & 11 nominations

Cast

Nien-Jen Wu	...	N.J.
Elaine Jin	...	Min-Min
Issei Ogata	...	Ota
Kelly Lee	...	Ting-Ting
Jonathan Chang	...	Yang-Yang
Hsi-Sheng Chen	...	Ah-Di
Su-Yun Ko	...	Sherry
Shu-shen Hsiao	...	Hsiao Yen
Adriene Lin	...	Li-Li
Pang Chang Yu	...	Fatty
Ru-Yun Tang	...	NJ's Mother
Shu-Yuan Hsu
Hsin-Yi Tseng	...	Yun-Yun
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Yiwen Chen
An-an Hsu
Yue-Lin Ko	...	The Soldier (as Ke Yulun)
Kai-Li Peng	...	Cellist in cello concert scene
Congsheng Tang	...	Blue Shirt
Edward Yang	...	Pianist in cello concert scene

Also Known As:

Yan Yan - Natsu no omoide (Japan)
Yi yi: A One and a Two... (International: English title)

Runtime:

173 min

Country:

Taiwan | Japan

Language:

Mandarin | Taiwanese | Hokkien | English | Japanese

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Portugal:M/12 | Finland:S | France:U | Germany:6 | Hong Kong:IIA | South Korea:All | Spain:13 | Sweden:7 | Switzerland:10 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:10 (canton of Vaud) | UK:15 | USA:Not Rated | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

Taipei City, Taiwan

Company:

AtomFilms

Trivia:

Chosen by "Les Cahiers du cinéma" (France) as one of the ten best pictures of 2000 (#7, tied with The Virgin Suicides (1999)).

Movie Connections:

References Wild Wild West (1999)

Soundtrack:

Vaga luna, che inargenti

Reflections multiply the beauty of this film beyond anyone's rating system

I'd love to do a systematic investigation of every reflective shot in this movie. I can think of 10 stunning examples off the top of my head. In the director's comments track on the DVD you can hear Edward get noticeably excited when another reflective shot presents itself on screen. He points them all out, and it's true that the shots do seem to present themselves to the director. Although you must assume he had something to do with them, he confesses that it was magic that he discovered when he got to the location. Neither he nor I can explain what effect the superimposition of a night cityscape on a dark office space has on our understanding of the emotional world of the character sandwiched between the layers of light.

It seems there is magic at work all around. But it is not magic at all, as we learn from Mr. Ota's card trick -- merely attention. Maybe it's the reflection's ability to split out attention out into many streams of thought and quickly focus it back down that gives his scenes their vertiginous exhilaration. How else to explain the rush one feels from looking at a completely static shot where you can barely make out the actors?

He set out to make a film about family but I think he discovered he also wanted to make a film about life in Taipei. The reflections are the device that lets him make two movies at once. I think that's what is most special about each reflective shot. It is the instantaneous visual realization of an epic goal, and a reminder to the audience of both themes working in the movie.

His assuredness and gentleness astounds me.