IMDb > Bu san (2003)
Bu san
Quicklinks
Top Links
trailers and videosfull cast and crewtriviaofficial sitesmemorable quotes
Overview
main detailscombined detailsfull cast and crewcompany creditstv schedule
Awards & Reviews
user commentsexternal reviewsnewsgroup reviewsawardsuser ratingsparents guiderecommendationsmessage board
Plot & Quotes
plot summarysynopsisplot keywordsAmazon.com summarymemorable quotes
Fun Stuff
triviagoofssoundtrack listingcrazy creditsalternate versionsmovie connectionsFAQ
Other Info
merchandising linksbox office/businessrelease datesfilming locationstechnical specslaserdisc detailsDVD detailsliterature listingsNewsDesk
Promotional
taglines trailers and videos posters photo gallery
External Links
showtimesofficial sitesmiscellaneousphotographssound clipsvideo clips
Videos
Bu san (2003) -- Trailer for this film about a closing theater

Overview

User Rating:
7.0/10   1,332 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Up 3% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Writer:
Ming-liang Tsai (writer)
Contact:
View company contact information for Good Bye, Dragon Inn on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
21 July 2004 (France) more
Genre:
Plot:
On a dark, wet night a historic and regal Chinese cinema sees its final film. Together with a small handful of souls they bid "Goodbye, Dragon Inn." full summary | add synopsis
Awards:
10 wins & 9 nominations more
User Comments:
A Quiet, Loving Tribute to Going to the Movies more (24 total)

Cast

  (Credited cast)
Kang-sheng Lee ... Hsiao-Kang
Shiang-chyi Chen ... Ticket Woman
Kiyonobu Mitamura ... Japanese tourist
Tien Miao ... Himself
Chun Shih ... Himself
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Chao-jung Chen
Kuei-Mei Yang ... Peanut Eating Woman
more
Create a character page for: ?

Additional Details

Also Known As:
Bu jian bu san
Good Bye, Dragon Inn (International: English title)
Goodbye, Dragon Inn (USA) (DVD box title)
more
Runtime:
82 min | Argentina:84 min (Buenos Aires Festival Internacional de Cine Independiente)
Country:
Language:
Color:
Sound Mix:
Certification:

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
The theater used for the film was actually on the brink of being closed, and shortly before the film was released it was indeed closed, in an strange example of life imitating art. more
Quotes:
The man: Do you know this theater is haunted?
[pause]
The man: This theater is haunted.
[pause]
The man: Ghosts.
[walks away]
Japanese tourist: [calling out to departing man] I'm Japanese.
The man: Good bye.
Japanese tourist: Good bye.
more
Movie Connections:
References Gin gwai (2002) more
Soundtrack:
Chong Feng more

FAQ

This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.
16 out of 19 people found the following comment useful.
A Quiet, Loving Tribute to Going to the Movies, 24 September 2004
Author: noralee from Queens, NY

"Good Bye, Dragon Inn (Bu san)" is something of a Taiwanese "Cinema Paradiso" and "Last Picture Show" in its love of old movie theaters and evoking the unfulfilled longings we project onto movies and their showcases.

We take refuge (and I have no idea how we were supposed to know that one of the characters we are following in is a Japanese tourist, per the IMDb plot description) during a rain storm on the last night at a huge theater, and the camera slowly leads us through every inch of the place.

The vast scale of the place is brought home to us (and it will have less impact when not seen on a big screen) as virtually every inch is navigated painfully by a lame employee, clumping (as we only hear ambient sounds) up and down all those stairs, from the red velveteen seats around every nook and cranny and down long hallways and seedy passageways.

I don't know if only a Western viewer thinks at first one character is a pedophile or another a transvestite, as the theater certainly looks like the old ones that were in Times Square, or if writer/director Ming-liang Tsai is toying with all of us, as he brings other assignation attempts closer (in what must be the longest time any men have ever spent leaning against a urinal), but they are as unreal as the movie-within-a-movie, the swordplay flick "Dragon Inn" which is just a bit more stilted and corny than the current "Warriors of Heaven and Earth (Tian di ying xiong)."

There is one especially lovely moment, within beautiful cinematography throughout, of reaction to the flickering screen when the employee pauses in her rounds to look up at the huge image of the warrior princess and shares our view of the screen with her. Amusingly, the only fulfilled feelings are hunger, as various characters noisily eat a wide variety of refreshments.

The projectionist is as much an unseen power as Herr Drosselmeier in "The Nutcracker," as we don't even see him until the theater is almost ready to close. He is as oblivious to interacting with real people as every other member of the sparse audience.

The major events in the film are when two characters even acknowledge each other's existence, let alone speak the only three lines or so of spoken dialogue in the entire film, reiterating what we've seen visually -- "No one goes to the movies anymore." The closing nostalgic pop song is jarringly intrusive at first to this quiet film, but the lyrics are very appropriate.

Was the above comment useful to you?
more (24 total)

Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for Bu san (2003)
Recent Posts (updated daily)User
Soundtrack? moosemonster
Final night? kail220
The best movie uchylord666
Good Movie, But It Needs Camera Movements! Vertigomovie
Why does the Japanese run away? hladik
Peanut Eating Woman? spaamaway
more

Recommendations

If you enjoyed this title, our database also recommends:
- - - - -
Ba wang bie ji Hei yan quan He liu La finestra di fronte Paris, je t'aime
IMDb User Rating:
IMDb User Rating:
IMDb User Rating:
IMDb User Rating:
IMDb User Rating:
Show more recommendations

Related Links

Full cast and crew Company credits External reviews
IMDb Drama section IMDb Taiwan section Add this title to MyMovies

You may report errors and omissions on this page to the IMDb database managers. They will be examined and if approved will be included in a future update. Clicking the 'Update' button will take you through a step-by-step process.