Cheap What Time Is It There? (DVD) (Kang-sheng Lee, Shiang-chyi Chen) (Ming-liang Tsai) Price

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Customer Reviews of What Time Is It There?

Creative Filming but Still Not Very Watchable
I could see a student of film really getting into this movie. The entire film is a parade of very long, slow-developing shots where the camera just sits in one place and takes in the everyday, mundane happenings following 2 characters in Taipei and Paris. There are some character portraits that work and some that fail to have impact. Generally the movie is very slow and may grind on many viewers. If I were in the mood to "study" a movie then this may have worked for me. I wasn't and therefore really didn't feel enriched by this. I would say the director is talented but this just was a bit off the mark for me. Also the premise that the main character falls in love after such a non-event is quite a stretch. And like the others, I was a bit puzzled by the obsession with a guy urinating into various containers. I got the point the first time... didn't need 7-8 more 90-second shots of that.

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A modern classic of architecture in film
I've never reviewed before, but I just had to make a point against some of the negative reviews. To those reviewers who claim that What Time is it There? is full of long, boring shots, I emphatically suggest that you rethink the reason you like to watch movies. If you're into movies for action, gags, gimmicks, and stars, then yes, stay away from this one. But to watch this movie with a focus on its fantastically constructed shots, moving portraits of the human soul, and powerful images of modern city life is to understand why sometimes the architecture of a shot can speak volumes more than catchy dialogue and special effects.

I actually got a chance to hear Tsai-Ming a few months ago, where he joked with the audience before a screening of this film, speaking through an interpreter and saying: "Other people ask me why I use such little dialogue. I ask them, 'Why do you use so much?'" He made a similar comment about the lack of recognizable musical soundtracks in his film. What the director is trying to explain here is that there are other ways of capturing attention and making a point, and this movie is incredibly effective at that. What Time is it There? is not only a powerful story about loneliness, familial isolation, and cultural identity, but shot so marvelously that nearly every shot took my breath away. I highly, highly recommend this film to anyone interested in the construction of a shot, and how the way that a character interacting with his or her space can be even more effective than dialogue in conveying their emotional relationships to themselves and the people around them.

As far as this DVD specfically, I can tell you that this movie is one to be seen on the big screen. So if you have an enormous television, you're in for a treat. However, the beautiful simplicity of the bare shots and the architectural construction both interior and exterior shines through no matter what format you're watching it on.

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TIME¿S UP
Between Taipei and Paris time is the connecting force between two young Taiwanese. Virtually strangers, a woman persuades to buy a watch that a street vendor is wearing before her departure for Paris. This particular watch has two dials enabling her to keep track of time in both Paris and Taipei. After this transaction is completed the camera follows both of these individuals in their own paths of existence. In the Director's Notes the following adjectives are used to explain WHAT TIME IS IT THERE: mundane, repetitive, and occasionally out of the ordinary activities. I can't create a better sense of this film myself. Unfortunately this film didn't work for me. The only redeeming quality it that it presents an interesting glimpse into Buddhist mourning rituals that were performed by the mother. Otherwise this film fails to deliver its intended message. There are multiple long sequences devoid of action and dialogue that are just plain boring. I couldn't help fast forwarding in dull boredom. Many scenes were left unexplained of their significance that quite frankly bothered me. For example, there were many scenes of the son urinating in a bottle and bag in his bedroom. Why?? I am at a total lost.

Bottom line: This DVD wasn't worth my time (pun intended).