Dong dong de jiàqi (1984)

Dong dong de jiàqi: Directed by Hsiao-Hsien Hou. With Chi-Kuang Wang, Shu-Chen Li, Hsiu-Ling Lin, Mei-Feng. A coming-of-age story about a young brother and sister who spend a pivotal summer in the country with their grandparents.

“It seems like most great directors take out time to make at least one film which focuses on the lives of children. *Pather Panchali* did it for Satyajit Ray, *Amarcord* for Fellini, *Where Is the Friendu0026#39;s House?* for Abbas Kiarostami. *A Summer at Grandpau0026#39;s* seems to be Hou Hsiao-hsienu0026#39;s entry into this genre and it fits in with those other great films perfectly. Having just recently seen 6 other Hou films in a retrospective, this one does seem to be least like the others in terms of having a coherent narrative and fewer distancing effects. However, this IS like the others in terms of Houu0026#39;s focus on everyday life, on how people live their lives during the periods when hugely dramatic things arenu0026#39;t happening. From shots like the one of discarded sunflower seeds on a train to the shot of a turtle trying to avoid a toy truck, this is a film about the little things in life from a childu0026#39;s perspective. Whatu0026#39;s so amazing about the film is that, while portraying small, every-day events, more profound issues about family and death are dealt with in such a complex and subtle way. The basic premise of the film (without giving away too much) is that two children go to their grandfatheru0026#39;s house to live for the summer while their mother is sick in the hospital. Clearly the absence of Ting-Ting and Tung-Tungu0026#39;s mother is deeply traumatic for both. But, Hou gets at this sorrow and confusion without ever simply stating it. The best example of this is the relationship between Tung-Tung and a mentally retarded woman which is one of the most affecting and beautiful relationships Iu0026#39;ve seen on film (and itu0026#39;s all done without a word of dialogue). This is a hard film to find in the U.S. But, if you ever have the opportunity to see *A Summer at Grandpau0026#39;s*, do see it. Youu0026#39;ll get to experience one of the most deeply moving films about childhood that is out there.”