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Ching shao nien na cha

Rebels of the Neon God
Panorama 40 2019
© Central Motion Picture Corp.
Introverted Hsiao Kang feels cooped up at home. A high school drop-out, he spends his days killing time. He has no friends to speak of. When petty criminal Ah-Tze turns up on his motorcycle and damages Hsiao Kang’s father’s taxi, Hsiao Kang begins to stalk him and his girlfriend with a mixture of doggedness and fascination. Ah-Tze’s motorcycle becomes an obsession. Following him, Hsiao Kang is drawn deeper and deeper into a world of neon-lit gambling dens and dark motel rooms in downtown Taipei.
In his breathtaking early work, Tsai Ming-liang utilises all the elements that characterise his films to this day: water pouring down from the sky or gushing from a blocked kitchen drain, deserted places, urban lawlessness, speechlessness, subtle humour and Lee Kang-sheng, his leading actor, whom he discovered on the street for this film and with whom he has collaborated in almost all his subsequent works. The result is a hypnotic, visually stunning universe traversed with violence and passion by these young rebels engaged in a search for emotional stability.
by Tsaï Ming-liang
with Chen Chao-jung, Lee Kang-sheng, Wang Yu-wen, Jen Chang-pin, Miao Tien, Lu Hsiao-lin Taiwan 1992 Mandarin, Taiwanese 106’ Colour

With

  • Chen Chao-jung (Ah-Tze)
  • Lee Kang-sheng (Hsiao Kang)
  • Wang Yu-wen (Ah Kui)
  • Jen Chang-pin (Ah Ping)
  • Miao Tien (Hsiao Kang's Father)
  • Lu Hsiao-lin (Hsiao Kang's Mother)

Crew

Written and Directed by Tsaï Ming-liang
Cinematography Liao Pen-jung
Editing Wang Chyi-yang
Sound Hu Ting-i
Music Huang Shu-chun
Production Design Lee Pao-ling
Line Producer Jiang Feng-chyi, Heng Sui-je
Producer Hsu Li-kong

World sales

Central Motion Picture Corp.

Produced by

Central Motion Picture Corp.

Tsai Ming-liang

© Claude Wang

Born in Kuching, Malaysia in 1957, his debut film Rebels of the Neon God screened in the Panorama Special section of the 1992 Berlinale. In 1994, Vive l’amour was awarded the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival. His films also screened at the Berlinale in 1995, 1997, 2014, 2019 and 2020; in 1997, The River won a Silver Bear. His 2009 film Visage was co-produced by the Louvre museum in Paris. Stray Dogs won the Grand Prize of the Jury at Venice in 2013. His installations have been presented in the Venice and Shanghai Biennales.

Filmography (selection)

1992 Qingshaonian Nuozha (Rebels of the Neon God) 1994 Ai Qing Wan Sui (Vive l’amour) 1997 He Liu (The River) 1998 Dong (The Hole) 2001 Ni Na Bian Ji Dian (What Time Is It There?) 2002 The Skywalk Is Gone 2003 Bu San (Goodbye, Dragon Inn) 2005 Tian bian yi dou yun (The Wayward Cloud) 2006 Hei Yan Quan (I Don’t Want to Sleep Alone) 2009 Lian (Visage) 2013 Jao You (Stray Dogs) 2014 Xi You (Journey to the West) 2015 Afternoon 2017 Jia Zai Lanre Si (The Deserted) 2018 Ni De Lian (Your Face) 2020 Rizi (Days) 2022 He Chu (Where) 2024 Wu Suo Zhu (Abiding Nowhere)

Bio- & filmography as of Berlinale 2024