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06/24/06
Millennium Mambo (2003)
80 %
Reviews Counted: 30 Fresh: 24 Rotten:6 Average Rating: 7.1/10
Runtime: 1 hr 45 mins
Synopsis: Winner of the Grand Prix Technique at the 2001 Cannes Film Festival, Hou Hsiao Hsien's MILLENNIUM MAMBO is a strikingly beautiful film set in Taipei's hot nightclub scene. The remarkable Shu Qi stars as Vicky, a lost soul who hangs out partying with her friends, smoking nonstop, and dancing... [More]
Genre: Foreign Films
Starring: Shu Qi, Jack Kao, Tuan Chun-Hao, Takeuchi Jun, Niu Chen-er
Reviews
Top Critic
We get far too few opportunities in the U.S. to see Hou's gorgeous films on the big screen. If this one comes to your town, don't pass it up.
06/03/08
A disappointing follow-up to the sublime Flowers of Shanghai and minor work in the oeuvre of one of the world's best filmmakers. Even so, this rambling story of a young woman (new star Shu Qi) torn between two loves is visually impressive.
12/27/06
Not a great film, but it makes the best of its shallow narrative and concludes with an emotionally lyrical payoff.
08/23/04
A movie with long patches of interpretive quiet, Millennium Mambo is often pretty to look at, but needs a little more to say.
05/31/04
It's not only a masterpiece, but also Hou's most accessible film to date.
05/06/04
A precise versification ruled by the unbearable beauty of youth at its terminus and decisions for a lifetime made at the trembling moment of crisis.
04/22/04
There is artistry and a fabulous ambiguity coursing through Hou's meditative film.
04/09/04
Recalls the unease that crept over the world's youth back at the turn of the last century.
03/05/04
Vicki's extensive narration is emotionally distancing and her character is too passive to sustain interest.
02/09/04
The combination of the thick sensuality of Mark Lee Ping-bing's cinematography and the gradual fascination that Hou's measured rhythms exert keep you watching.
01/17/04
Appreciative of Vicky's problems, Hou still doesn't appear to understand her character.
01/03/04
Not much happens on the surface of Hou Hsiao Hsien's latest film, a black-lit, Taipei nocturne shot in velvety tones of purple and black by ace cinematographer Mark Lee Ping-bing. Nevertheless, it can break your heart.
01/02/04
A great companion piece to Hou's masterly Flowers of Shanghai and fresh evidence of his status as Taiwan's greatest filmmaker.
01/02/04
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