2 primates sitting next to me talking throughout (not whispering), despite me and others telling them to shut it, made me feel violent towards them in a way not dissimilar to the daydream sequences in Thai film ONE TAKE ONLY, which I took in just prior to Stanley Kwan's latest. These people make my blood boil, making it difficult for me to enjoy the film undisturbed. They seem to think moments free of dialogue are provided for them to speak. May they never have children.

I left LAN YU feeling indifferent, but now have the urge to see it once more. Like with certain music albums that get better the more you listen, I feel the best films are the ones that require you watch them more than once. Far from the best I have seen from Kwan, but by no means his worst, I have a few grumbles. Had I not known prior to the screening that the film begins in 1989, I would have been just as confused as many of the audience, who were murmuring once the Tianamen scenes cropped up, plus earlier references to the period. Its look is that of 2001, not 1989. Also, I'm not sure what this really says about being gay in contemporary China or China of 12 years ago. Maybe that nothing much has changed? IMO, FISH AND ELEPHANT, the other "gay" PRC lensed film of 2001 (and ever?) gave a much better insight into what it means to be a practising homosexual in modern China.

As it is, LAN YU seems more love story than a social comment on a supressed minority. At that, it's really not bad at all, but I think I need to see it once more.