First Love: The Litter on the Breeze (1997)
Reviewed by: magic-8 on 2002-12-17
Summary: Everything...Including the Kitchen Sink
Eric Kot's "First Love: The Litter on the Breeze" feels as if everything from the cutting room floor was included in the film. "First Love" is a mishmash of ideas from screenwriters Ocean Chan and Ye Nianchen that lacks focus and cohesive plot. The movie is produced by Wong Kar-wai and stars several actors who have appeared in Wong's other works, such as Takeshi Kaneshiro and Karen Mok. The film is separated into two basic stories; the first with Kaneshiro and Lee Wai Wai, the standout in the film, while the second half features Kot and Mok.

The film meanders all over the place with a smattering of vignettes that shine, including Lee Wai Wai as a sleepwalker who falls in love with the garbage man. Wai Wai has a precious bit where she wears a helmet with a video camera mounted on top. The main distraction is Kot's manic narration that spoofs Wong Kar-wai and his long time cinematographer, Chris Doyle. Kot speaks in non-sequitors and rambles aimlessly until he is forced to settle into a scene. His interruptions break the flow of the film and his voice over becomes a very annoying presence.

"First Love: The Litter on the Breeze" does contain some Wong Kar-wai like beauty, but not enough to carry through the entire film. More like Kot's version of a Wong Kar-wai film on amphetamines. See "First Love: The Litter on the Breeze" if you are in a forgiving mood.