The big bookshop in Taipei has a strange customer – he never buys anything but night after night he squats in front of the shelves, leafing through the French textbooks. Kai's girlfriend has moved to Paris and he dreams of following her. "Sans vous Tapei est très triste. Très très triste."
When a friendly old gangster from the neighborhood offers Kai a deal – a ticket to Paris in return for a "courier service" – there is no more time for sadness. A turbulent night begins, in which a bunch of wannabe crooks wearing orange suits kidnaps Kai's best friend, a not-so-cool policeman confuses duty and love, and Kai loses sight of Paris because he falls in love with Susie, the bookseller.
The feature debut of Arvin Chen, who grew up in California and whose short film Mei won the Berlinale Shorts Silver Bear in 2007, is a playful homage to his lively and colorful city of adoption and its exciting nightlife, which has no need to hide behind Paris. Supported by a wonderful ensemble of actors, in Au revoir Taipei he expertly combines slapstick and romance, suspense and comic to create a work that is full of warmth and dedication.
Christoph Terhechte
Production: Atom Cinema, Taipei; Greenskyfilms Inc., Los Angeles
Screenplay: Arvin Chen
Camera: Michael Fimognari
Cast: Amber Kuo, Jack Yao, Joseph Chang, Lawrence Ko, Frankie Gao
Format: 35mm, color
Running time: 85 min.
Languages: Mandarin, Taiwanese
Photo: © Beta Cinema
