Rebels of the Neon God

Part of the series Taiwanese Cinema: Two Pivotal Films

Tsai Ming-liang’s debut feature stars Lee Kang-sheng as Hsiao-kang, a young student fascinated with a street hoodlum. Like “Plato,” Sal Mineo’s memorable character in Rebel Without a Cause (to which this film is, in part, a tribute), Hsiao-kang is an awkward misfit whose obsession ultimately goes too far. A richly atmospheric evocation of Taipei after dark, this film introduces the stylistic and thematic preoccupations that make Tsai (What Time is it There?; Goodbye, Dragon Inn) an internationally acclaimed auteur.