The Wayward Cloud fails as allegory, human story, anti-porn screed, postmodern musical, and even formal delight (Tsai's emptied-out aesthetic has never felt so empty, his mannerisms so pointlessly mannered), but it seems to have worked well enough as a necessary purge.
The Wayward Cloud(天邊一朵雲)
France, Taiwan · 2005
1h 54m
Director Tsai Ming-liang
Starring Lee Kang-sheng, Chen Shiang-Chyi, Sumomo Yozakura, Lu Yi-Ching
Genre Comedy, Drama, Romance
Add to Watchlist
Please login to add films to your watchlist.
Hsiao-Kang, now working as an adult movie actor, meets Shiang-chyi once again. Meanwhile, the city of Taipei faces a water shortage that makes the sales of watermelons skyrocket.
We hate to say it, but we can't find anywhere to view this film.
What are people saying?
What are critics saying?
The New York Times by A.O. Scott
It feels willed, aggressive and unconvincing -- clammy rather than cool -- in a way that suggests artistic frustration rather than discovery. The water shortage may be a metaphor for the director’s creative desiccation, which his admirers can only hope is temporary.
Wrongly branded misogynist by PC kneejerkers, this is a scathing assault on the exploitative nature of pornography and the emptiness of sex without love.
Chicago Reader by Jonathan Rosenbaum
Tsai's obvious disgust at the sex is part of what makes the film so unpleasant; he remains a brilliant original, but this is a parody of his gifts.
The Hollywood Reporter by Richard James Havis
This silly film does nothing to enhance Taiwanese auteur Tsai Ming-liang's reputation. The acting is below par, the mise-en-scene is clumsy and the structure is lazy.
The director is, you won't be surprised to learn, Tsai Ming-laing, whose deadpan humor and minimalist lensing has made him a god among film geeks.
Users who liked this film also liked
Enter the Void
The spirit of a drug addict embarks on a psychedelic tour of life after death.
- ✭ ✭ ✭
- France, Germany, Italy • 2009
- Director Gaspar Noé
- Cast Paz de la Huerta, Nathaniel Brown, Cyril Roy, Olly Alexander, Masato Tanno, Ed Spear
- Genre Drama, Fantasy
- Available on AMC+, AMC+ Amazon Channel, AMC Plus Apple TV Channel , IFC Films Unlimited Apple TV Channel, Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, Microsoft Store, YouTube, Kanopy
Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives
(ลุงบุญมีระลึกชาติ)
Contemplating the reasons for his illness, Boonmee treks through the jungle with his family to a mysterious hilltop cave.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- Thailand, United Kingdom, France • 2010
- Director Apichatpong Weerasethakul
- Cast Sakda Kaewbuadee, Jenjira Pongpas, Thanapat Saisaymar, Natthakarn Aphaiwonk, Geerasak Kulhong, Wallapa Mongkolprasert, Kanokporn Tongaram
- Genre Comedy, Drama, Fantasy
- Available on Strand Releasing Amazon Channel, Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, YouTube
Kuroneko
(藪の中の黒猫)
Beware the haunted women who lurk in the bamboo forest as black cats craving the blood of samurai!
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- Japan • 1968
- Director Kaneto Shindō
- Cast Kichiemon Nakamura II, Nobuko Otowa, Kiwako Taichi, Kei Satō, Taiji Tonoyama, Rokkō Toura
- Genre Horror, Fantasy
- Available on Criterion Channel
Peppermint Candy
(박하사탕)
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- Korea, Japan • 2000
- Director Lee Chang-dong
- Cast Sol Kyung-gu, Moon So-ri, Kim Yeo-jin, Suh Jung, Go Seo-hee, Kim In-kwon
- Genre Drama
- Available on Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, Microsoft Store, YouTube
The River
(河流)
A young man develops a mysterious neck pain after floating in a river for a film shoot.
- ✭ ✭ ✭
- Taiwan • 1997
- Director Tsai Ming-liang
- Cast Miao Tien, Lee Kang-sheng, Ann Hui, Lu Yi-Ching, Chen Shiang-Chyi, Yang Kuei-Mei
- Genre Drama, Romance
- Available on Plex, Plex Channel
Rebels of the Neon God
(青少年哪吒)
A lonely young man recently dropped out of school wanders the streets of Taipei in search of something.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- Taiwan • 1992
- Director Tsai Ming-liang
- Cast Chen Chao-jung, Lee Kang-Sheng, Lu Yi-Ching, Miao Tien, Jen Chang-bin
- Genre Crime, Drama
- Available on MUBI Amazon Channel, OVID, Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, YouTube, Kanopy
C'est la vie!
(Le Sens de la fête)
- ✭ ✭ ✭
- Belgium, Canada, France • 2017
- Director Éric Toledano, Olivier Nakache
- Cast Jean-Pierre Bacri, Gilles Lellouche, Jean-Paul Rouve, Vincent Macaigne, Alban Ivanov, Eye Haïdara
- Genre Comedy
- Available on No streaming locations found.
American Animals
Four Kentuckians decide to steal rare books from Translyvania University.
- ✭ ✭ ✭
- United Kingdom, United States • 2018
- Director Bart Layton
- Cast Evan Peters, Barry Keoghan, Blake Jenner, Jared Abrahamson, Warren Lipka, Spencer Reinhard
- Genre Crime, Documentary, Drama
- Available on Amazon Prime Video, fuboTV, Amazon Prime Video with Ads, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, Microsoft Store, YouTube, Apple TV, VUDU Free
Parasite
(기생충)
A poor family lies and schemes their way into the employ of a wealthy household — successfully, but with great consequences.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- Korea • 2019
- Director Bong Joon-ho
- Cast Song Kang-ho, Lee Sun-kyun, Cho Yeo-jeong, Choi Woo-shik, Park So-dam, Chang Hyae-jin
- Genre Comedy, Drama, Thriller
- Available on Max, Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, Microsoft Store, YouTube, Spectrum On Demand, AMC on Demand
Midsommar
Let the festivities begin.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- United States, Sweden • 2019
- Director Ari Aster
- Cast Florence Pugh, Jack Reynor, William Jackson Harper, Will Poulter, Vilhelm Blomgren, Isabelle Grill
- Genre Horror, Drama, Mystery
- Available on Max Amazon Channel, Max, Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, Microsoft Store, YouTube, Kanopy
Bones and All
Love blossoms between a young woman and a drifter as they embark on a 3,000-mile journey.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- Italy, United States • 2022
- Director Luca Guadagnino
- Cast Taylor Russell, Timothée Chalamet, Mark Rylance, Anna Cobb, André Holland, Michael Stuhlbarg
- Genre Drama, Horror, Romance
- Available on MGM Plus, fuboTV, Epix Amazon Channel, MGM Plus Roku Premium Channel, Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, Microsoft Store, YouTube