LEFT-HANDED GIRL
Starring: Janel Tsai, Shih-Yuan Ma, Nina Ye, Brando Huang, Akio Chen, and Xin-Yan Chao
Director: Shih-Ching Tsou
ADRIANO
In her directorial debut, Shih-Ching Tsou takes a lot from her frequent collaborator, Sean Baker (who happens to have co-written and edited the film). Left-Handed Girl begins as a light tale of hardships with little plot, but offers a breezy look at this family's life against the vibrant backdrop of Taipei's night market. The film slowly devolves into chaos, culminating in a stressful climax that finds beauty in the tragedy of bottom-class living, all put together with compelling handheld home-video style filmmaking. And it's extra watchable when there's a cute little girl at the forefront (Nina Yeh).
AMARÚ
Director Shih-Ching Tsou’s dynamic handheld direction of Left-Handed Girl drops you right into the tumultuous life of single mother Shu-Fen (Janel Tsai) and her two daughters, I-Jing (Nina Ye) and I-Ann (Shih-Yuan Ma). You feel the weight of every decision made by all three characters through the chaotic, yet somehow methodical, pacing that mirrors the unsteady life of secrets, hardships, and hope for a better future. Watching them fight through their slowly unraveling family history, it’s difficult to know where generational trauma ends and bad decision-making begins, but I guess that’s true to life’s harshness. This film mesmerizingly captures that reality.
KATIE
Shih-Ching Tsou’s stunning debut, Left-Handed Girl, draws you in with a seemingly naturalistic and understated approach to the small family’s life as they set up a noodle stand in a bustling night market in Taipei. It then grips you and doesn’t let go until the climactic end while being surprisingly moving, funny, and impactful. The camerawork creates an intimate portrait of the family’s struggles and the pressures they each individually face, especially as women. The young Nina Ye, playing I-Jing, is heartbreakingly adorable and has an impressive screen presence, and is the best thing about this bittersweet story.
