the leading directors of the movement, Edward Yang’s creative voice was often disregarded. A Brighter Summer Day was cut down to 185 minutes by a distributor to increase the number of screenings. The full version—restored by Criterion Collection—was never screened at its birthplace until November 2016. Similarly, Yang opted to not release Yi Yi due to distributors and theater chains. Yang may have outlived the White Terror, but he did not outlive its impact. Between 1998 and 2001, the government opened up to western markets and struck down Taiwanese film quotas in order to join WTO. Hollywood blockbusters replaced Taiwanese movies as the main venue for escapism, crushing Taiwan’s film industry. It still did not fully recover.possibilities, and unsettled questions. A rambling masterpiece, this is both a road movie, and a coming-of-age odyssey of singalongs that is both luxurious to look at and dazzling to contemplate.

Sasha Lane shines as Star, an unfettered 18-year-old, she escapes her abusive scumbag father and joins a mysterious young man named Jake (a shockingly good Shia LeBeouf), whom she had a chance meeting with. Soon Star hits the road with Jake and other teens; a tattooed and glitter-bombed crew who sell magazine subscriptions door-to-door as they zigzag across America.

When we first meet Jake he seems to move with an unpredictable and meteoric energy, like he could just leave the scene or even exit the movie altogether on a whim, if he wanted. And by the end, this meteoric energy