Su mi ma sen, Love (2009)

Su mi ma sen, Love (2009)

Release Date: 9 January 2009 (Taiwan)
Quality: DVDRip-XviD
Language: Mandarin | Japanese
Runtime: 85 min
Director: Yu-Hsien Lin
Company: Joint Entertainment International, Jumpboys Films, Yi Tiao Long Hu Bao International Entertainment Company
Movie Info: IMDb
Cast: Chie Tanaka, Huai-chung Wu
Genre: Romance
Watch: Trailer
Size: 698MB

Plot: Chie Tanaka fans, unite! You're out there, right? After starring in the Taiwanese blockbuster Cape No. 7, Tanaka has seen a sudden spike in popularity, and The Powers That Be have responded with Sumimasen, Love, a meta-movie starring the Taiwan-based Japanese actress as - what else - a Japanese actress working in Taiwan after landing the lead role in a local film. Can Taiwan's leading expatriate actress recreate that Cape No. 7 romance-by-the-sea magic? They tried, anyway. Director Lin Yu-Hsien (Exit No. 6) gives Sumimasen, Love a lovely and idyllic mood, but can't get his elements to coalesce into something that sings. Beneath the film's gorgeous and breezy romantic surface there doesn't appear to be a whole lot going on. Visiting Kaohsiung seems like a good idea, though.

Experiencing minor job difficulties, model-actress Chie Tanaka (played by, duh, Chie Tanaka) ditches her handlers and heads on a one-day holiday to seaside Kaohsiung. While taking in the local sights, she meets Wu Huai-Chung (actor Wu Huai-Chung – you see the pattern here?), who seems more like an unrepentant slacker than the aspiring filmmaker that he claims to be. Huai-Chung first spies Chie from afar and takes to following her, and when she loses her wallet, he swoops in with a NT$500 note and an achingly romantic proposition. He asks that she write her phone number on the bill and spend it, and if the money ever finds its way back to him again, she'll become his girlfriend. His justification for a love connection through currency circulation? Simple: their meeting is fate.

Sumimasen, Love begins decently, with a romantic hook delivered in medias res (i.e., mid-narrative) followed by pleasing sequences of the two characters going about their separate lives. Director Lin and cinematographer Fu Shih-Ying capture Kaohsiung beautifully, the handheld camerawork, strong colors and natural lighting giving the film a playful and free spirited mood. Kaohsiung's local character is well represented alongside its more commercial identity; the characters may stop by shopping malls and an Auntie Anne's pretzel shop, but they also buy street snacks, observe local residents and check out the landmarks. The characters flirt with and tease one another, but there's nary a moment of real tension. Watching the film is like going on vacation without ever leaving your home, except your travel companions are likely prettier than you are. (LoveHKFilm)