The End
- Politics
- History
Synopsis
The purpose of this film is to comprehend the war of the preceding generation and their sense of nationality from our point of view. What does country mean to us? How can we clear ourselves from our confused identities?
The making of this film finished around the 20th anniversary of the ending of martial law in Taiwan. It leads us to think about what is country and what is freedom. In this country, the regime is built on restrictions and the martial law on thoughts has never ended.
Copyright © LU Shiao-wen. All Rights Reserved.
Director Statement
For most of the times in the last century, Taiwan was under military regimes. They all tried to rationalize their ruling through their version of history. During the 50 years of Japanese occupation, the Kominka Movement and prohibition of Chinese language was to cut the tides between Taiwan and China; after the Second World War, the KMT government's prohibition of the Japanese language and its Chinese culture revival movement was to take out Japanese culture from Taiwanese culture.
For Taiwanese people who lived in those times, or for the residents of military dependents’ villages who fled to Taiwan from China, 1945 was an abrupt division of their lives. Two different generations educated under two different ideologies have different senses of history of the same land. For grandpa, who had been a Japanese soldier, the Emperor is gone; and for residents of military dependents’ villages, their Party is missing. They all have to deal with their confusion of history. These are two of the major narratives of this film.
Copyright © LU Shiao-wen. All Rights Reserved.
Festivals & Awards
2009 Local Voice Film Festival
Team
- Director