A Brighter Summer Day

Edward Yang directs this Taiwanese crime drama about innocent youth Xiao Si'r (Chen Chang) who sets out on a voyage of discovery after falling in with a gang that takes away his innocence and replaces it with juvenile delinquency. When his parents can no longer afford to send him to day school, Si'r is moved to the evening school where he quickly finds himself in the middle of two rival gangs: the Little Park Boys and the 217s. When he develops feelings for Ming (Lisa Yang), the girlfriend of the Little Park Boys' leader Honey (Hung-Ming Lin), Si'r must put aside any thoughts of his own happiness if he wishes to stay on Honey's good side and progress in the gang. (Criterion)