The very last scene felt contrived, too heavy-handed, too neat, which sort of ruins it, other than that this is really, really good in my opinion.

Perhaps not quite as all-around masterful as some of Tsai's later films, it's still captivating for much of its runtime in particular the wordless opening twenty-three minutes and that final devastating six minute long shot. A beautifully crafted look at the struggle to communicate in a city, a place where alienation and disconnection abound. Rare moments of humour lighten the load of entering into this world where scarce conversation is used primarily for business and little else.

Not his best work.

818

My least favorite of Tsai's films, but still awesome and really touching.

Tsai's style is still developing at this point. He's trying out the techniques and themes that would become his trademarks, but he hasn't mastered them yet. Although there are some great moments, the dead space here feels like truly dead space, as not relevatory as it is in the later films. So, this is second-tier Tsai to me, and the really good stuff doesn't start happening until The Hole. The final scene is devastating, though.