East Palace, West Palace (1996)

(Some parents tell their children they hit them because they love them. Some children get this the wrong way. One child grew up believing that being hit is being loved, and to love is to be beaten, hammered and treated like trash. He thinks pain is pleasure and pleasure can only be achieved with pain. We call it the wrong kind of love, but he thinks it's the most beautiful kind of love that the world just misunderstands.)

I watched this because China banned its release. I was curious and the movie proved worthy of that curiosity. It wasn't great, but it was one undeniably beautiful movie. I love the dialogues. Sometimes the lines are rather poetic. The actors could even tell more of the story even with no words at all. The film seemed to glorify the simplicity of its plot with good writing and actors.

Have an open mind upon watching this film, but don't get too attached. It's just a film after all.

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