ReelQ: Small Talk (Ri Chang Dui Hua)

Anu is a tomboy. Married off at a young age—as was customary in Taiwan in the 1970s—and had two children, Anu soon divorced her violent husband and raised her daughters alone. Since then her only romantic relationships have been with women whom, like her, earn a living as professional mourners at funerals.

It’s considered taboo in Taiwanese culture to question a mother’s love, but that’s exactly the topic of her daughter, Hui-chen Huang’s intimate portrait. Mother and daughter set off on a journey together into the past, during which Hui-chen confronts Anu with questions that have tormented Hui-chen for many years.

In a series of long shots the two women discuss loneliness, trust, and abuse, yet most of these discussions end in painful silence. Shifting focus in order to plumb the depths of their relationship, Hui-chen brings viewers along on her desperate attempts to understand her mother.