The Personals
Picture: C+ Sound: C+ Extras: D Film: B-
When most people think of
foreign films they commonly make the mistake of thinking about dramas, but
comedies are just as universal in the world of cinema. Just as some American comedies reflect
modern life the 1998 Taiwanese film, The Personals, reflects that
culture as well with a humorous touch.
The film introduces us to
a single woman played by Rene Liu. She
is a highly successful individual looking for a companion, so she placed an ad
in the newspaper. Most of the film is
then devoted to the many suitors that answer the ad. Who wouldn’t want a highly successful woman? The comedy enters when we see some really
funny clips of just a few of the individuals looking to hook up with her.
Since woman have been
given more freedoms in the later half of the 20th Century, not just
in America but all over, there has been a subsidence in the workplace. Since both men and women have equal
opportunities in school and work, there is a shift in the family life. A modern workplace offers little time for
romance for those that are single, so what occurs is depression. People become desperate in an attempt to find
their true love, especially once they begin reaching the age of 30.
The Personals came out before the present state of the Internet,
which has become the new place for the dating world. Before it was newspaper ads or telephone hotline numbers. The world is now even more linked since
everyone is at the touch of a keyboard away.
Americans often think
about how different other cultures are, but films like this prove that
underneath, we are all quite similar.
We all search for love, we all lose love, we all move on. There is a certain sadness that comes forth
when we think about these issues, but life is a constant and we must always be
prepared to change the equation in order to fit our needs.
First Run Features has
brought The Personals to DVD as they have with other foreign
titles. Although there are no
supplements the film says enough without them.
The 1.85 X 1 image looks more like 1.78 X 1 and yields average
results. Detail is not fully sharp and
colors bleed occasionally. The Dolby
Digital 2.0 Stereo soundtrack is nothing spectacular, but since most will be
reading subtitles it is hardly distracting.
Although this is not the
most powerful film, it does have its highlights and would be an excellent film
for a compare and contrast with certain American titles that reflect modern
society. Sometimes our best understanding
of other cultures is through movies like this, luckily they are more realistic
than some of the over-the-top dramas/comedies we get in the states.
- Nate Goss
