Buddha Bless America (1996)

Original title

太平天國

Directed by

Wu Nien-jen

Genre

comedy film

Country

Taiwan

Runtime

1h 58m

Rating

5.6 of 10 from 5 voters

Elsewhere

IMDb

How it feels

In 1960s Taiwan, a remote village hosts American soldiers for a joint military exercise. The locals and soldiers misunderstand each other in funny ways, which also reveals deeper tensions about cultural influence and power.

satiricalnostalgicgentlethoughtfulslow-pacedobservationalwryearthy

What happens

Buddha Bless America (Chinese: 太平天國; Pinyin: Tàipíng Tiānguó) is a 1996 Taiwanese feature film directed by Wu Nien-jen, a scriptwriter turned director. It is a sarcastic comedy set in the early 1960s about a Sino-American joint military exercise in a small village in southern Taiwan. The encounter between the villagers and the unfamiliar American soldiers in the film provides comic incidents of cultural clashes as well as critical reflection on American imperialism and cultural colonialism. This film was selected to be in competition for the Golden Lion award of the 53rd Venice International Film Festival. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

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