Blue Gate Crossing (2002)

“What kind of grown ups will we become?"

Blue Gate Crossing is in a way your usual coming of age drama, but instead of focusing on romantic relationships, there’s a big empathize on the importance of friendship. It's not a very unique story, yet I can't name another film that has really touched on the subjects this film does. There’s flaws, but in a way those further presents an honest depiction of adolescent.

The film centers around a love triangle. To explain it simply, a girl likes a boy, the boy likes her best friend but her best friend might like her. This is the beginning of the main characters, Meng Ke Rou, journey to self discovery.

The dialogue is very simplistic but repetitive, which makes you remember it. A lot is expressed through acting and not verbally, that’s where the actors really shine. The cinematography is soft and beautiful, I particularly like the way the director has cut certain scenes in a way to tell us something more, so that’s something to look out for. All the characters are lovable, unique and easy to sympathize with despite what you’d think upon hearing the word ‘love triangle’.

I also want to add that the soundtrack is lovely. I believe it is composed by Chris Hou. It further brings out the very bright but soft vibe of the film. I remember that I cried the first time I watched this film and the music was a big part of that.

To point out something negative, the queer theme is not very overpowering and you should probably lower your expectations if you want to watch this film only for that. It’s the main driving force for the story, but it is not explored fully (as i’ve heard other people express, personally I think it shows a very realistic experience). The film is also slow paced, so beware of that.

All in all, Blue Gate Crossing captures teenage behaviour and the complexity of human relationships very well. I think most of us can remember when we first discovered new emotions we didn’t yet know how to handle, and this film captures that. I recommend you to watch it it if you're looking for something with a calm atmosphere that makes you reflect a little about life.

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