Kaili Blues

The film plays with the concept of time. Numerous scenes feature either characters from the past or characters from the future. One scene starts with a camera pan as the lead exits a building only for the same character to appear at the end of the camera pan, seemingly covering an impossible distance up a hill to complete the shot. Even characters like an old lady, with whom the main character speaks and interacts as if she's truly there, seems to be just a ghost from his past or even his deceased mother. The connection is unclear but the hints are there for the audience to put it together, rather satisfyingly. No time stamps. No texts underneath. The director trusts the viewer to go a long way into establishing the connections themselves.

Some shots last too long or are in need of a slight edit, but their lengths lend the film a calm tone, with insights to be gained from almost every frame. A suction cup massage slowly turning the skin on a character's back blue. A flowery shirt meant to be given to a dead son is instead worn by the main character.

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