Things I Learned from Hou
Things I Learned from Hou
By Kore-eda Hirokazu
An appreciation of Hou Hsiao-hsien.
Hou’s Millenium Mambo plays exclusively at Metrograph, both In Theater and At Home. Kore-eda’s Maborosi streams on Metrograph At Home.
THINGS I LEARNED FROM HOU:
Films need people more than stories.
Landscapes also harbor emotions.
(Hou would often draw on colored paper the characters that in Japanese read “天地有情,” which means “Heaven and Earth Have Feelings.” These words caution against viewing the world in an anthropocentric way.)
Life’s details (for example, “eating”) should be respected.
Music can blow like the wind through a scene.
Translated by Ryan Cook. This is an excerpt from the Austrian Film Museum's 2014 book on Hou Hsiao-hsien, edited by Richard Suchenski, available from Columbia Press.
