🇹🇼5 Essential Taiwanese Films for Mastering Mandarin and Embracing Taiwanese Culture (Part 1) 看電影學華語
These movies can expose you to authentic spoken Taiwanese Mandarin, including various accents, dialects, and colloquial expressions. Also they offer insights into Taiwanese culture, customs, and society. Here are my Taiwanese movie recommendations —
1. Dear Ex 誰先愛上他的 (Shuí xiān ài shàng tā de)
誰先愛上他的, which actually means “Who loved him first”. It talks about a teenager becomes trapped in the middle of a bitter feud between his mother and a free-spirited man, who is both the lover and insurance beneficiary of his recently deceased father.
Why we recommend this film: This story is told from the perspective of a teenage boy. The fact that he speaks clearly makes a very good listening exercise. The mother-son relationship and dynamics are worth observing. I particularily like the actress Ying-Hsuan Hsieh. She plays an anxious mother who has a difficult time to connect with her son. She won the Best Leading Actress award at the 55th Golden Horse Awards for her role. Actually, many of my students asked me what’s the parents-chilren relationship like in Taiwan, I highly recommend you watch it to find out.
推薦原因： 小孩的獨白及視角，非常好的聽力訓練，裡面的母子關係很值得觀察，我特別喜歡裡面的演員謝盈萱， 她成功的飾演一位著急的想接近她小孩卻又徒勞無功的媽媽。贏得第 55 屆金馬獎最佳女主角。另外，很多學生都問我臺灣父母跟小孩之前的關係是怎麼樣的，我真的很推薦大家看這部電影，也許你會有發現。
2. Your Name Engraved Herein 刻在心裡的名字 (kè zài xīndǐ de míngzì)
As martial law ends in 1987 in Taiwan, two male students fall in love amid family pressure, homophobia, and broader social change.
Why we recommend this film: This story explores a part of Taiwanese LGBTQ history, as well as the formative period of martial law in Taiwan. The theme song “Your Name Engraved Herein” by Crowd Lu is amazing, we really recommend checking out this song. Because of these reasons, I’ve selected this film as the material for a part of my Level Up Complete Program course.
了解台灣LGBTQ 演變史、早期戒嚴時期的台灣到民主時期的台灣。主題曲也非常好聽 - 盧廣仲唱的（刻在你心底的名字) 很推薦。因為這些原因也讓我選了這個電影當作 level up complete program 教材的一部分。
3. Little Big Women 孤味 (gū wèi)
It’s about a woman and her 3 daughters who must perform the funeral rites of their ex-husband and father, unleashing the pain and kept secrets.
Why we recommend this film: Although this film is primarily in Taiwanese Hokkien, there is a lot to learn about the funeral culture, familial relationships, and sisterhood in Taiwan.
推薦原因: 語言上雖然以台語為主，但透過電影可以瞭解臺灣喪禮文化及台灣家庭親子與姐妹間的關係。
4. Secret 不能說的秘密 (bùnéng shuō de mìmì)
A talented piano player is a new student at the prestigious Tamkang School. On his first day, he meets a pretty girl playing a mysterious piece of music. The love story is simple, with a twist of course.
Why we recommend this film: This film is one of the early Taiwanese films that gained international attention and thus holds cultural significance in Taiwan. Jay Chou composed most of the music for this movie, and acted the lead role. The theme song (秘密) he wrote is also a popular KTV song in Taiwan.
推薦原因： 這部電影是台灣早期獲得國際關注的電影之一，周杰倫為這部電影作曲，同時也飾演主角。他寫的主題曲也是ＫＴＶ常見的人氣歌曲。
5. You Are the Apple of My Eye 那些年，我們一起追的女孩(nàxiē nián, wǒmen yīqǐ zhuī de nǚhái)
那些年，我們一起追的女孩, which literally means “during those years, the girl we chased together”. It talks about a group of close friends who attend a private school all have a debilitating crush on a sunny star pupil. The only member of the group who claims not to is Ke Jingteng, but he ends up falling in love with her as well.
Why we recommend this film: I cried a little at the end of the movie. I enjoyed it so much because I felt so connected to my own high school life. Actually, this movie is a reflection of most Taiwanese people's high school life, the way it presented is a bit old-fashioned though. Due to the emphasis on campus life and friendships, the conversations are more colloquial with Taiwanese flavor. I’ve talked more about it in Mandarin within my Conversation Training Course (in the bonus session).
推薦原因：看這部電影的結尾時候，我哭了。我很喜歡因為也讓我想到我自己的高中生活。其實這部電影真的真實反映出大部分台灣人的高中生生活，雖然有點老套:) 因為多以校園生活朋友為主，中文較口語，在我自己的課程裡我有比較詳細的介紹。
好好享受:) Please enjoy!
Synopses adapted from Wikipedia and IMDB.
Acknowledgment: Special thanks to Yu Shen Sun for his assistance in crafting this blog post.
