In this pair of sharp, sprawling satires, one of Taiwans most celebrated filmmakers, Edward Yang, captures the anything-can-happen mood of Taipei at the end of the twentieth century. Made in between his epic dramasA Brighter Summer DayandYi Yi, A Confucian ConfusionandMahjongfind Yang applying a lighter but no less masterly touch to his explorations of human relationships in an increasingly globalized, hypercapitalistic world. These intricately constructed ensemble comediesone set in a cutthroat corporate milieu, the other in a shady criminal underworldreveal the absurdity and cynicism at the heart of modern urban life.

A Confucian Confusion

Edward Yangs first foray into comedy may have been a surprising stylistic departure, but in its richly novelistic vision of urban discontent, it is quintessential Yang. This relation