Hou has seemed at sea since Flowers of Shanghai ... In his films in the 1980s an element of social protest was present, consciously or otherwise; this has largely been replaced by nostalgia.

| Feb 15, 2021

The first of the three stories is the best., with good visual style.

| Dec 4, 2016

Lambent

| Aug 30, 2009

If you are easily lulled into a sensuous rhythm of pure cinematic languor, this will satisfy. If not, you may be banging your head against the back of your seat.

| Mar 1, 2007

[Hou's] work gains significance due to his specifically tying this theme of love to Taiwan in particular, as opposed to just proposing a general essay on love.

| Original Score: 9/10 | Dec 3, 2006

Hou Hsiao Hsien is quite simply one of the world's premier filmmakers yet his films are lucky to play a few festival dates here in the U.S.

Full Review | Original Score: 10/10 | Oct 28, 2006

An emotionally understated giant of a love story.

| Original Score: A | Sep 30, 2006

Carefully crafted and bereft of dialogue, Three Times sets the bar high with its opening salvo but can't sustain the momentum.

Full Review | Original Score: 2.5/4 | Sep 1, 2006

Assembles all of the major settings of the last 20 years of Hou's career into a single portmanteau of miscommunication and frustrated ardor.

Full Review | Aug 6, 2006

This is a fascinating exercise in utilising style to make subtle psychological and political statements.

| Original Score: 3/5 | Aug 4, 2006

Hsiao-Hsien reinforces his excellent cinematography with a bold use of music, featuring The Platters' Smoke Gets In Your Eyes, but ultimately the running time could have been halved and he would still have made his point.

| Original Score: 2/5 | Aug 1, 2006

An emotional journey, a showcase for two fine actors, and a multifaceted picture of love.

Full Review | Original Score: 3.5/4 | Jul 14, 2006

The style is pure Hou: richly textured atmosphere, tiptoeing camerawork and long, languorous takes of scenes full of privileged moments of human activity.

| Original Score: A | Jul 13, 2006

A film to get lost in, a fragmentary, impressionistic trilogy of fleeting moments of love that is one of the best films of the year.

| Original Score: 4/4 | Jul 7, 2006

Seen in isolation, the first episode has the most satisfying plot and the last the least. But the film's achievement lies mostly in the beautifully articulated similarities and differences among the three.

| Original Score: 4/4 | Jun 23, 2006

Three varieties of love: unfulfilled, mercenary, meaningless. All photographed with such visual beauty that watching the movie is like holding your breath so the butterfly won't stir.

| Original Score: 4/4 | Jun 23, 2006

Great cinema, pop romance that carries a special charge.

Full Review | Original Score: 4/4 | Jun 22, 2006

Filmmaker Hou Hsiao-Hsien tries to tell three tales of romance during different parts of the 20th and 21st centuries. But he winds up stretching a modestly interesting premise out too long -- over more than two hours.

| Original Score: 2.5/4 | Jun 9, 2006

The film is probably too slow, too silent and too long for most audiences. But look beyond the quietness, and you'll discover a three-gem jewel.

| Original Score: 3.5/4 | May 19, 2006

Can a film be exquisite and, at the same time, less than one hoped for? This question arose as Three Times unfolded.

Full Review | Original Score: 2.5/4 | May 19, 2006