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Three Times

Play trailer Poster for Three Times 2005 2h 10m Romance LGBTQ+ Play Trailer Watchlist
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86% Tomatometer 51 Reviews 71% Popcornmeter 5,000+ Ratings
Three romantic tales take place in different eras. In "A Time for Love," set in 1966, a soldier (Chen Chang) meets an alluring pool-hall hostess (Shu Qi). "A Time for Freedom," set in 1911, focuses on a courtesan's relationship with a man during the Japanese occupation of Taiwan. In "A Time for Youth," set in 2005, a singer forsakes her female lover for a photographer.

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Three Times

Three Times

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Critics Consensus

Slowly paced, understated, and exquisitely shot, these are three lovely odes to love and longing.

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Critics Reviews

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David Parkinson Empire Magazine This is a fascinating exercise in utilising style to make subtle psychological and political statements. Rated: 3/5 Aug 4, 2006 Full Review Digby Lewis BBC.com 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. Rated: 2/5 Aug 1, 2006 Full Review Moira MacDonald Seattle Times An emotional journey, a showcase for two fine actors, and a multifaceted picture of love. Rated: 3.5/4 Jul 14, 2006 Full Review David Walsh World Socialist Web Site 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 In his films in the 1980s an element of social protest was present, consciously or otherwise; this has largely been replaced by nostalgia.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 Full Review Michael E. Grost Classic Film and Television The first of the three stories is the best., with good visual style. Dec 4, 2016 Full Review Fernando F. Croce CinePassion Lambent Aug 30, 2009 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Audience Member Brilliantly acted and shot first and, to some extent, second parts were ruined by the stagnant third story. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/06/23 Full Review Audience Member Three stories set in three times, 1911, 1966 and 2005. Two actors play the two main characters in each story. All of them sat in Thailand. This is not the easiest film to rate. It looks swell, and my first encounter with director Hsiao-hsien Hou makes me want to check out more of his films. With that said, this is a varied film that I would like to split up in it's three parts. The first part is superb. It looks great, the story and the pace is splendid and it got me really triggered for the rest. The second part is rather boring. It's sat in 1911 and a nice touch is to make it muted only supported by text, music and colors. The final part is all right. It's a bit more exciting, but still very suble and quite dark. It looks good and it's OK acted. In total I must say that this is a cool idea with OK execution. Part one is fantastic but other parts of the film are straight up boring and hard to follow. 6.5 out of 10 pool games. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 01/17/23 Full Review Audience Member Amazing. The cinematography of Hou Hsiao-hsien once again embellishes the already beautiful film, like a chocolate syrup-coated cherry topping. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/15/23 Full Review Audience Member Simplicity In It's Best Form ... Another Underrated Picture ... Another Great Director ... About Love, Freedom & Youth We Talking Here . Rated 4 out of 5 stars 01/28/23 Full Review Audience Member Beautiful cinematography and acting but I have to admit that I only connected with the first segment Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/22/23 Full Review Audience Member this is one of those art house movies that people would cite as the reason they hate these kinds of films. there's a lot of open space, it's quaint, subdued and quiet, and it operates at a deliberately slow pace. i'll admit it lost me at ties especially in the 1911 segment but you can't deny its exquisiteness and subtlety. its pace eventually gets hypnotically rhythmic particularly in the first segment which stands on its own as a wonderful short film. try this one out Rated 4 out of 5 stars 02/12/23 Full Review Read all reviews
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Movie Info

Synopsis Three romantic tales take place in different eras. In "A Time for Love," set in 1966, a soldier (Chen Chang) meets an alluring pool-hall hostess (Shu Qi). "A Time for Freedom," set in 1911, focuses on a courtesan's relationship with a man during the Japanese occupation of Taiwan. In "A Time for Youth," set in 2005, a singer forsakes her female lover for a photographer.
Director
Hsiao-hsien Hou
Producer
Chang Hua-fu
Screenwriter
Chu Tien-wen
Production Co
Sinomovie.com
Genre
Romance, LGBTQ+
Original Language
Chinese
Rerelease Date (Theaters)
Apr 26, 2006
Release Date (Streaming)
Mar 27, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA)
$151.7K
Runtime
2h 10m
Sound Mix
Dolby Digital
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