Wi Ding Ho's dark drama “Terrorizers” doesn't only share the title with Edward Yang's classic from 1986, it likewise focuses on a group of individuals in Taipei outcasted in one form of the other, longing to break out from loneliness. Their destinies will intertwine through a slashing incident in a public space, with the film revolving around events that preceded or followed that moment, crucial in puzzling the story pieces together.
The plot is put in the context of societal malaise, dependency on social media and the switch of realities. The ‘earthly' life gets hijacked by the pixelized in “Terrorizers”, a film that also speaks about how much power we gave to the internet and how little it takes to ruin a person's life by exposing sensitive content online. While one of the four main characters finds his ideal space of existence on the internet, the others want to get away from it. None of them will get what they want, due to the harrowing chain of events.
Wi Ding Ho wants us to see beyond the evil, and to grasp the connection between the crime and its societal ‘motivators': the repressed sex education, popularity of slasher video games (and a super easy access to them), bullying and parental neglect, but do we really care for the reasons? In his search of origins of violence, the Taiwanese director goes great lengths to prove the impact of entertainment industry on human psyche, and although he partially makes his point, there is another level to the cause and consequence shown in the film.
“Terrorizers” is a creepy account of an obsessed young man who prays, stalks and sneaks around one woman in his delusional belief of having a connection to her, although he knows her only from the screen. She – in his fantasy much less complicated than girls of flesh and blood who ‘simply don't know what they want' – is accessible, at least in the erotic videos in which she invites the viewers to ‘enter her home'. Which prompts him to take the invitation literally.
Before we get to know the ill-educated 20+ man by the name of Ming Liang (Lin Bo-Hong), we are introduced to his involountary flat-mate Yu Fang (Moon Lee), a woman of approximately same age. It is actually the house of her emotinally stiff politician father that they share with his new young wife. The awkward tenant is the son of Yu Fang father's influential buddy, a silent shadow that nobody really pays attention to.
One could drink inspiration from the well of male jealousy and self-entitlement without ever drying it out, so welcome to another chapter of events going south due to a dude's misinterpretation of things. Ming Liang is a student whose interest in porn and slasher video games results in a damn unhealthy perception of the outside world, and his blank stare and an awkward posture hint at a form of mental disorder. Impressive in his portrayal of a young man without any sense of right and wrong, and who's used to get whatever he wants from his rich, influential parents without questions asked, Lin delivers his strongest performance so far as a stalking, delusional, disturbed guy who's short of becoming a murderer.
Inspried by his favourite VR game and a series of short porn videos introducing ‘Missy' (Annie Chen), Ming Liang is set to conquer his love interest at all costs – also by the means of katana wielding ‘knowledge' gained through years of digital practice.
‘Missy' is actually Yu Fang's thespian fellow from the amateur theatre, and her real name is Monica. She is trying to erase her porn past to avail – there are just too many men who watched the videos and took the liking in them.
The connection between all characters is interestingly built through the broken, nonlinear narrative, and it works well as a whole, particularly on the alleged love triangle level. There isn't actually any other lover story than the one between Yu Fang and her new flame Xiao Zhang (J.C. Lin), an aspiring chef who's about to open his own restaurant. That other thing is a small episode born between two friends amidst their emotional problems as a form of comfort and escapism. If it wasn't witnessed by someone who shouldn't have seen it, it wouldn't have turned into a powder keg.
Men also don't seem to get the teenage cosplayer Kiki (Yao Ai-Ning) who appears in the story as another person who enters Monica's flat without her knowledge. Unlike Ming Liang, her game is of a different kind – crashing places available through her friend's uncle, a real-estate agent, are fun for the high-schooler who enjoys pranks.
You won't be able to get Chopin's Nocturne Op.9 No.2 in E-flat major out of your head after the screening. It is played too often, to anything, almost on loop. In the words of Alex (and in the voice of Malcolm McDowell): It had been a wonderful evening and what I needed now, to give it the perfect ending, was a little of the Ludwig Van.
“Terrrorizers” had its world premiere at Toronto International Film Festival on September 10th.
