Following Cape No. 7, one of the standout Taiwanese films of the year, Orz Boyz! (囧男孩) has finally hit theaters. At this year’s Taipei Film Festival, the film swept three major awards: Best Director (Yang Ya-che), Best Art Direction (Weng Guei-bang), and the Special Jury Award (Mei Fang). I was deeply impressed when I first saw it—the local film scene has long lacked such a gifted storyteller and such a well-written screenplay.
The story centers around two mischievous elementary school classmates: “Liar No.1” (Lee Kuan-yi) and “Liar No.2” (Pan Chin-yu), inseparable best friends who do everything together. Often punished for their antics, they are frequently assigned to the school library to repair damaged books. But even in confinement, they joyfully roam the imaginary worlds of fairytales like The Happy Prince, King of Qatar, and Another Dimension.
These two boys, growing up without proper parental care, navigate their hardships with unique language and boundless imagination. Pan Chin-yu and Lee Kuan-yi are gifted child actors, evoking the same natural charm as the young leads in Hou Hsiao-hsien’s A Summer at Grandpa’s and Edward Yang’s Yi Yi. Their performances are physically expressive and emotionally on point—it’s hard not to be touched by their innocent conversations, which leave an emotional echo long after the film ends.
The director skillfully blends reality with fantasy, constructing a world where the real and the imagined reflect each other. Orz Boyz! stands out as a modern gem in Taiwanese children’s cinema, a film suitable for both young and old. It’s this week’s top must-see pick—don’t miss it!