What Time Is It There?

Hsiao-Kang sells watches on the streets of Taipei. His father has died, his mother is unwell, and his days pass in a dull, oppressive routine. One day he meets Shiang-Chyi, a young woman about to leave for Paris who asks him for a watch that will show the time in both cities at once. The two connect, and after she departs he becomes fixated on her memory, resetting every clock he can to Paris time. Meanwhile, his mother waits for the spirit of her dead husband, and in Paris, Shiang-Chyi's experiences seem strangely tied to Hsiao-Kang's life back home.

The film was directed by Tsai Ming-liang, who wrote the screenplay with Pi-ying Yang. It is the fourth of the thirteen features he has directed, following The Hole and preceding Goodbye, Dragon Inn. Lee Kang-sheng, a regular presence in Tsai's work, plays Hsiao-Kang; Chen Shiang-Chyi plays the traveler, with Lu Yi-Ching as the mother and Miao Tian as the father. It was produced by Lee Kang-sheng, Yeh Jufeng and Michel Imbert as a Taiwan-France co-production.

Made in 2001, the drama runs 116 minutes. On IMDb it holds a 7.3 rating from roughly 5,600 votes, and on TMDB a 7 from about 123 votes, indicating a modest but appreciative audience. A critics' score of 7.9 from 55 reviews places it somewhat higher with reviewers than with general viewers.