• Summary: Hou Hsiao-hsien delivers one of the most rapturously beautiful and romantic movies of the year. Told as three love stories, each set in a different era -- a 1966 pool hall, a 1911 brothel and present day Taipei. The film stars the same actors in all three sections -- Shu Qi and Chang Chen. (IFC Films) Expand
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 19 out of 22
  2. Negative: 0 out of 22
  1. 100
    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.
  2. Three Times is great cinema, pop romance that carries a special charge.
  3. Three Times offers a careful examination of the changing ways people have reacted to each other during the past 100 years. As such, it's an interesting essay but certainly a minor work from a master.

See all 22 Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 4 out of 12
  2. Negative: 6 out of 12
  1. JV
    10
    Three Times (actually, I think the Chinese title is The Best of Times) is an outstanding work of art! Hsiao-hsien Hou has created a symphony in three movements that speaks to the depth of his intellect as a writer and director. The magnificent artistic skill of the camera lens, the profound simplicity of the images caste in three radically different histories, and the captivating recursive complexity of the story place work in the rarefied realm of great cinema. If you know film and have not seen Three Times, a gem awaits you. Expand
    • 0 of 0 users said yes
  2. BobA.
    4
    A mess of a film. It would be correct to say that the theme is: love manifests itself differently through time. But most films prefer to explore their theme. This one is content to state it and be done. People looking for entertainment will be bored to death. People looking for thoughtfulness won't find much new here except for self-conscious, even gimmicky art. Expand
    • 0 of 0 users said yes
  3. MarcK.
    3
    There are only two nice things I can say about this movie: 1. This film might have been a huge hit in China, but it doesn't translate well for American audiences. 2. Shu Qi is the most beautiful woman in the world. Expand
    • 0 of 0 users said yes

See all 12 User Reviews

Trailers

Recommended Products

  1. Bright Leaves Image
  2. Before I Forget Image
  3. Gabrielle Image