Tsai Ming-liang’s “Love in a Time of Madness” Returns in 4K… Venice’s Top Award Legend Re-Releases Next Month

A Taiwan New Wave masterpiece that shines with Venice’s top prize returns next month on July 12 in 4K

A legendary masterpiece that reshaped the trajectory of Taiwanese cinema comes back to the screen in stunning resolution. “Tsai Ming-liang” director’s “Love in a Time of Madness” will find its way back to South Korean audiences next month on July 12 in a “4K remastering” version.

Set against an empty apartment building in Taipei, Taiwan, the film follows the crosscutting paths of three men and women who share the same space without knowing each other’s existence. The director’s trademark, fiercely restrained dialogue and suffocating “long take” technique digs relentlessly into the deep loneliness and sense of alienation of modern people adrift in a vast urban landscape.

“Love in a Time of Madness” is regarded as a work that reaches the pinnacle of the “Taiwan New Wave” aesthetic, alongside Hou Hsiao-hsien’s “A Brighter Summer Day” (1989) and Edward Yang’s “A Brighter Summer Day: A Murder Case of a Young Boy” (1991). Meticulous location shooting that excludes artificial sets and a cold, observant gaze that keeps its distance from the subject delivered a fresh jolt to the global film industry at the time.

That distinctive artistic value drew praise from major film festivals. It won the top prize at the Venice Film Festival, and in the same year the film swept three key categories—Best Film, Best Director, and Best Sound Effects—at the “Golden Horse Film Festival”, the region’s most prestigious event in the Chinese-language world, proving its lasting significance to film history. This re-release, returning in a more sharply defined texture that spans 30 years, offers a rare opportunity to fully experience a masterwork that has entered the ranks of classics on the big screen.