Rebels of the Neon God

A wayward young man shadows the petty thieves who vandalised his father's taxi in Tsai Ming-liang's moody debut, set on the neon-lit streets of Taipei.

After spending a rainy night on the streets of Taipei robbing telephone boxes, Ah-tze comes home to find his apartment inexplicably flooded. There he meets Ah Kuei, who is dating his brother, but the two soon hook up. Meanwhile, Hsiao-Kang, the wayward son of a taxi driver who has dropped out of college.

When Ah-tze and Ah Ping smash up his father's taxi, Hsiao-Kang starts trailing the pair through the city. Is it infatuation or an intricate plan for revenge?

Curator’s note
Tsai Ming-liang's debut feature instantly announced the arrival of a major auteur. Pulpy, stylish and deadpan, the film set itself apart from many of the films emerging from the Taiwan New Wave, while also playing in the same realist, slice-of-life territory.

Featuring a roster of actors who would go on to populate many of Liang’s later works, it is also the start of one of the great actor and director collaborations. In Lee Kang-sheng he found the perfect proxy, a silent observer of the neon-drenched streets of Taipei.

Rebels of the Neon God is a clear-eyed portrait of disaffected youth, set to a moody, throbbing synth score that washes over roller discos, videogame arcades and gritty