The Hole (Tsai Ming-liang, 1998)

Set in late 1999, this vaguely futuristic story follows two residents of a crumbling building who refuse to leave their homes despite an evacuation order in response to a virus that has decimated Taiwan. As rain pours down relentlessly, a single man is stuck with an unfinished plumbing job and a hole that leads into a woman’s apartment below. The two quickly become adversaries, but isolation and loneliness (backed by the songs of 1950s Hong Kong singer Grace Chang) take the relationship in an unexpected direction. The Hole was long unavailable except in poor video copies, so we’re excited to share this 1990s classic in a new film print on the big screen! Best known for his films Goodbye, Dragon Inn and Vive L’Amour, director Tsai Ming-liang is one of the leading figures in Taiwanese cinema’s “Second New Wave.” Chinese and Taiwanese with English subtitles. (89 mins., 35mm)

"The most memorable fusion of song, dance and weather since Singin’ in the Rain." Village Voice

In the press

• Feature: “‘The Hole’: Urban Apocalypse as Tuneful Chamber Drama,” J. Hoberman, New York Times
• Review: “The Summer’s Most Beautifully Strange New Movie Is from 1998: Tasi Ming-liang’s ‘The Hole,’ in US Theaters for the First Time,” Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire
• “Articles: The Hole,” Joshua Bogatin, ScreenSlate