The Wayward Cloud review

Taiwanese director Tsai Ming-Liang’s besetting obsessions of water and offbeat sex are well to the fore in this highly idiosyncratic semi-musical. Set in a drought-afflicted Taipei, The Wayward Cloud concerns a young man (Lee Kang-Sheng) who acts in porno movies while pursuing a largely wordless affair with a tour guide (Chen Shiang-Chyi). Factor in visual gags involving watermelons, massed umbrellas and necrophilia and it’s evident that the tone is rather more frivolous – not to say zany – than Tsai’s previous offerings (eg Goodbye, Dragon Inn). And that’s even before you get to the cheesy musical numbers, all played way over the top and set to vintage western pop tunes. It’s a sure bet you’ve never seen ‘Sixteen Tons’ and ‘The Laughing Policeman’ treated like this...