CHA CHA FOR TWINS

寶米恰恰

Directed by Jim Wang, Yang Yi-chien

Asia Pop! / Taiwan / 2012 / Comedy, Romance, Romantic Comedy / 101 mins / Mandarin with English subtitles / DCP, HD / International Premiere

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Watch Trailer

CHA CHA FOR TWINS

UCSD Atkinson Hall Auditorium
November 2, 2012 8:00 pm

CHA CHA FOR TWINS

UltraStar Mission Valley
November 8, 2012 7:35 pm

Description

Best Narrative Feature, 2012 Taipei Film Festival
Nominated Best New Director, Best New Performer, 2012 Golden Horse Awards

Co-director Jim Wang scheduled to attend Fri, Nov. 2 screening.

Hollywood has gleefully churned out numerous identical twin comedies of switching places and parent-trapping, and they predictably show the ups and downs and lessons learned. What sets CHA CHA FOR TWINS apart is the care it gives to identity: being a twin is not simply physical, but deeply personal too. Of course, that doesn’t mean it can’t also be enchanting.

17-year-old identical twin sisters Poni and Mini Chang (both Huang Peijia) play on the school’s basketball team and excel in the classroom. But at their age, hormones have kicked in and new feelings start to surface, especially for Poni when it comes to boys, homework, and sports. Jealousy ensues when younger twin Mini gets romantic attention from schoolmate Yogurt (Lun Ou Yang). Poni’s struggle to display her differences reaches a high point when Ping (Paul Chiang from Au Revoir Taipei) takes notice of Poni…or is it Mini? The follies of mistaken identity ensue of course, but all toward a surprisingly thoughtful conclusion.

Co-directors Jim Wang and Yang Yi-chien accomplish with great fun the difficult job of cinematically creating a world where two people look identical but are far from it, while newcomer Huang Peijia shows nice subtlety playing both twins as they transition into young adulthood and find a place for themselves. –Eric Lallana