一八九五 (1895) is a 2008 film out of Taiwan starring Cheryl Yang and Wen Sheng Hao. My local Chinese media store AMAX got it about a month ago, but it's taken quite a few days for my wife and I to finish it.
The movie is the telling of Hakka resistance in the wake of the 1985 Japanese invasion of Taiwan. It intertwines the lives of the the 2 leaders of the Hakka resistance with their family, wives and servants.
Along with the telling of the lives with the families, there's also a Japanese perspective. That perspective has the Japanese Prince compassionate toward the Taiwanese. It is one that shows compassion and one that tries to avoid conflict.
However, in times of war, there is a losing side and a winning side. Both sides have causalities and in this case, it was the Taiwanese that suffered the most.
Having just seen Nanking recently, war seems like a lot of suffering. Lots and lots of people die. The numbers are staggering. It saddens me to think about it and to appreciate the relative calm and quite of my life.
The language is mostly Hakka and some Taiwanese. You'll notice actors that you've seen in Taiwanese dramas.
If you're in the US, you can only get a bootleg or an imported version. I don't know if it'll get a US release.
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