Tsai Ming-Liang creates films that are the epitome of cinematic aestheticism in addition to being most memorable reports on isolation. The three protagonists, Hsiao Kang, Hsiao Kang′s mother, and Shiang-Chyi, all experience the different and yet similar feelings of isolation, loneliness and fear. They all share feelings of isolation due to the loss of communication, the fear of death, and the departure of loved ones, but they all have different methods in overcoming these ponderous feelings. All of them exhibit a pathological attachment to abnormal wishes. Hsiao Kang sets all clocks and watches to Paris time in his quixotic longing for a wonderful life there, while his mother believes that her deceased husband′s spirit will return. Tsai Ming-Liang′s discernment of isolation, which is felt by contemporary society, leads to two simultaneous conclusions: pessimism and hope. Hsiao Kang′s dream of living in Paris, an exotic place, shows that the dream life in Paris is not that much different than the current situation (the scene of Shiang-Chyi′s life in Paris shows this clearly), but, at the same time, Tsai Ming-Liang is immersed in yet another dream. This shows in the belief that, although the body is destroyed, the father′s spirit still exists. Hope, in the end, is love. (Kim Ji-Seok)