Taiwanese melodrama revolving around love in a military brothel on Kinmen Island…
Paradise in Service is the latest offering from Doze Niu, one of Taiwan’s most commercially successful modern directors, which sees him re-teaming with popular star Ethan Ruan, who he also worked with on the hits Monga and Love. Co-starring Chen Jian Bin (Three Kingdoms – Zheng Tu), Wan Qian (The Children Came Home) and Ivy Chen (Girls), the film won a number of prizes and nominations at the 51st Golden Horse Awards, as well as the Taipei Film Festival and the Hong Kong Film Awards, and screened to acclaim at the Busan and Berlin festivals amongst other around the world.
Set in 1969, the film takes place on the historically-contested Kinmen Island, administrated by Taiwan, though located only kilometres from the Mainland Chinese coast. Ruan plays Pao, a 20 year old military recruit selected to try out for the hardcore Sea Dragons unit, though who is sadly rejected due to his lack of physical prowess or swimming skills. Chosen for administrative duties instead by his commander Chang (Chen Jian Bin), Pao joins Unit 831, which despite being called “the teahouse” and “military paradise” is effectively an officially-sanctioned brothel. While carrying out his new duties he meets and befriends Jiao (Ivy Chen) and Ni Ni (Wan Qian), two women with their own mysterious and tragic stories, and with the threat of war lurking in the background, complications ensue.
Paradise in Service definitely has a very interesting setting and backstory, Kinmen Island being a location ripe for thematic depth and historical meaning. However, perhaps unsurprisingly given his background in populist local blockbusters, Doze Niu aims mainly for melodrama rather than digging too deeply. In narrative terms the film is certainly straightforward, falling back for the most part on familiar stereotypes and genre clichés, basically following the innocent Pao as he gets tied up in love triangles and encounters the usual prostitutes with sad stories and hearts of gold, trying to resist their charms to preserve himself for his girlfriend back home – Doze Niu takes a non-judgemental approach to the whole prostitution theme, though some viewers may well find the subject of comfort women an uncomfortable one, and the film does leave itself open to accusations of glossing over the real horrors behind it. To be fair, while unoriginal the film is still engaging, and its story does have some moments of solid emotional payoff towards the end, enough so to make it worthwhile for fans of languid romantic dramas.
Fortunately, the film receives a boost from its cast, all of whom are on fine form, adding valuable depth and gravity to their roles. Ethan Ruan does well in the lead, convincingly playing a character some ten years younger than his real age and making sure Pao comes across as naïve rather than simply daft and indecisive. More impressive however are Chen Jian Bin and Wan Qian, respective winners of Best Supporting Actor and Best Supporting Actress at the Golden Horse Awards, both playing outsider figures whose turmoil and tragedy effectively underscore the film’s themes far more than the narrative.
The film also performs well on a technical level, looking good and boasting top notch production values, with some visually appealing cinematography from Charlie Lam. There’s a dreamy feel throughout, and Doze Niu successfully mines the locations for believable period detail and exactly the kind of bittersweet nostalgia he was obviously aiming for. This serves to make the film more of a mood piece, which definitely helps (as does a well-chosen soundtrack of time-stamped pop songs), and it comes across at times as Hou Hsiao Hsien-lite – Hou actually supervised the editing of the film, and while it’s nowhere near up to his standard, the mix of his more artistic style with Doze Niu’s popcorn sensibilities does work well.
Paradise in Service is definitely one for a certain audience or fans of Ethan Ruan, though viewers averse to slow-moving romantic melodrama may find themselves tuning out during an overlong middle section. Well-made and acted, it’s one of the better examples of the form of late, and though lacking in substance and failing to make the most of its subject matter, is another perfectly respectable offering from Doze Niu.
