Taiwan’s Most Talked-About LGBTQ Movie

LGBTQ-themed movies are, unfortunately, still pretty rare in mainland China. But if you're interested in this topic and want to explore it through the Chinese language, Taiwanese cinema has some amazing stories to offer.

Personally, I haven’t seen that many LGBTQ-themed Chinese-language films yet—but I do remember really enjoying Girlfriend Boyfriend (女朋友。男朋友), and I probably liked Your Name Engraved Herein (刻在你心底的名字) even more.

Released in 2020, Your Name Engraved Herein became a critically acclaimed box office hit—and to this day, it’s still the highest-grossing LGBTQ-themed movie in Taiwan. And for good reason: it’s a beautifully written story with characters you’ll quickly grow attached to, and it definitely pulls on your heartstrings by the time the credits roll.

And even though it wasn’t officially released in Mainland China (as far as I know), it still gained quite a bit of word-of-mouth popularity even there.

I revisited the movie recently while making some study cards for you, and I can’t recommend it highly enough. It explores an important topic with real depth and emotion—and even if LGBTQ cinema isn't usually your thing, I think this one is still worth a watch.

Most of the dialogue is in Mandarin Chinese with a Taiwanese accent, but it’s not too strong, so it’s a great opportunity to train your ears. I hope you enjoy today’s flashcards, and even if you’re not planning to watch the movie, check them out anyway—you might pick up some useful new words or phrases for your own Chinese journey!

See you next week,
Sandy

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