If Boys From Fengkuei is Hou Hsiao-Hsien′s most spontaneous film, then The Time to Live and The Time to Die is definitely his most personal one to date. It is an autobiographical film about growing up, but does not stop at that. Time unveils itself in layers, with casual grace, just like flipping through the pages of a family album. Ah Hao′s father suffers from chronic illness, but what hurts most is being far away from his home in the Mainland and not knowing when he will return. Ah Hao′s grandmother too, misses home; one day, she takes her favourite grandchild on an imaginary trip back home. "Cross the bridge, then it′s Meixian," she said. But she never makes it. She passes away unnoticed, blood draining from her decaying body. The scene is heart-rending, but nevertheless unsentimental. Life comes and goes, natural as the flow of river waters. Sometimes, it aches, but never too personally. Hou films his characters with great compassion, but always at a distance. Long takes, deep focus, multiple spaces in a single shot using windows and door frames, have all become stylistic trademarks of his work. Hou admires the writing of Shen Congwen, a Chinese author of the forties. His own works manifest the same generosity and lucidity. (Wong Ain-Ling)