If your a guy like me i just wanna say that the first minutes of the movie might look too much girly like they bake cakes, talk about crushes and have friends etc. Just go on continue watching and watch the development of these two main characters and the twist might surprise you..like "WTF i didnt see that coming", that "WTF i didnt see that coming" factor makes this movie IMO special to any movie in this genre. I enjoy watching this film, yes its slot but I like the colors and the music they played in the movie. Its a movie that the longer I think about it the better my opinion about it becomes. The acting I don't have a problem, tho this types of characters are not that complicated to play and both female leads have great chemistry so their own characters appears authentic. I really like the casting here they choose actors with very different appearance to suits their characters with very different personality and that in my opinion is a very genius move by the producers.
-a nice movie to watch after a busy work
-a nice movie to watch before sleeping
-one of the best coming of age films i've seen
-a movie with a "WTF I didnt see that coming" twist
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Ai is a normal teenage girl with normal friends. None of them are good at baking and they love to joke around and goof off. Miao Miao is an exchange student from Japan who is very quiet and shy. The two girls hit it off right away and spend the majority of their time together. They are normal teenage girls. In the end Miao Miao falls in love with a guy who is so self absorbed and depressed. He spends his time with noise cancelling headphones on and searching for CD to help him remember his lost love and best friend. Ai, thinks Miao Miao spends too much time with him and is jealous. She wants Miao Miao all to herself, but not for reasons she thinks.
A warning to prudes: there are underlying homosexual tendencies in this movie. Nothing even remotely ‘graphic’ though. In all there are two different main love lines in this movie, a third in the background. None of them bloom by the end which really disappointed me.
I found it a little too boring and disappointing. I wanted something more to happen and develop between the characters, but nothing ever did. In all it’s a good short movie to watch if you want something a little more light-hearted that deals with friendship and finding the one you truly love.
Music: Honestly, it never made that much impression on me. I do remember that in the second hand CD shop it sounded like a lot of indie music. That wasn’t too bad. Honestly, I was more focused on what was going on in the movie than the tunes.
Cast/Acting: They weren’t bad, but they weren’t amazing either. Personally, I really invested myself into them, trying to figure out who they were and just what the hell was up Chen Fie’s ass. I loved Pinna Sandrine’s characters. While she was immature and goofy there was a sadness to her. Her parents aren’t together, she caught her dad in bed with a woman, and she loves someone who won’t love her back.
This was the first movie I’d seen Ke Alice in, but I was impressed. I know her major from college was English, but she did really good with Japanese. There wasn’t a whole lot spoken, but she really nailed it. Her acting was just as good, she really seemed shy and introverted.
Rewatch Value: 7
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"Fish get depressed if you put them in square tanks"
Miao Miao is a 2008 Taiwanese coming of age film about two school girls who experienced both the rush of joy and the pain of first love. Not nearly as deep or devastating as it could have been Miao Miao splashed along the surface of life and relationships.Ai ignores her father and the breakfast he cooked for her like she does every morning. Once again late for school, she brings a cake she made to share with her friends. Her love for baking hasn’t transformed her very limited skills and her friends don’t exactly dig into her creation. A new foreign exchange student catches Ai’s eye. Miao Miao is studying in Taiwan for the year before returning to Japan. The two hit it off, their bond deepened by Miao Miao’s advanced baking techniques. The two girls visit the site of the bakery where Miao Miao’s grandmother met her first love, only now it’s a used CD store owned by a moody musician. Chen Fei religiously wears headphones and ignores people as much as he can. Miao Miao falls head over heels for the reclusive musician who scarcely acknowledges her existence. He is nursing his grief and broken heart over the loss of his love. Ai is discovering her own burgeoning feelings for Miao Miao. The three young people attempt to navigate the precarious path to and from love.
This film had potential as the girls’ friendship developed and then had the obstacle of Miao Miao’s crush. Not all people know how to maintain and nurture a friendship when one person’s attention becomes focused on a love interest. The stress on the friendship was increased as Ai wasn’t just jealous of the time Miao Miao spent attempting to catch Chen Fei’s attention but jealous that her friend was romantically interested in the brooding store owner. Sandrine Penna and Ko Chia Yen gave their best given the limitations of the script. The source of Chen Fei’s angst was shown in flashback with a strong performance by Chris Wu Kang Ren as the lover. Fan Chih Wei’s performance was not nearly as inspired.
The course of first love is rarely smooth or a straight line. Sometimes even admitting to feelings that might be rejected not only by another but also society can make the journey downright rocky. Though dealing with heartache and unrequited love, Miao Miao didn’t stumble by becoming melodramatic. It would have been nice if it had taken a more scenic route off of the well-trod path it insisted on keeping to. Neither groundbreaking nor overly deep, Miao Miao showed that the best remedy for a broken heart was friendship, even when that relationship caused the pain in the first place.
24 May 2025
Trigger warning: If real life scumbags are a deterrent for you, I discovered after watching this film that Fan Chih Wei has not been good to women, including assault.
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This review may contain spoilers
A good coming-of-age movie about First Loves
I have really enjoyed this movie!! Read the other reviews and well, it really depends on what you are expecting from this? This movie is not going into depths on first loves, it is a coming-of-age story, about 3 young people, how they met each other, their lives and their first loves. It convincingly portrays the attractions that Ai has towards Miao Miao, and Miao Miao has towards Chen Fei. The story between Chen Fei and his friend is not clearly portrayed because Chen Fei isn't clear on what he wants to do with his life, he is still grieving.Whether Ai is gay and really loves Miao Miao, that we do not know, and from Ai's perspective, I don't think she knows too. It is clear to see why she is attracted to Miao Miao-- Ai is interested in baking and Miao Miao is great at it, there is also the opposites attraction factor, and Miao Miao is from Japan and there for just 1 school semester, which adds an exotic element to Miao Miao. Ai is attracted to Chen Fei becos he has a moody look, a 'I don't belong to this world' air .... she is also influenced by her grandmother's daily calls about her teenage romance and wants a taste of it, a love of her own. These little thoughts and wishes of the girls are very clearly conveyed in this movie, and reminds me of my own teen years. The bromance between Chen Fei and his friend/partner isn't that clear, feel more like a friendship that developed deeper feelings as time went by. And how Chen Fei realized too late that he had loved him more than friends, and regret what happened between them.
Do not expect a great love story-- this movie is about that first attractions, that first love. Special commendations to Sandrine Pinna! Her portrayal of Ai is excellent!! Very natural and real. The other actors did a great job too, but as their characters are more quiet, we don't see much of their acting abilities. Overall, a great coming-of-age movie on first loves, very natural acting with simple camera work that effectively tells its simple story to the audience.
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I thought the acting was really good and I was invested in the the 3 main characters. I wanted to follow thier stories and know more about their pasts. Surprisingly enough the character who stood out the most was Chen Fei's dead lover who had only flash back scenes. Chris Wu did a great job of making that small role that he had stand out.
There are 2 love lines in this but none developed by the end which made me disappointed. Because of the ending i dont really have an interest in watching this again.
Overall Miao Miao is watchable because its very short and the acting is very good but it wont be a movie you'll remember.
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