All the Crows in the World

The sleazy behavior of "respectable" middle-aged men, bidding on women and howling like animals, as seen through the eyes of a woman who's wise beyond her years (Chen Xuanyu). Her gaze reflects mild shock and yet it's knowing, as she's aware of how men are and how to take care of herself. As they sit around the dinner table talking about her virginity, she calmly tells them she's had boyfriends, a priceless moment. The film is stylish and had a clear point of view, yet managed to be offbeat. Case in point, I loved the fun dance number which came out of nowhere. I only wish this had been longer.

I hadn't heard about the 2021 short film "Tian Xia Wu Ya" (aka "All the Crows in the World") prior to getting to sit down and watch it. And since it was an Asian short film that I hadn't already seen, needless to say that of course I opted to watch what writer and director Yi Tang had to offer.

Well, the storyline was not something that fell within my boundaries of what I like in movies, so it wasn't a great viewing experience here. Granted, it was limited what could be accomplished in the mere 14 minutes that the movie ran for. But even so, this movie fell short of being impressive.

I will say, though, that the acting performances in the movie were good, and lead actress Xuanyu Chen definitely showed potential and she could potentially become popular.

All in all, with "Tian Xia Wu Ya" now watched, this is not something I will return to watch a second time, nor is it something I would recommend people to rush out to get to see.

My rating of "Tian Xia Wu Ya" lands on a four out of ten stars.