Review: Small Talk

Many times A-nu (left) is silent when her daughter asks her tough questions

On the plane back to Vancouver, I watched an intriguing Taiwanese documentary called Small Talk (日常對話) that was released last year. It made its international premiere at the 67th Berlin International Film Festival where it won a Teddy Award for Best Documentary Film. It has also recently been nominated as Taiwan's pick for the foreign-language film category in the Academy Awards.

A-nu is more at ease with her many girlfriends

It is a brutally honest film about filmmaker Huang Hui-chen and her relationship with her lesbian mother A-nu, who is a Taoist priestess at funerals. Huang says in the beginning that even though she has lived with her mother most of her life, she knows almost nothing about her, always not home and wants to know why. Is it because she doesn't love her two daughters? Is it because they were adopted?

Through a series of tough face-to-face interviews, as well as footage meeting her mother's siblings, talking to her mother's lovers past and present, and even old home movies of Huang growing up, we along with Huang find out more about A-nu.

We discover she knew from a young age that she was lesbian and Huang doesn't understand or at times is naive about what it's like to be gay, and we discover how she is very generous and loving towards her several girlfriends.

In one scene, A-nu plays with her granddaughter

When asked to comment about their sister's sexuality, her brothers and older sister either don't want to talk about it or don't seem to care. They seem embarrassed to talk about it, and would rather discuss her failed arranged marriage to a man.

Before when I used to watch Chinese movies, there would be a lot of silence between characters and I thought it was for dramatic effect, but this is what happens in reality. There are very long pauses when A-nu answers Huang's questions, or complete silence; you can tell she is thinking about something but says she won't answer the question and gets up to leave, with Huang left sitting in the chair disappointed not to get more information.

However she is persistent and the climax of the film is quite intense. As viewers we don't quite know what happens in the end -- are things better or worse between mother and daughter?

Huang with her Teddy Award

Although the pace seems slow, Small Talk attracts viewers with its intriguing premise and we go on a journey with Huang to find out more about A-nu. Her lovers recounting how she seduced them are the light-hearted moments in the film and reveal a touching side of A-nu that Huang was completely unaware of, though they are equally balanced by the dark experiences both mother and daughter faced.

The film is executive produced by famed director Hou Hsiao-hsien, giving it not only professional weight, but also an endorsement to talk about LGBT stories. Will we see more from Taiwan? That would be light years ahead of Hong Kong...

Small Talk (2016)
Directed by Huang Hui-chen
88 Minutes

Will Taiwan's Same-Sex Ruling Liberalize China?

Taiwan is the first place in Asia to recognize same-sex marriage

The news yesterday that Taiwan is the first place in Asia to legalize same-sex marriages was an euphoric moment for the LGBT community on the island.

Taiwan's top court, the Council of Grand Justices, ruled the current law barring same-sex marriage was a violation of the constitution, as everybody -- regardless of gender -- should enjoy the same marriage rights.

Now the government has two years to revise the civil code. "Even if the authorities fail to revise the law at the end of the two-year period, gay couples can always register with local household offices to make their marriages legal and... enjoy the same rights as heterosexual couples," said Lu Tai-lang, secretary general of the Council of Grand Justices.

Chi Chia-wei (in rainbow top) launched the suit in 2015

A statement issued by the Marriage Equality Grand Platform after the court's decision said, "the ruling will make Taiwan Asia's model of [same-sex] unions".

The suit was launched by veteran gay rights activist Chi Chia-wei, 59, two years ago. He asked if the current law violated the constitution after his attempt to register a marriage to another man was rejected by a Taipei household registration office in 2013, and subsequent appeals failed.

While there are the usual groups that oppose the ruling, we can't help but wonder what China thinks of it, considering how repressive it is when it comes to human rights. That said, eminent legal scholar Jerome Cohen seems to think the news won't be complete censored on the mainland.

"The Mainland's strict censorship and manipulation of the media will not entirely prevent people from knowing about the decision and its meaning," he writes in his blog.

"Although many in the Mainland may not welcome the decision, China traditionally has been more open to same sex relations than more Christian-dominated countries, and the more educated classes will appreciate not only the wisdom and fairness of the decision on the merits, but also the significance of the role of the judiciary in a genuine government under law country."

How will Taiwan's ruling affect China's views on gay unions?

And then today, there was news that the operations of the gay dating app Grindr will be taken over by a mainland Chinese company after it pays a total of US$240 million, and it will build expansion in and beyond China.

Game developer Beijing Kunlun Tech is owned by 38-year-old billionaire Zhou Yahui, and the company plans to pay another US$152 million to by the remaining 38 percent of Grindr it doesn't yet own.

By the way it paid US$88 million for the company last January for a 62 percent stake, which shows the social media app's valuation has gained 161 percent.

"[With the deal,] we also aim to be a world leading social media company in the future, and to expand our plaforms into film, streaming and animation," Kulun said in a statement.

It'll be interesting to see where Kunlun takes Grindr, while its main competition will be Blued, a Chinese gay-dating app that has over 27 million registered users -- almost on par with Grindr.

Blued was founded in 2012 by former policeman Ma Baoli, and last year its latest round of fundraising boosted its net worth to US$300 million, more than Grindr's HK$240 million.

So will more of these gay-dating apps push China to be even more gay friendly and possibly lead to allowing same-sex marriages? Stay tuned.

Hong Kong Landmark Ruling on Same-Sex Marriage

There is a strong gay community in Hong Kong, along with its supporters

Breaking News -- A married gay civil servant is now entitled to the same spousal benefits as a heterosexual couple in Hong Kong.

The landmark ruling came down today which could have a massive ripple effect in all sectors, as for a long time the government refused to acknowledge benefits in same-sex marriages.

The High Court refused the Civil Service Bureau's argument that it was denying benefits for same-sex spouses to protect "the integrity of the institution of marriage".

In 2014, senior immigration officer Leung Chun-kwong married his partner Scott Adams in New Zealand. But when Leung tried to change his marital status to be eligible for spousal benefits back in Hong Kong, he was refused, and so he launched a lawsuit against the secretary for the civil service and the commissioner of the Inland Revenue Department.

The High Court ruled a gay couple is entitled to benefits

While the court ruled in favour with Leung with regards to the CSB, he lost his case with the Revenue Department.

In his 44-page judgment, Mr Justice Anderson Chow Ka-ming called the bureau's policy "indirect discrimination" and rejected its assertion that the secretary had a justifiable aim "to act in line with the prevailing marriage law of Hong Kong" and not to "undermine the integrity of the institution of marriage... hence safeguarding public order".

Chow wrote: "I am unable to see how denial of 'spousal' benefits to homosexual couples... legally married under foreign laws could or would serve the purpose of not undermining the integrity of the institution of marriage in Hong Kong, or protecting the institution of the traditional family."

Leung said the court's decision had wide-ranging implications. "The government is the biggest employer. The whole of Hong Kong will follow [this decision]."

He urged the government to review its policies and update them instead of wait for legal challenges, a process, he said was stressful, expensive and time consuming.

Rainbow-coloured lions have conservatives very worried!

"We were not asking for special treatment. We simply wanted to be treated fairly and with dignity," he said, adding that the court had "recognized and rectified a fundamental unfairness".

The bureau says it is reviewing the decision with the Justice Department, while the Equal Opportunities Commission urges the government to review its policies and extend equal rights to sexual minorities.

However, when it came to the Inland Revenue Department, Leung was unable to change his marital status to same-sex marriage because a provision in the Inland Revenue Ordinance states clearly that a marriage is between a man and a woman.

Nevertheless, we finally a decision that drags Hong Kong into the 21st century. The city is a fiscally liberal one, and so should its society. Christian conservatives are going to be terrified by this ruling -- they can't even stand having rainbow-coloured replica lions at HSBC in Central.

But this is the reality -- there are same-sex couples in Hong Kong and they deserve to be treated equally under the law. And now they do legally.

Case closed? We hope so.

China Fight to Legalize Gay Marriage

With growing acceptance of the LGBT community in China, is marriage next?

The right for homosexuals to marry will be challenged legally after a court in Changsha, Hunan province agreed to hear the case.

Sun Wenlin, 26, filed a suit against the civil affairs bureau to allow him to marry his 36-year-old partner so that they could have a family.

"I think from a legal point of view, we should be successful," Sun said. "Our marriage law says there is freedom to marry and gender equality. These words can be applied to same-sex marriage."

He said he tried to marry his partner back in June at Furong district civil affairs bureau but they were rejected, as the official said marriage had to be between a man and a woman.

Activists say that because the court accepted the case, this is a positive sign that China is willing to address inequality in the LGBT community.

Up until 2001, China regarded homosexuality as a mental disorder, but even today many gay men are quiet about their sexual orientation.

Nevertheless, it will be interesting to see what happens in this case. Either way it's definitely a step forward for gays in China to be heard in the courts.

Quote of the Day: Hong Kong's Catholic Church on Gays

Bishop John Tong Hon claims gays are like drug addicts

Pope Francis has been hinting he is more open to homosexuals in general. But the Bishop in Hong Kong is dead fast against anyone who is gay.

Cardinal John Tong Hon has suggested to his flock of 379,000 Catholics here that when they vote on November 22, they should keep in mind candidates' views on gay rights.

Tong wrote a pastoral letter on November 5, lamenting that the city's core values on marriage and family "are continually being challenged and misinterpreted" by sexual liberation and gay rights movements.

Speaking in defense of Tong, Auxiliary Bishop Michael Yeung Ming-cheung equated homosexuals with drug addicts.

"The church doesn't have any enemy and it wouldn't criticize anyone. It was only talking about a wrongdoing. For example, it was wrong to take drugs and we would say no, but we still love drug addicts."

He added Tong was not suggesting who the pastoral flock should vote for, but that it is their responsibility to vote.

Uh huh. And saying that voters should keep in mind which ones are for or against gay rights isn't really instructing them when they cast their ballot, then what is the church saying then?

Why are they politicizing the gay rights issue?

And where do they get the idea that gays are like drug addicts? Where does it say that in the Bible?

Homophobic rants don't help unite the community but instead divide them further. And is that what the church wants people to do?

Can someone please tell Tong we're in 2015...