Named after the oldest neighborhood in Taipei, Monga is an uncompromising gangster epic that fictionalizes the real-life ascension of organized crime in Taipei’s rough-and-tumble Wanhua district. Set in the 1980s against a backdrop of brothels and violent crime, Director Niu Doze’s second feature (What on Earth Have I Done Wrong?, Taiwan Film Days 2009) is a highly stylized chronicle of the initiation of teenagers into the ominous throes of gangster life. With aliases like Mosquito, Monk, Dragon and Monkey, the teens are in thrall to hormonal violence and revenge fantasies. But as they become adults the businesslike atmosphere of organized crime creates tension among the members of this once close-knit group. Beautifully shot in widescreen with intense, saturated color, Monga presents a slick and dangerous Taipei underworld whose primary events are propelled by the misguided desires of its young male protagonists. Wildly successful in Taiwan, this raucous thriller beat out international blockbusters like Avatar at the box office during its opening week.


Written by Niu Doze, Tin Tseng-li. Photographed by Jake Pollock. With Ethan Juan, Mark Chao, Ma Ju-lung, Rhydian Vaughan. (141 min, Distribution Workshop)