Formosa Betrayed

When I saw a small advertising in my local paper for this movie, I had no idea what it was about. I thought it might be a documentary on Formosa before it became Taiwan. How wrong I was! I was totally blown away by its contents, the actors, and the cinematography. I had little knowledge of Taiwan's history prior to seeing this film. It was a real eye opener. I also didn't recognize most of the actors, except for John Heard. James Van Der Beek did an excellent job as the FBI agent Jake Kelly. I am really surprised that the film was shown in San Jose (CA) at all because it seems most viewers have seen 'Formosa Betrayed' at film festivals. This movie should get a wider distribution since, in my opinion, it is very important to let everyone know what happened. An absolute MUST-SEE!

Its not hard to understand why some people took the movie as offensive. Although not a documentary, the movie has events that actually occurred in Taiwan's recent history. Those brought up under KMT's propaganda can't believe such capable government can do such nasty things behind people's back. :D

There are so basic facts about the movie.

1. Not a documentary: Inspired by actual events, but not actual events. 2. For non-Taiwanese audiences: Or those not-familiar with Taiwan and her background. This "Free China" was backed by the US to fight communists but at the expense of severely restricting human rights in Taiwan. 3. Not actual scenes: Unfortunately, due to funding and the political situation in Taiwan, the set needs to be filmed elsewhere than Taiwan.

This movie is a must-see for those who wants to know more about Taiwan and even for those who knows nothing about Taiwan and wants to know the island that makes everything in the 70s and 80s. People who calls it a propaganda is probably afraid of viewers will become interested and search for more info on the background of Taiwan, especially those times under the rule of KMT. Human rights and justice are universal common values, however, the Taiwanese people was not able to enjoy such.

I had to hang with the film for a while before it started to pay off. Until then, it sort of felt like a well-funded political action thriller directed and constructed somewhat less than professionally.

In the end, you could do worse if you dig political action. But lapses in narrative work and character development prevent me from calling this a truly fine film.

I live in Taiwan. I have to say that the film rather does succeed in putting some faces and blood and sweat and tears behind the bits of history that I've learned since I came here.

If you're thinking of renting it, I'd recommend at least a quick peruse of some online materials related to Taiwan in the post-War period, up to the time depicted (the '80s).

I saw this film at the St. Louis International Film Festival and could not have been more impressed. I left the theater with countless questions and consequently could not stop talking about US-Taiwan relations for weeks. I am sure this is what the filmmakers intended.

I find it shocking that I do not know a single person from my generation (even among student peers who claim to be more passionate about foreign affairs than the average American) who has even heard of the name "Formosa"—not to mention that China currently has hundreds of missiles pointed at the island from its side of the Taiwan Strait, or that the U.S. has promised to unconditionally defend Taiwan in any situation of armed attack. I therefore feel certain the majority of Americans will relate perfectly to James Van Der Beek's character, Agent Kelly, who also knows absolutely nothing about the subject matter.

Agent Kelly receives a brutal reality check in Taipei, and so will American audiences when they see this film. I am sure my peers will leave the theater just as eager to ask questions and to learn more about Taiwan as I was. The filmmakers do not seek to teach a perfect history lesson through documentary but rather to tell a dramatic story that will catch Americans' attention, inspire dialogue, and encourage them to better educate themselves on this important issue. In this regard, James Van Der Beek, Will Tiao and Wendy Crewson's performances are all highly effective. The nonlinear narrative furthermore forces audiences to more actively engage themselves with the film and accordingly with the larger issues presented. Overall, I would call "Formosa Betrayed" a huge success.

1) Kaohsiung Incident (1979) - A demonstration led by Formosa Magazine staff resulted in the Martial Law arrest of dozens of dissidents.

2) Lin Family Massacre (1980) - A grim murder of the 7 years old twin girls and their 70 years old grandma in their house then under 24-hour surveillance by the Garrison Command (Taiwan secret police). The day before her murder, the grandma had managed to reach out the international human right organizations about the brutal treatment received by her son in jail. Her son Lin Yi-Hsiung was among the Kaohsiung Incident dissidents arrested.

3) The Murder of Chen Wen-Chen (1981) - Carnegie Mellon University professor Chen Wen-Chen, while visiting Taiwan, was interrogated by the Garrison Command agents two days in a roll. He never returned home. Dr. Chen had been an active Taiwan independence advocate.

4) The Assassination of Henry Liu (1984) - California resident and Journalist Henry Liu was killed in his garage by mafia killers sent overseas by the Taiwan Garrison Command (the secret police head was later sentenced to life by Taiwan authority). Liu had just released a book about the reigning president Chiang Jing-Guo, son and successor of Chiang Kai-Shek.