"Why is the world so different from what we thought it was?"

Yi Yi (2000)
Directed by Edward Yang, not rated, 173 minutes

Yi Yi is a touching and poignant Taiwanese drama about the lives of a middle-class family that tries to remain stable after the family matriarch suffers a stroke and goes into a coma. The performances are terrific all around, even the younger actors, and director Edward Yang gives the film a very subdued style, that makes the realistic story all the more effective. The films follows a large number of characters, but each one is likable and distinctly crafted, and surprisingly their stories are pretty much equally interesting. Yi Yi has a long running time, but it effortlessly sucks you into the world of the characters, and you can't help but enjoy this deeply human film. You'll like it if: You like family dramas, ensemble films, foreign dramas, Magnolia, Tokyo Story or Fanny and Alexander.