Written and directed by Nelicia Low, when his dangerous older brother is released from prison, high school fencer Jie helps him, defying their mother’s attempts to bury his existence. Starring: Tsao Yu-ning, Hsiu-Fu Liu, Ding Ning, Rosen Tsai and Benjamin Tsang.
The first thing you notice with Pierce is how well shot it is, Nelicia Low’s direction is extremely strong, and the atmosphere Low builds is utterly compelling. The aesthetic is sharp with rich colours which makes for an interesting contrast when it’s exploring such deep vulnerability. It is a slow burn but the tone that it creates and the way that it moves work so perfectly to hold your attention. It does a fantastic job of injecting so much anticipation and suspense, while also adding a dark edge, deepening its mystery while not much actually needs to happen, using the audience’s imagination and interpretation.
Low’s style is something that’s absolutely consistent throughout Pierce but the writing struggles slightly to match that strength. It works very well for most of the film but as it nears its end, things start to get frustrating. There’s only so many times you can convincingly switch sides when it comes to that question of: did he do it or not? And Low sadly oversteps that number, making it lose its impact. Then there’s the choice of the actual ending which doesn’t work well at all. It’s got a scandalous and melodramatic nature which is at odds with the refined, subtle style of the film up until that point.
It’s built upon the very relevant topic of societal pressures and judgement, which happens across the world, but does have a particular prevalence in Asian countries with more traditional values. The way that Pierce goes about it, doesn’t really do justice to the topic, leaving it until the last minute to try and amp things up. It plays out mostly like a family drama with a traumatic past and coming from Zijie’s (Hsiu-Fu Liu) perspective, it doesn’t provide much room to do a deep dive. It certainly makes for a decent thriller, it has the right tone but trying to bring through that big swing in the end to make a point about closed-mindedness and discrimination, makes it fall disappointingly flat.
Although, another element which definitely is consistent is the performances. Hsiu-Fu Liu creates Zijie as such a sweet, gentle soul, it feeds so strongly into the compelling nature of the film. Whereas Tsao Yu-ning gives us the darker side as Zihan, upping the mystery as he’s so tightly wound. The two of them together portray that conflict and fractured nature of their relationship so well, their connection is forever on thin ice that could break at any moment. Ding Ning then adds to the emotional side of Pierce, Ning fills her with the desire to build a new life and move forward while also capturing her utterly broken heart. Together they make for an intensely complicated but absorbing family.
Pierce is captivating, sharply shot and filled with suspense. Surprisingly, the build up to its reveal is ultimately more entertaining than the answer. The strength of the film really lies in its anticipation, through the tense atmosphere Nelicia Low creates and the incredible aesthetic, which is not much of a surprise given the cinematographer is Michal Dymek who has also worked on EO, The Girl with the Needle, A Real Pain and Sweat. There are so many things about this film which are fantastic, which makes it all the more frustrating to see it end on such a middling note.
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