Heavy Craving
2021 / Subtitles available
Directed by: Pei-Ju Hsieh
Thirty years old and 105 kilograms of weight, lunch lady Ying-Juan was dealt a bad hand. She works at her mother’s childcare center and has a harder time fitting in than a T-Rex in a petting zoo. On her birthday, Ying-Juan’s mother signs her up for a weight loss program. To earn her mom’s approval, Ying-Juan reluctantly joins the class. But things change when Ying-Juan meets Wu, a deliveryman who bears a checkered past underneath his radiant smile. Encouraged by Wu, Ying-Juan becomes more determined to lose weight. Meanwhile, Ying-Juan discovers Xiao-Yu, a straight-A student at the childcare center, is a secret cross-dresser, and special bond begins to form between them. Just when things are getting on the right track, Ying-Juan’s passion for cooking and life seem to be fading away due to her over-aggressive diet. Bitterly, Ying-Juan finds herself standing on the brink of a meltdown, both physically and psychologically…
What we love about this film
Awards and festivals
In the press
"Ultimately it’s Tsai’s film, and she’s more than up to the task in a funny, human and completely relatable performance. She effortlessly toggles between charming and self-assured and vulnerable and wounded, without ever letting Ying-juan become someone to be pitied."
Elizabeth Kerr
The Hollywood Reporter
"Writer-director Hsieh Pei-ju delicately balances a realistic world that borders on cheesiness and fantasy."
Jonathan Liu
From the Intercom
"The movie benefits the most by the acting, with Tsai Jia-yin giving a great performance as Ying-juan, highlighting a plethora of sentiments including disappointment, anger, and happiness in the most artful way,"
Panos Kotzathanasis
Asian Movie Pulse
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