Taiwanese director Wei Te-Sheng’s new film may have garnered multiple nominations at the upcoming Golden Horse Awards by fusing arthouse sensibilities with a melodramatic love story, but overall, the film is unoriginal with multiple hackneyed if touching subplots. Often sloppy, random and haphazard, Cape No. 7 is driven by a relatively talented cast and Wei’s eye for mundane humor, but ultimately, the narrative remains a mess.

At the core is a predictable love story between struggling musician Aga (Van Fan) and model Tomoko (an overacting Chie Tanaka). Tomoko is an irritating has-been who has to put together an opening act for a beach concert for real-life Japanese superstar Kousuke Atari. The band includes unlikely misfits Aga, drummer Frog (a funny Ying Weimin), and bassists Malasun (Ma Nienhsien) and Rauma (Minhsiung). The group’s acting is probably the highlight of the film and their rapport is effortless and engaging. Sadly, the same can’t be said for the strained chemistry between Aga and Tomoko, as director Wei fails to draw any real emotions from them, choosing instead to focus on the parallels between their relationship and that of a random mysterious Japanese teacher and a Taiwanese girl some 60 years ago.

While it must have been quite a feat to pull off Cape No. 7, with its numerous crowd scenes and giant cast, a lot of the scenes are shabbily treated. It’s not until the final 15 minutes when the band finally performs at the beach that the film’s magic is apparent. Otherwise, Cape No. 7 is an uneven if novel film marred by patchy moments and a silly premise.

3 Stars by Terry Ong.