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As "Left-Handed Girl" (2025 release from Taiwan; 109 min) opens, we are introduced to a woman and her two daughters, including a 5 yo who is left-handed. They are all returning to Taipei. The mom is struggling to make ends meet. The oldest daughter is finding her own way. And the 5 yo ends up getting shifted between t=her mom and sister's place and the grandparents on her mom's side... At this point we are 10 minutes into the movie.

Couple of comments: this is directed and co-written by Taiwanese-American Shih-Ching Tsou. I admit knowing nothing about her. More notably, the movie is edited, co-written and co-produced by Sean Baker ("The Florida Project"). Together, they bring a slice of the daily life in Taipei. More correctly, it is a slice of the nightly life in Taipei, as much of the movie plays out at night. It's like getting a tip of Taipei's veil lifted. As for the actual story line, there really isn't much of one. Life is playing out in all of its ordinary-ness. The no-name cast is terrific, in particular the two daughters.

"Left-Handed Girl" premiered at this year's Cannes film festival to immediate acclaim, causing a bidding war for the film's distribution rights, eventually won by Netflix. After a very brief US theatrical release last month, the movie is now streaming in Netflix, where I saw it last night. The movie is currently rated 99% Certified Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes. If you are in the mood to fins out what the day-to-day life is like in Taipei, I'd reqadily suggest you check this out, and draw your own conclusion.

When I walked into the modern and comfortable southern Taiwan cinema, I knew nothing about this film until when the film started rolling and I saw Sean Baker's name in it. I have been a huge Baker fan for decades since his 'Take Out'. I've watched and enjoyed every one of his films. I somehow remembered Tsou's name in the credit in every one of Baker's films but it didn't click on me when I first noticed Left-Handed Girl. I was really delighted and enjoyed this wonderful Tsou/Baker co-production about Taiwan's ordinary people's lives and how their compassion for each other intertwined in the typical Tsou/Baker touches. This film reminded me of their earlier 'Prince of Broadway', 'Starlet', 'Tangerine', 'The Florida Project', 'Red Rocket' and lastly but not the least 'Anora'. I wish Left-Handed Girl many successes in the upcoming awards season and I look forward to seeing more of Tsou/Baker co-production in the future. If you like any of their previous films, don't miss out this touching yet often hilarious and wonderful film about contemporary Taiwan.

Following around the streets of Taipei, Left Handed Girl follows a mother and her 2 daughters who just newly moved to the city.

Technically, the movie is well directed, letting the audience view through the streets of Taipei through the character's POV. A vlog style direction is handled well by the newcomer Shih Ching Tsou through iPhone.

While the narrative is shaky at times, the characters are well written and shows their individual struggle to make through every day. Three generations of women working to support their families reveal archaic beliefs about gender and superstitions about left-handedness.

The biggest highlight of the movie was Nina Ye playing a 5 year old kid, seeing her family struggle through various situations and her own dilemma of being left-handed. There was pure innocence in her performance that really made me stick to the movie till the end.

Narratively, the focus was not constant. The pacing was uneven, the characters especially Shih-Hua-Ma could have been written better.

My Rating : 3.5/5.

Left Handed Girl (2025) is a pleasant film with a gentle emotional tone and a visually appealing style. It delivers a soft, engaging atmosphere that makes it enjoyable to watch, and it has moments of genuine beauty both in its characters and its cinematography. However, despite its charm, the movie ultimately settles into very standard drama territory.

The story feels too familiar and doesn't take advantage of the themes it introduces. There are several places where the narrative could have gone deeper-whether in exploring the character's internal struggle, the relationships around her, or the broader message the film hints at. Because of this lack of development, many scenes feel lighter than they should, and the emotional impact remains limited.

Overall, Left Handed Girl is a nice, watchable film, but it clearly had the potential to be much stronger with a richer and more ambitious story.

Give that small girl the oscar already her acting is impressive her expressions and all, her alone is the career of this movie she does everything so good kudos to her.

You may think this is just a boring family drama at first but I promise you it's more than that it takes a level of deep connection and secrets.

After the final moment your view for the entire movie will definitely changed.

I think the final 20 minutes of the movie sums up almost everything, Yet we couldn't get to know what happened between her and her ex husband I really wanted to know all the fuss behind that.