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ariel alba
Nothing gives a young soldier more pleasure than being a dog loyal to his master
Based on the novel "Military Dog" (軍犬) by Petit (Xia Mu Cong), the Taiwanese short film of the same name shows an intense virtual erotic encounter between a "human puppy" named Li Jun-Zhong and his Master DT, while offers a glimpse into the unique BDSM scene, the well-known human-puppy play in Taiwan, influenced by Japanese shibari (繩縛) and culture leather/kinky/fetish from the United States.
Based on his own experience in the army, which, in Xia Mu Cong's words, is a gigantic sadomasochistic place, 'Military Dog', a psychosocial thriller of obsession, directed in 2019 by Ping-Wen Wang and scripted by Yi-Hsun Yu delves into the strangest and most provocative areas of the human mind, while viscerally penetrating all the spooky moments that keep us up at night.
Film that won the Gold Award at the Outfest: Los Angeles Gay & Lesbian Film Festival 2019, tells us about a soldier who wants to level up through an extreme method, which involves his Master DT: entering the world of BDSM.
Shocking and full of suspense... a little fun as the soldier follows his Master's instructions via video call, 'Military Dog' received high ratings from critics and the public during its screening at the 2019 Outfest LGBTQ Film Festival and 2019 Outfest Fusion LGBTQ People of Color Film Festival "Opening Night Gala".
One night, in the military camp, the young soldier, played wonderfully by Chun Yao Yao, an actor known for his participation in the LGBT+ themed film 'Dear Tenant' (2020), by Wang Li Wei, accepts the proposal of his Master DT to become his "puppy" to demonstrate his burning desire and tremendous loyalty and submission.
The cast also includes Tommy Wang, an actor known for playing Eric in 'Dear Tenant', Kevin in 'Gentleman Spa' (2019), and Xiao K in the series 'Dark Blue and Moonlight' 2017), all of LGBT+ theme, who plays Junior Soldier here.
In an exclusive sphere where any activity can occur, Li Jun-Zhong as the "Military Dog", and Master DT (although his face can barely be seen through the mobile phone, in an outstanding performance by Li Yun Tsai, actor known for participating in several LGBT+ themed films, such as 'Bao Bao' (2018) and 'The Story of the Stone' (2018), like "Master", blur the limits of pain and pleasure through control and submission, the look, the compliance with orders, the speed with which he must react if he wants to gain the acceptance of the "Master", the dangers he must run to satisfy the Master's demands in a place guarded by other soldiers on duty, the sound of the urine when falling, one's own touch, smell and breathing.
What make the story more fascinating are the young Taiwanese director's imitation of an instructor's training and the oath of enlistment, culminating in the pleasure of built-up erotic tension.
Full of passionate and kinky exploration along, DT is referred to as "Master" and "He" in the story to indicate a relationship between a caretaker and a pup.
Naturally, Li Jun-Zhong's pronouns "he" and "his" (with "Military Dog" as his pup's name) are presented in lowercase. The purpose of this conceit is, first, to show the respect, love and adoration of the human cub towards its Master; secondly, prove that DT is the only Master of Li Jun-Zhong.
At the same time, the film adopts combined first and third person points of view to refer to "Military Dog", celebrating the fluidity and versatility of his sexual identity. In the film, viewers are supposed to understand that "I" is "he" (lowercase) is "the slave".
The film gains vigor thanks to Eric Chao's photography with flat colors with little color saturation seasoned with dark night nuances, and a sharp, penetrating music by Thomas Foguenne.
'Military Dog' focuses on sexual fluidity and the metamorphosis of humans into "dogs" in the context of contemporary Taiwan. Captivatingly shot, the film subverts cultural norms by outing the underground BDSM scene and imagining the military as a distinct site of queer performance, creating a layered act of queering what is normal or "vanilla".
Furthermore, this important and timely work questions the universalizing claims of queer desire and fundamental notions of the erotic, the individual, and the body. The short film seeks to document the existence of the Taiwanese BDSM scene and new sexual identities. It also offers the opportunity to imagine a new politics of sex, one that projects a vision of our queer past and future.
Moving away from stereotypical representations of queer characters as a group of suffering victims, Ping-Wen Wang explores and showcases LGBTQ+ experiences using new approaches.
'Military Dog' reaffirms the high level of social acceptance of Taiwanese queer cinema, while promoting greater awareness of the LGBTQ+ community. This film is a demonstration that the film industry is evolving, progressing and expanding queer productions, responding to increasingly deep conversations about queer issues and recognizing their commercial potential.
Based on his own experience in the army, which, in Xia Mu Cong's words, is a gigantic sadomasochistic place, 'Military Dog', a psychosocial thriller of obsession, directed in 2019 by Ping-Wen Wang and scripted by Yi-Hsun Yu delves into the strangest and most provocative areas of the human mind, while viscerally penetrating all the spooky moments that keep us up at night.
Film that won the Gold Award at the Outfest: Los Angeles Gay & Lesbian Film Festival 2019, tells us about a soldier who wants to level up through an extreme method, which involves his Master DT: entering the world of BDSM.
Shocking and full of suspense... a little fun as the soldier follows his Master's instructions via video call, 'Military Dog' received high ratings from critics and the public during its screening at the 2019 Outfest LGBTQ Film Festival and 2019 Outfest Fusion LGBTQ People of Color Film Festival "Opening Night Gala".
One night, in the military camp, the young soldier, played wonderfully by Chun Yao Yao, an actor known for his participation in the LGBT+ themed film 'Dear Tenant' (2020), by Wang Li Wei, accepts the proposal of his Master DT to become his "puppy" to demonstrate his burning desire and tremendous loyalty and submission.
The cast also includes Tommy Wang, an actor known for playing Eric in 'Dear Tenant', Kevin in 'Gentleman Spa' (2019), and Xiao K in the series 'Dark Blue and Moonlight' 2017), all of LGBT+ theme, who plays Junior Soldier here.
In an exclusive sphere where any activity can occur, Li Jun-Zhong as the "Military Dog", and Master DT (although his face can barely be seen through the mobile phone, in an outstanding performance by Li Yun Tsai, actor known for participating in several LGBT+ themed films, such as 'Bao Bao' (2018) and 'The Story of the Stone' (2018), like "Master", blur the limits of pain and pleasure through control and submission, the look, the compliance with orders, the speed with which he must react if he wants to gain the acceptance of the "Master", the dangers he must run to satisfy the Master's demands in a place guarded by other soldiers on duty, the sound of the urine when falling, one's own touch, smell and breathing.
What make the story more fascinating are the young Taiwanese director's imitation of an instructor's training and the oath of enlistment, culminating in the pleasure of built-up erotic tension.
Full of passionate and kinky exploration along, DT is referred to as "Master" and "He" in the story to indicate a relationship between a caretaker and a pup.
Naturally, Li Jun-Zhong's pronouns "he" and "his" (with "Military Dog" as his pup's name) are presented in lowercase. The purpose of this conceit is, first, to show the respect, love and adoration of the human cub towards its Master; secondly, prove that DT is the only Master of Li Jun-Zhong.
At the same time, the film adopts combined first and third person points of view to refer to "Military Dog", celebrating the fluidity and versatility of his sexual identity. In the film, viewers are supposed to understand that "I" is "he" (lowercase) is "the slave".
The film gains vigor thanks to Eric Chao's photography with flat colors with little color saturation seasoned with dark night nuances, and a sharp, penetrating music by Thomas Foguenne.
'Military Dog' focuses on sexual fluidity and the metamorphosis of humans into "dogs" in the context of contemporary Taiwan. Captivatingly shot, the film subverts cultural norms by outing the underground BDSM scene and imagining the military as a distinct site of queer performance, creating a layered act of queering what is normal or "vanilla".
Furthermore, this important and timely work questions the universalizing claims of queer desire and fundamental notions of the erotic, the individual, and the body. The short film seeks to document the existence of the Taiwanese BDSM scene and new sexual identities. It also offers the opportunity to imagine a new politics of sex, one that projects a vision of our queer past and future.
Moving away from stereotypical representations of queer characters as a group of suffering victims, Ping-Wen Wang explores and showcases LGBTQ+ experiences using new approaches.
'Military Dog' reaffirms the high level of social acceptance of Taiwanese queer cinema, while promoting greater awareness of the LGBTQ+ community. This film is a demonstration that the film industry is evolving, progressing and expanding queer productions, responding to increasingly deep conversations about queer issues and recognizing their commercial potential.
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