‘The First Taste Of Loneliness’ review: Three Chinese women mourn the death of a patriarch in sentimental end to Gu You's ‘Landscape’ trilogy

Dir: Gu You. China/France. 2026 135mins

The concluding film in director Gu You’s  ’Landscape’ (’Shan-Shui’) trilogy follows three generations of women coming to terms with the death of a beloved husband, father and grandfather. Surprisingly heavy-handed in its initial sentimentality, The First Taste Of Loneliness develops into a more nuanced, philosophical reflection on love, loss and the meaning of life. Those who embraced the previous titles in the trilogy should form a readymade audience for the film following its world premiere at Busan. 

Does have a tendency towards the maudlin and a jarring fondness for emotive ballads

Gu You began the trilogy with Dwelling In The Fuchan Mountains (2019) which closed Cannes Critics Week; follow-up Dwelling By The West Lake (2023) competed at Tokyo. The First Taste Of Loneliness begins with a bedside vigil as a man lies dying from pancreatic cancer, surrounded by wife Luna (Xi Meijuan), his daughter Yue (Zhou Xun) and granddaughter Moon (Wang Shengdi). Following his death, extensive voice-over narration from Yue explains how deeply his loss is felt. The women look for signs of his presence in a butterfly, flowers or the birds, while the tinkling piano score seems to tug relentlessly at the heartstrings.

An apartment on the Quintang River in Hangzhou in eastern China has long been the family home. Now, it becomes a mausoleum. The father appears never to have thrown anything away, his cluttered room filled with old cards, letters, notes, recordings and photos. Everything is a memory, and anything could be a trigger for further tears.

The First Taste Of Loneliness takes its title from the 1980s song by Taiwanese singer Teresa Teng that is used near the end of the film. The film unfolds, often in long, static takes, against tranquil scenes of the flowing river and the twinkling lights of distant buildings. The soundtrack embraces the lapping of water, gentle rainfall and the rustle of the wind in the trees. Japanese cinematographer Mikiya Takimoto, renowned for his collaborations with Hirokazu Koreeda, allows the camera to float and quietly drift, sometimes observing events from a lofty height as if the dead father is looking down on his loved ones. The steely blues of twilight and misty morning greys enhance the film’s slightly ethereal look.

There is a gradual awareness that life goes on. When the film moves into the outside world, for an evening of dancing or a picnic by the river, there is a sense of liberation and even the possibility of renewal. Luna is courted by Mr Xu (Xu Chaoying) and a relationship develops that is a delicate negotiation for everyone. Luna is lonely but doesn’t want to feel disloyal to her late husband, or that she is betraying her daughter and granddaughter. Yue wants only the best for her mother, while Moon is about to sit her college exams and is acutely aware that this is a landmark moment in her young life. A football game with her schoolfriends might be the last time they play together.

Everything underlines the sense that life if fleeting, change is inevitable and all anyone can do is savour the moment. The father’s philosophy of life is a refrain throughout the film as we learn of his New Year’s resolutions for a year he never saw, or discover his belief that you should undertake a good deed everyday.

As well as contending with her mother’s new romance, Yue is also faced with her daughter heading off to college. A divorced fashion designer, she learns the inevitability of letting people go and addressing her own loneliness. Zhou Xun’s understated performance invests her character with a sense of accumulated wisdom and a generosity of spirit  that is immensely appealing. She’s also has a winning chemistry with Xi Meijuan, who plays Luna with an elegance and vulnerability.

The First Taste Of Loneliness does have a tendency towards the maudlin and a jarring fondness for emotive ballads, but overall it conveys some touching truths about life and death and the mystical connections between our surroundings and our view of the world. Gu You has already revealed that he plans to expand his original ’Landscape’ trilogy with a further title currently in preparation.