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The Sadness

Name: The Sadness
Director: Rob Jabbaz
Released: 2021
Duration: 100 min

Representation Score

6.5/10

Good

2021

TV-MA

Director

Rob Jabbaz

Runtime

100 minutes

Average Rating

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New Showbiz Analysis

The Sadness shines by providing strong racial and cultural grounding, moving away from Western-centric horror clichés with a Taipei setting and an East Asian cast. This creates a unique, high-intensity environment distinct from typical Hollywood survival films. However, the film falls short in representing LGBTQ+ identities and nuanced portrayals of disability. Characters with altered states are used primarily for horror rather than individual experiences. Ultimately, the film offers a nihilistic critique of institutional stability, succeeding in diversifying the genre's geography and cast while remaining narrow in exploring identity and social dynamics.

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Category Breakdown

Does The Sadness have LGBTQ+ representation?

Minimal

The story focuses on a heterosexual couple, Simon and Chrissy. There are no non-straight or non-cisgender identities or same-sex relationships portrayed.

How does The Sadness portray gender?

Fair

Gender roles are mostly neutralized by the virus's indiscriminate violence. While it avoids traditional protector hierarchies, it doesn't actively challenge power structures through social dynamics.

How racially and ethnically diverse is The Sadness?

Excellent

The film stands out by centering an East Asian cast in contemporary Taipei. This move away from Western-centric casting brings a fresh, non-Anglo-Saxon perspective to the horror genre.

How does The Sadness represent religion and culture?

Good

The narrative deconstructs social order and the family unit. It critiques the fragility of societal structures as the virus blurs the line between civilization and primal instinct.

Does The Sadness include disability representation?

Limited

Psychological and physiological changes are framed as biological infections rather than nuanced depictions of neurodivergence. Characters serve the visceral aesthetic rather than having control over their conditions.

Present on Screen

Provides a predominantly East Asian cast for strong racial diversity.
Uses an authentic setting in contemporary Taipei for a non-Western perspective.
Offers a sophisticated critique of the collapse of social institutions and authority.

Limited or Absent

Needs more LGBTQ+ representation or non-straight, non-cisgender character arcs.
Requires more engagement with disability or neurodivergent perspectives.
Could explore gender roles more through social dynamics rather than neutralizing them.

Official Synopsis

A young couple is pushed to the limits of sanity as they attempt to be reunited amid the chaos of a pandemic outbreak. The streets erupt into violence and depravity, as those infected are driven to enact the most cruel and ghastly things imaginable.

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