March of Happiness

March of Happiness is a 1999 Taiwanese film directed by Lin Cheng-sheng. It tells the story of a teenage romance in a performing troupe set against the backdrop of the Japanese occupation and the 228 Massacre. Several characters are either historical or based on historical people.

March of Happiness
film poster
Traditional	天馬茶房
Simplified	天马茶房
Mandarin	Tiān Mǎ Chá Fáng
Hokkien	Thian-má Tê Pâng
Literally	Tianma Tea House
Directed by	Lin Cheng-sheng
Produced by	Yeh Chin-sheng
Written by	Yeh Chin-sheng Tseng Yu-wen
Screenplay by	Ko So-ching
Starring	Hsiao Shu-shen Lim Giong Leon Dai Lung Shao-hua Doze Niu Chen Ming-chang
Music by	Chen Ming-chang
Cinematography	Tsai Cheng-hui
Edited by	Chen Hsiao-jing Hu Ju-sung
Production company	Green Apple Films
Release date	1999
Running time	94 minutes
Country	Taiwan
Language	Taiwanese Hokkien Japanese Mandarin Shanghainese

The film was Taiwan's official Best Foreign Language Film submission at the 72nd Academy Awards, but did not manage to receive a nomination.[1] The film was also screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 1999 Cannes Film Festival.[2]

There are two slightly different versions. In the TV version shown on Formosa Television, the film ends with both protagonists singing the theme song together, even though the male protagonist was already dead. In the cinema version, the film ends with the female protagonist singing the song by herself in a much slower tempo. The TV version is about 9 minutes longer.