To drive some more traffic to her sex webcam site, Jade (Rainie Yang) decides to get a tattoo. At the tattoo parlor she finds a long lost neighbor, Takeko (Isabella Leong), whom she has had a crush on since she was 9. Jade tries several ways to make Takeko remember her, and show her how much she means to her. But Takeko is still dealing with her own tragic past while caring for her younger brother who doesn't even remember she's his sister. In the meantime the police are investigating the sex webcam site Jade is a member of and one cop starts to waver on whether or not they're doing the right thing.

Spider Lilies is often wrongly represented as a erotic lesbian movie instead of the love story it is. This is a love story involving two human beings. The only reason I mention this in my review is because I have noticed some people were disappointed that it wasn't the "erotic lesbian movie" they thought it would be and the way the film is sometimes summarized does not help with the misrepresentation. But enough about that, let's talk about the movie.

This film hit me in all the right spots. The story is fairly simple, but presented very well. Spider Lilies is a bit more than a basic romance, and digs more into the feeling of abandonment. To want to be loved, to be remembered, to feel accepted. The main goal of a movie like this is for people to be able to identify with the characters of the movie. To relate to the characters in some way, to believe they too could be this character. Personally, I identified with the characters way too much, especially Jade.

I fell in love with Jade almost instantly. I understood and felt for her so much it hurt. Not only does she have that adorable cuteness to her, but her loneliness and determination to get closer to Takeko was sad and sweet. Her video sessions were very touching and were a nice insight into her character. She was so adorable, especially in that bright green wig. I just loved her personality. Of course, I am partial to that color of green. There was just something about Jade that I identified with.

Takeko, on the other hand, was harder for me to identify with. Her story was touching and I felt bad for her, but I just wasn't feeling it as much as with Jade. It might have been the fact that I was completely confused by the timeline of everything until I realized that the teenage girl in the flashbacks that was her girlfriend in the past was NOT Jade. After I figured that part out the timeline of the story made perfect sense. I thought I'd warn you ahead of time, but I might have been the only one that was confused. Logically it doesn't make sense that she would be Jade. Another reason I didn't identify quite as much with Takeko was because the actress underacted her role maybe a little too much. But, she is a troubled character with many issues she needs to sort out. In a search to understand people and herself, Takeko begins to write a journal and lists the reasons her customers get a tattoo. Everyone has a reason: power, love, pain, each person is different. Every tattoo has a story, whether it be a drunk mistake, or a remembrance of a loved one. I enjoyed this aspect of tattoos and it added nicely to character development.

Spider Lilies' story flowed nicely throughout the movie until the end, when it became confusing. A bunch of bizarre events happen and I could not tell whether or not the events actually happened. Some scenes were obviously imagery, others were not so obvious. Either way it disrupted the flow of the movie. Spider Lilies tied up nicely in the end, but a good 15 minutes earlier I wasn't for sure what was going on.

Spider Lilies is a well made drama/romance and I can recommend it to anyone who likes that genre. It never felt corny or gimmicky. I fell in love with it within a few minutes of watching, and was pretty much glued the entire movie. The story with Takeko did not affect me quite as much as Jade's for some reason, but it was never bad. The main grip I have with the movie is the events leading to the ending. Despite these things Spider Lilies still has a special place in my heart.

What I liked: How involved I was with the story; Jade's adorable green wig; Jade's personality; Jade's green and black outfit; Jade's grandmother casually walking in while she's filming; the cop assigned to watch over Jade was cute, I wanted to give him hugs; the scene when Jade sings in front of the camera with the wig on just tore me to pieces; the tattoos in this film were beautiful, makes me want to get one.

What I didn't like: How I was a dumbass and didn't realize teenager Takeko's girlfriend wasn't and couldn't be Jade; the confusing lead to the ending; couldn't get into Takeko's story as much as Jade's.

What I've learned: There are multiple reasons people have for getting a tattoo; The big angel painting in Takeko's shop looks awfully close to an Angel Sanctuary drawing; how much I want a bright green wig.

Spider Lilies is available to buy at the following vendors: