Asian American Showcase
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Jule Gilfillan’s 1998 romantic comedy plays like a picturesque travelogue as it follows two couples around Beijing. In one story, a Chinese-American surfer boy (David Wu) falls for a Beijing girl; like Peter Wang’s A Great Wall it mines the rich comic vein of an overseas Chinese humbled and civilized by the homeland. The other story, about an American expatriate (Catherine Kellner) becoming infatuated with a Chinese Go master, is more somber; like Frank Capra’s The Bitter Tea of General Yen it captures the regret of a naive American enveloped, overwhelmed, and defeated by a foreign culture. Yet Gilfillan, an American who’s studied at the Beijing Film Academy, jumps from one plot point to the next like a giddy tour guide, opting for an easygoing charm instead of delving into the characters’ motives and feelings. The real drama is the city itself, steeped in history yet undergoing a Western face-lift. (TS) (8:00)
SUNDAY, APRIL 4
Set in New York’s trendy SoHo district, this earnestly charming 1998 black comedy, written and directed by Korean-born Wonsuk Chin, posits several interesting metaphysical questions that offset the occasionally pretentious and ironic tone. As a take on the overexposed downtown Manhattan scene, it’s remarkably fresh and mature, reminding one of the old adage that a foreigner’s perspective is often the most successful in candidly portraying a specific milieu. Stunningly shot by Jim Denault, and aided by a sterling cast that includes Hong Kong-Taiwanese acting and singing superstar Takeshi Kaneshiro, Mira Sorvino, and Ben Gazzara, the film follows the final two days in the life of Kenji (Kaneshiro), a Japanese slacker who, soon after having a strange dream (beautifully rendered as a silent-movie tableau), is visited by Death (Sorvino) and told he has just 12 hours to live. Kenji, jobless and unambitious, struggles to figure out what he should do with his remaining time on earth. Vaguely aware that he should be having a good time, he decides to pursue a beautiful German woman (Geno Lechner) he’s just met at a cafe. The film’s conclusion is touching yet oddly unresolved. (Joshua Katzman) (6:00)
