MsLiz

A wonderful surprise from the West Coast!

The Port Washington N.Y. library showed this film, which I had never heard of, last night, and I was delighted by the story, the actors and the director's work.

This is a film I would recommend to all of my friends. It is very truthful about how real people manage their differences in culture and background. Juana's life as a single mother, and working with her father to support her daughter reflect the experience of many young women I know. This simple story points the way for those who choose to learn about people different from themselves and working together with mutual respect.

I was happy to see that the movie avoided so many of the "working with others" clichés. The actors and the director made the story feel authentic and real.

I spent a lot of my teenage years feeling like an outsider. When I got to my 20s I was surprised to realize that most of the people I talked to did not feel like a success when they were teenagers, even the pretty, smart and handsome ones.

For me, summer stints as a camp counselor helped me find myself as a useful pre-adult. Someone taught me to serve a volleyball, and then I helped my campers win games. Someone played a guitar and led singing, and I found that I could also play guitar and sing with others.

The movie had me laughing out loud at the library showing, and I was delighted with the way this movie realistically told us about Duncan's summer of self-discovery! I look forward to the next movie these writers, producers and directors put together, I am sure they have more to tell us.

Film Movement has made this film available, and I have always been impressed by their selections. Tonight a library in our area showed this movie, and I found it compelling to watch. It is true that several people in front of us got up before the end saying that the film was too long; I will leave it to more technical observers to decide what could have been shortened. The actors were all new to me. The scenes of modern China were very interesting in the context of the story.

I felt this quiet film of everyday people in a difficult situation was very well written, directed and acted. It is another marker on the road of contemporary Chinese films like "Not One Less" and "Raise the Red Lantern." I believe it tells a story which many of us can understand. I would recommend it to you, I was glad to have the opportunity to see it.