Take Out

A day in the life of an undocumented Chinese immigrant (Charles Jang) delivering food on his bike in Manhattan, which is as deeply realistic as it is compassionate. It starts with him being startled out of bed in the apartment he shares with many others by a couple of heavies who come collecting for a loan shark, and he then tries for the rest of the day to scrabble up the $800 he owes them. He has a wife and baby son back in China that he's hoping to bring over someday (and he's never even met his son), but as a part of getting smuggled into the country, owes people money at a high rate of interest, something that will take several years to pay off.

Most of the film is either in the kitchen of the small Chinese restaurant he works at or in the deliveries the man makes on a dreadfully rainy day, all of which felt incredibly authentic. The backstory to this film is amazing, shot as it was for less than $3,000, and in how it used real people in the customer interactions, some of which were loosely scripted on the fly, others of which seemed simply captured. As Sean Baker explained it, the take-out customers were cast by posting an ad on Craig's list offering $5 to those willing to be filmed at their own apartment receiving food, the resulting footage "hybrid filmmaking, blurring that line between what is real and what is fiction." I was blown away by how immersive it was.

Because a lot of the action is in deliveries, the tension in the film is quiet, but it's definitely there, and I was fully invested. Any setback for this guy can have severe consequences, like a flat tire, an ugly customer interaction, his bike getting stolen, or a car in all that traffic hitting him - and then of course there's the matter of needing to have $800 by the end of the day lest he get beaten some more. How will he make it through a day, much less years of working this way?

In this character there is the timeless struggle of an immigrant hoping for a better life, but Baker and Shih-Ching Tsou were wisely restrained in not making any big political statements or creating cliché interactions. A lot of what gets said is through the immigrant's mannerisms, and in us seeing the world through his eyes, with people from all walks of life and with varying levels of empathy taking food from him. I loved that about the film, and how it showed the power in the community, with people looking out for one another because they had been there, and knew what it was like. I saw great characters and performances in his co-workers, including his fellow delivery man and friend (Jeng-Hua Yu), "big sister," the cashier and manager (Wang-Thye Lee, who was essentially in her real job), and the prickly cook (Justin Wan). It's just a great little film, a hidden gem, and one to check out.

I really liked Sean Baker's style of filming in this movie. It feels like a documentary with all the handheld cinematography. It's got a real raw gritty unfiltered feel to it. Ding Ming's living situation looks rough and unhealthy. I feel for people that have to live this way. His problem with paying off the debt seems to be an even worse situation. It's pretty harsh, but Sean is able to bring a warm humanity to the story which helps to lighten the feel and bring a glimmer of hope. It puts into perspective and sheds some light on the hard work and struggle immigrants have to go through just to make a living in a new country. This movie helps to empathize with that experience, especially if you've never been through it. Ming definitely put in that work, he grinded it out. Although what happens to him towards the end could be predicted from miles away, it still shows how there's hope in life when you're surrounded by good people.

It's amazing to think that this movie was made for just $3000, that's inspiring as hell. Really good directing from Sean Baker. I loved the candid New Yorker interactions. It's probably the best part about this movie. Some are really funny and lighten up the mood of the movie. Overall, it was a good movie with some stand out moments and a gritty raw style. The journey was entertaining and eye-opening. I'd watch this movie again just for the interactions and to be humbled by the experience and reminded that some people have it way worse. Raw score: 7.4/10.

From the extras, it seems that the makers were absolutely fascinated by the idea of recreating routine food deliveries in New York.

Plus some details of cooking.

They even cut our an opening showing more about the gangsters, available as a Deleted Scene for the disk.

I really could not share their enthusiasm. A lot too much of it. And we could have been shown all sorts of other things that were just as worthy.

That said, I liked it, despite liberal use of the fast-forward switch. The characters were very believable. One sympathized. And it mocked some common ideas - several explained how they faked a political motive when they just wanted to make more money than the could back home.

Directors Sean Baker and Shih-Ching Tsou outdo themselves with their tale which is about much more than the sum of its parts. Excellent performances from professionals and non-professionals highlight this story of one young immigrant's struggle to survive in a country that doesn't care what state he is in, they just want their deliveries on time. Please seek this out and see what can be done with no money and a lot of talent. This story could be done 'Hollywood' style, with its crucial deadlines and world pressing in on Ming Ding(the lead), but it doesn't need to rely on overmanipulative scores, frenetic editing or artificial suspense..the way it's laid out will keep you on edge as it is.

Sean Baker has made some really stunning micro budget films in recent years. Both his much lauded "Tangerine" and less known but equally excellent "Starlet" were wonderful comedy- dramas, artfully telling takes of those normally overlooked by mainstream cinema.

"Take Out" is not quite as strong as those later works, but is still well worth seeing.

This verite style study of a Chinese food deliveryman's desperate rush to earn $800 to pay off the loan sharks that helped pay his way to the US has a nifty sense of almost documentary realism. The acting is very real and understated (by a mixed cast of actors and non-pros), and the tension level is high.

I didn't have quite as strong a positive reaction as most of the critics for a few reasons. First, while avoiding movie clichés for the most part, a couple of key 'twists' are broadcast a mile off, dampening their impact. Also, by making his lead character such a cipher (he not only doesn't speak English, but seems inward and withdrawn even among his fellow Chinese), that it's hard to build up a connection with him as a character. Yes, we can pity his plight, but I wanted to understand what was going on in his head. Also, the shaky-cam shooting style occasionally called more attention to itself then I think it was intended to.

It reminded me a bit in tone of Ramin Bahrani's terrific "Man Push Cart", but for me that early work had a little more poetry and richness.

None-the-less, an intelligent, well-meaning micro budget film (it looks like it was shot on regular definition video), and - given my fondness for Baker's more recent films - I'll certainly go back for another look.