Fremont

Saw this at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival

"Fremont" is a story about a beautiful and troubled 20-something Donya, an Afghan translator who used to work with the U. S. government, has trouble sleeping. She lives by herself in Fremont, California, in a building with other Afghan immigrants and often dines alone at a local restaurant watching soap operas. Her routine changes when she's promoted to writing the fortunes at her job at a fortune cookie factory in the city. Director Babak Jalali has a pretty interesting way of telling a dry humor story that was awkward but funny at the same time.

The main narrative feels like something from a Jim Jarmusch setting and despite feeling a little too similar to his style, the film still worked well because of the nice dry humor used, interesting writing and great performances from Anaita Wali Zada. Zada is able to capture her characters performance on beauty and awkwardness. Other characters featured were a little underdeveloped but were fun to watch. Zada's character with her therapist had many great dialogue moments as each dialogue moment felt genuine, funny, and interesting observe.

It's no where near a masterpiece as there are some problems. Some of the pacing could have improved and certain aspects towards the final act weren't as interesting as I hoped for. But I still enjoyed it because of the direction and performance. It's definitely something I will check out again sometime when I let the film sink in for awhile.

Rating: B.

Best suited for a patient art house movie audience I guess. Why? Because however charming and lovely this slowburning portrait of an Afghan refugee in America might be, it is also lacking in spark and punch. That's a nice way of saying it is a bit tedious at moments.

What's beautiful though is the time and attention reserved for the actors in a totally black and white photography setting, which even further enhances the actor's chemistry. Faint memories of Jim Jarmush come to mind, watching this movie, but where directoro Jarmush reaches for the sky, this story never became real magic, merely charming and nice.

"Fremont" is a modest but entertaining displaced person story. Its protagonist, Donya, is a young Afghan woman who fled the country and now works at a fortune cookie factory in San Francisco's Chinatown. She deals with the loneliness and the guilt she feels from abandoning her family, which is exacerbated by some fellow Afghan expats in her community who think of her as a traitor. The movie puts a human face on the plight of refugees everywhere. As she says at one point when asked by her psychiatrist if America is all she dreamed it would be, she didn't really imagine what America would be like because the goal wasn't America specifically -- it was just anywhere that wasn't where she was. I don't think most of us can truly understand what that would feel like.

The movie goes for a very dry, dead pan comedy vibe that I don't think always works. It's one of those movies where characters will just stare awkwardly at each other for several minutes without saying anything. The slow pace might test the patience of some. But I mostly enjoyed it. Anaita Wali Zada gives a good performance as the main protagonist, but I wish the film had given her more to do. Just as her character arc truly begins, the movie ends. I also enjoyed the performances of Gregg Turkington, who plays her doctor and helps her see the parallels between her own life and "White Fang," and Jeremy Allen White, who pops up late in the film as a mechanic and leaves the audience assuming that Donya may not be lonely for much longer.

Grade: A-

I was intrigued how Babak Jalali, the director focused his lens on this beautiful story of Donya, an Afghan immigrant, left her family and county when the Taliban took over, a girl who comes to the city of Fremont to find new life and new purpose.

I found myself wanting to know more about Donya's character and was very curious about where her life in the story will enfold. I can relate as an immigrant myself, to Donya's struggles and longing to fit in and to live a normal life in a new country. Seeing it presented in black and white heightened each element.

I love the film, the story and the cinematography is stunning, a well done film by Babak Jalali and his team. A must see film.

This is a beautiful story of an afghan girl, Donya, who moves to Fremont, a suburb in California. The movie is about her struggles as an immigrant, her longing for her family and her life as an immigrant in a new place making a new life which made it very relatable for me as an immigrant myself. The dynamics within the community are well captured. There are some twists and turns in the story that keep us laughing, crying and everything in between. The end keeps you longing for more. The cast is fabulous and picturization is unique. Being a bay area resident it's fun to find familiar spots through the movie. What a great production!