Now Chinatown

Dear Mr. Dunning,

I just happened to catch your film. What a lucky break for me! My eight year old son was with me and complained at first, but in minutes, he was engrossed as well.

Instead of the typical "Boy meets girl, boy loses girl, boy gets girl"

It was "Boy meets girl, boy empowers girl, girl sets herself free". How refreshing! How beautiful. This was a brilliant and captivating story. It expressed many complex themes but it was conveyed with such entertaining simplicity that my little boy thoroughly enjoyed it. He and I talked about sociology and freedom all afternoon.

Obviously, this film was targeted for adults, but the very mature subplots went right over my son's head and I was there with him to talk about the prevalent issues.

I thank you for the lessons you taught my son and I thank you for the reminders to me about taking my rights for granted. The messages stuck with us.

This was a real triumph on many levels. Congratulations on a superb first effort. You really know how to capture the human spirit. I will watch for your future work.

Kerrie

Now Chinatown is a must-see movie! It is a beautiful film. It has a message that needs to be said. It is a good story and, it is reality which explores a subject that most people can identify with, or at least know someone who can. The story is told in a sensitive way. It is not "sensational" but, rather, a compelling look at a young girl who finds herself transplanted into her new surroundings, in pursuit of the "American Dream." She dates to be herself, and finds her freedom in doing so.

no wonder this got on e!'s top ten dvd's of the year list! i watch a lot of dvd's and this one finally stopped me in my tracks, i sat up, i thought, hmm, that was pretty interesting, what's this section? hey that was cool, i haven't seen that before, and it just got wierder and funnier and better and better. i think this guy had total control over the making of the dvd, it says the menus and cover art is even done by him. you can tell there were no marketing boys in suits mucking in it. this thing is incredible, the best and most diverse features i've ever seen, even new category names, and i hardly heard of it and it gets on e'insiders top ten dvd's of the year with spiderman, harry potter, etc., you can see this director made the dvd right for the viewer, it's like hanging out with a close friend, and he's funny in his commentary too, but very poignant, the single disc must be a dvd 9 cause you get a ton of material, twice as much for the price of one disc, you can tell he thought about this dvd, pushed it to a new level and made it for us, the dvd fans, not just throwing money at it like the studios and boring us with a bunch of featurettes we're gonna see on tv anyway, each section is like a little treasure, a surprise behind each door just like the film itself, and on that note-what a movie! no wonder it won so many awards, check out the real audience reaction on the dvd from premieres in u.s., london, hong kong, and even in mainland china! those were so cool, and the trips you take around the world with the director in dvd-o-rama are awesome. what a talent. i'm rooting for this guy, he's like the rocky of the dvd world amongst the rest of the giants! go get 'em steve, we're right behind you! and i almost forgot, you get this neat little fortune teller thing in it too, you know the ones you folded up as a kid and asked it questions and kinda open and closed it with two fingers on each hand to find your fortune? it looks great just sittin' on my desk at work and everyone picks it up and goes, "Oh yeah i remember these!" very creative i thought to stick in a dvd! cheers again.

Also Recommended: my big fat greek wedding, crouching tiger hidden dragon, joy luck club, casablanca

The individual who pays serious attention to the movies is always seeking the perfect movie. That is a movie with is powerful, caring, bold, striking, original and which tells a powerful story about characters which the viewer cares for. Such a movie is Steven Dunning's `Now Chinatown' which recently was shown in the Egyptian Theater in Hollywood. This writer was blown away by the production.

Set in the Chinatown neighborhood of Los Angeles, this movie explores the complex interactions in a immigrant neighborhood and the search for redemption of a young Chinese girl. There is no end to the superlatives which may be said about this movie. The acting is magnificent, the casting superb, the script is obviously crafted by a man who loves the English language, and the story line is captivating and fascinating.

But what is more interesting is that this production was made with virtually no money. The producer/director/star Steven Dunning paid his dues while working for ten years in the film business and called in his chips to make this movie. Yet the movie never seems to be cheaply made and although it is clear that all the setups are shot in real places. One never notices the lack of the artificial glitz which mainstream Hollywood seem to believe may be substituted for a good script and vision.

The movie tells the story of Lee, a young girl who had immigrated to the U.S. from China. She works in a small restaurant in Chinatown where she is unmercifully abused by those around her. She is eventually befriended by a American customer who mistakes her restaurant for another much better eatery with a similar name.

At first the movie seems to be simply an interracial/cultural romance. Yet it quickly shifts into a deeper examination of the life of a young girl living in an alien society cut off from the cultural cues of her homeland. The character Lee is played by Lianne X. Hu, a young actress who previously played a small role which did not make the final cut in Albert Brooks's `The Muse.' Hu's performance is captivating as she combines in her character both shyness and personal strength is a character who is faced with a bleak and dreary future and yet will eventually overcome all.

The climax of the film occurs at a banquet staged for Assistant Deputy Consul of the People's Republic of China. Well played by Ming Lo, whose previous credits include `E.R.', `The Practice,' `Dr. Doolittle,' and `Contact,' the diplomat explains decades of his life and the current situation in which Lee finds herself in a few short sentences. Although the diplomat is the villain of the movie, he reveals himself to be a complex character who only arrived in his current situation after years of struggle. That he criminally exploits his power over those weaker than himself is tragic. Yet he is by no means a cardboard villain. Rather he, like all the other characters in this well crafted drama, does not control his life. Everyone here is controlled by transcendental forces which are beyond their ability to manipulate or even recognize. Only in the end does Lee manage to escape the fate that everyone else in the movie seems to be foreordained to suffer.

The catalyst for change is the American interloper who appears at the restaurant to purchase a meal. Well played by Steven Dunning, he is similar to the Gentleman Caller who appears halfway through Tennessee Williams's `Glass Menagerie.' His purpose seems to be to disturb the existing order and to force a new relationship of the characters. Dunning fills Steve with compassion, realism and cultural sensitivity. It is worth noting that Dunning did not wish at first to play Steve, but only took over the position when he failed to cast a suitable actor for the part.

This movie is worth seeing. Unless it gets wide distribution this may be difficult to do. If you see it advertised make the effort to see it. You'll be glad that you did.

Pretty simple: Why can't Hollywood make a movie with positive Asian roles?

This movie has so many stereotypes it makes my stomach churn. And for what purpose? To tell a story so that the white guy looks good? It even makes a few outdated stereotypical references to "Empress Dowager" and "Special Fortunes (cookies)". Blech!

Production values are pretty good except for the fact there aren't any subtitles. I like the shot where instead of showing the manager's reaction, we see his hand fall by the doorknob. Musical accompaniment evokes empathic feelings for the central character Lee, especially at the end.

Back to the main point: There aren't any positive Asian imagery, particularly for Asian males. Every Chinese person in this movie is either poor (Lee, the cook, & the busboy) or an a**hole (just about everyone else).

Why can't Hollywood make a movie with positive Asian roles?