Bitter Melon

Bitter Melon is a great take on the domestic violence situation within a Filipino household and me being a white man, I was looking into a situation knowing nothing except what domestic violence is and what happened in my situation and I found many similarities. What made me astounded was that the family reacted to this abuse with just hide the violence and move on. I also saw that even the abuser, Troy, seem to think there was nothing wrong with his actions even up until the end of the movie. I would love more movies or even a follow-up from H. P. to explore this concept further and what we could do to help and one day eliminate the issue.

Perhaps for viewers with "normal" families this film may miss the mark. For me it relived the utter depression I used to feel going home for Christmas and resume picking at the scabs of my family life that never ever healed. Let's all eat and see if it medicated the pain....we have everything you ever liked and lots more.Facing the crap we have left behind and pretended was buried. Thanks Mr. Mendoza, I feel less alone now.

HP Mendoza is an amazing filmmaker who never let's you off easy. This film is a great look at a dysfunctional Filipino family coming together to confront old demons. Mendoza never lets you relax by saying simply: this is the bad guy, this is the good guy. Writing and performances are great. Well worth looking for.

I love this film for a lot of reasons. Asians and API folks get boxed into stereotypes when it comes to specific genres. The roles are not necessarily diverse and taking risks with our imaginations as filmmakers aren't necessarily rewarded. I'm pleased with the fact that the filmmaker juxtaposes traumatic issues within a cultural framework that resonates with the audience as a whole. It's not easy to weave themes such as masculinity (including toxic masculinity), homophobia, misogyny, and domestic violence into storytelling that is entertaining, funny, dark, terrifying, and serious at the same time.

Timing is incredibly appreciated in this film. From the delivery and performance of the actors/actresses (you should know much was shot in single take) to the score, it's obvious the filmmaker is a genius- add his guerrilla-like filmmaking training from his DIY days. This kind of passion in filmmaking is far from the automated formats you see these days.

Be prepared for some monologues but from my perspective, it gives you the experience of live theater- something I'm sure we're all missing these days.

The references to SF Bay Area Filipinos, 90's API love, and Filipino food and culture is on spot. A film to be proud of no matter who you are.

Bitter Melon is a fresh take on indie filmmaking that is consistently engaging and original throughout. The cast is diverse, the music score is haunting (especially the end credits song by the director himself) and the plot takes some nice twists and turns. It's a strong film from an original voice.