Doylesigerson

I read about this film drifting IMDb because I commented on the filmmakers previous film DREAMERS which I liked very much. The producer kindly sent me a copy since it was not out in the UK yet. This film is everything I expected and more. Ann Lu has again gone beneath the surface of why people do what they do as she did in her first film. The cinematography is splendid, the acting very good. The film reminded me not only of the the French New Wave, but also the work of Russian filmmaker Andrei Tarkovsky in its refusal to offer up the simple answers posed by life's questions. To be sure, I wonder if the MTV generation will understand the film's deeper aspects, but nonetheless, Lu is a filmmaker with a very promising future.

I was fortunate enough to see Dreamers at a screening in Los Angeles, and I was struck by the poetry of this film. Because Ann Lu is a native of China, I think she brings a unique perspective to Hollywood and the tale of two young filmmakers obsessed with making cinema. It's a Hollywood we don't normally see -- a world of subtle compromises, quiet ambition, and relentless dreams. Where most films about film-making depict the struggles of Hollywood through cliché, this film reveals its protagonist through his dysfunctional relationship with his possessive mother. Lu shows us the painful reality of broken homes, and how that pain follows us and influences us well into adulthood. The direction here is evocative of the French new wave, with suburb acting. It is a must for those fascinated by what propels, shatters, and ultimately fulfills our dreams.